TraxQEstimate Your Quarterly IFTA Tax
Work out net fuel tax owed or refunded from miles run and gallons purchased per state.
How to use the IFTA Fuel Tax calculator
IFTA taxes where you drove, not where you filled up, which is why the two rarely reconcile. Total miles divided by total gallons gives fleet MPG, and that ratio converts miles per state into taxable gallons — subtract the tax you already paid at the pump and the difference is your bill or refund. The insight worth acting on: buying cheap fuel and running those miles through a high-tax state creates a liability, not a saving, so the pump price you chased was never the real price. Use this to know the number before it surprises you, then file on actual per-jurisdiction rates.
IFTA Fuel Tax Calculator Questions
The things carriers ask most about this calculation.
How is IFTA calculated?
Divide total miles by total gallons to get fleet MPG, then use that MPG to work out how many gallons you burned in each state. Multiply those gallons by each state's tax rate for tax owed, then subtract the tax you already paid at the pump. The difference is what you owe or get refunded.
Who has to file IFTA?
Carriers running qualified motor vehicles across two or more IFTA jurisdictions. A qualified vehicle generally has two axles and a gross weight over 26,000 pounds, or three or more axles regardless of weight.
When are IFTA returns due?
Quarterly, on the last day of the month following each quarter: April 30, July 31, October 31, and January 31. Late filings draw a penalty plus interest per jurisdiction, so the calendar matters more than the amount.
Is this estimate accurate enough to file?
No. This gives you a working estimate using a single blended rate. An actual return needs miles and gallons broken out per jurisdiction at that jurisdiction's published rate. Use this to sanity-check what you are about to owe, not as the return itself.
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