Form 8829: Expenses for Business Use of Your Home (2026)
Calculate the home-office deduction the detailed (actual-expense) way.
Form 8829 computes the home-office deduction using the actual-expense method: your business-use percentage (office square feet ÷ total home) of real home costs like rent or mortgage interest, utilities, insurance, and repairs. It's for self-employed filers with a space used regularly and exclusively for business. The simpler alternative is the $5/sq-ft simplified method, which skips this form.
Who files Form 8829
- Self-employed people using the actual-expense home-office method.
- Schedule C filers with a space used regularly and exclusively for business.
- Anyone whose actual home costs give a bigger deduction than the $5/sq-ft simplified method.
Actual expense vs. simplified
Form 8829 prorates your real home expenses by business-use percentage and can produce a larger deduction than the simplified method — but it requires records and depreciates your home, which is 'recaptured' (taxable) when you sell. The simplified method deducts a flat $5 per square foot up to 300 sq ft ($1,500 max) with no form and no recapture.
You can choose the better method each year. Our home-office calculator shows both side by side so you can see which wins before you fill out the form.
Frequently asked questions
Who files Form 8829?
Self-employed people who claim the home-office deduction using the actual-expense method. The simplified $5/sq-ft method doesn't require Form 8829.
Can W-2 employees use Form 8829?
Generally no. Employee home-office expenses aren't deductible through 2025. Form 8829 is for self-employed filers reporting on Schedule C.
What's the downside of the actual method?
It requires detailed records and depreciates your home; that depreciation is recaptured as taxable income when you sell. Weigh it against the simpler flat-rate method.
Sources & verification
Last reviewed July 12, 2026.