Travel · official-source review · reviewed 2026-10-09
Trip budgets break when meals are estimated as vibes instead of the published locality rates.
Apply the published lodging and meal rates to your trip nights and days for a budget baseline.
Travelers planning a personal or freelance trip budget.
Use the source document or official route that applies to your situation. This guide does not contact another person or verify external information.
Look up the destination locality and month on the GSA site.
Record the lodging and meal rates for your dates.
Count lodging nights and travel days separately.
Compare the baseline with real hotel and meal quotes.
Four nights at a $165 lodging rate plus five days of meals produces a baseline you compare with real quotes.
Use your own source and details. The example is not a record about a real person or organization.
U.S. General Services Administration · reviewed 2026-10-09
What this source supports: GSA publishes per-diem lodging and meal rates for federal travel by location and month.
Source limit: Federal rates are a reference for private travel budgets, not a guarantee of your own costs.
These sources support the statements above. They do not show that every person needs this guide. They do not show a specific result.
This guide applies published reference rates you enter. It does not book travel, represent employer policy, or guarantee costs.
Federal rates are a reference for private travel budgets, not a guarantee of your own costs.
Use current instructions from the responsible organization. This guide is a planning aid, not an official decision or a substitute for qualified advice.
Apply lodging and meal reference rates to your nights and days for a baseline trip budget.
This App multiplies rates you enter. It does not look up live rates, book lodging, or apply employer policy.
You enter every number yourself. The sources support the method and the limits. They do not produce a result for your specific case. Keep the original documents next to the sheet you build.
The App computes the worked example with your own numbers, in your browser.
APP 1
Apply lodging and meal reference rates to your nights and days for a baseline trip budget.
Free · no account · no upload
Open Per-Diem Budget BaselineThe App runs in this browser. It does not send or save entries. Copy, download, or print only when you choose.
This guide uses short, direct instructions as an ASD-STE100-style writing target. It is not a formal certification.
Companion App: Per-Diem Budget Baseline. It runs in this browser and does not upload your entries.
This guide is edited for clarity and checked against the sources it links. It is not a substitute for official instructions or qualified advice. A linked source does not show that every person needs this guide.