Hot shot rates by load type

Ask ten hotshot drivers what a load pays and you'll get ten numbers, because "a hotshot load" can be a 2,000 lb pump going 80 miles at midnight or 15,000 lb of pipe going 600 miles on a Tuesday. Those don't price the same, and a single average hides that. This page breaks hot shot hauling rates down by the type of freight.

Key finding: across seven common hotshot load types, the same truck with the same $1.30 per mile cost needs anywhere from $1.71 to $2.77 per loaded mile just to break even, before margin. The difference is empty miles and time, not the freight.

Public reference rates, dated

SOURCE: Hotshot ranges: FreightWaves Checkpoint, May 18, 2026 (an industry estimate, not a survey). Flatbed: DAT flatbed report and AJOT week 42 summary, checked Oct 26, 2026.

Semi flatbed rates aren't hotshot rates. They're for 48 ft trailers carrying up to about 48,000 lb. But hotshots compete for a slice of the same open-deck freight, so when DAT's flatbed board tightens, hotshot partials usually firm up a few weeks later. For the single average and how to read it, see average hot shot rate per mile.

Rate floors by load type

Here's the original part. Each row uses the same truck and the same costs, and changes only what a real load of that type tends to bring: loaded miles, the empty miles that come with it, and the extra hours for loading, securing, tarping or waiting.

SOURCE: All rows are EXAMPLE assumptions from TruckQuick, not market data. Floor = (cost per mile x all miles + extra hours x $30) / loaded miles. Replace every input with your own.

Same truck, same $1.30/mi cost: hotshot break-even floors run from $1.71 to $2.77 per loaded mile depending on load type (EXAMPLE model, Oct 2026).

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Download the rate floor sheet (CSV) with the formula inputs for every row, ready to change.

Worked example: the oilfield row

OILFIELD RUN, EXAMPLENO. 0205

EXAMPLE

Loaded to the lease

180 mi

Empty back (no reload out there)

180 mi

360 mi x $1.30

$468

1 hr waiting at the gate x $30

$30

Break-even

$498

Floor per loaded mile$2.77

A $2.25 per mile offer sounds strong next to the $1.50 to $2.00 range. On this run it loses $93. The rate per loaded mile isn't the problem; the empty return is.

How each load type prices

Construction equipment. Skid steers, mini excavators, light towers and small loaders. Usually rental yard to job site. Pays well when the machine is heavy enough to rule out light trucks, and when the job site is far from other freight. Ask whether it's running, who loads it and whether you need ramps or a dovetail.

Oilfield. Pumps, valves, pipe and tools to remote sites, often at night or on weekends. The highest per-mile rates of any hotshot freight, and the most empty miles. Price the return trip, not just the run in.

Steel and pipe. Heavy partials from service centers to fabrication shops. Lower per-mile floors because the miles are long and the lanes often have freight going back, but the weight usually means a CDL rig and plenty of chains.

Lumber and building materials. Steady in building season, light enough for many non-CDL setups. Tarping adds an hour or two, so ask about tarp pay up front.

Farm equipment. Seasonal, tied to planting and harvest. Rural pickups mean extra empty miles. Check width before you quote; some implements run close to or over the legal limit.

Campers and travel trailers. Often towed directly on your hitch, so no trailer of your own is involved. Long runs, usually one-way, with the return leg empty unless you plan it.

Expedited parts. Light freight a plant or repair shop needs now. The floor is low because the truck works little; the urgency premium on top is the whole point. Never price these at the floor.

What moves hot shot rates up or down

Method and update schedule

• Reference rows come only from named public sources, dated. They are refreshed monthly when DAT publishes its monthly report, and when a new published hotshot estimate appears. Next refresh: November 2026.
• Floor rows are a cost model, not observed rates. The $1.30 per mile cost and $30 per hour time value are EXAMPLE inputs chosen to show the spread. ATRI's 2025 operating cost for semis was $2.336 per mile; hotshot costs are lower but vary widely by truck, so use your own.
• What we don't publish: we don't publish rates from our own dispatched loads or invented averages. When a reliable hotshot-specific data source exists, it goes in the reference table.

For more on where this freight is posted and who ships it, read hot shot loads. Every other guide is on the guides page.

Turning a floor into a quote

1. Find your cost per mile from your own fuel, insurance, payment and maintenance numbers. The hotshot rate calculator does this math.
2. Count every mile: to pickup, loaded and back, unless a reload is lined up.
3. Add time: loading, securing, tarping and the waiting you expect.
4. Add margin on top of the floor. A floor is where you stop losing money, not where you make it.
5. Compare to the market. If the posted rate is under your floor, counter or pass.

Rates on our desk

The floor table above is how our hotshot dispatch team looks at an offer: your costs, the empty miles that come with it and the time it takes. We counter from there, plan the reload so the empty miles shrink, and bring you the load to accept or pass. The broker sends the rate confirmation to you. More on how the TruckQuick desk works for every rig is on the home page.

Sources

• FreightWaves Checkpoint, What is hotshot trucking, May 18, 2026
• DAT flatbed report and weekly summary via AJOT, week ending Oct 17, 2026; DAT monthly release, September 2026
• ATRI, Operational Costs of Trucking, 2026 update (2025 data), July 15, 2026