Home Office Deduction Calculator
Enter your office size, home size, and annual home expenses to see your deduction under both IRS methods — and which one is bigger — instantly.
📖 How it works & FAQEstimates only — not tax, financial, or legal advice. Confirm with IRS Form 8829, the Schedule C instructions, or a tax professional.
Two ways to deduct your home office
Self-employed and working from home? The IRS gives you two ways to turn that space into a deduction. The simplified method pays $5 per square foot of office space, up to 300 square feet — a maximum of $1,500. The regular method takes more bookkeeping but can pay off bigger: you work out what percentage of your home the office occupies, then apply it to your actual home expenses. This calculator runs both methods side by side, entirely in your browser — your numbers never leave your device.
The math behind each method
Simplified: office square footage (capped at 300) × $5. A 150 sq ft office is worth $750; anything from 300 sq ft up hits the $1,500 ceiling. Regular: (office sq ft ÷ total home sq ft) × total annual home expenses. A 150 sq ft office in a 1,500 sq ft home is 10% of the home, so with $24,000 in rent, utilities, insurance, and repairs, the deduction is $2,400. The regular method usually wins when home expenses are high relative to office size.
How to use it
- Measure the space you use only for work and enter the square footage.
- Enter your home's total square footage.
- Add up a full year of home expenses — rent or mortgage interest, utilities, insurance, repairs — and enter the total.
- Compare the two cards; results update as you type, and the larger deduction is called out for you.
Estimates only — not tax, financial, or legal advice. Eligibility rules, depreciation, and income limits can change your real deduction; confirm with IRS Form 8829 or a tax professional.
FAQ
- Do I qualify for the home office deduction?
- Generally you must be self-employed — W-2 employees no longer qualify federally — and use the space regularly and exclusively for business. A dedicated corner counts if used only for work.
- What expenses count under the regular method?
- Rent or mortgage interest, utilities, insurance, repairs, and depreciation. Costs that benefit only the office itself, like repainting that room, can generally be deducted in full.
- Can I switch methods from year to year?
- Yes — you pick a method each tax year and may switch the next. Depreciation is handled differently under each, so keep good records.
- Why is the simplified method capped at $1,500?
- The IRS caps it at 300 square feet × $5. A bigger office earns nothing extra this way — exactly when the regular method is worth the extra math.