Dedicated freight should be priced from a complete operating-cost model and a defined margin target, not from instinct or a spreadsheet that is justified after the quote has already been built.
FreightMath’s interactive Dedicated Pricing calculator was created for carriers that need both cost transparency and professional, client-ready output.
Built for How Dedicated Freight Actually Works
The calculator can model pricing per load, per mile, per hour, or per week. Its inputs reflect the major drivers of dedicated-freight performance:
- Driver pay based on hours, miles, or a percentage of revenue.
- Payroll taxes and benefits.
- Fuel and diesel exhaust fluid.
- Tractor and trailer requirements and ratios.
- Maintenance, insurance, overhead, and tolls.
- Custom upcharges and the fuel-surcharge structure.
The tool calculates the number of drivers required from the planned miles, hours, and service days. As assumptions change, it compares the proposed rate with breakeven and the target operating margin.
Client-Ready Output in Minutes
The calculator produces a presentation-ready Pricing Proposal PDF that summarizes the operating profile and rate structure. Linehaul and fuel surcharge are separated so the customer can see how the price is constructed.
For the carrier’s internal review, it also creates weekly and monthly P&L proformas showing revenue, operating expenses, and net operating margin. The report highlights cost per mile, revenue per mile, breakeven rate, and the projected annual result.
The output therefore serves two purposes: a customer-facing rate sheet and the financial support for the proposed price. In the sample report referenced by the source article, the modeled scenario produces a 20.0% net operating margin with full weekly and monthly income statements.
From Reactive Quoting to a Margin Strategy
Dedicated freight is contract-driven, capital-intensive, and sensitive to small errors in cost assumptions. Yet many programs are still priced in spreadsheets without a consistent way to test the full operating profile.
The Dedicated Pricing calculator brings a structured process to that work. Instead of treating the quote as the final answer, it shows whether the operating assumptions and proposed rate produce the expected margin.
The tool also serves as a prototype for a future BidRight Dedicated Pricing application. Feedback on the modeling logic and user experience is intended to inform an integrated module for carriers managing dedicated contracts at scale.