How much per mile should I charge?
The answer is arithmetic, not a market average. Work out what a mile costs you to produce, add what you need to earn, and you have a floor you can say no below — which is the only negotiating position that survives a slow week.
Step one: fixed costs
Everything you pay whether the wheels turn or not. Numbers below are a plausible single-truck operation — replace them with yours.
| Fixed cost | Per month | Per mile at 8,500 mi/mo |
|---|---|---|
| Truck payment | $2,100/mo | 25¢ |
| Insurance | $1,200/mo | 14¢ |
| Permits, IFTA, IRP, UCR | $250.00/mo | 3¢ |
| Parking, phone, accounting, software | $300.00/mo | 4¢ |
| Total | $3,850/mo | 45¢ |
Divide by the miles you actually run, not the miles you intend to. Running 7,000 miles in a month instead of 8,500 pushes this line from 45¢ to 55¢ without anything else changing.
Step two: running costs
| Variable cost | Per mile |
|---|---|
| Fuel | 100¢ |
| Maintenance and tyres | 20¢ |
| Tolls and scales | 4¢ |
| Total | 124¢ |
Fuel at $6.53 a gallon and 6.5 mpg — the EIA national average for the week of 21 Sep 2026.
Step three: your floor
45¢ fixed + 124¢ running = $1.70 a mile to break even
At that number you have paid every bill and earned nothing. What you add on top is your wage and your profit, and it is a decision rather than a market rate. Adding 50¢ a mile over 102,000 miles a year is $51,000 before tax.
| Target | Rate per total mile | Per year at 102,000 mi |
|---|---|---|
| Break even | $1.70 | nothing |
| + 40¢ | $2.10 | $40,800 |
| + 60¢ | $2.30 | $61,200 |
| + 80¢ | $2.50 | $81,600 |
Step four: convert it to a quote
Those are rates per total mile. The broker pays loaded miles, so the deadhead has to be recovered inside the loaded rate. A 500-mile load with 75 miles of deadhead at a $2.30 target needs $2.64 a loaded mile — not $2.30.
That single conversion is the difference between a load that looks fine and a load that pays. The calculator does it on a real lane with real fuel prices, tolls and your own mpg, and tells you the margin before you call back.
What the market pays is a separate question
Knowing your floor tells you what to refuse. It does not tell you what is available — that changes by lane, equipment and week, and the honest answer for any given lane is whatever several carriers have recently accepted on it. Use the market to judge whether a lane is worth working; use your cost to judge whether a load is worth taking.
Questions
How much should I charge per mile?
Enough to clear your own cost per mile plus the margin you need. For a typical single-truck operation running 8,500 miles a month that floor lands near $1.70 a mile all-in — so a rate starting with a 2 is not automatically good and a rate starting with a 1 is not automatically bad. Your numbers decide it.
What is a good rate per mile?
One that beats your cost per mile with enough left to pay you, cover the empty miles and leave something for the truck's next repair. Comparing against a national average tells you about the market; comparing against your own cost tells you whether to take the load.
Should I quote on loaded miles or total miles?
Work it out on total miles and quote on loaded. The broker pays for loaded miles, so the deadhead has to be recovered inside that number — see deadhead for the arithmetic.
How do I work out my fixed cost per mile?
Add up everything you pay whether the truck moves or not — payment, insurance, permits, parking, software, accounting — and divide by the miles you actually run in a month. The trap is dividing by the miles you hope to run.
Does the fuel surcharge count towards the rate?
It is revenue, so yes — but compare like with like. A $2.00 line rate plus surcharge and a $2.40 all-in rate can be the same money. See how the surcharge is calculated.