Running a profitable trucking company means tracking the right numbers. In today's freight market with fluctuating spot rates and contract pressures, knowing your key performance indicators isn't optional. The difference between thriving carriers and struggling ones often comes down to what they measure and how quickly they act on those metrics.

Here are the top 10 metrics every trucking company should track to stay profitable and competitive.

1. Revenue and Cash Flow

Revenue is the lifeblood of any business, but for trucking companies, tracking revenue alone isn't enough. You need to understand revenue by truck, by lane, by customer, and by load type to identify what's actually profitable.

More importantly, track accounts receivable and aging invoice reports. Revenue on paper doesn't pay bills. Cash flow does. Understanding why financial management within TMS is crucial helps carriers avoid cash crunches despite showing strong revenue numbers.

How to track revenue effectively?

Modern carrier-first TMS platforms provide real-time revenue tracking per truck, per load, and per customer. They sync with factoring companies and accounting systems to show both billed revenue and actual cash collected. This visibility prevents the common mistake of confusing revenue with available cash.

2. Cost Per Mile (CPM)

Cost per mile measures the total operating cost for each mile driven. It includes fuel, maintenance, insurance, driver pay, and overhead expenses. Lowering CPM directly increases profitability.

According to DAT Freight & Analytics, the average cost per mile for long-haul truck companies currently runs around $1.78 per mile with diesel at $4.08 per gallon. Knowing your CPM against industry benchmarks helps you identify where costs are running high.

How to calculate cost per mile?

Cost per mile = Total operating costs / Total miles driven. Break this down further by fixed costs (insurance, truck payments, permits) and variable costs (fuel, maintenance, tolls). The 7 key financial metrics every trucking company should track provides detailed calculation methods for accurate CPM analysis.

3. Revenue Per Mile (RPM)

Average revenue per mile measures how much you earn for each mile driven. This metric needs to be analyzed by route, customer, and truck to identify your most profitable lanes and customers.

Compare your RPM against market rates and your CPM. If RPM is below CPM, you're losing money on that lane. Why tracking profit per truck is the KPI most fleets ignore explains how to use RPM data for better decision-making.

What is a good revenue per mile for trucking?

A healthy RPM depends on your operation type, but generally, you want RPM to exceed CPM by at least 15-20% to maintain profitability after accounting for deadhead miles and administrative overhead. Dry van carriers typically target $2.00-$2.50 per mile, while specialized freight commands higher rates.

4. Deadhead Miles (Empty Miles)

Deadhead miles are miles driven without cargo. These miles generate zero revenue but still incur full operating costs. For most carriers, deadhead miles amount to 15-30% of total rolling miles annually.

Minimizing deadhead through better route planning, load matching, and backhaul optimization directly improves profitability. Advanced analytics tools help identify patterns in deadhead miles and suggest optimization strategies.

5. On-Time Delivery (OTD)

On-time delivery measures the percentage of shipments delivered on schedule. This metric directly impacts customer satisfaction, repeat business, and broker relationships. Anything below 95% OTD can jeopardize partnerships with shippers and brokers.

Track OTD by lane, driver, and customer. Patterns reveal whether delays stem from specific routes, driver performance, or customer-side issues. Modern TMS platforms with real-time tracking make OTD monitoring automatic.

6. Driver Turnover Rate

Driver turnover rate measures the percentage of drivers leaving your company. The trucking industry often sees turnover rates exceeding 90%, which creates massive hiring and training costs.

High turnover disrupts operations, increases recruiting expenses, and impacts service quality. Identify why drivers leave through exit interviews and take action. Common factors include inconsistent home time, poor communication, payment delays, and lack of respect.

How to reduce driver turnover?

Pay drivers accurately and on time, provide consistent home time, invest in newer equipment, improve dispatcher-driver communication, and offer competitive benefits. How to keep your drivers paid on time, every time addresses one of the top reasons drivers leave.

7. Safety Metrics

Safety is non-negotiable. Track accidents, injuries, DOT violations, and CSA scores. Safety incidents cost money through repairs, insurance increases, downtime, and potential liability claims. More importantly, they risk driver lives and your company's reputation.

Establish safety protocols, provide ongoing training, maintain vehicles properly, and reward safe driving behavior. Monitor your SMS scores and address issues before they escalate.

8. Asset Utilization

Asset utilization measures the percentage of time each truck generates revenue. Ideal asset utilization should stay above 70%. Anything lower increases your per-unit costs and makes you uncompetitive.

Track utilization per truck and identify why some assets sit idle. Common causes include poor load planning, insufficient freight lanes, maintenance delays, or driver availability issues.

How to improve asset utilization?

Use AI-powered load matching to reduce truck idle time, optimize maintenance schedules for off-peak hours, expand your freight network, and improve dispatcher efficiency with better tools.

9. Maintenance Costs

Maintenance costs represent a major expense category. Track maintenance costs per mile and per truck to identify vehicles requiring excessive repairs or preventive maintenance schedules that need adjustment.

Preventive maintenance costs less than emergency repairs. Monitor maintenance intervals, track repair patterns, and replace aging equipment before costs spiral. Integration between maintenance software and your TMS provides visibility into how maintenance impacts utilization and profitability.

10. Customer Satisfaction

Customer satisfaction determines whether you get repeat business and referrals. Measure satisfaction through surveys, feedback calls, and renewal rates. Track customer complaints by type and frequency.

High customer satisfaction leads to more direct shipper relationships, better rates, and consistent freight volume. Monitor your relationships with brokers and shippers proactively rather than waiting for problems to surface.

Why Most Carriers Struggle to Track These Metrics

The challenge isn't knowing what to measure. It's getting accurate, real-time data without manual work. Most carriers use disconnected systems for dispatch, accounting, maintenance, and payroll. This creates data silos where metrics exist in spreadsheets that are outdated before they're even reviewed.

The top 6 reports every fleet owner should review weekly become impossible to generate when data lives in 10 different places.

How Modern TMS Platforms Automate KPI Tracking

Leading carriers use unified TMS platforms that automatically track all critical metrics in real time. When your dispatch, documents, finances, and driver communication live in one system, metrics update automatically without manual data entry.

Datatruck provides carrier-first analytics that track every metric listed above automatically. See how carriers are using real-time metrics to make faster, more profitable decisions.

Book a free demo and see how Datatruck automates KPI tracking so you can focus on growing your business instead of building spreadsheets.