# Cost per mile calculator

> Calculate a truck's cost per mile from its fixed and per-mile costs, the margin at a rate per mile, and how it compares with ATRI's industry benchmark.

URL: https://roadmark.ai/tools/cost-per-mile
Language: en

Cost per mile is what it costs to run a truck one mile: its fixed costs for a period (payments, insurance, permits) divided by all the miles it ran, plus its per-mile costs for fuel, maintenance, tires and driver pay. The rate per mile minus that is the margin. ATRI's yearly analysis of carriers' costs put the industry average at $2.336 a mile in 2025.

## How cost per mile is worked out

Some costs arrive by the month whatever the truck does; others grow with every mile. Cost per mile puts both on the same footing.

```
Fixed cost per mile = fixed costs for the period ÷ miles in the period
Variable cost per mile = fuel + maintenance + tires + driver pay + other, each per mile
Cost per mile = fixed cost per mile + variable cost per mile
Margin per mile = rate per mile − cost per mile
```

- **All the miles:** count, loaded and empty. An empty mile burns the same fuel and wears the same tires; leaving it out makes the truck look cheaper to run than it is.
- **Fixed costs:** don't change with the miles, so every extra mile makes each one cheaper. The same truck costs less a mile in a busy month.
- **The cost per mile:** is the break-even rate. A load that pays less than it over all the miles it takes, the empty ones to reach it included, loses money.
- **Per-mile figures:** are to a tenth of a cent here, the way ATRI publishes its benchmark; totals for the period are to the cent.

## Worked example: A month for unit 214.

Unit 214 runs 9,000 miles in a month, loaded and empty, with R. Diaz paid CA$0.88 a mile; all figures are in CAD. The payments, insurance, permits and other costs here are example figures, not Ashgrove Freight's books. Its fixed costs come to CA$5,860.00, which is CA$0.651 a mile over 9,000 miles. Its per-mile costs add up to CA$2.140. Together that's CA$2.791 a mile.

At an example rate of CA$3.10 a mile, the month earns CA$27,900.00 against CA$25,120.00 of costs, leaving CA$2,780.00: a 10.0% margin, or CA$0.309 a mile.

In a busier month of 11,000 miles, the same fixed costs are CA$0.533 a mile, the cost per mile falls to CA$2.673 and the margin rises to 13.8%.

## More miles, lower cost per mile

The worked example's costs over different months: the fixed CA$5,860.00 spread over more miles, and the margin at its example CA$3.10 a mile.

| Miles in the month | Fixed, per mile | Cost per mile | Margin at CA$3.10/mi |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 6,000 mi | CA$0.977 | CA$3.117 | -0.5% |
| 7,000 mi | CA$0.837 | CA$2.977 | 4.0% |
| 8,000 mi | CA$0.733 | CA$2.873 | 7.3% |
| 9,000 mi | CA$0.651 | CA$2.791 | 10.0% |
| 10,000 mi | CA$0.586 | CA$2.726 | 12.1% |
| 11,000 mi | CA$0.533 | CA$2.673 | 13.8% |
| 12,000 mi | CA$0.488 | CA$2.628 | 15.2% |

## How it compares: ATRI's benchmark

The American Transportation Research Institute builds its Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking from motor carriers' own cost data every year. The 2026 update, published July 2026, puts the industry average at $2.336 a mile in 2025, up 3.4% on the year before, and $1.854 a mile excluding fuel.

That's ATRI's industry benchmark, in U.S. dollars, not Roadmark data. A fleet's own figure depends on its equipment, freight, lanes and miles, so compare in the same currency and read the report for the detail by sector and cost line.

Sources:

- [ATRI: An Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking, 2026 Update](https://truckingresearch.org/2026/07/analysis-of-the-operational-costs-of-trucking-2026-update/)
- [ATRI: New ATRI Report Details Accelerating Costs and Low Profitability Despite Cuts (July 2026)](https://truckingresearch.org/2026/07/new-atri-report-details-accelerating-costs-and-low-profitability-despite-cuts/)

## Cost per mile questions

### What is cost per mile in trucking?

What it costs to run a truck one mile: its fixed costs for a period (truck and trailer payments, insurance, permits) divided by the miles it ran, plus its per-mile costs (fuel, maintenance, tires, driver pay). It's also the lowest rate per mile the truck can haul at without losing money.

### What is the average cost per mile for a truck?

ATRI's 2026 update puts the industry average at $2.336 a mile for 2025, or $1.854 excluding fuel, across the carriers in its data. A single truck can be well above or below that, depending on its age, fuel, freight and how many miles it runs.

### Should empty miles count in cost per mile?

Yes. Divide by every mile the truck ran, loaded and empty. The empty miles cost fuel, wear and often driver pay, so leaving them out understates the cost and overstates the margin.

### Why does cost per mile fall when a truck runs more miles?

Because the fixed costs, like payments and insurance, stay the same for the month however far the truck goes. Spread over more miles, each mile carries less of them, while the per-mile costs stay the same.

### How do I check a load's rate against my cost per mile?

Divide what the load pays by all the miles it takes, including the empty miles to reach it, and compare that with the cost per mile. If it's lower, the load loses money even if its loaded rate looks good.

### Should an owner-operator include their own pay?

Yes. Put what you pay yourself per mile in driver pay. Otherwise the margin includes your wage, and the truck looks more profitable than it is.

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