Rate per mile calculator
Enter what a load pays and the loaded and empty miles. See what it really pays for every mile your truck drives.
WHAT THE LOAD PAYS
MILES
From the cost per mile calculator. Leave 0 to skip.
RATE PER MILE
ALL-IN RATE PER MILE (LOADED + EMPTY)
$2.14
- Total pay
- $1,200
- Loaded rate per mile
- $2.40/mi
- Linehaul only, per loaded mile
- $2.40/mi
- Empty share of the trip
- 11%
All-in rate per mile is what the truck earns for every mile it drives on this load, which is the number to compare with your costs.
This load pays $2.14 for every mile driven. We check every load against your costs before it reaches you.
Get loads checked against my costsHow this trucking rates calculator works
Three numbers come out of one load:
- All-in rate per mile = (linehaul + fuel surcharge + accessorials) / (loaded miles + empty miles).
- Loaded rate per mile = the same total / loaded miles. This is the number most load boards and brokers quote.
- Linehaul per loaded mile = linehaul alone / loaded miles, useful when one offer bundles fuel and another does not.
If you add your cost per mile, the calculator also shows the margin per mile. Rates are rounded to cents and totals to dollars.
EXAMPLE LOAD
The same load looks 30 cents a mile better when you leave the 60 empty miles out. That gap is why the all-in number is the one to judge loads by.
What a good or bad result means
A rate per mile only means something next to your costs. If your all-in cost is $2.10 a mile and the load pays $2.50 all-in, you clear 40 cents for every mile driven. If the load pays $2.05, you lose money on every mile, however busy it keeps the truck.
For box trucks, rate per mile is only half the picture. Final-mile and multi-stop loads often pay per stop or per day, and short loads with long waits can look great per mile while paying little for the day. Check what the load pays for the hours it takes as well.
Empty miles are the quiet killer. Use the deadhead miles cost calculator to price them, and the cost per mile calculator to set your floor.
Truck freight rates calculator vs what the market pays
This tool measures a load you have; it does not predict the market. For what box truck loads have been paying, see our guide to the average box truck rate per mile. For work outside the load boards, the final-mile carrier programs directory lists programs that pay on their own terms.
Our dispatchers run this math on every load before it reaches you and counter when the all-in rate is short. See how our dispatch fees work.
Questions about this calculator
Q-01How do you calculate rate per mile in trucking?
Add everything the load pays (linehaul, fuel surcharge and accessorials) and divide by the miles. Divide by loaded miles for the loaded rate; divide by loaded plus empty miles for the all-in rate. The all-in rate is the one to compare with your cost per mile, because the truck burns fuel on empty miles too.
Q-02What is the average rate per mile for truck drivers?
It changes week to week with the market, equipment and lane, so any single number goes stale fast. Load boards publish national averages by equipment type. More useful than an average is your own floor: your cost per mile plus the profit you need. Every load gets judged against that.
Q-03Should I include the fuel surcharge in rate per mile?
Yes, for the all-in number. A fuel surcharge is part of what the load pays, and fuel is part of your cost per mile, so leaving it out understates the load. Look at linehaul per mile separately if you want to compare offers that split the rate differently.
Q-04Is a truck load rate calculator the same as a freight rate quote?
No. This works out what a load you have been offered pays per mile. A freight shipping rates calculator for shippers estimates what a shipment might cost to move. Carriers need the first: it tells you whether to take, counter or pass on a load.
Ryan, TruckSwing dispatch desk
UPDATED OCTOBER 2026 · EDITORIAL POLICY
Stop guessing which loads pay
We work out the all-in rate on every load and negotiate before it reaches you. You approve every one.