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Freight broker profit calculator
What does one load really earn you? It opens with a 20-person brokerage from FreightWaves' January 2026 model at a 13% margin, the median Triumph reported across its broker clients in January 2026. Change only the numbers you know. Then move the levers and watch your profit for the year.
What each lever is worth to you in a year
At your numbers, before any agent price. Tap one to see it in the ledger.
Your brokerage
Prefilled with industry averages. Nothing to fill in.
Costs, payment terms and team mix
LEVER 1
Hand the routine steps to an agent
Where the minutes on one load go, and how much of each step the agent takes.
estimate No public time study of broker work exists. The split is our estimate, and the total comes from your team and volume: ops people × 160 hours ÷ loads. Check calls: 7–8 per load without automation, 1–2 with it (Trucker Tools, vendor). The presets stay below that on purpose. Freed hours are valued at base pay only: commission follows gross profit, not hours.
LEVER 2
More loads with the same team
Volume up, headcount fixed. Can your people carry it?
Where would those loads come from?
- Market volume isn't growing. DAT's September index: van −1% year over year, reefer −10%, flatbed −7%.
- Accepted tenders are down 20% from the June peak; volume sits in the 13th percentile of five years (SONAR, October 2026).
- The market feels tight because trucks left, not because freight came back: about 51,000 for-hire tractors gone in August alone (FreightWaves).
- So every extra load is taken from another broker. The cost of a load is the part you control.
LEVER 3
Win more of the quotes you already get
The extra loads are in your inbox: RFQs you answer an hour late.
your call No independent study links reply speed to win rate. Vendors claim 15–20% won by hand and 24–30% with instant replies, with no primary source. Start at your own number.
LEVER 4
Leaks the models leave out
Off by default. Switch on the ones that hit your desk.
Detention, lumper and TONU you never bill backDetention hits 39.3% of stops; only about 41% of incidents get paid (ATRI).
Fraud and stolen loadsAbout $40,760 lost per fraudulent load (TIA, 2024).
Quick pay fees you earn56% of brokers say carriers ask about quick pay before they accept (Truckstop, 1H 2026). Fees run 1–3%.
Sources. Default brokerage: FreightWaves model, Jan 7 2026 (15,700 loads a year, 20 people, $1,912 a load, $118k per person, $55 other cost a load, shipper pays in 40 days, carrier in 30). Default margin 13%, Triumph's January 2026 median; FreightWaves' model used 9.91%. Other 2026 margins: Triumph 10–12% in Q2, C.H. Robinson NAST 13.1%, RXO 10.7%. Payroll load: BLS ECEC, June 2026. Detention: ATRI 2024. Quick pay: Truckstop × Bloomberg Intelligence 1H 2026. Fraud: TIA State of Fraud 2024. Market volume: DAT Truckload Volume Index, Sept 2026; SONAR, Oct 2026; FreightWaves, Oct 7 2026. Fields marked estimate or your call are assumptions, not data.
Everything is computed in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
How it counts
Net profit per load, line by line
The calculator starts from your gross profit per load and takes out what it pays for. Payroll per load is your team's yearly cost divided by your loads. Waiting for payment is the cost of carrying the gap between the day you pay the carrier and the day the shipper pays you. What's left is your net profit per load.
Gross profit per load
Revenue per load times your margin. In the FreightWaves model: $1,912 at 9.91%, so about $189.
Payroll per load
People × full cost a year ÷ loads a year. Twenty people at $118k on 15,700 loads is about $150 a load.
Break-even margin
The margin where payroll, overhead and financing are just covered. In the model it is about 10.9%.
Questions
About freight broker profit
How much does a freight broker make per load?
Gross profit is often $165 to $290 a load: Triumph's January 2026 median was $165 at a 13% margin, and TIA reported $290 at 15.3% for Q4 2024. Net profit is much smaller. FreightWaves' January 2026 model of a 20-person broker loses about $16 to $19 a load once payroll and overhead are paid.
What is the average freight broker profit margin?
In 2026 most published gross margins sit between 10% and 13%: Triumph's broker clients 10–12% in Q2, C.H. Robinson's North American truckload 13.1%, RXO 10.7%. Spot loads run higher than contract loads.
Are freight brokers profitable in 2026?
Many are not. Spot rates rose above contract rates in June 2026 for the first time since 2022, which squeezed brokers holding contract freight. Market volume is not growing, so profit has to come from the cost of each load.
What break-even margin does a broker need?
It depends on payroll and loads per person. A 20-person broker running 15,700 loads a year needs about 10.9% to 11.3% just to cover its costs.
Where do the default numbers come from?
From FreightWaves' January 2026 model of a mid-size brokerage, plus BLS, TIA, ATRI, DAT and Truckstop data. Fields marked estimate or your call are assumptions. Change them to your own numbers.
Do you keep what I type?
No. The calculator runs in your browser and sends nothing to Retexa.
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