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At AgQuip in Gunnedah this August, we stood beside a working tank and pump for three days. One question came up more than any other: how do you keep track of diesel on the farm without adding another job to the day?
This guide is the long answer. It covers what good farm fuel management looks like, where farm fuel goes missing, and how to set up records that look after themselves.
Why farm fuel management matters
Diesel is one of the biggest costs on most farms. It runs the tractors, the header, the pumps, the generator and the ute.
Yet on a lot of properties, fuel records still live in a notebook in the shed, a pile of receipts in the ute and whatever someone remembers at the end of the month.
That works until it doesn't. A tank runs dry the week before harvest. A contractor fills up and nobody writes it down. The accountant asks for litres by machine and you're guessing.
Good farm fuel management fixes that at the pump, not at the kitchen table on a Sunday night.
What good fuel records look like
Every fill should capture five things:
- Who pumped the fuel
- Which machine or vehicle got it
- How many litres went in
- When it happened
- Where it happened
If you have those five things for every fill, you can answer almost any question about your diesel. How much the header used this harvest. Which tractor is drinking more than it should. What your fuel tax credit claim should be.
Where farm diesel goes missing
Most farms don't lose diesel in one big hit. It leaks out in small ways.
Fills nobody writes down. Someone tops up the loader in a hurry and means to log it later. Later never comes.
Contractors and seasonal workers. At harvest and sowing, there are more people using your tanks than at any other time of year. That's exactly when records slip.
Theft from remote tanks.
A farm diesel tank in a back paddock is an easy target. Police in Western Australia warned farmers in March 2026 that fuel theft was likely to rise as diesel prices climbed.
Leaks and spills.
A dripping fitting or an overfilled tank loses more over a season than most people think.
How to set it up without more admin
The trick is making the record happen as the fuel is pumped, so nobody has to remember anything. Here's how that works with Fuellox.
Tag each machine
Put a QR code on each tractor, header, loader and ute. The operator scans it before they pump, so the fuel is always put against the right machine.
Give everyone their own login
Each person uses the app on their own phone. That includes contractors and seasonal workers. You add them before the season and remove them when they finish. No keys, fobs or PIN codes to hand out and chase back.
Set each machine as on-road or off-road
Machines that work in the paddock are set as off-road. Registered vehicles that use public roads are set as on-road. That split matters at tax time.
Let it work without signal
The unit on the tank talks to the phone over Bluetooth. It works in a paddock with no coverage and syncs when the phone finds signal again.
Check it once a week
Spend five minutes looking at fuel by machine. Anything unusual stands out quickly, whether it's a thirsty tractor or a tank that emptied faster than it should.
Fuel tax credits on the farm
Most diesel used on the farm, off public roads, can be claimed back as fuel tax credits. For diesel bought from 3 August 2026, the ATO rate for off-road business use is 53.7 cents a litre. Rates change each February and August, so always use the rate for the date you bought the fuel.
The claim is only as good as your records. You need to show how much fuel was used, in which machines, and whether that use was on or off public roads.
When every fill is logged against the right machine, those records build themselves. At the end of the quarter you export the report instead of rebuilding it from receipts. Put your monthly litres into the fuel excise calculator to see what accurate records are worth.
Spotting problems early
On the Fleet plan, the Fleet Intelligence dashboard turns fuel data into a simple view of each machine. We showed it for the first time at AgQuip.
You can compare one tractor against another and see usage across the season. A jump in litres per hour often points to a maintenance issue, like a blocked filter, before it turns into a breakdown in the middle of harvest.
What farmers told us
Three things came up again and again at AgQuip.
Nobody wants more admin. If recording a fill takes longer than filling a jerry can, it won't happen.
Contractors are hard to track. Being able to add and remove users in the app, without handing out keys, mattered a lot.
Fuel security is on people's minds. A few visitors had lost diesel from remote tanks this year. Recording every fill won't stop someone with bolt cutters, which is why many farms pair Fuellox with physical anti-syphon and tank security hardware.
Getting started
Start with the numbers. Run your litres through the fuel excise calculator. Then read more about fuel management for farms and agribusiness, or book a free demo and we'll walk you through it using your own tanks and machines. For a closer look at the tax side, see our guide to fuel tax credits for trucks.
Frequently asked questions
What is farm fuel management?
Farm fuel management is how a farm records, controls and reports the diesel it uses. A good system logs who pumped the fuel, which machine got it, how many litres and when, straight from the tank. That gives you usage by machine and clean records for fuel tax credits, without a paper logbook.
Does Fuellox work on farms with no mobile signal?
Yes. The Fuellox unit on the tank connects to the operator's phone over Bluetooth, not the mobile network. The phone saves each fill and uploads it the next time it finds coverage. Paddocks and back blocks with no signal are not a problem, and nothing is lost.
Can farmers claim fuel tax credits on diesel?
In most cases, yes. Diesel used in tractors, headers, pumps and other machinery off public roads is generally eligible at the off-road rate. You need records showing litres used by eligible machines. Check the current rate and the rules on the ATO website, or ask your tax adviser.
