Let's talk about invoicing and expenses. The Middle does not take a cut of your hourly rate; your client will pay you directly. You should be keeping track of your hours down to 15-minute increments, and I recommend invoicing your client every two weeks.

Handling Expenses & Reimbursements

Personally, I was okay with small expense reimbursements. Like, if I paid for parking at a parking garage while I was running errands, or if I picked something up for a client that was like less than $10, I'd be okay fronting that cash. But I would not recommend you pay for clients' personal expenses and then get reimbursed, especially for larger expenses or more than like $5 or $10.

Mileage & Transportation Rules

And finally, let's go over mileage. I know this is a huge concern in LA right now; gas prices are through the roof, but mileage is not reimbursed for your commute to and from your client's home. It's only reimbursed for driving done on the job.

Calculating Mileage

The way mileage works is that the government has a federal rate for mileage reimbursement. Right now, as of May 2026, it's 72.5 cents per mile. There are mileage tracker apps that you can use, but the point is to keep track of every mile you drive on the job so that you can be reimbursed at the federal rate. Then that's a separate line item that you can add to your invoice.

The equivalent in New York is your subway fare to and from your client's house; that wouldn't be reimbursed. However, if your client lives on the Upper West Side and they want you to go run an errand down in Park Slope, then that transportation cost can be reimbursed on your invoice.