Trucking Cost Per Mile Calculator
Most owner-operators guess their cost per mile and take loads that lose money. Enter your real numbers below to see your true CPM, your monthly operating cost, and the minimum rate per mile you can accept and still make a margin.
Operation
Fixed costs (per truck / month)
ELD Hub is $15 per truck per month with no contract — that field is pre-filled with our price so you can see the difference against what you pay today.
Variable costs (per mile)
Your cost per mile
$1.194
- Fuel
- $0.600
- All variable costs
- $0.820
- Fixed costs spread over miles
- $0.374
- Fleet miles per month
- 9,000
- Total monthly operating cost
- $10,745
Minimum rate to accept
For a 10% margin: $1.313/mi
For a 20% margin: $1.433/mi
Deadhead miles count. If 15% of your miles are empty, divide the loaded rate you quote by 0.85 to stay above these numbers.
ELD Hub — $15/truck/month, no contract. Start with a 14-day free trial.
How to read your cost per mile
Fixed costs punish empty weeks
Your truck payment and insurance are the same whether you run 6,000 or 12,000 miles. Fewer miles means a higher cost per mile, which is why a slow month can turn a profitable rate into a loss.
Fuel is the biggest variable line
At 6.5 MPG and $3.90 diesel, fuel alone is about $0.60 per mile. A half-MPG improvement or a $0.40/gal fuel discount is worth thousands a year.
Compliance costs belong in the model
ELD subscriptions, IFTA filing, and DOT fines all land in fixed costs. A $45/truck ELD with a 36-month contract adds roughly $0.06/mi more than a $15 month-to-month plan at 9,000 miles.
Use it before you book, not after
Compare the broker's rate per mile against your 10% margin line. If the load is below it, the only reason to take it is repositioning.
Start in 60 seconds
$15/truck/month. No contract. FMCSA-registered ELD you can activate today — and it starts with a 14-day free trial.
- FMCSA-registered
- 5-minute setup
- Keep your PT-30 / IOSiX
- Cancel anytime
4 quick steps — personal details, company info (USDOT number and time zone required), billing address, done. About 2 minutes. Month-to-month — cancel anytime.