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Load profitability calculator: is this load worth it?

Enter what the load pays and what it takes: miles, deadhead, fuel, tolls, stops. Get the net profit, the true rate per mile across every mile, profit per hour and the break-even rate.

By / Updated October 2026

All-in, with fuel surcharge

mi
mi
$/gal

U.S. avg $6.382, September 28, 2026

mpg
$/mi

Payment, insurance ÷ days worked

h
mph
LOAD PROFITRESULT
True rate, 850 total mi
$3.06/mi
Rate per loaded mile
$3.47/mi
Fuel, 131 gal
- $834
Tolls and wear
- $227
Fixed costs, 2 days
- $360
Dispatch fee
- $130
Profit per hour (17 h)
$62
Break-even rate for this load
$1,496
Net profit$1,049

This load clears $1,049, about $62 an hour. Our dispatchers check every load against your break-even before it reaches you to sign or turn down.

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A high rate isn't a profitable load. A load is profitable when what it pays beats what it costs: fuel for every mile including the empty ones, tolls, wear, the days of truck payment it ties up, and the dispatch fee if you pay one. This load profitability calculator works all of that out, then tells you the profit per hour, which is how you compare loads that look nothing alike.

How it is calculated

  • Total miles = loaded + deadhead
  • True rate per mile = what the load pays ÷ total miles
  • Fuel = total miles ÷ mpg × diesel price
  • Wear = total miles × maintenance and tires per mile
  • Trip hours = total miles ÷ average speed + extra stops × hours per stop
  • Days = trip hours ÷ 14, rounded up (one duty window a day, at least one day)
  • Fixed costs = days × fixed costs per day
  • Net profit = rate − fuel − tolls − wear − fixed costs − dispatch fee
  • Profit per hour = net profit ÷ trip hours
  • Break-even = (fuel + tolls + wear + fixed costs) ÷ (1 − fee)

Diesel starts at the U.S. weekly average from the EIA. Enter your own prices for everything; the defaults are an example.

A worked example

EXAMPLE / 750 LOADED + 100 EMPTYEXAMPLE
Load pays $2,600 ÷ 850 mi
$3.06/mi true
Fuel: 850 ÷ 6.5 × $6.38
- $834
Tolls $40, wear 850 × $0.22
- $227
Two days of fixed costs at $180
- $360
Dispatch fee, 5%
- $130
Profit per hour, 17 h
$62
Net profit$1,049

Now try the same load with 300 miles of deadhead instead of 100. The rate per loaded mile doesn't change, but fuel, wear and maybe a third day pile on, and the profit per hour drops fast.

Trucking load profit calculator tips

  • Deadhead is a cost of the load you take, not the one you just dropped.
  • Stops eat hours. A multi-stop load can pay more and still earn less per hour; price stops with the multi-stop load pay calculator.
  • Compare per hour, not per load. Two short loads in a day can beat one long one.
  • Know your break-even before you call. Anything under it loses money.

Where to find loads in the first place is covered in dry van loads and load boards, and how power only changes the cost side in power only vs owning trailers. Whether a dispatcher pays its way is in the dispatch ROI calculator, and our fee on dispatch cost.

Results are estimates from the numbers you enter.

SOURCES

Questions about this tool

01How do I know if a load is profitable?

Subtract everything the load costs from what it pays: fuel for loaded and empty miles, tolls, wear on the truck, the days of fixed costs it ties up and any dispatch fee. What's left is profit. Then look at it per hour, because a short load can beat a long one.

02Why include fixed costs on a single load?

Your truck payment and insurance are paid whether the truck moves or not. A load that takes two days uses two days of them. Leaving them out makes every load look better than it is.

03What is a good profit per hour for a truck?

There's no single number; it depends on what you need to earn and what else the truck could do. Compare loads against each other and against your own target. A load with lower total profit but much higher profit per hour often sets up a better week.

04Is this a truck load profit calculator for power only too?

Yes. Set deadhead to include the drive to the trailer pool, and leave trailer costs out of your fixed costs if you don't own one. Waiting at a yard for a trailer counts as stop time.

Every load checked against your break-even

Our dispatchers run this math before a load reaches you. Every rate con comes to you to sign or turn down.

Apply for dispatch