The Freight Is Moving. Find Out Where the Money Went.
Freight operating costs hit $2.26 per mile in 2024, the highest non-fuel cost ever recorded, while shipping rates haven't kept pace. FreightWaves released a guide targeting mid-market fleet operators struggling with margin visibility despite high truck utilization.
Rising freight costs without rate increases squeeze seller shipping margins, especially for heavy/bulky products shipped via LTL or FTL carriers. Sellers should audit their shipping cost allocation and consider renegotiating carrier contracts or adjusting product mix toward higher-margin, lighter items.
This reflects broader margin compression across ecommerce as logistics costs outpace pricing power, forcing sellers to optimize product mix and shipping strategies.
Review your shipping cost per unit in Seller Central's Business Reports -- if freight costs exceed 8% of product price, consider lighter alternatives or price increases.
Audit LTL and FTL shipping contracts in the next 30 days to lock in rates before further increases hit Q3 2026.
Bottom Line
Record freight costs mean higher shipping expenses for heavy product sellers.
Source Lens
Industry Context
Useful background context, but lower-priority than direct platform, community, or operator intelligence.
Impact Level
medium
Record freight costs mean higher shipping expenses for heavy product sellers.
Key Stat / Trigger
$2.26 per mile operating costs in 2024
Focus on the operational implication, not just the headline.
Full Coverage
If your trucks are running but your margins aren’t growing, the problem isn’t effort. It’s visibility. Operating costs hit $2. 26 per mile in 2024 — the highest non-fuel cost ever recorded. And rates haven’t kept up.
Dispatch teams are making high-impact load decisions every day without clear insight into which freight actually protects margin — and which quietly erodes it. In today’s market, that gap is expensive. “Busy But Not Profitable?
A Fleet Owner’s Guide to Margin-first Operations” breaks down exactly where margin slips — and what top-performing mid-market fleets are doing differently.
Inside, you’ll learn: Why utilization is a motion metric, not a profitability metric — and what to measure instead How “busy but broke” happens and why mid-market fleets feel it first The 30-day margin review every fleet leader should run today What changes when dispatch starts making decisions with full cost visibility Download the Guide window.
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Original Source
This briefing is based on reporting from Freightwaves. Use the original post for full primary-source context.
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