Carrier Cost Per Mile Calculator
Plug in your numbers to see your true operating cost per mile, and the rate you need to book to turn a profit.
What this tool tells you (and why it matters)
Every single mile your truck rolls costs you money: fuel, the truck payment, insurance, tires, all of it. Most owners have no idea what that real number is, so they take loads that feel okay and quietly lose money.
This finds your true cost for one mile. Once you know it, you know the lowest rate you can ever say yes to. Anything below it and you're paying to haul someone else's freight.
Just 6 numbers
Answer these and we'll show what it really costs you to run a mile. Don't know one? Our starting numbers are solid industry averages. Leave them be.
Count loaded AND empty miles, the truck burns fuel either way. A busy truck runs about 10,000 a month.
What you send the bank every month for the truck and trailer. Own it free & clear? Type 0.
Your total monthly truck insurance bill (liability, cargo, physical damage, all of it added up).
Most loaded big rigs get 6 to 7. Not sure? Leave 6.5.
U.S. national average for on-highway diesel, live from the EIA, as of Aug 24, 2026.
Miles you roll with no load, driving to a pickup or repositioning after a drop. Nobody pays for them, but they still burn fuel and wear the truck. Aim for 10% or less. Not sure? Leave 10.
What it really costs you
Deadhead is the silent killer. At 10% deadhead, about 1,000 of your 10,000 miles are empty, driving to a pickup or repositioning with no load. Nobody pays you for them, but they still burn fuel and wear the truck.
So your $15,740 of monthly costs can only be recovered over the 9,000 loaded miles you actually get paid for. That pushes the real cost riding on each paid mile up to $1.75/loaded mile, higher than the $1.57 above. Keep deadhead at 10% or less and that gap stays small; let it climb and every empty mile eats your profit.
So here's the one number that matters: don't book a load under $2.19/loaded mile. Below that, you're working for free, or paying to work.
Here's the math, out loud: at $2.19/loaded mile, your true cost riding on that mile is $1.75 (deadhead included), so you keep $0.44 profit per loaded mile. That's 20¢ out of every dollar you charge (20% margin).
And be clear on what that margin actually is: it's your profit, the money you keep after every bill is paid. Not a fee, not a cushion, not money set aside for costs. Those are already covered. This is yours.
Two more things worth knowing. First, that's margin, not markup: $0.44 is 20% of the $2.19 you charge, but a bigger 25% on top of your $1.75 cost, same dollars, carriers just quote the margin. Second, every load you book below $2.19/loaded mile eats straight into that yearly number. That's what you're giving away when you take cheap freight.
Planning estimate only. Your real numbers will vary by lane, equipment, and credit.
Ready to roll?
Know your number? Now get your own authority.
You've got your true cost per mile and the floor rate you can't go under. The next move is running under your own MC: we file your FMCSA authority, BOC-3, and UCR so you can start booking loads that actually clear that number.
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