What Is the Average Cost Per Mile in Trucking? (2026 Numbers)

The average cost per mile in trucking hit a record $2.336 in 2025, according to the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI). Strip out fuel and costs still climbed 4.2% to $1.854 per mile. Your own number will sit above or below that average depending on fleet size, lanes, equipment, and how many empty miles you run.

Cost per mile is calculated by dividing your total operating costs over a set period by the total miles driven in that same period. The basic formula is:

Cost Per Mile = Total Operating Costs ÷ Total Miles Driven 

Total operating costs fall into two buckets: fixed costs and variable costs. The big line items are fuel, driver wages and benefits, truck and trailer payments, repair and maintenance, insurance premiums, tires, tolls, permits, and office overhead. Miss one and your cost per mile reads better than it really is.

The benchmark above comes from ATRI's 2026 Operational Costs of Trucking report, which covers 2025 data. The steepest increases were tolls (up 13.2%), repair and maintenance (up 8.6%), driver benefits (up 6.6%), and tires (up 6.4%). Only fuel and driver pay rose slower than inflation.

Will the Average Cost Per Mile Go Down in 2026?

ATRI notes carriers cut costs where they could and the average still climbed 3.4% in 2025, so a meaningful drop in 2026 is unlikely. Here is what will move the number:

• Fuel Prices: Still the largest variable cost, and it follows global markets and geopolitical events.
• Driver Wages: Pay rose slower than inflation in 2025, but competition for qualified drivers can push wages back up.
• Insurance Premiums: Higher equipment values and litigation risk keep pushing premiums up.
• Maintenance Costs: Aging equipment and more complex trucks drove repair and maintenance costs up 8.6% in 2025.
• Equipment Costs: Interest rates and manufacturing costs decide what new trucks and trailers cost to buy or finance.
• Economic Conditions: Freight demand drives rates and utilization, which decides how many miles your fixed costs get spread across.
• Regulations: Environmental rules, safety mandates, and hours-of-service requirements all carry compliance costs.
• Tariffs: Tariffs on international trade can raise equipment and parts prices and disrupt freight volumes.

You cannot control the industry average, but you can control your own number, and that starts with knowing every cost line, software included. You can see what a TMS costs on the TransPlus pricing page. Proactive cost management is what separates fleets that ride out a soft market from the ones that do not.

How to Get Below the Average Cost Per Mile in Trucking

Regardless of industry averages, trucking and freight companies can be proactive and work to lower their own cost-per-mile with a variety of strategies and the right tools. Technology plays a key role in optimizing performance and reducing waste.

Here are four effective strategies to help reduce your cost-per-mile:

1. Use a TMS to See Where Every Dollar Goes

Modern technology provides a wealth of operational benefits for trucking companies. Transportation Management System (TMS) platforms like TransPlus TMS automate workflows, optimize load planning, improve dispatch efficiency, and provide powerful analytics to help identify opportunities to reduce costs. Integrating telematics into your TMS allows for real-time tracking of vehicle location, speed, fuel consumption, and driver behavior, providing you with critical data to help further reduce fuel use and improve safety.

2. Prioritize Route Optimization and Fuel Efficiency

Fuel is consistently one of the largest variable costs for trucking and freight companies. More efficient route planning can help you reduce fuel costs. Utilizing a Transportation Management System with advanced route planning capabilities helps find the most efficient routes based on distance, traffic, tolls, and fuel prices. This helps minimize out-of-route miles, reduce idle time in congested traffic, and optimize speed, to save on fuel and lower your cost-per-mile.

3. Cut Breakdown Costs With Preventive Maintenance

Unexpected breakdowns lead to costly repairs, towing fees, and significant downtime that incurs high costs, which all have a negative impact on cost-per-mile metrics. Employing a more proactive maintenance schedule that can be tracked and managed via a TMS with maintenance reminders and repair logs, helps prevent major failures, extends the lifespan of fleet vehicles, and keeps your trucks on the road.

4. Better Manage Driver Wages and Carrier Rates

For carriers, optimizing driver schedules and routes reduces time where drivers may not be as productive. For freight brokers and shippers, a TMS can provide additional visibility into carrier performance and market rates, helping find reliable transportation partners at competitive prices. Efficient carrier sourcing helps ensure capacity needs are met without overpaying and can directly impact the cost of moving freight.

READ MORE: Top 5 Ways a TMS Reduces Cost-Per-Mile in Trucking

While the average cost-per-mile in the trucking industry provides a valuable benchmark, understanding and actively managing your own operational costs is critical for success. If you have been asking what the average cost per mile in the trucking industry is, we hope this overview has answered your questions and highlighted how you may be able to combat rising costs with the right tools and strategies.

Take control of your costs and optimize your trucking operations with TransPlus TMS. Contact TransPlus today for a demo of our transportation management system platform!