Set Distance Rates

Distance rates allow your workspace to reimburse mileage-based travel. Admins can create and manage one or more rates that members can select when submitting distance expenses.

How to enable Distance rates

To activate Distance rates for a workspace:

In the navigation tabs (on the left on web, and at the bottom on mobile), click Workspaces > [Workspace name].
Click More Features.
Toggle Distance rates to enable the setting.

Once enabled, Distance Rates will appear in the left menu.

How to add Distance rates

Go to Workspaces > [Workspace Name] > Distance Rates.
Click Add Rate in the top-right corner.
Enter the rate value (e.g., $0.585 per mile or km).
(Optional) Set a Start date and End date to define the period the rate applies to. Leave these blank if the rate has no time limit.
Click Save.

When a rate has a Start date or End date, Expensify uses it to apply the correct rate based on the expense date. See How Expensify selects a rate when multiple rates exist below.

How to edit Distance rate settings

In the navigation tabs (on the left on web, and at the bottom on mobile), click Workspaces > [Workspace name].
Click Distance rates.
Click on the rate you want to edit.
Update any of the available settings:
- Name
- Rate
- Start date
- End date
- Tax rate
- Tax reclaimable amount
Click Save.

Note: If Taxes is enabled on the Workspace, each Distance rate can be associated with a tax rate and a tax reclaimable amount. The selected tax rate is automatically applied when the Distance rate is used on an expense. To track Taxes on a Workspace, learn how to track Taxes.

How to remove Distance rates

To prevent members from using a Distance rate, you can either disable it or delete it.

Disabled rates remain in the Workspace but cannot be selected on new Distance expenses.
Deleted rates are permanently removed.

In the navigation tabs (on the left on web, and at the bottom on mobile), click Workspaces > [Workspace name].
Click Distance rates.
Select each rate you want to disable or delete.
Click Selected
Choose Disable rates or Delete rates.

How to exclude commuter miles from distance expenses

Commute exclusion removes a fixed commute distance from every distance expense on the workspace, so members are only reimbursed for the business portion of a trip.

In the navigation tabs (on the left on web, and at the bottom on mobile), click Workspaces > [Workspace name].
Click Distance rates.
Click Settings.
Click Exclude commutes.
Select an option:
- Do not exclude commutes — no commute distance is removed.
- Exclude a fixed distance per claim — removes the same commute distance from each claim. Best for members who submit one claim per workday.
If you selected Exclude a fixed distance per claim, enter the commute distance in the Distance field. It must be a positive whole number.
Click Save.

The commute distance is removed using the workspace unit (miles or kilometers) set under Distance rates > Settings > Unit.

What members see when commuter miles are excluded

When a fixed commute distance is set, members creating a distance expense on that workspace see:

A breakdown under the Distance row showing the Original distance, the Removed commute distance, and the reimbursable distance. The expense amount is calculated from the reimbursable distance.
A system message on the submitted expense, for example: Removed 1.00 commuter miles based on workspace distance settings.

Because the commute distance is removed from a measured route, members can only add these expenses using a map-based or GPS-tracked route. If a member tries to enter distance manually or with an odometer reading on a workspace that excludes commutes, a Map or GPS distance required message appears explaining that the workspace requires either a map-based or GPS-tracked distance expense.

FAQ

Can I create multiple Distance rates?

Yes. A Workspace can have multiple active Distance rates. Members can select from the available rates when creating a Distance expense.

Can I disable a Distance rate without deleting it?

Yes. Disabled Distance rates remain in the Workspace but cannot be selected on new Distance expenses. You can re-enable the rate at any time.

Can I apply taxes to Distance rates?

Yes. If Taxes is enabled on the Workspace, you can associate a tax rate with each Distance rate. When a member selects that Distance rate on an expense, the associated tax rate is applied automatically.

What is the Tax reclaimable amount?

The Tax reclaimable amount represents the portion of the Distance rate that can be reclaimed as tax. It is entered as a fixed monetary value for the Distance rate.

What happens if I delete a Distance rate?

Deleted Distance rates are permanently removed from the Workspace and cannot be restored. If you want to prevent members from using a rate without removing it permanently, disable the rate instead.

Can I change the reimbursement rate for existing Distance expenses?

No. Updating a Distance rate only affects future Distance expenses. Existing expenses keep the rate that was applied when the expense was created.

Do I need at least one Distance rate?

Yes. When Distance Rates is enabled, the Workspace must always have at least one active Distance rate.

Why can’t members enter distance manually when commute exclusion is on?

When a workspace excludes a fixed commute distance, the commute is removed from a measured route, so members must add distance expenses using a map-based or GPS-tracked route. Manual entry and odometer readings are not available on workspaces that exclude commutes, and members see a Map or GPS distance required message if they try.

Does commute exclusion change existing distance expenses?

No. Updating the commute exclusion setting only affects future distance expenses. Existing expenses keep the values that were applied when they were created.

How Expensify Selects a Rate When Multiple Rates Exist

When a Workspace has more than one distance rate, Expensify automatically applies the rate that matches the expense date. This lets you keep multiple rates active at once — for example, last year’s mileage rate and this year’s updated rate.

When a member creates or edits a Distance expense, Expensify selects the rate whose Start date and End date range includes the expense date.
If a member manually selects a rate that isn’t valid for the expense date, the expense shows a violation indicating the rate doesn’t match the selected date. This is informational and does not block submission.

Note: Setting effective dates is optional. If your rates don’t have Start date or End date values, Expensify continues to apply rates as before.

Set distance rates