Trucking cost per mile calculator

By Fernandez · Updated October 2026

Find out what every mile costs your truck, so you know which loads actually pay.

Miles per month (loaded + empty)

Truck payment

Insurance per month

Plates, permits, IFTA, UCR per month

Other fixed (phone, ELD, parking, software)

Diesel price per gallon

Your price; EIA publishes weekly averages

Miles per gallon

Repairs and maintenance per mile

ATRI 2025 average: $0.215

Tires per mile

ASSUMPTION

Tolls per month

Your cost per mile

$1.25

Fixed per mile

$0.42

Variable per mile

$0.84

Truck payment$0
Insurance and permits$0
Fuel$1
Repairs, tires, tolls$0

Bars show dollars per mile. For reference, ATRI put the 2025 industry average at $2.336 per mile including driver wages (ATRI, An Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking, 2026 update (2025 data), as reported by FleetOwner). Your number excludes your own pay unless you add it.

At $1.25 a mile, every load should clear that before you say yes. We price each load against your cost.

Our dispatchers find and negotiate the loads; you approve each one and sign the rate con. 5% of gross for one truck with an MC 6 months or older, no setup fee.

Start dispatch

How it is calculated

Fixed per mile = (payment + insurance + permits + other fixed) / miles per month.
Fuel per mile = diesel price / miles per gallon.
Variable per mile = fuel + repairs + tires + tolls / miles.
Cost per mile = fixed per mile + variable per mile.

Worked example

Item	EXAMPLE
Miles per month	9,000
Fixed costs	$3,750 a month
Fixed per mile	$0.42
Fuel at $3.80 and 6.5 MPG	$0.58
Repairs, tires, tolls	$0.25
Cost per mile	$1.25

EXAMPLE costs, before the owner's pay.

What to do with the number

Set your floor rate from it. Add the pay you want and a margin, and that is the lowest all-in rate per mile a load should pay, empty miles included. Check loads against it with the rate per mile calculator.

If the number is higher than your lanes pay, look at the biggest bar first. A large payment bar points to the loan, a large fuel bar to MPG and idle time, and large fixed bars to too few miles. The how much truck can I afford calculator works the problem backward from what you earn.

For what owning a truck costs before you buy, read how much does a semi truck cost, and for the wear miles put on value, semi truck depreciation by age and mileage.

Cost per mile mistakes

Using a good month's miles. Fixed costs per mile jump in slow months; use your average or a slow month.
Leaving out tires, permits or software. Small costs add up across thousands of miles.
Forgetting your own pay. Add it as a fixed cost to find the rate that pays you too.

Loads that clear your cost per mile

Tell us your number. We negotiate every load against it, and you approve each one.

Book loads above my cost

YOUR NUMBERS, EXAMPLE

Payment: $1,715 /mo
Our fee: 5% of gross
YOU KEEP: the rest

Questions

How do you calculate truck cost per mile?

Add your monthly fixed costs and divide by the miles you run, loaded and empty. Then add the variable costs per mile: fuel (diesel price divided by MPG), repairs and maintenance, tires and tolls spread over your miles. The two together are your cost per mile before your own pay.

What is the average trucking cost per mile?

ATRI's operational cost study put the industry average at $2.336 per mile for 2025, including driver wages and benefits. That is a fleet average across mostly Class 8 carriers. Your own number can be far higher or lower, which is why the calculator uses your costs, not the average.

Should my own pay be in cost per mile?

The calculator leaves it out by default so you can see what the truck costs to run. To find the rate you need, add the pay you want per month as an other fixed cost. Then your cost per mile is the break-even rate that also pays you.

Why does my cost per mile go up when I run fewer miles?

Because fixed costs like the payment and insurance do not shrink when the truck sits. Spread over fewer miles, each mile carries more of them. That is why idle days and slow weeks hurt so much, and why miles that pay matter more than miles alone.

Is there a trucking cost per mile calculator app?

This page works on a phone in any browser, with no download and no account. Your numbers save on your device, and the copy link button keeps them in a link you can open later or send to your accountant or dispatcher.