TraxQQuote Rates That Actually Make Money
Work backwards from your costs to the rate a load has to pay before you accept it.
How to use the Freight Rate calculator
This works the problem backwards from how brokers present it — starting from what the run costs you rather than whether their offer sounds fair. Enter every mile including deadhead, because an empty truck burns the same fuel, and treat accessorials as cost recovery rather than profit. The number to watch is rate per total mile, not per loaded mile: a load quoted at $2.50 loaded with 120 miles of deadhead is really $2.19 for every mile you drive. Brokers quote loaded miles, so hold the total-mile figure in your head and negotiate in theirs.
Freight Rate Calculator Questions
The things carriers ask most about this calculation.
How do I calculate a freight rate per mile?
Take your all-in cost per mile, multiply by every mile you will run including deadhead, then divide by one minus your target margin. Quoting off loaded miles alone is the most common way carriers lose money — the empty miles to the pickup are real cost.
Should I include deadhead in the rate?
Always in your cost, usually not in what you show the broker. Brokers quote loaded miles, so convert your number back to a rate per loaded mile before you negotiate. This calculator shows both so you can hold your floor while speaking their language.
What is a good margin on a load?
Fifteen to twenty-five percent is a healthy target rather than an industry norm, since ATRI put the 2025 average truckload operating margin near breakeven with flatbed slightly negative, so treat it as what to price toward rather than what the market currently pays. Below ten percent leaves no room for a breakdown, a late detention payment, or a fuel spike mid-trip.
Do accessorials count toward margin?
Treat them as pass-through recovery rather than profit. Detention, tarping, and extra stops compensate for cost you actually absorbed, so folding them into your margin makes a lane look healthier than it is.
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