Hotshot rate calculator for gooseneck and flatbed runs

How the hotshot rate calculator works

• All miles = loaded miles + deadhead to the pickup.
• Floor = all miles × your cost per mile + extras, grossed up for the dispatch fee. Below it, the load loses money.
• Target = all miles × (cost + profit per mile) + extras, grossed up the same way.
• Per loaded mile = the rate ÷ loaded miles, the way brokers quote it.

Grossing up means dividing by what you keep after the fee. Our dispatch fee for hotshots is 7% of the load's gross, so a target of $1,000 before the fee needs about $1,075 on the rate con. If you book your own loads, set the fee to zero.

Worked example EXAMPLE

A one-ton with a 40 ft gooseneck is offered a 450-mile load of pipe, with 120 miles empty to the pickup. Costs run $1.10 a mile and the driver wants $0.50 a mile profit. On 570 miles, the floor is $627 before any fee and the target $912. Divided by 450 loaded miles, the target is about $2.03 per loaded mile before the fee. The load weighs 8,000 lb and the rig 17,000 lb empty, so it grosses 25,000 lb, under a 26,000 lb rating.

Now the broker's offer is $800. That clears the floor but misses the target by $112, which is where the counter starts. Our counter offer calculator helps set the number.

Hot shot rates: what moves them

• Deadhead. Hotshot loads are often in places with little freight coming back, so empty miles weigh heavily.
• Urgency. A breakdown part or a rig-down needed today pays for speed.
• Weight and size. A load that uses your full deck or rating leaves no room for a second partial.
• Securement. Tarps, extra straps and awkward freight take time and wear gear.
• Region and season. Oilfield, construction and farm seasons swing demand.

Hot shot price per mile: partials and full loads

Many hotshot loads are partials, and two partials on the deck can pay better than one full load. Price each piece on its share of the deck and miles, and make sure the combined weight stays under your rating. A partial that adds a detour adds miles to the trip; count them.

Minimum charges for short runs

A 60-mile run can take half a day once you count the drive to the pickup, loading, securement and the wait at delivery. Priced by the mile alone, it pays almost nothing. Set a minimum charge that covers a half day of your costs and profit, and quote short runs from that, not from a per-mile rate. Run the calculator with the real miles, then compare the target with your minimum and use the higher number.

Hotshot costs that differ from a semi

A pickup and gooseneck burns less fuel than a tractor, but it wears out faster per mile, and tires, brakes and the truck itself turn over sooner. Insurance for hotshots can be high for the revenue they earn. Count these in your cost per mile honestly, or every rate looks better than it is. Work it out with the trucking cost per mile calculator.

Hotshot rates and your weight rating

The weight check compares the loaded gross with your combination rating. Many hotshot setups are rated under 26,001 lb so the driver can run without a Class A CDL, and that rating caps what you can haul. Going over it is overweight on your own registration, whatever the scale says about axles. If the load won't fit, say no or find a rig with a higher rating.

Average hot shot rate per mile

Load boards publish average rates, and they help you read the market. They can't tell you whether a load works for your truck, your deadhead and your costs. The floor and target from this calculator can. Check any offer on all its miles with the rate per mile calculator.

Hotshot rates when you dispatch with us

We keep your floor and your rating on your rig card. We negotiate from them, call you with the details before anything is booked, and you can say no to any load. The broker sends the rate confirmation straight to you. See our hotshot dispatch and dispatch for owner-operators, or send an application.