The owner's workbench
Trucking cost per mile calculator
Your cost per mile is your total monthly operating cost divided by the miles you drove. Know it before you accept a rate.
Illustrative example. Enter last month's costs; leave a field empty if it does not apply (it counts as $0.00).
Your numbers
Your results
Total monthly cost
$15,500.00
Cost per mile
$1.72
Exactly $1.7222
Rate per mile for your margin
$1.91
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Guide: Cost-plus pricing
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Estimates only. Results depend on your inputs.
Formulas
- Total monthly cost = fuel + driver pay and benefits + truck payment or lease + insurance + maintenance and tires + permits and fees + other costs
- Cost per mile = total monthly cost ÷ total miles (loaded plus empty)
- Rate per mile for a target margin = cost per mile ÷ (1 − margin %)
Worked example
Illustrative example. Numbers are made up to show the math.
Fuel $4,800.00 + driver $6,000.00 + truck payment $1,800.00 + insurance $1,200.00 + maintenance $1,000.00 + other $700.00 = $15,500.00 for the month.
Over 9,000 miles, the cost per mile is $1.72 (exactly $1.7222). For a 10% margin, the rate needed is $1.72 ÷ (1 − 10%) = $1.91 per mile.
How to use it
- Enter last month's operating costs; leave a field empty if it does not apply.
- Enter total miles, loaded plus empty.
- Add a target margin % to see the rate per mile you need.
Questions owners ask
What costs belong in cost per mile?
Every cost of running the truck for the month: fuel, driver pay and benefits, the truck payment or lease, insurance, maintenance and tires, permits and fees, and other operating costs such as tolls, phone and software.
Why include empty miles?
You pay for fuel, wear and driver time on every mile, loaded or not. Dividing by loaded miles only makes your cost per mile look lower than it is.
How often should I recalculate?
Every month, and whenever fuel, insurance, the truck payment or driver pay changes.
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Sources
No external research cited. Calculations and illustrative assumptions are shown above; this is not evidence of a real owner outcome.
Educational content, not tax, legal or investment advice.
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