Dispatch fees
Dispatch fee percentage: what 5%, 7% and 10% cost in dollars
Updated October 2026 · By Richard Bailey
A dispatch fee percentage is taken from each load's gross. On $6,000 a week, 5% is $300, 7% is $420 and 10% is $600. Over 48 working weeks that is $14,400, $20,160 or $28,800 a year. The percentage matters, but what it is charged on and what it includes matter more.
The fee table, in dollars
Points are easy to compare and easy to misjudge. Here are the three common dispatcher percentages turned into dollars per week, month and year. Pick a weekly gross, or type your own.
EXAMPLE gross levels; 48 working weeks a year. A month is 4.33 weeks.
Two things stand out. First, the gap between 5% and 10% is real money: at $6,000 a week it is $300 a week, about $14,400 over a working year. Second, at a lower gross the gap shrinks in dollars but not in share of your profit. On a thin week, every point of fee comes out of a smaller net.
For the same comparison per mile, which is how most carriers think about cost, see dispatch fee cost per mile. To run your own mix of percentage and flat fees, use the dispatcher fee calculator.
What the percentage doesn't tell you
Two dispatchers quoting the same percentage can cost you very different amounts. Ask these before you compare numbers.
- What is the percentage charged on? Linehaul only, or gross including fuel surcharge and detention? Gross is the bigger base, so a percentage on gross costs more than the same percentage on linehaul.
- Is anything charged on loads you decline or don't haul? A fee should come from loads hauled, nothing else.
- Setup fee, deposit or monthly minimum? A minimum turns a percentage into a flat fee in slow weeks.
- Contract term and cancellation. A long term with an exit fee is a cost, even if you never pay it.
- What is included? Load searching and rate negotiation are standard. Broker setup, check calls, detention claims, paperwork and a weekly report may or may not be.
- Who confirms the load? If loads are booked without your yes, the percentage is the least of your problems.
- Who does the broker pay? You or your factor. Never the dispatcher.
EXAMPLE
Made-up load. Shows why the base matters as much as the rate.
Why the rate per mile beats the percentage
A dispatcher's real value shows up in the rate, not the fee. Suppose one dispatcher charges 5% and books you at $2.20 a mile, and another charges 7% and books you at $2.40. On 2,400 loaded miles a week:
- 5% at $2.20: gross $5,280, fee $264, $5,016 after the fee.
- 7% at $2.40: gross $5,760, fee $403, $5,357 after the fee.
The higher fee leaves you $341 a week better off, because the rate moved more than the fee. The reverse can also be true. That is why you judge a dispatcher on net per mile after the fee, over several weeks, not on the headline percentage. And it is why a percentage fee lines the dispatcher's interest up with yours: a better rate pays both of you.
What a dispatch fee should buy you
A percentage is only fair if the work behind it is real. At any fee level, expect:
- Load sourcing every day you want to run, on the boards and through broker contacts, not one load at a time when you call.
- Negotiation on every load, from your floor rate, with the counter explained to you.
- Broker setup and paperwork: carrier packets, rate confirmations matched to invoices, signed bills of lading sent to the broker or your factor.
- Check calls and problem calls, including the 2 a.m. one when a receiver won't unload.
- Detention, layover and TONU claims, filed with timestamps, because money you earned and didn't claim is a bigger leak than any fee.
- A weekly report listing each load, its gross and the fee, so you can check the bill against your rate cons.
Why fees differ for new authorities and smaller trucks
Higher fees for a new MC, a box truck or a hotshot aren't a penalty; they follow the work. A new authority means more broker setups, more vetting calls and more loads turned down because a broker won't take a new MC. Box trucks and hotshots haul smaller loads, so a week takes more calls to fill. A tiered fee that drops when the work does, for example when an MC turns six months old, is a reasonable sign the dispatcher priced the job rather than the customer.
How we price
Our own fee is one example among many, so here it is plainly:
- 7% of gross for a new MC under 6 months, 26 ft box trucks and hotshots.
- 5% of gross for one truck with authority older than 6 months.
- 4% of gross per truck for fleets of 2 or more, a limited-time rate.
No setup fee, no monthly minimum, no fee in a week you don't haul, and month-to-month with 30 days notice to cancel. The fee is on gross load revenue; pass-through reimbursements carry no fee. Every load is offered to you first, the rate confirmation goes straight to you, and you can decline any of them at no cost. All of it, with a sample month, is on our dispatch fees page.
When a flat fee makes more sense
Some dispatchers charge a flat amount per week or per load instead. A flat weekly fee can cost less in a strong week and more in a weak one, and some charge it even in weeks you don't run. Divide the flat fee by a typical weekly gross to compare it with a percentage: $300 on a $6,000 week is 5%, on a $3,500 week it is 8.6%. If your gross swings a lot, the percentage is usually kinder to your slow weeks.
Questions carriers ask
What percentage do truck dispatchers charge?
Percentage-based dispatchers usually quote a single-digit to low double-digit share of gross; rates of 8% to 12% are common, and some charge more for specialized freight or extra services. Some charge a flat weekly or per-load fee instead. Compare the percentage together with what is included, what it is charged on, and any setup fees or minimums.
Is 10% too much for a dispatcher?
It depends on what you get for it. On $6,000 a week, 10% is $600 a week, $300 more than 5%. If that dispatcher also handles billing, collections or compliance work you would otherwise pay for, it can be fair. If the service is the same, it is $14,400 a year more over 48 weeks.
Is a lower dispatch fee always better?
No. A 5% dispatcher who books cheap loads costs more than a 7% dispatcher who books well-paid ones. A few cents a mile in rate is worth more than a point or two of fee. Judge a dispatcher on your net per mile after the fee, not on the fee alone.
Is the dispatch fee charged on accessorials?
It depends on the agreement, so ask. With us, the fee is on gross load revenue, which includes fuel surcharge and accessorials the broker pays, such as detention. Reimbursements that only repay costs you paid out, such as permits or escorts, are pass-through and carry no fee.
Written by
Updated October 2026. Every rate and date on this page has its source and the date we checked it. How we research