Travel Per Diem Calculator

Destination or rate source:

Label the trip with the location or rate lookup used by finance.

Departure date:

Use the first travel-status date for first-day proration.

Return date:

The calculator treats the date range as inclusive.

Policy profile:

Start with a federal-style 75% travel-day profile or a company percentage policy.

Lodging basis:

Lodging nights default to the number of overnights in the date range.

Lodging rate:

Enter the lodging amount per reimbursable night.

{{ currency_symbol }} / night

Actual lodging receipts:

Use the lodging total from receipts for the whole trip.

M&IE rate basis:

Changing the tier fills the meal deduction breakdown; use Custom for nonstandard rates.

M&IE rate:

Use the full daily M&IE amount for the destination.

{{ currency_symbol }} / day

First and last day M&IE: {{ first_last_percent }}%

Set the M&IE percentage for departure and return calendar days.

Policy rate multiplier: {{ policy_multiplier_percent }}%

Applies to lodging caps, M&IE, and meal deduction components.

Meal deduction scope:

Choose how provided meals should affect the daily M&IE estimate.

Provided meals:

Examples: 2026-06-09: breakfast or day 3: lunch, dinner.

Check inputs

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Currency symbol:

Use the symbol or code finance expects in the worksheet.

Breakfast deduction:

Custom meal values are useful for non-CONUS or employer-specific tables.

Lunch deduction:

Use the policy meal component for lunch or midday meals.

Dinner deduction:

Use the policy meal component for dinner or evening meals.

Incidentals component:

This does not add a separate allowance; it protects the incidentals portion from meal deductions.

Lodging nights override:

Blank keeps the automatic overnight count.

nights

Display rounding:

Choose cents, nickel, tenth, or whole-unit display rounding.

Preserve incidentals after meal deductions

Line item	Amount	Basis	Copy
{{ row.item }}	{{ row.amount }}	{{ row.basis }}

Date	Day type	M&IE	Meal deduction	Lodging	Day total	Copy
{{ row.dateLabel }}	{{ row.dayType }}	{{ formatMoney(row.netMie) }}	{{ formatMoney(row.mealDeduction) }}	{{ formatMoney(row.lodging) }}	{{ formatMoney(row.total) }}

Check	Status	Detail	Copy
{{ row.check }}	{{ row.status }}	{{ row.detail }}

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Per diem is a travel allowance for lodging, meals, and incidental expenses. Instead of reimbursing every meal or hotel line in the same way, many policies define daily amounts by destination, trip date, travel status, and whether meals or lodging were provided. That makes the calculation more than a simple daily rate multiplied by the number of nights.

The important split is lodging versus meals and incidental expenses, often shortened to M&IE. Lodging usually follows nights away from home, while M&IE follows calendar travel days. Departure and return days often receive a prorated M&IE amount because the traveler is not away for a full day. Under a federal-style CONUS setup, those travel days commonly use 75 percent of the full M&IE rate.

Meal deductions are separate from first- and last-day proration. If a conference, agency, employer, or host provides breakfast, lunch, or dinner, the policy may subtract the meal component from that day's M&IE. Some policies deduct meals on all days; others deduct only on full M&IE days. Incidentals can also be preserved as a minimum amount when meals remove most of the daily allowance.

Per diem totals are policy evidence, not proof of payment. A travel office may require destination rate support, business purpose, lodging receipts, tax treatment, special approvals, or exceptions. The safest worksheet keeps dates, location, rate source, lodging basis, provided meals, and policy multipliers visible so a reviewer can trace the total.

How to Use This Tool:

Build the trip calendar first, then apply the lodging and M&IE policy choices that match the reimbursement rules.

Enter Destination or rate source, Departure date, and Return date. The date range is inclusive, so a Monday to Friday trip has five travel days.
Choose a Policy profile. Federal-style CONUS sets 75% first and last day M&IE, while company profiles let you model full-day or reduced-rate policies.
Select Lodging basis. Use per-night allowance for a fixed nightly amount, actual capped for receipts limited by the nightly cap, actual uncapped for receipt reimbursement, or no lodging reimbursement.
Pick the M&IE rate basis or enter a custom M&IE rate and meal components. The CONUS tiers fill breakfast, lunch, dinner, and incidentals values.
Set First and last day M&IE, Policy rate multiplier, and Meal deduction scope to match the policy period.
List Provided meals one per line, using a trip date or day number followed by meals, such as 2026-06-09: breakfast or day 3: lunch, dinner.
Open Advanced for currency symbol, custom meal components, lodging nights override, display rounding, and the incidentals-preservation switch.

If meal lines do not parse, check the Policy Checks tab. A line without a colon, a date outside the trip, or a meal name that is not recognized will be reported there.

Interpreting Results:

Estimated reimbursable total combines net M&IE and lodging. Gross M&IE before meal deductions shows the amount after travel-day proration and policy multiplier but before provided meals are removed. Net M&IE allowance is the meals-and-incidentals amount after deductions and any incidentals floor.

Travel per diem result areas and review cues
Result area	Read first	Verification cue
Allowance Ledger	Total per diem, gross M&IE, meal deductions, net M&IE, lodging, and cap reference.	Confirm rates, multiplier, and lodging basis before sharing totals.
Daily Schedule	Per-date M&IE, meal deduction, lodging, day total, and day type.	Check departure and return days for the expected percentage.
Policy Checks	Travel-day proration, meal table, meal parsing, lodging cap, and documentation reminders.	Fix parsed-meal warnings before relying on daily totals.
Per Diem Curve	Daily M&IE, lodging, and meal deductions across the trip.	Use it to spot a missing lodging night or a meal deduction on the wrong date.

A clean total does not mean a claim is automatically reimbursable. Keep the rate source, travel authorization, destination, lodging receipt rules, provided-meal notes, and any policy exception with the claim packet.

Technical Details:

The calculation treats travel days as calendar days and lodging as overnight nights. By default, lodging nights equal inclusive travel days minus one, but the override can change that when the stay pattern differs from the date range. The policy multiplier scales lodging caps, M&IE, meal components, and incidentals together.

Daily M&IE starts with the adjusted full-day rate. Departure and return days use the selected first/last-day percentage, while middle days use the full adjusted rate. A single-day trip is treated as a travel day. Provided meals are deducted according to the selected scope, and the incidentals floor can keep the incidental component from being removed by meal deductions.

Formula Core:

The governing calculation sums net daily M&IE and lodging reimbursement across the trip.

\begin{array}{lcl} travel days & = & return date - departure date + 1 \\ gross daily M&IE & = & M&IE rate \times policy multiplier \times day percent \\ net daily M&IE & = & max (incidentals floor, gross daily M&IE - meal deductions) \\ total per diem & = & \sum net daily M&IE + lodging reimbursement \end{array}

Travel per diem lodging and meal policy rules
Policy choice	Rule used	Review risk
Per-night allowance	Lodging rate x reimbursable nights.	Does not compare to actual hotel receipts.
Actual capped	Smaller of actual lodging receipts and lodging cap.	Receipts above the cap are excluded from the estimate.
Actual uncapped	Actual lodging receipts are included without clipping to the cap reference.	May need explicit policy approval when receipts exceed the normal cap.
Provided meals	Breakfast, lunch, and dinner components are subtracted when the selected scope allows it.	Common carrier or complimentary hotel meals may be handled differently by some policies.

For example, a five-day trip with a $92 M&IE rate, 75% travel-day percentage, and no meal deductions has two travel days at $69 each and three full days at $92 each, for $414 gross M&IE. If one lunch and one dinner are provided on a full day using the $26 and $38 components, net M&IE falls by $64 unless the chosen scope excludes that day.

Accuracy And Policy Notes:

This is a reimbursement worksheet, not a legal, tax, payroll, or agency determination. It does not fetch jurisdiction-specific rates or confirm eligibility. Use the rate table, authorization, and employer or agency rules for the exact trip dates and destination.

Currency symbol changes display only; it does not perform exchange-rate conversion.
Display rounding affects shown and exported money values; policy decisions may need unrounded source amounts.
Provided-meal parsing is text based, so review warnings before relying on deductions.

Worked Examples:

Federal-style project visit:

A Monday to Friday trip has five travel days and four default lodging nights. With a $92 M&IE tier and 75% first/last days, the Daily Schedule shows departure and return days at $69 before meal deductions and middle days at the full adjusted rate.

Capped lodging receipt:

If lodging is Actual receipts capped by nightly rate, four nights at a $190 cap produce a $760 cap reference. Actual receipts of $820 are clipped to $760, and Policy Checks reports the amount excluded by the cap.

Meal line that needs review:

A line such as day 8: dinner on a five-day trip does not match a trip date. The Provided meal parsing row reports the issue, and the daily totals should not be treated as final until the meal line is corrected.

FAQ:

Does the calculator look up per diem rates?

No. Enter the destination label and rates from the source your policy requires. The rate source label is kept in the output so the worksheet can be reviewed.

Why are lodging nights fewer than travel days?

A normal overnight trip has one fewer lodging night than inclusive travel days. Use Lodging nights override when the lodging pattern differs.

How are provided meals entered?

Use a date or day number, then a colon, then meal names. Examples include 2026-06-09: breakfast and day 3: lunch, dinner.

Can provided meals reduce M&IE below incidentals?

Only when Preserve incidentals after meal deductions is off. When it is on, the incidental component acts as the minimum daily M&IE floor.

Glossary:

M&IE: Meals and incidental expenses, separate from lodging reimbursement.
Travel day: A departure, return, or single-day trip date that uses the selected first/last-day percentage.
Lodging cap: The maximum lodging reimbursement implied by the nightly rate and reimbursable nights.
Provided meal: A breakfast, lunch, or dinner supplied by a host, event, employer, or agency that may reduce M&IE under the selected policy.

References:

M&IE breakdowns, U.S. General Services Administration, Oct. 15, 2024.
Frequently asked questions, per diem, U.S. General Services Administration, Jan. 15, 2025.
Per Diem, Defense Travel Management Office.
GSA Per Diem Bulletin FTR 26-01, U.S. General Services Administration.