How to Budget Travel Expenses in a Grant Application

Travel is one of those budget lines that seems simple—until you start filling it out. Funders expect travel costs to be reasonable, well-documented, and clearly connected to your project. In this post, I’ll walk you through the same three points I cover in my latest video so you can budget travel expenses confidently and avoid the common mistakes I see applicants make all the time.

1. Know What Counts as a Travel Expense

Before you start listing costs, make sure you’re clear on what actually qualifies as a travel expense. In most grant budgets, this includes airfare, mileage reimbursement, hotels, meals, and local transportation—like taxis, rental cars, or public transit. If your project involves attending conferences, delivering services off-site, or meeting with partners, all of those trips should be itemized here. The more specific you are, the easier it is for a funder to understand what’s included and why it matters.

2. Estimate Costs with Real-World Numbers

This is where accuracy really counts. Don’t guess or round up. Funders want to see realistic, research-based numbers. I like to pull current flight prices or hotel rates for the specific cities and dates I expect to travel, and I always use standard reimbursement rates for mileage and per diem. Even if your trip is months away, showing that your estimates are grounded in real-world data builds trust and shows that you take budgeting seriously.

3. Explain Why the Travel Is Necessary

Every travel line should connect directly to your project’s goals. If you’re attending a training, describe how it supports project implementation. If staff are traveling for outreach, explain the impact of those visits. Funders aren’t just looking for receipts—they’re looking for purpose. I always include a short justification, like “Travel supports on-site program delivery across rural service areas.” That one line can make the difference between a budget that looks padded and one that looks intentional.

If you remember these three things—know what qualifies, base costs on real numbers, and clearly justify the purpose—your travel section will stand out for all the right reasons.

And if you’d like to go deeper, don’t forget to download my free guide, “10 Essential Tips for Budgeting Travel Expenses in a Grant Application.” In it, I expand on these three strategies and share seven more practical tips to help you build a transparent, funder-ready travel budget.