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Walmart Spark driver taxes: your 1099, the SSN question, and your own mileage record

By Jin JeongUpdated Checked against IRS 2026 figures

Walmart's Spark Driver help center says tax documents (a 1099-NEC or 1099-INT for $600 or more) are downloadable in the app under Account, then Tax Documents, that they show your Social Security number rather than a company EIN, that they include all earnings and tips, and, most importantly for deductions, that Walmart does not provide any mileage summary. Whatever the app shows, the miles on your return have to come from a log you keep.

GigTaxHQ is not affiliated with Walmart or the Spark Driver platform. The Spark help article we rely on is titled "2025 Driver Tax Documents" and was written for 2025 forms. We could not find a 2026 version, so the dates and thresholds below are the 2025 pattern, flagged where the IRS rule differs.

A short checklist of what the Spark page tells you

QuestionWhat Walmart's article saysWhat to do
Which form?1099-NEC or 1099-INT, $600 or more a yearRead the form; the page does not say when the INT version applies.
Where?App: More or Menu, Account, Tax Documents, Documents; filter by year; download iconDownload and save the PDF.
When?Available January 31 in the app, or mailed by that date if you did not consent to e-deliveryConfirm your address before the cut-off (January 1 for 2025). Home address is under Personal Details.
Do they report to the IRS?Yes, earnings and tips, at $600 or moreYour Schedule C income should match the form or exceed it.
What is on it?All earnings and tips from the yearTips are inside the total, so check for a separate tip box on 2026 forms.
Mileage summary?NoKeep your own log. See below.
Company name and EIN?Not at this time; the form uses your SSNNo action; the income is the same.

Walmart says it does not offer tax advice. The help center's earnings section also has topics on trip receipts, viewing tips, and viewing incentives; we did not read them, so check whether they show distance per trip. If they do, that is a useful cross-check but not a substitute for your log.

Why the missing mileage summary matters

Most platforms hand you a mileage figure that is at best an estimate. Walmart hands you nothing, which makes your own record both necessary and sufficient. The IRS wants the date, miles, and business purpose of each trip, with the year's total miles (Publication 463), and it says estimates are not allowed. A Spark offer can involve a drive to the store and a drive to the customer. Log each leg, or log each offer from start to finish with an odometer reading. The mileage log guide shows the fields. Mileage is typically the largest deduction a driver has; in the example below it is 30.0% of gross.

Tips on Spark

Delivery of groceries is covered by the IRS "goods delivery people" entry (TTOC 804), which names grocery delivery driver. Walmart says the 1099 includes tips and that it reports tips to the IRS. For the 2026 deduction the tips must be separately reported on an information return. Look at the 2026 form for a separate tip amount and an occupation code, and if the tips are only inside the total, ask Driver Support in writing how they will be reported. Use the No Tax on Tips calculator and the claim guide to see what a missing box could cost.

Example: a single driver with a tip-heavy year

A single filer with no other job has $31,000 from Spark, $5,200 of it tips (16.8% of gross), drives 6,100 miles in the first half and 6,400 in the second, and has $650 of other expenses.

Here the tips deduction brings income tax to $0.00, so the whole bill is self-employment tax. If the tips are not separately reported, the deduction could be lost and the income tax returns, which is why the form matters. The self-employment tax calculator breaks down that $2,976.18.

Before you file

  1. Download the 1099 and compare the total with your own payout history.
  2. Check the name and SSN. Accent differences are not errors, according to Walmart.
  3. Count your miles from your own log and nothing else.
  4. Check the tip and occupation boxes.
  5. Plan your quarterly payments if you expect to owe $1,000 or more.

General information for tax year 2026, not tax advice.

Spark drivers who also shop for Instacart or deliver for Amazon Flex can compare the Instacart shopper tax guide and the Amazon Flex tax guide. For your state's layer, see the North Carolina guide and the Arizona guide: one does not follow the federal tips deduction and the other does.

Frequently asked questions

Does Walmart send me a mileage summary?

No. The Spark Driver help center answers this directly: Walmart does not provide drivers with mileage summaries. Your own log is the only mileage record, so keep it from the first day.

Why is my Social Security number on the 1099 instead of a company name?

Walmart says it is currently issuing 1099s with the driver's SSN, that this accurately reports income earned as an individual driver, and that using a company name and EIN is not available at this time. Treat the form like any other: it is an information return, and your earnings are the same either way.

My name has an accent. Does the 1099 need to be corrected?

Walmart says the IRS does not accept special characters, that the name on the form must match the IRS database, and that missing accents or special characters do not require name changes or corrections. If your legal name changed, update it in the app under Account, Personal Details, Name, Legal Name.

What is a 1099-INT doing on a Spark help page?

Walmart's page says drivers receive a 1099-NEC or a 1099-INT with earnings of $600 or more, and does not explain when each applies. We do not know. If you receive a 1099-INT, read what it reports before deciding where it goes on your return.

Does the 1099 include my tips?

Walmart says the 1099 includes all earnings and tips from the year, and that it reports earnings and tips to the IRS at $600 or more. We could not tell from its page whether tips appear in a separate box, which matters for the 2026 tips deduction, so check the tip and occupation boxes on the 2026 form.

When do I get the form, and can I get a paper copy?

The 2025 page says documents were available in the app on January 31 (Account, Tax Documents). If you do not consent to electronic delivery they are mailed by that date, and if you consented you can request a mailed copy in the app. Expect the same pattern for 2026, which we cannot confirm.

Does the $2,000 threshold apply to Spark drivers?

The IRS minimum for Form 1099-NEC is $2,000 for payments made in 2026. Walmart's page states $600 for 2025 forms. We could not find a Walmart page for 2026, so use the IRS number as the rule; all earnings are reportable either way.

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