Free heavy haul load board options: where oversize loads are posted

Where heavy haul loads are posted

Oversize and overweight freight moves through fewer channels than van freight. Equipment dealers, rental companies, contractors and manufacturers often call carriers they know directly. What reaches a load board comes mostly through brokers, and many of the larger ones run their own boards for approved carriers. General load boards carry some heavy haul posts too, and at least one now has a board built for them.

Heavy haul load boards, from their own pages

How we compared: what each provider states on its own pages, or in dated launch coverage where the provider's page didn't load for us, checked October 2026. We list cost, whether heavy haul filters exist and who can use it. No rankings.

Other brokers run their own carrier portals too, and many heavy haul specialists post through them. Free boards have a trade-off: you see one broker's freight at that broker's price. Paid boards show many brokers at once, which helps you compare, but the monthly fee is owed in slow months as well.

Free vs paid: which fits a heavy haul carrier

For a new heavy haul authority, broker boards cost nothing but take paperwork: each broker wants your authority, insurance certificate and W-9 before you see full posts. Set up with several, then add a paid board if your lanes need more reach.

Getting onto broker boards: the carrier packet

Free broker boards open up once the broker approves you as a carrier. Every broker asks for much the same packet: your operating authority and USDOT number, a certificate of insurance naming the broker, a W-9, and banking or factoring details for payment. Heavy haul brokers usually add questions about your trailers, deck heights and widths, axle counts, permit experience and whether you run your own pilot cars. Keep the packet current in one folder and update the certificate of insurance the day your policy renews. A broker that can't see a valid certificate can't offer you its loads, however free the board is.

Post your truck, not just search

Most boards let carriers post their truck as well as search loads. For heavy haul, a good truck post states the trailer type and deck length, the well height and width, how many axles and what gross it is rated to haul on permits, where the truck will be empty and when, and the states you're set up to run. Specialized shippers and brokers search those posts when a machine needs moving, and a detailed post gets the call that a vague one doesn't.

Red flags on heavy haul posts

• No dimensions or weight, or a broker who says "it's standard" without numbers.
• A pickup "today" on a load that needs permits in several states.
• A flat all-in rate with no word on who pays permits and escorts.
• A broker you can't find with active authority, or one with a record of slow pay.
• A machine described by type only, with no make or model, so you can't check its weight.

How to judge a heavy haul load post

A heavy haul post is only the start of a quote. Before you call, check:

1. Dimensions and weight. Anything wider than 102 inches on the National Network needs a permit Source; height and weight limits vary by state.
2. States on the route. Each one charges its own permit; Texas, for example, charges $60 for oversize only and more for overweight by gross weight band. Source
3. Escorts. Width, height and length thresholds differ by state, so count escort miles in each.
4. Loading. Drive-on machines load fast; crane lifts take hours and a crew.
5. Securement. Equipment of 10,000 lb or more needs at least four tiedowns Source; budget the time.
6. Who pays permits and escorts. Get it on the rate confirmation before you accept.

Reading a post

A post shows a 42,000 lb excavator, 10 ft 6 in wide, Dallas to Oklahoma City, $2,100 all in. Your RGN and tractor weigh 38,000 lb, so the gross is 80,000 lb: legal on weight. The width needs a permit in both states. Subtract a Texas oversize permit, an Oklahoma permit, any escort the route requires and the deadhead to Dallas, and see what the line haul really pays before you counter. Price it fully with our heavy haul freight rates guide.

Beyond the boards: where steady heavy haul work comes from

• Equipment dealers: deliveries to customers and transfers between stores.
• Rental companies: machines moving to and from job sites on short notice.
• Contractors: moving their own fleet between jobs, often seasonal.
• Manufacturers: new machines from plants and ports.
• Auctions: sold machines heading to new owners after each sale.

Boards fill the gaps between those accounts. A heavy hauler who delivers machines on time, undamaged and with clean paperwork usually gets the next call directly, without a post.

Load boards vs a dispatcher

A board is a search tool; you still make the calls, check the brokers and negotiate. A dispatcher does that for you. We don't book loads that need oversize permits, but for legal flatbed and step deck freight our desk works the boards and broker contacts, and you approve each load. See load boards vs dispatchers for the trade-offs, and our car hauler load board guide for how a different specialty uses boards. For the trade itself, read heavy haul trucking, or start at the GearLoads home page.