If you ride for work, some of those kilometres may be worth money at tax time. Not everyone realises it applies to two wheels: a courier on a moped, a tradesperson on a scooter, a nurse on a commuter e-bike, a photographer riding a motorcycle between shoots. In many countries, the distance you cover for business can reduce what you owe, or be reimbursed by an employer. But there is a catch that trips people up every year: you only get it if you kept a proper record, written down as you went, not guessed at in April.
Keeping that record by hand is miserable, which is why most riders never bother and quietly leave money on the table. So Urban Rider now keeps it for you. I build Urban Rider, so treat this as an interested account, but the feature is simple and I think genuinely useful: a new Logbook Mode that turns the app you already navigate with into a mileage logbook.
What Logbook Mode does
It is a single toggle. Flip it on, and the trips you take start landing in a log, each one recorded with the date, odometer readings, distance, a trip type and the vehicle you rode. You tag each trip as business, commute or private, and that is essentially the whole job. When tax season comes you export the log as a CSV file and hand it to your accountant, your employer or your tax office.
The point is that the record is built up ride by ride, at the moment you actually travel. That is exactly what tax authorities want to see, and it is the part that is almost impossible to reconstruct convincingly after the fact.
It speaks your tax office's language
A mileage log is only useful if the person reviewing it can read it. So the export is written in your app language. A German Finanzamt reviewer opens a file whose columns say Datum, Kilometerstand Beginn, Fahrttyp: Geschäftlich. The Dutch Belastingdienst sees Kilometerstand begin, Rittype: Zakelijk. A French reader gets a carnet de route in French. Nobody has to translate a spreadsheet before they can file it.
Underneath, the column count and order are identical in every language, so the file opens cleanly in any spreadsheet program no matter which locale produced it. You get something readable to a human and safe for a machine at the same time.
Guidance for your country, in your language
The rules for what counts are not the same from one country to the next, and that is where most riders go wrong. So under the toggle, Urban Rider shows a short paragraph describing what your tax authority typically expects, based on the country you are in, written in the language you use the app in. A Dutch speaker living in Germany reads the German rules, in Dutch.
The differences are real and they matter. In the Netherlands, commuting kilometres are often treated as business use. In the United States, ordinary commuting generally is not deductible at all. Germany expects a logbook that is gapless and kept promptly, with the business partner noted for each business trip. Urban Rider spells out the version that applies to you, with an honest generic note for countries it has not curated in detail. Above all of it sits one line that never moves: always confirm your own situation, because this is guidance, not tax advice.
It works for the vehicle you actually ride
Car mileage apps have existed for years. What has been missing is one that understands the vehicle a lot of working people actually use to get around a city. Logbook Mode works for whatever you ride with Urban Rider: a 50cc moped, a 125, a full motorcycle, a commuter e-bike or an ordinary bicycle. If you commute by scooter or ride a cargo bike for deliveries, your work trips are logged the same way a company car's would be, and they count the same way at tax time where your local rules allow it.
How to turn it on
- Open Urban Rider and go to settings.
- Turn on Logbook Mode. In your language it will carry your local term for it, for example Fahrtenbuch-Modus in German or rittenregistratie in Dutch.
- Read the short guidance note for your country that appears under the toggle.
- Ride as normal, tagging trips as business, commute or private.
- When you need it, export the CSV and pass it to your accountant, employer or tax office.
Honest disclaimer
Urban Rider is a record-keeping tool, not a tax advisor, and this article is not tax advice. Deduction rules vary by country and change over time, and there are always exceptions for your specific situation. What Urban Rider does is the mechanical part that people get wrong: keeping a complete, timely, readable log so that when you or your advisor do the maths, the evidence is already there. Whether and how much you can actually claim is a question for your national tax authority or a qualified advisor. Please confirm before you file.
Try it this tax year
If you have ever reached tax season knowing you rode for work all year but having nothing written down, this is for you. Turn on Logbook Mode now and let the record build itself, so next time the evidence is ready. Urban Rider is free to download on iOS and Android and needs no account to start. For a broader look at what the app now folds into one place, see our piece on the all-in-one scooter navigation app, and if you are still choosing an app, our guide to the best scooter and moped navigation apps.
Navigation built for your scooter, not a car
Urban Rider routes your moped or scooter onto roads it is actually allowed to ride, avoids highways by default, and gives arrival times at real scooter speed. Free, no account needed.
Frequently asked questions
What is Logbook Mode in Urban Rider?
Logbook Mode is a toggle that turns Urban Rider into a mileage logbook. With it on, your rides are recorded with the date, odometer readings, distance, trip type (business, commute or private) and vehicle, so you have a running record of the trips you make for work. You can export the whole log as a CSV file to hand to your accountant or tax office.
Which vehicles can I keep a mileage log for?
Any vehicle you ride with Urban Rider: moped, scooter, motorcycle, e-bike or ordinary bicycle. If you use a commuter e-bike or a scooter for work, the trips are logged the same way as they would be for a car.
Will the export work for my country's tax office?
The CSV export is written in your app language, so the headers and trip types read natively. A German tax office sees columns like Datum and Fahrttyp: Geschäftlich, while the Dutch Belastingdienst sees Rittype: Zakelijk. The column count and order are identical across languages, so the file stays spreadsheet-safe everywhere. Whether a given trip is deductible still depends on your local rules, which you should confirm yourself.
Does commuting count as business mileage?
It depends entirely on where you are. In some countries, such as the Netherlands, commuting kilometres are often treated as business use, while in others, such as the United States, ordinary commuting is generally not deductible. Urban Rider shows a short note under the toggle describing what your tax authority typically expects, but the rules change and have exceptions, so always confirm your own situation with your tax authority or an advisor.
Is Urban Rider giving me tax advice?
No. Urban Rider is a record-keeping tool, not a tax advisor. It helps you keep a complete, timely log and hand it over in a readable format. Whether and how much you can deduct is a question for your national tax authority or a qualified advisor.