Per Diem Calculator

Q: Can I keep the money I don't spend from my per diem?

Usually yes. Per diem is a flat daily amount, not a refund of what you spent. If your meals cost less than the M&IE rate, the extra is yours to keep and it is still tax free, as long as the payment stays at or below the official government rate. Lodging works differently for many federal travelers. Hotel costs are often paid up to the rate based on your actual bill, so you cannot pocket the difference there.

Q: Do I need receipts if I get per diem?

You do not need meal receipts under per diem. That is the main point of a daily allowance. You still need proof of the trip itself, such as dates, place, and business purpose. Hotel receipts are usually still required, because lodging is often paid against your real bill up to the daily cap. Airfare, rental cars, and other big costs always need receipts.

Q: Does per diem cover airfare, rental cars, or mileage?

No. Per diem only covers lodging, meals, and incidental expenses. Getting to and from your destination is a separate travel cost. Flights, train tickets, rental cars, gas, parking, tolls, and mileage are all claimed on their own. Do not add them into your per diem total.

Q: Is hotel tax included in the lodging per diem rate?

For travel inside the lower 48 states, no. The lodging rate covers the room charge only. State and local hotel taxes are reimbursed on top of the rate as a separate expense. For Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. territories, and foreign countries, taxes are usually built into the lodging rate, so there is nothing extra to claim.

Q: What happens if my hotel costs more than the per diem lodging rate?

You normally pay the extra yourself. The published lodging rate is a cap, not a suggestion. There are ways around it. Many hotels give a government rate if you ask. Your agency or employer can also approve actual expenses in high cost cities, which can allow up to 300% of the normal daily per diem. That approval must come before the trip, not after.

Q: What counts as an incidental expense on a per diem?

Incidentals are small daily costs tied to service. The federal rules keep the list short: Tips for hotel housekeeping and baggage handlers Tips for porters and other service staff Things like laundry, taxis, phone calls, and Wi-Fi are not incidentals. Those are separate expenses that follow your employer's own rules.

Q: Does a free hotel breakfast count as a provided meal?

No. A complimentary breakfast that comes with the room does not reduce your M&IE. The same goes for snacks on a plane. A meal only gets deducted when it is furnished as part of the official business, like a conference lunch included in your registration fee or a hosted dinner. If that happens, the set dollar value of that meal comes out of that day's M&IE.

Q: Do I still get per diem if I stay with friends or family?

You still get M&IE for meals and incidentals, because you are still eating and traveling. You do not get the lodging portion if you pay nothing for the room. Some agencies allow a small payment to cover the cost of hosting you, but you cannot claim the full published lodging rate when no hotel bill exists.

Q: What is the difference between CONUS and OCONUS?

CONUS means the continental United States, which is the 48 lower states plus Washington, D.C. GSA sets those rates. OCONUS means outside the continental United States. It splits into two groups. Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and other U.S. territories use Department of Defense rates. Foreign countries use State Department rates.

Q: What is the IRS high-low per diem method?

It is a shortcut for private employers. Instead of looking up hundreds of city rates, a company uses just two numbers: one higher rate for a listed group of expensive cities, and one lower rate for everywhere else in the lower 48 states. The IRS updates both rates each year. A company must pick one method and stick with it for all employees for the whole year.

Per Diem Calculator

Day-by-Day Results

Lodging vs. M&IE by Leg

Daily Per Diem Across the Whole Trip

Step-by-Step Solution

Per Diem Rates Reference Table — FY2026

Filter by state, city, or county

Type to narrow the table. Click any column heading to sort.

Rate fiscal year

Per diem lodging and meals and incidental expense rates by state and location
		County / Definition			Source

Introduction

A per diem is a daily allowance that covers your hotel, meals, and small travel costs while you are away for work. Instead of saving every receipt, you get a set dollar amount for each day. The rate changes based on where you go and when you travel.

This Per Diem Calculator works out that amount. Enter your destination, your departure date, and your return date. The tool finds the right lodging and M&IE (meals and incidental expenses) rates and shows what each day of your trip is worth.

The calculator also applies the rules people often miss. Your first and last travel days pay only 75% of the meal rate. Free meals from a conference get subtracted. Rates can shift in the middle of a stay when a season changes or a new fiscal year starts on October 1. You can also add more than one stop and see each leg on its own.

You get a day-by-day table, charts, a step-by-step math breakdown, and a searchable rate table you can check. Rates come from GSA for the lower 48 states, the Defense Travel Management Office for Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories, and the State Department for other countries. Use the results to plan a trip budget or to check a travel expense report before you turn it in.

How to use our Per Diem Calculator

Tell us where you travel, when you leave, when you come back, and which meals someone else paid for. The calculator shows your lodging and M&IE per day, a subtotal for each trip leg, and one grand total per diem estimate.

Destination type: Pick Domestic CONUS for the lower 48 states, AK / HI / Territories for Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, or International for any other country.

State: For a CONUS trip, choose the state you are visiting. This turns on the county and city list.

County / City: Choose the city or county you stay in. If your spot is not listed, pick "All other locations in this state" to use the Standard CONUS rate.

Or search any GSA location: Type at least 2 letters of a city or county name, then click a match or press Enter. This fills in the state and city for you.

Non-contiguous U.S. location: For Alaska, Hawaii, or a U.S. territory, pick your city from this list. These use DoD rates.

Country: For an international trip, pick the country you travel to.

City / Post: Pick the city inside that country. Choose "Other" if your city is not shown.

Departure date: Enter the day you leave home. This day pays the 75% travel day rate.

Return date: Enter the day you get home. This day also pays 75%, and no lodging is paid for that night.

Rate fiscal year: Leave it on auto-detect for most trips. Change it only if you need older rates for a past trip.

Meals provided: Check breakfast, lunch, or dinner if those meals were given to you for free. The set dollar value of each meal is taken out of your M&IE.

Per-day override: Use this day list to uncheck a meal on any single day it was not provided.

Pro-rate incidentals: Leave this on to include incidentals in the 75% travel day math. Turn it off if your agency removes the full incidental amount on travel days.

Add Another Destination: Click this to add a new leg if your trip has more than one stop. Each leg gets its own rates and subtotal.

Calculate and Reset: Click Calculate to see your results, charts, and step-by-step math. Click Reset to start a new trip.

What Is Per Diem?

Per diem is a daily allowance for work travel. Instead of saving every receipt, your employer pays you a set amount each day. The word is Latin for "per day." Per diem has two parts: lodging (your hotel room for the night) and M&IE (meals and incidental expenses, like tips).

Who Sets the Rates

Per diem rates change by place and by date. Three groups publish them for U.S. federal travel:

GSA sets rates for the 48 lower states and Washington, D.C. This area is called CONUS.
The Department of Defense sets rates for Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and other U.S. territories.
The State Department sets rates for other countries.

Many private companies copy these same rates because the IRS accepts them.

The Standard CONUS Rate

Most small towns and rural counties do not get their own rate. They use the "standard CONUS rate," which is the basic fallback amount. Big cities and tourist spots get higher rates because hotels there cost more.

Key Per Diem Rules

First and last day rule: On your travel days, you only get 75% of the full M&IE rate. You are not there the whole day, so you do not eat every meal there.
No lodging on the last day: You check out and go home, so no hotel night is paid for that date.
Free meals get subtracted: If a conference feeds you lunch, that lunch amount comes out of your M&IE for that day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner each have their own dollar value.
Incidentals: A small piece of M&IE covers tips for hotel staff and similar small costs. Meal deductions should not wipe this out.
Day trips: If you leave and come back the same day with no overnight stay, federal per diem rules do not pay M&IE.

Fiscal Years and Seasons

New rates start every October 1, the first day of the federal fiscal year. If your trip crosses that date, part of it uses the old rates and part uses the new ones.

Lodging rates can also change by month in the same city. A beach town may cost much more in July than in January. A ski town flips that around. These are called seasonal rates, and each night of your stay uses the rate for that month.

Why It Matters

Knowing your per diem before you travel helps you plan your spending and check that your reimbursement is correct. Per diem paid at or below the official rate is usually not taxed as income. Anything paid above the rate can become taxable wages, so it pays to know the real number.

Formulas used

Trip length: days and lodging nights per leg

\text{Days} = \frac{\text{Return} - \text{Departure}}{86{,}400{,}000} + 1, \qquad \text{Nights} = \text{Days} - 1

Travel-day M&IE (75% first/last day rule)

\text{M\&IE}_{\text{travel}} = 0.75 \times \text{M\&IE}_{\text{rate}} - \begin{cases} \text{Incidentals}, & \text{if incidentals not pro-rated} \\ 0, & \text{if pro-rated} \end{cases}

Adjusted daily M&IE after provided-meal deductions (incidental floor preserved)

\text{M\&IE}_{\text{adj}} = \text{M\&IE}_{\text{day}} - \min\!\left(D_B + D_L + D_D,\; \max(0,\; \text{M\&IE}_{\text{day}} - I_{\text{floor}})\right)

Meal breakdown derived from a published M&IE total (DoD / international)

I = \max(5,\; \mathrm{round}(0.10\,M)), \quad B = \mathrm{round}(0.25\,M), \quad L = \mathrm{round}(0.25\,M), \quad D = M - B - L - I

Daily lodging billed (no lodging on the return day)

\text{Lodging}_{\text{day}} = \begin{cases} \text{Rate}_{\text{month}} \times \text{Index}_{FY}, & \text{day is not the last day} \\ 0, & \text{last day} \end{cases}

Leg subtotal and grand total

\text{Leg}_{k} = \sum_{d=1}^{n_k} \text{Lodging}_{d} + \sum_{d=1}^{n_k} \text{M\&IE}_{\text{adj},d}, \qquad \text{Grand Total} = \sum_{k} \text{Leg}_{k}

300% actual-expense authority ceiling (FTR 301-11.303)

\text{Ceiling} = 3 \times \left(\text{Lodging}_{\text{rate}} + \text{M\&IE}_{\text{rate}}\right)

Fiscal-year rate indexing for years outside the published table

\text{Index}_{FY} = \begin{cases} 1.12 \times 1.05^{\,FY - 2027}, & FY > 2027 \\ 0.88 \times 0.95^{\,2023 - FY}, & FY < 2023 \end{cases}

Frequently asked questions

Can I keep the money I don't spend from my per diem?

Usually yes. Per diem is a flat daily amount, not a refund of what you spent. If your meals cost less than the M&IE rate, the extra is yours to keep and it is still tax free, as long as the payment stays at or below the official government rate.

Lodging works differently for many federal travelers. Hotel costs are often paid up to the rate based on your actual bill, so you cannot pocket the difference there.

Do I need receipts if I get per diem?

You do not need meal receipts under per diem. That is the main point of a daily allowance. You still need proof of the trip itself, such as dates, place, and business purpose.

Hotel receipts are usually still required, because lodging is often paid against your real bill up to the daily cap. Airfare, rental cars, and other big costs always need receipts.

Does per diem cover airfare, rental cars, or mileage?

No. Per diem only covers lodging, meals, and incidental expenses. Getting to and from your destination is a separate travel cost.

Flights, train tickets, rental cars, gas, parking, tolls, and mileage are all claimed on their own. Do not add them into your per diem total.

Is hotel tax included in the lodging per diem rate?

For travel inside the lower 48 states, no. The lodging rate covers the room charge only. State and local hotel taxes are reimbursed on top of the rate as a separate expense.

For Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. territories, and foreign countries, taxes are usually built into the lodging rate, so there is nothing extra to claim.

What happens if my hotel costs more than the per diem lodging rate?

You normally pay the extra yourself. The published lodging rate is a cap, not a suggestion.

There are ways around it. Many hotels give a government rate if you ask. Your agency or employer can also approve actual expenses in high cost cities, which can allow up to 300% of the normal daily per diem. That approval must come before the trip, not after.

What counts as an incidental expense on a per diem?

Incidentals are small daily costs tied to service. The federal rules keep the list short:

Tips for hotel housekeeping and baggage handlers
Tips for porters and other service staff

Things like laundry, taxis, phone calls, and Wi-Fi are not incidentals. Those are separate expenses that follow your employer's own rules.

Does a free hotel breakfast count as a provided meal?

No. A complimentary breakfast that comes with the room does not reduce your M&IE. The same goes for snacks on a plane.

A meal only gets deducted when it is furnished as part of the official business, like a conference lunch included in your registration fee or a hosted dinner. If that happens, the set dollar value of that meal comes out of that day's M&IE.

Do I still get per diem if I stay with friends or family?

You still get M&IE for meals and incidentals, because you are still eating and traveling. You do not get the lodging portion if you pay nothing for the room.

Some agencies allow a small payment to cover the cost of hosting you, but you cannot claim the full published lodging rate when no hotel bill exists.

What is the difference between CONUS and OCONUS?

CONUS means the continental United States, which is the 48 lower states plus Washington, D.C. GSA sets those rates.

OCONUS means outside the continental United States. It splits into two groups. Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and other U.S. territories use Department of Defense rates. Foreign countries use State Department rates.

What is the IRS high-low per diem method?

It is a shortcut for private employers. Instead of looking up hundreds of city rates, a company uses just two numbers: one higher rate for a listed group of expensive cities, and one lower rate for everywhere else in the lower 48 states.

The IRS updates both rates each year. A company must pick one method and stick with it for all employees for the whole year.

How much is the standard per diem rate per day?

For fiscal year 2026, the standard CONUS rate is $116 for lodging plus $68 for meals and incidentals, which is $184 for a full day. That rate applies to any county that does not have its own listed rate.

About 300 locations get higher rates. M&IE in those spots falls into tiers of $68, $74, $80, $86, or $92 per day, and lodging can run far above the standard amount in big cities and resort areas.

Do I get per diem on weekends and days off during a long trip?

Yes. Per diem is paid for every day you are away on official travel, including weekends and holidays, because you still need a room and food.

It stops if you take personal leave or go home for the weekend. Those days are on you.

Does per diem go down on trips longer than 30 days?

It can. For long assignments, many agencies and employers cut the daily rate because you can rent a weekly or monthly place and cook your own food. A common reduction is 55% of the normal rate for extended stays.

This is not automatic everywhere. Check your own travel policy before assuming the full daily rate for a trip of a month or more.

Do private companies have to use GSA per diem rates?

No. A private employer can pay any amount it wants, higher or lower. Most follow the federal rates because the IRS treats payments at or below those rates as tax free when the trip is properly documented.

Pay more than the federal rate and the extra counts as wages. It shows up on your W-2 and gets taxed.