How owner-operators find good loads

Where freight comes from

Most owner-operators find freight in three ways: load boards, broker relationships and direct shippers. Each one has a place, and most carriers use a mix of all three.

1. Load boards

Load boards such as DAT and Truckstop list thousands of available loads. They are fast and give you a feel for current rates in a lane. The downside is competition: a good load can be booked within minutes, and the posted rate is only a starting point for negotiation.

2. Broker relationships

Brokers who know you and trust your service will often call you first with freight. Building these relationships takes time: deliver on time, communicate clearly, keep your paperwork clean and be easy to work with. Over time this can bring steadier freight than searching a board all day.

3. Direct shippers

Working directly with a shipper removes the broker from the middle and can give you repeat freight on a regular lane. Direct freight takes more effort to win and usually comes after you have a record of reliable service.

How to pick a good load

• Know your cost per mile. Compare the rate to your real costs, including fuel, maintenance, insurance and your own pay.
• Count the empty miles. A high rate can be a poor load if you finish in a place where freight is hard to find.
• Plan the reload. Think about where the load ends and what freight is available there before you accept.
• Check the details. Pickup and delivery times, detention rules, tarping or temperature requirements and any special handling.

How to vet a broker

• Confirm the broker's MC number and authority status on the FMCSA website.
• Check how and when they pay, and ask about their typical payment time.
• Look at reviews and credit information from carrier-focused services.
• Get every agreed rate and term on a signed rate confirmation, and read it before you sign.
• Be careful of loads that look like double brokering, such as a different company name on the paperwork than on the load.

Let someone else do the searching

Searching, calling and negotiating takes hours every day. A dispatcher can do it for you while you drive: see what a truck dispatcher does, or talk to Dispatchero about your equipment and lanes.