JoltMile vs a spreadsheet
A spreadsheet costs nothing and does exactly what you tell it. Plenty of drivers keep good records in one. Where it goes wrong is in the parts you have to remember: the mileage threshold, the tax bands, the receipts and keeping it up every week.
Details of a spreadsheet are from its own website, checked on 23/09/2026. Prices and plans change, so check before you buy.
| Feature | JoltMile | A spreadsheet |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £7.99 a month or £69.99 a year | Free |
| Mileage rates | HMRC 55p/25p, threshold counted across every platform | Your own formula, and remembering the 10,000-mile drop |
| Tax estimate | Income tax and Class 4 estimated as you go, including a PAYE job or other income | Only if you build the bands and National Insurance yourself |
| Receipts | Photographed onto the expense | Kept somewhere else |
| On the road | Start and end a shift on your phone | Typed in later |
| Self Assessment | Self Assessment figures as CSV or PDF | The totals, if the formulas are right |
Keep the spreadsheet if
- You are comfortable with formulas and will update it after every shift.
- You drive a few shifts a month and are well under the mileage threshold.
Where spreadsheets go wrong
- The 10,000-mile drop from 55p to 25p has to land on the right mile, across every platform, in a year that starts on 6 April.
- Claiming fuel as well as the mileage rate, which is claiming the same cost twice.
- Business and commuting miles mixed together.
- A formula copied down wrong, found in January.
If you would rather keep your spreadsheet, the free calculators will check its totals against the HMRC rates.
Common questions
- Is a spreadsheet good enough for HMRC?
- Yes, if it has the date, the miles and the purpose of each journey, and your earnings. HMRC cares about what the record contains, not what it is kept in.
- Can I move from a spreadsheet to JoltMile?
- Yes. Start with your next shift in the app and keep the spreadsheet as your record of the months before. For past shifts you want in the same year's figures, log each one in the app with Log a shift you have finished.
Try it on your next shift
Your first 10 shifts are free, then it is £7.99 a month or £69.99 a year, bought in the app.
More comparisons: JoltMile vs MileClear, JoltMile vs MileIQ, JoltMile vs Driversnote.