The calculator

Cost per mile

Fixed costs accrue whether the truck moves or not. Variable costs accrue per mile. Splitting them is not bookkeeping neatness: it is what tells you whether an extra load is worth taking, because on a week the truck is already paid for, only the variable side has to be covered.

Diesel opens at the US average for the week ending Aug 17, 2026. Change it to what you actually pay, or use your regional figure from the fuel page.

The truck and the year

Miles a yearMiles per gallonYour real figure, not the brochure one.Diesel$/galUS average for the week ending Aug 17, 2026.Loaded miles%Deadhead is the rest, and it costs the same as loaded.

Fixed, per year

Truck payment$Insurance$Permits and plates$ELD and software$Parking and overhead$

Variable, per mile

Maintenance$/miTyres$/miFuel tax$/miTolls$/miProfit you want$/mi$42,000 a year at these miles.

Your cost per mile

$1.333

$0.388 of it is there whether the truck moves or not.

Rate you must be paid

$1.913

per LOADED mile, to cover this cost and clear $0.35 a mile at 88% loaded

Cost for the year

$159,991

$46,600 fixed, $113,391 variable

Where the mile goes

Fuel47%$0.623
Truck payment15%$0.200
Maintenance14%$0.180
Insurance9%$0.117
Fuel tax5%$0.070
Tyres3%$0.042
Parking and overhead3%$0.035
Tolls2%$0.030
Permits and plates2%$0.029
ELD and software1%$0.007

The gap between your cost per mile and the rate you must be paid is deadhead. At 88% loaded, every dollar you are quoted per loaded mile is worth $0.88 against the miles you actually drive, which is why quoting from cost per mile loses money quietly.

Why the rate is higher than the cost

Every mile costs money and only loaded miles earn it. A rate quoted per loaded mile is therefore not the rate you are working for. At 12% deadhead a $2.40 load is really $2.11 against the miles you drove, and quoting from your cost per mile rather than from the required loaded rate loses that difference quietly on every load.

Why fuel economy matters more than it looks

Fuel burn is gallons per mile, not miles per gallon, so the saving from 6.0 to 6.5 mpg is larger than the saving from 8.0 to 8.5. Every aerodynamic claim and every device sold on fuel should be read through that reciprocal before you believe the payback figure.

What this deliberately leaves out

Your own pay, income tax, and the cost of the weeks you are not moving. Add them and the required rate rises again. A calculator that quietly omits them flatters the operation, and this one says so rather than doing it.