How much do truck dispatchers charge?

Most dispatch services charge a percentage of each load's gross, and some charge a flat weekly fee instead. Ours is a percentage: 4% for fleets of two or more trucks, 5% for one truck, and 7% while your MC is under 6 months old. Whatever service you compare, ask what the percentage is charged on and what else gets billed.

When does the fleet rate apply?

The day you put a second truck on our roster and your MC is at least 6 months old. From then on, every unit pays 4%, including the first truck. If you drop back to one truck, that truck goes back to 5%.

When does the 7% new-authority rate end?

On the date your MC turns 6 months old. Your fee drops to 5% for one truck or 4% for two or more without a new agreement or a phone call. Enter your grant date in the table on this page to see the exact day.

Do I pay for loads I turn down?

No. You approve every load before it's booked, and the fee only applies to loads you accepted and hauled. Passing on an offer costs nothing, no matter how many times you pass in a week.

What if a truck doesn't haul for a week?

Then that truck pays nothing for that week. There's no weekly minimum and no charge for a truck that's in the shop, on home time or parked because the freight didn't fit your rules.

Is there a contract or a cancellation fee?

No long contract and no cancellation fee. We work month-to-month, and you can stop with 30 days notice. Loads already booked when you give notice are finished and billed as normal.

When is the dispatch fee invoiced?

The written dispatch agreement sets the billing schedule, and we walk you through it on the first call before you sign anything. The fee is always calculated per load, from the loads you hauled in that period.

Is the fee charged on detention, lumper or permit reimbursements?

The agreement lists exactly which line items count toward gross before you sign. Ask us on the first call and we'll show you the wording. We'd rather you know the answer up front than find it on an invoice.

What does the dispatch fee include?

Load search across boards and direct broker contacts, rate negotiation on every load, broker calls, carrier packets, check calls and delivery updates, reload and deadhead planning, detention and layover claims, and a weekly report for every truck. There's no add-on menu.

DISPATCH RATES

Truck dispatch fee: 4% for fleets, 5% for one truck

One number per stage of your company. A new MC pays 7% for its first 6 months, then the truck dispatch fee drops on its own. No setup fee, no minimum, no contract, and nothing owed on a load you didn't accept and haul.

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MONTHS 0-6
7%
New authority, any equipment
ONE TRUCK
5%
From the day your MC turns 6 months
TWO OR MORE TRUCKS
4%
Every unit, from the day truck two joins

UNIT 02

Three rates, and the rule behind each one

Dispatch service cost by stage
Stage	Fee on gross	When it applies	When it changes
New authority	7%	MC under 6 months, any equipment, any number of trucks	Automatically on the day the MC turns 6 months
Single unit	5%	One truck, MC 6 months or older	Drops to 4% the day a second truck joins
Fleet	4%	Two or more trucks, MC 6 months or older	Applies to every unit, including the first truck

Every rate is a share of the gross on loads you accepted and hauled. Equipment doesn't change it: a 26 ft box truck, a hotshot, a reefer and a heavy haul unit all pay the same rate at the same stage. What moves the number is the age of your authority and the size of your roster, the two things that change how much work a carrier is for a dispatch desk.

Why does a new MC pay more? A brand-new authority takes more broker setups, more rejected packets and more calls to land the first loads, because many brokers want history before they tender freight. That extra work fades as your authority ages, so the fee fades with it, on a date you can see in advance.

Mixed fleets work the same way. If you run company trucks alongside owner-operators leased to your authority, every unit we dispatch counts toward your roster, so all of them pay the fleet rate once you have two. How you settle with a leased operator stays between you and that operator under your lease; our fee is billed to the carrier whose authority the load moves under, per load, never as a cut taken from a driver's settlement.

UNIT 03

What dispatch costs per truck at your size

Set a weekly gross and your MC age. The table shows the rate, the fee per truck and the fleet total at 1, 2, 5 and 10 trucks.

Loading the fee table

EXAMPLE A $2,800 load on a two-truck fleet costs $112 in dispatch. The same load on a single truck with an established MC costs $140, and on a new MC $196 until the step-down date.

Compare that with hiring. The median U.S. dispatcher wage is $50,340Dispatcher median annual wage$50,340BLS OEWS, May 2025, Dispatchers except police, fire and ambulance (SOC 43-5032), national median. Wages only, before payroll taxes, benefits and overhead.BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 43-5032, 2025Checked Oct 2026 a year, which works out to about $968 a week before payroll taxes, benefits and a load board seat, whether the trucks run or not. Our dispatcher fee calculator runs this math for any percentage or flat fee, and the dispatch ROI calculator adds the value of the hours you get back.

Loading the fee meter

UNIT 04

How to compare dispatch quotes

Two services can both say 6% and cost very different amounts. These are the questions that decide the real price.

QUESTION 1
What is the percentage charged on?
Linehaul only, or the whole rate including fuel surcharge and accessorials? On the same load, the answer can move the fee by a meaningful amount. Get it in writing.
QUESTION 2
What else is billed?
Setup fees, platform or software fees, load board charges and per-truck minimums all add to the percentage. A low headline rate with three add-ons isn't low.
QUESTION 3
How long is the contract, and what does leaving cost?
Watch for minimum terms, early termination fees and long notice periods. Month-to-month with a short notice period keeps the dispatcher working for your business every week.
QUESTION 4
Who approves loads and who signs the rate con?
If a dispatcher can book loads without your yes or sign rate confirmations for you, you've handed over control of your trucks along with the fee.
QUESTION 5
Who owns the broker setups?
Carrier packets are set up under your MC. They should stay yours when you leave, so the next dispatcher, or you, can keep booking with the same brokers.
QUESTION 6
Does the rate change as you grow?
A fee that stays flat at ten trucks ignores how dispatch work scales. Ask what happens to the rate when you add a unit, and when your authority gets older.

UNIT 05

What the fee covers, and what you never pay for

Covered by the percentage

Load search on the boards and through direct broker and shipper contacts
Rate negotiation on every load, from your floor rate per truck
Broker calls, carrier packets and insurance certificates on file
Check calls, pickup and delivery updates
Reload and deadhead planning, home time built into the week
Detention, layover and TONU claims with the times documented
A weekly report for every truck on the roster

Never billed

A setup or onboarding fee
A weekly or monthly minimum
Loads you passed on, however many
Weeks a truck didn't haul
Cancellation, as long as you give 30 days notice
Your broker setups when you leave; they stay with your MC

You also keep control of every load. We bring you the lane, miles, rate and broker; you say yes or no; the broker sends the rate confirmation straight to you to sign. The setup process page shows how the first two weeks run. If you're leaving another dispatcher, our guide on how to switch dispatchers covers notice periods and loads in progress.

Waiting on broker pay is a separate cost from dispatch. If 30-day terms are squeezing your cash, the cash flow forecaster shows the week your balance runs lowest, so you can line up a reserve or quick pay first.

UNIT 06

Straight answers about dispatch pricing

How much do truck dispatchers charge?: Most dispatch services charge a percentage of each load's gross, and some charge a flat weekly fee instead. Ours is a percentage: 4% for fleets of two or more trucks, 5% for one truck, and 7% while your MC is under 6 months old. Whatever service you compare, ask what the percentage is charged on and what else gets billed.
When does the fleet rate apply?: The day you put a second truck on our roster and your MC is at least 6 months old. From then on, every unit pays 4%, including the first truck. If you drop back to one truck, that truck goes back to 5%.
When does the 7% new-authority rate end?: On the date your MC turns 6 months old. Your fee drops to 5% for one truck or 4% for two or more without a new agreement or a phone call. Enter your grant date in the table on this page to see the exact day.
Do I pay for loads I turn down?: No. You approve every load before it's booked, and the fee only applies to loads you accepted and hauled. Passing on an offer costs nothing, no matter how many times you pass in a week.
What if a truck doesn't haul for a week?: Then that truck pays nothing for that week. There's no weekly minimum and no charge for a truck that's in the shop, on home time or parked because the freight didn't fit your rules.
Is there a contract or a cancellation fee?: No long contract and no cancellation fee. We work month-to-month, and you can stop with 30 days notice. Loads already booked when you give notice are finished and billed as normal.
When is the dispatch fee invoiced?: The written dispatch agreement sets the billing schedule, and we walk you through it on the first call before you sign anything. The fee is always calculated per load, from the loads you hauled in that period.
Is the fee charged on detention, lumper or permit reimbursements?: The agreement lists exactly which line items count toward gross before you sign. Ask us on the first call and we'll show you the wording. We'd rather you know the answer up front than find it on an invoice.
What does the dispatch fee include?: Load search across boards and direct broker contacts, rate negotiation on every load, broker calls, carrier packets, check calls and delivery updates, reload and deadhead planning, detention and layover claims, and a weekly report for every truck. There's no add-on menu.

See your rate on your own numbers

Apply in about two minutes. A dispatcher calls you, confirms your rate for your fleet, and shows you the agreement before anything starts.

4% for 2+ trucks, 5% for one, 7% while your MC is new