Box Truck Pay Calculator: Percentage vs CPM
Carriers quote whichever number sounds bigger. This shows you which one actually pays more on your lanes. Enter your miles, your rate or percentage, and a typical run — we'll do the math.
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One load, real profit. Fill only what applies to you.
Percentage only pays if the freight is actually there. A great cut on loads that don't come beats nothing.
Estimates only, from the numbers you enter. No structure is better than another — your freight, your lanes and your costs decide.
What the numbers actually mean
Percentagepays you a cut of what the load pays the carrier. It rises and falls with the freight market — good weeks are very good, slow weeks hurt. You need to see real rate confirmations to know what you're agreeing to.
CPMpays you a fixed amount per mile. It's predictable, which is worth something, but it caps your upside when rates spike — and if deadhead isn't paid, every empty mile is free work.
The number that settles it is the all-in rate per mile: everything you earn divided by every mile you turn, loaded and empty. That's the figure to compare between two offers, and it's the one nobody quotes you.
Not sure which pay structure fits how you run? Read the full breakdown in our guide: Percentage vs CPM — which actually pays better?
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