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Counter-offer calculator

Enter your cost per mile, the margin you need and the miles. Get your walk-away floor, your target and the number to open with.

From the break-even or cost per mile calculator.

COUNTER-OFFER WORKSHEET

OPEN WITH

$1,320

Walk-away floor (your cost)
$1,000 ($2.22/loaded mi)
Target with your margin
$1,200 ($2.67/loaded mi)
Opening ask
$1,320 ($2.93/loaded mi)

Per loaded mile, because that is how brokers usually quote. The floor already includes the deadhead miles.

Your floor on this load is $1,000. We never book below your floor without asking you.

Have us negotiate my loads

How the counter-offer calculator works

  • Floor = (loaded miles + deadhead miles) x your cost per mile + extras you pay.
  • Target = floor x (1 + your margin).
  • Opening ask = target x (1 + your negotiating room).

Each is also shown per loaded mile, the way brokers usually quote. If you enter the broker's offer, you see how far it is from your target.

EXAMPLE NEGOTIATION SHEET

EX-CO-1
450 loaded + 50 deadhead at $2.00/miFloor $1,000
+ 20% marginTarget $1,200
+ 10% roomAsk $1,320
Broker offered$1,100
Counter at $1,320, settle at or above $1,200$2.67/loaded mi
EXAMPLE

How to negotiate freight rates with the numbers in hand

  1. Work out the floor first. Get your cost per mile from the break-even rate calculator.
  2. Open at your ask, with a reason. A close, empty, ready truck is worth more to a broker with a load to cover.
  3. Trade, do not just drop. Offer a firm pickup time or a quick setup instead of a lower number.
  4. Stop at the target, walk at the floor. A load below the floor keeps you busy and costs you money.
  5. Get it on the rate con. Agreed detention, stops and lumper terms only count if they are written down.

Then check the deal with the rate per mile calculator. Our guides on box truck shipping rates and the depreciation chart help you set a realistic cost per mile.

Negotiating freight rates every day is a job

One call is easy. Countering every load, every day, while driving is not. Our dispatchers negotiate every load with your floor in hand and send you the result to approve. See how our dispatch fee works.

Questions about this calculator

Q-01How do I negotiate freight rates with a broker?

Know your floor before you call: your cost per mile times every mile the load takes, deadhead included. Open above your target with a reason the broker cares about, like a truck that is close and ready. Trade speed and certainty instead of only dropping the number, and get every agreed term on the rate confirmation.

Q-02How much should I counter a load?

Enough above your target that you can come down and still land on it. This calculator adds a negotiating cushion you choose on top of your target. If the broker's offer is already above your target, you can still counter, but you know you can take it.

Q-03What is a walk-away rate?

The lowest rate at which a load covers its cost: every mile it takes, at your cost per mile, plus any extras you pay. Below it, the load loses money. The calculator shows it as the floor.

Q-04Why include deadhead in the counter-offer?

Because the truck drives those miles for this load. A load that pays well per loaded mile can still lose money if the pickup is far away. Pricing the deadhead into your ask is the only way to get paid for it.

Ryan, TruckSwing dispatch desk

UPDATED OCTOBER 2026 · EDITORIAL POLICY

Let us make the counter-offers

We counter every posted rate with your floor in hand. You approve every load we book.

Have us negotiate my loads