What is a spot rate in trucking?

The price for one load booked now, outside any contract — in the US usually agreed between a broker and a carrier. It follows short-term supply and demand, so it changes from day to day.

What is the difference between spot and contract rates?

A contract rate is agreed for a set period, often a year; a spot rate for a single load. In August 2026 DAT's van averages were USD 2.19 a mile spot and USD 2.41 contract, both excluding fuel.

Does a spot rate include fuel?

It depends how it is quoted. DAT's linehaul rates exclude fuel; its all-in rates include it. Van fuel surcharges averaged USD 0.70 a mile in August 2026, so check which kind a quote is.

Term

Spot rate

A spot rate is the price to move one load now, agreed load by load rather than under a contract. In the US it is mostly what freight brokers pay carriers, and it moves with short-term supply and demand. DAT's national van spot rate averaged USD 2.19 a mile in August 2026, excluding fuel.

Also called spot market rate, spot freight rate, truckload spot rate, spot market freightApplies in USUpdated 13 October 2026

How the spot market works

DAT, the US load board and freight-rate publisher, describes spot freight as freight that is not under a long-term contract between a shipper and a carrier, priced by short-term supply and demand. Spot rates, it says, are paid by freight brokers to carriers on a per-transaction basis. A shipper ends up there when its contracted carriers turn a load down, or when it has no contract on the lane at all.

National averages, August 2026

Equipment	Spot rate per mile	Change on July
Dry van	USD 2.19	down 20 cents
Refrigerated (reefer)	USD 2.61	down 14 cents
Flatbed	USD 2.70	down 20 cents

DAT spot linehaul rates per mile, excluding fuel. Van fuel surcharges averaged USD 0.70 a mile

Worked example: a 500-mile van load

Linehaul 500 × USD 2.19 = USD 1,095 · fuel 500 × USD 0.70 = USD 350 · all-in USD 1,445, or USD 2.89 a mile

At August 2026's national averages. A real quote depends on the lane and the week; these are national averages.

Spot against contract

In August 2026 van spot freight averaged USD 2.19 a mile against USD 2.41 on contract, DAT reported. U.S. Bank and DAT found contract rates rising from USD 2.30 a mile in June to USD 2.39 in August while spot fell, leaving contract about USD 0.22 a mile above spot. The gap opens and closes with the market; it is not fixed.

The mistake people make

Comparing an all-in figure with a linehaul one. DAT's linehaul rates exclude the fuel surcharge, while its all-in rates include fuel with no separate surcharge. Put an all-in spot quote beside a linehaul contract rate and the gap is wrong by the whole fuel cost — USD 0.70 a mile for vans in August 2026.

FAQ

Spot rate: common questions

What is a spot rate in trucking?: The price for one load booked now, outside any contract — in the US usually agreed between a broker and a carrier. It follows short-term supply and demand, so it changes from day to day.
What is the difference between spot and contract rates?: A contract rate is agreed for a set period, often a year; a spot rate for a single load. In August 2026 DAT's van averages were USD 2.19 a mile spot and USD 2.41 contract, both excluding fuel.
Does a spot rate include fuel?: It depends how it is quoted. DAT's linehaul rates exclude fuel; its all-in rates include it. Van fuel surcharges averaged USD 0.70 a mile in August 2026, so check which kind a quote is.