Trucking guide
Owner-operator rate guide: market rates and your cost per mile
What the market paid, what trucks cost to run and what diesel costs, from DAT, ATRI and the EIA with the period of every figure, plus a worksheet for your own cost per mile.
Updated Every figure linked to its source
The short answer
In August 2026, the latest month DAT had published when we checked on October 9, national average spot linehaul rates were $2.19 a mile for dry van, $2.61 for reefer and $2.70 for flatbed, before fuel. ATRI puts the average cost of running a truck in 2025 at $2.336 a mile, and the EIA’s U.S. average diesel price was $6.199 a gallon on October 5, 2026.
- Spot linehaul, Aug 2026 (DAT)
- Van $2.19 · Reefer $2.61 · Flatbed $2.70 a mile
- Contract, Aug 2026 (DAT)
- Van $2.41 · Reefer $2.65 a mile
- Cost to run a truck, 2025 (ATRI)
- $2.336 a mile; $1.854 without fuel
- Diesel, Oct 5, 2026 (EIA)
- $6.199 a gallon, U.S. average
On this page
National averages, August 2026
DAT publishes national average spot and contract rates each month. August 2026 is the latest month we could verify: DAT released it on September 15, 2026, and its September averages were not yet out when we checked on October 9.
| Equipment | Spot linehaul | Contract linehaul | Fuel surcharge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dry van | $2.19down 20¢ from July | $2.41 | 70¢ |
| Reefer | $2.61down 14¢ | $2.65 | 77¢ |
| Flatbed | $2.70down 20¢ | 38¢ above spot | 84¢ |
Dollars per mile, August 2026 averages. Source: DAT news release, September 15, 2026. DAT gives the flatbed contract rate only as its gap over spot.
- Linehaul rates exclude an amount equal to an average fuel surcharge. Spot loads themselves are negotiated as one all-in price paid by the broker.
- Spot rates are paid by brokers to carriers per load; contract rates are negotiated prices paid by shippers to asset-based carriers and freight brokers.
- The averages come from DAT RateView invoice data for hauls of 250 miles or more in the United States and Canada.
- Each drop was the largest July-to-August fall in DAT’s rate history for that equipment type, yet spot linehaul rates were still more than 30% higher than in August 2025.
Latest weekly spot rates
DAT’s weekly equipment reports give a fresher reading. Each covers the week before the report date and, like the monthly figures, excludes fuel.
| Equipment | Spot linehaul paid to carriers | 9-year seasonal average |
|---|---|---|
| Dry vanReport of Oct 6, 2026 | $2.25 a mileup 5.5% on the week, 33.5% on the year | $1.85 |
| ReeferReport of Oct 8, 2026 | $2.74up 2.5% on the week, 32.7% on the year | $2.14 |
| FlatbedReport of Oct 6, 2026 | $2.65up 2.2% on the week, 28.2% on the year | $2.10 |
What it costs to run a truck
The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) collects cost data from motor carriers every year. Its 2026 Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking, released July 15, 2026, covers 2025:
| 2025 industry average | Per mile | Change from 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Total cost to operate a truck | $2.336 | Up 3.4%, the highest in the report’s history |
| Excluding fuel | $1.854 | Up 4.2% |
The fastest-rising costs were tolls (up 13.2%), repair and maintenance (8.6%), driver benefits (6.6%) and tires (6.4%). These are averages across the carriers in ATRI’s study; an owner-operator’s own numbers can be quite different, which is what the worksheet below is for.
Source: ATRI news release, July 15, 2026.
Diesel prices
The EIA collects retail on-highway diesel prices, taxes included, every Monday and publishes them on Tuesday. Its release of October 6, 2026 shows:
| Area | Sep 21, 2026 | Sep 28, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. average | $6.529 | $6.382 | $6.199 |
| East Coast | $6.268 | $6.137 | $5.951 |
| Midwest | $6.680 | $6.526 | $6.286 |
| Gulf Coast | $6.177 | $5.955 | $5.819 |
| Rocky Mountain | $6.340 | $6.407 | $6.267 |
| West Coast | $7.456 | $7.357 | $7.229 |
The U.S. average of $6.199 a gallon on October 5 was $2.488 higher than a year earlier. The EIA’s next diesel release is due October 14, 2026.
Source: EIA Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update, dollars per gallon, including all taxes.
Box truck and hotshot rates
DAT’s published national benchmarks cover dry van, reefer and flatbed. We did not find a national average for box trucks or hotshots that we could verify from a primary source, so this guide does not list one. For those trucks, your own cost per mile is the number to work from.
Cost-per-mile worksheet
Your cost per mile is what every mile costs you before profit. Work it out from one month of your own numbers:
Cost per mile = (monthly fixed costs ÷ monthly miles) + (diesel price ÷ miles per gallon) + other costs per mile + your own pay per mile
The example below uses the EIA’s October 5, 2026 diesel average. Every other input is an example; replace it with yours.
| Line | Example input | Per mile |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed costs: truck payment, insurance, ELD, permits, phone | Example: $3,500 a month over 10,000 miles | $0.35 |
| Fuel | $6.199 a gallon (EIA) ÷ example 6.5 mpg | $0.95 |
| Maintenance and tires | Example: set aside $0.20 a mile | $0.20 |
| Cost before your pay | $1.50 | |
| Your own pay | Example: $0.60 a mile | $0.60 |
| Cost per mile | $2.10 |
If a dispatcher takes a percentage of each load, divide by what is left after the fee to find the rate you need. In the example, at 8%: $2.10 ÷ 0.92 = $2.28 a mile all-in. Deadhead counts too: if some of your miles are empty, multiply your cost per mile by total miles ÷ paid miles to get the cost of each paid mile.
Because your cost includes fuel, compare it with all-in offers, or with DAT’s linehaul average plus the fuel surcharge in the first table. See what the fee itself comes to with the dispatch fee calculator, and how dispatchers price their work in how much a truck dispatcher costs.
Sources
- DAT Freight & Analytics, “Spot van rate falls 20 cents in steepest August pullback on record” (news release, September 15, 2026). Read October 9, 2026.
- DAT, “Dry Van Report: Quarter-end freight surge pushes spot rates higher” (October 6, 2026). Read October 9, 2026.
- DAT, “Reefer Report: Washington tree fruit rates hold 72% above last year as California volume slips 6%” (October 8, 2026). Read October 9, 2026.
- DAT, “Flatbed Report: tightest board of the three holds its edge into October” (October 6, 2026). Read October 9, 2026.
- American Transportation Research Institute, “New ATRI Report Details Accelerating Costs and Low Profitability Despite Cuts” (July 15, 2026). Read October 9, 2026.
- U.S. Energy Information Administration, Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update (released October 6, 2026). Read October 9, 2026.
- U.S. Energy Information Administration, diesel fuel price survey methods. Read October 9, 2026.
Questions
Rate guide questions
What is the difference between linehaul and all-in rates?
DAT’s linehaul rates exclude an amount equal to an average fuel surcharge; an all-in rate includes fuel. DAT notes that spot loads are negotiated as one all-in price paid by the broker, with no separate surcharge, so compare a spot offer with linehaul plus fuel.
Why is my rate different from the DAT average?
DAT’s benchmarks are national averages built from invoice data for hauls of 250 miles or more in the United States and Canada. Your lanes, length of haul, the season and the load itself all move the rate you are offered.
Is there a public national rate for box trucks or hotshots?
We did not find one we could verify from a primary source, so this guide does not list one. DAT’s published national benchmarks cover dry van, reefer and flatbed.
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