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Schedule C

Also called: Schedule C (Form 1040), profit or loss from business

The IRS form sole proprietors and independent contractors use to report business income and expenses — where rideshare, delivery, and freelance income gets reconciled.

Schedule C is where you report income and expenses from a business you operate as a sole proprietor. If you drive rideshare, deliver food, freelance bartend, or do any 1099 gig work, you file at least one Schedule C every year.

The structure:

  1. Part I — Income. Total gross receipts from all 1099-NECs and 1099-Ks for this business.
  2. Part II — Expenses. Categories include advertising, car/truck expenses (mileage or actual), commissions, insurance, supplies, taxes, and utilities. This is where the mileage deduction lives.
  3. Net profit/loss. Income minus expenses. This number flows two places: to Schedule SE for self-employment tax, and to your Form 1040 as taxable income.

If you have two distinct businesses (rideshare AND catering, say), you file a separate Schedule C for each. They each have their own EIN or SSN and their own profit/loss.

Schedule C losses can offset other income on your 1040 — including W-2 wages from a day job. This is one of the few ways self-employed taxpayers can reduce their overall tax bill in a bad year.