Rate calculator with deadhead: know the real number before you bid.

Q: How do I calculate my cost per mile?

Add your fixed monthly costs — truck payment, insurance, permits, and your maintenance and tire reserve — and divide by the miles you actually run in a month. Add fuel cost per mile (fuel price divided by MPG) to get your operating cost per mile.

Q: Should deadhead miles count?

Yes. Empty miles burn the same fuel and wear the truck the same, but earn nothing. A 400-mile load with 100 miles of deadhead is a 500-mile job that pays for 400.

Q: What is a good profit margin for trucking?

It is a business decision, not an industry constant. The margin must cover your own pay, downtime between loads, and unplanned repairs. Twenty percent is a common starting point.

Q: Is this calculator really free?

Yes — no signup, no card, no email. It runs in your browser and the numbers you enter are not stored. Relocation Manager USA earns from monthly subscriptions and takes no commission on loads. Any partner offer shown is clearly labeled and optional.

A load board average is not your break-even. Enter loaded miles, empty miles, fuel, and your truck. Get cost per mile and a target rate — for box trucks, hotshots, cargo vans, and semis. No signup. We do not store what you type.

Your truck (optional)Prefills an average MPG for that equipment. Always replace it with your truck's real number. Fuel type Loaded miles Deadhead milesEmpty miles burn the same fuel. Leaving these out is the #1 way a load looks profitable and isn't. Truck MPG Fuel price ($ / gallon)Enter what you actually pay. Check the current U.S. average (EIA) — updated weekly and dated on their page. Reefer unit hours (if any)Refrigeration units burn their own diesel (assumed ~0.85 gal/hr here — typical range is roughly 0.4–1.1 depending on unit and mode). Most calculators skip this entirely. Idle hours (optional)Waiting at docks or overnight idling (assumed ~0.8 gal/hr). Detention time isn't free fuel. Tolls for this trip ($) Other trip expenses ($)Lumpers, detention, parking, permits, extra labor. Fixed operating cost ($ / mile)Truck payment, insurance, maintenance reserve, tires — plus the ones most people forget: health insurance, your own pay, and downtime between loads. Skip if you only want fuel-based numbers. Desired profit margin (%)True margin, not markup: at 20%, twenty percent of the target rate is profit. (Markup math would quietly give you only 16.7%.) Offered rate ($) — optionalEnter a rate you were offered to see the profit or loss on it.

Estimates based only on what you enter. Verify your own costs — this is a planning tool, not a rate guarantee or financial advice.

How the math works

Fuel cost = total miles ÷ your MPG × your fuel price, plus fuel your engine burns idling and fuel a reefer unit burns keeping the trailer cold — both are real gallons that per-mile math silently skips. Your break-even is fuel plus tolls, trip expenses, and your fixed cost per mile across every mile you'll drive — including deadhead, because the empty miles cost the same fuel. The target rate builds in a true profit margin — at 20%, twenty percent of the final rate is profit (cost ÷ 0.80), not the weaker "cost + 20%" markup that only nets 16.7%. If an offered rate is below break-even, you are paying to work.

Common questions about rate per mile

What should I charge per mile?

There is no single correct number — it depends on your truck, not the market. Your floor is your break-even: fuel, tolls, trip expenses, and your fixed cost per mile spread across every mile including deadhead. Your asking rate is that floor plus the margin you need. Two drivers hauling the same load can have break-evens that differ by $0.40 a mile, which is why an average rate from a load board tells you very little about whether you should take it.

How do I calculate my cost per mile?

Add your fixed costs for the month — truck payment, insurance, permits, and what you set aside for maintenance and tires — and divide by the miles you actually run in a month. That's your fixed cost per mile. Add fuel cost per mile (fuel price ÷ MPG) and you have your operating cost per mile. Most owner-operators underestimate this because they forget the maintenance reserve until something breaks.

Should deadhead miles count?

Yes. Empty miles burn the same fuel and put the same wear on the truck, but earn nothing. A 400-mile load with 100 miles of deadhead is a 500-mile job that pays for 400. Leaving deadhead out is the most common reason a load looks profitable on paper and isn't.

Is a national average rate my target?

No. Industry spot averages (for example DAT’s published national dry-van snapshots) are a market postcard, not your job. They mix lanes, lengths, and fuel treatment. Run your miles including deadhead here, then decide. We do not promise you will earn any average.

What is a good profit margin for trucking?

That's your decision, not an industry constant. The margin has to cover the things break-even doesn't: your own pay, downtime between loads, and money set aside for the repair you can't predict. This calculator defaults to 20% because it's a common starting point, but the number that matters is the one that keeps your truck running next year.

Is this calculator really free?

Yes — no signup, no card, no email. It runs entirely in your browser and we don't store the numbers you enter. Relocation Manager USA makes money from monthly subscriptions to the marketplace, and takes no commission on any load. If a partner offer appears with your results it is clearly labeled, optional, and we may earn a commission if you use it — but the calculator works the same whether you do or not.

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