Free freight calculator
Freight Rate per Mile & Margin Calculator
See a load's rate per mile, what the carrier earns once deadhead is included, your gross margin, and the most you can pay a carrier to hold a target margin.
Free · No account needed · Nothing you enter is saved
Results
Enter a shipper rate, carrier pay, and loaded miles to see results.
Gross margin is before your operating costs. Calculations run in your browser; nothing is saved or sent.
How the calculation works
- Rate per mile = shipper rate ÷ loaded miles
- Carrier pay per total mile = carrier pay ÷ (loaded + deadhead miles)
- Gross margin = shipper rate − carrier pay; margin % = gross margin ÷ shipper rate
- Max carrier pay at target = shipper rate × (1 − target margin %)
Example: a $2,400 load over 800 loaded miles pays $3.00 per mile. Paying the carrier $2,000 leaves a $400 gross margin (16.7%). With 75 deadhead miles, the carrier earns about $2.29 per total mile.
Frequently asked questions
- How do you calculate rate per mile?
- Divide the total line-haul payment by the loaded miles. For example, a $2,400 load over 800 loaded miles pays $3.00 per mile. Include fuel surcharge in the total if you want an all-in rate.
- Should deadhead miles be included?
- Shippers usually pay on loaded miles, but carriers drive the empty miles too. The calculator shows carrier pay per loaded mile and per total mile so you can see what the carrier actually earns for the whole trip.
- How is broker margin calculated?
- Gross margin is the shipper rate minus carrier pay. Margin percent is that amount divided by the shipper rate. Gross margin is before your own costs, such as staff, software, insurance, factoring and claims.
- What does the target margin field do?
- Enter the margin percentage you want and the calculator shows the highest carrier pay that keeps you at that margin for this shipper rate.
- Are my numbers saved?
- No. The calculation runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is sent to Carrier Lookout or stored.
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