The distance calculator
The postcode-to-postcode calculator was part of the web dashboard. How miles are worked out in the app instead.
Last checked 12/09/2026.
What happened to it
How the app gets your miles
- Press Start shift as you set off. The app notes the nearest postcode.
- Drive. The miles are measured while the shift runs.
- Press End shift. The business miles and the end postcode are filled in, and your commute home is worked out from your home postcode.
Every figure can be changed before you save, and your odometer is always the better evidence if the two disagree.
For a shift you log afterwards
Use Log a shift you have finished from the menu beside Start shift, and enter the miles from your odometer readings. Saved postcodes are offered as you type, so depots and regular pick-up points only need typing once.
Why measured beats estimated
A calculator gives the route between two points. A delivery round with forty drops is not a straight run between two postcodes, and no calculator knows about the eleven miles you spent finding one flat. Measured miles, or an odometer reading, are what HMRC would expect you to be able to show.
Mistakes to avoid
- Including home to depot in the business figure. That is commuting, and the app records it separately.
- Guessing the miles for a shift you forgot to start. Take the odometer reading, and start the next one.
Related
Business mileage and the distance calculator
How JoltMile applies the 55p and 25p approved rates, tracks your 10,000-mile threshold, and works out distances from postcodes.
Mileage & expensesUpdated 29/09/2026
Logging a shift
What each step of the shift wizard asks for, why, and what happens to it afterwards.
Getting startedUpdated 29/09/2026
What counts as a business mile for a delivery driver?
Miles driven for the work itself - not the journey from home to your depot or zone.
Mileage & expensesUpdated 19/08/2026
Business miles, commuting and the depot run
A business mile is one driven wholly for the work. Commuting between home and a regular workplace is never claimable. For most gig drivers the working day starts when the app goes on, which makes the drive to a chosen pickup zone personal and the drive between drops business.
Mileage & expensesUpdated 27/08/2026
Record keeping, and how long to keep it
You have to keep enough to show how every figure on your return was arrived at: what you were paid, what you spent, and how far you drove for the work. Records have to be kept for 5 years after the filing deadline for the year they cover.
HMRC & taxUpdated 27/08/2026
Capital allowances on a vehicle
A capital allowance is tax relief on something you bought to keep and use, spread over years rather than deducted at once. You cannot claim capital allowances on a vehicle and use the mileage rate for it, so for most gig drivers this is a road not taken.
Mileage & expensesUpdated 27/08/2026