Dispatch fees come in two shapes: a percentage of each load, or a flat amount every week. Either can be the better deal depending on how much you gross. This dispatcher fee calculator shows the fee on a load or a week, what you keep, and what it does to your rate per mile.
How it is calculated
- Percentage fee = gross × fee percentage
- Flat fee = the weekly amount, whatever you grossed
- Net = gross − fee
- Net rate per mile = net ÷ miles
- Fee as a share of gross = fee ÷ gross. For a flat fee this changes every week.
- Where a flat fee matches a percentage = flat fee ÷ percentage. Above that weekly gross the flat fee is cheaper; below it, the percentage is.
Use all miles, loaded and empty, so the net rate per mile matches what your truck actually runs.
Our published rates
| Situation | Fee on gross |
|---|---|
| One truck, authority 6+ months, any equipment | 5% |
| MC under 6 months | 7%, dropping to 5% at month 6 |
| Fleets of 2+ trucks | 4% |
No setup fee, no minimums, month to month with 30 days notice, and no fee when you don't haul.
A worked example
- Our 5%
- $300
- A flat $250 weekly fee
- $250
- Another dispatcher's 8%
- $480
- Net per mile at 5%
- $2.28
In a $6,000 week the flat fee costs less. In a $3,000 week, or a week at home, the flat fee is still $250 while a percentage drops with the gross. Look at a typical month, not your best week.
What to ask any dispatcher
- Is the fee on gross, linehaul only, or including accessorials?
- Is there a setup fee, a minimum or a contract term?
- Do I approve every load, and does the rate con come to me?
- What happens to the fee on a TONU or a cancelled load?
Whether the fee pays for itself is in the dispatch ROI calculator. Fuel surcharges change what a load grosses; see the fuel surcharge calculator. Rates by freight type are in power only rates per mile and intermodal freight rates, and the full pricing page is dispatch cost.
Results are estimates from the numbers you enter.