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Fuel surcharge calculator

Diesel moves every week. If your fuel surcharge was set when diesel was cheaper, you may be hauling part of every load for free. Enter your numbers to see what your surcharge should be at this week's price.

Loading this week's diesel price…
Filled in from the EIA. Type your pump price if you know it.
Most Class 8 trucks get 6 to 7.
The price your line-haul rate already covers. $1.20 to $1.25 is common; use the one in your rate agreement.
The fuel surcharge on your last rate confirmation, divided by the loaded miles.

How the fuel surcharge is calculated

The standard formula, used by most carriers and shippers that index to the weekly Department of Energy price:

(diesel price − base price) ÷ MPG = surcharge per mile

At $6.50 diesel, a $1.25 base, and 6.5 MPG: (6.50 − 1.25) ÷ 6.5 = $0.81 per mile. The base price is the part of fuel your line-haul rate already pays for, so the surcharge only covers the difference.

If you quote all-in rates with no separate surcharge, watch the line under your result that shows how much your fuel cost per mile has gone up. That is how much your rate has to rise just to stay even.

Where the price comes from

The U.S. Energy Information Administration publishes the average retail price of on-highway diesel every Monday, for the country and for each region. Most rate agreements reference this number. We pull it each week, so the calculator is current without you looking it up.

Thin margins make every surprise cost more

You can't control the price of diesel. You can make sure a missed filing or an expired medical card isn't what sinks a tight month. The DOT Binder tracks your MCS-150, UCR, insurance, medical cards, annual inspections, and driver qualification files, and emails you before anything is due. 14-day free trial, no card.

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