Fuel surcharge calculator: FSC per mile and per load

How to calculate FSC

• FSC per mile = (current diesel price − base price) ÷ schedule MPG.
• FSC per load = FSC per mile × loaded miles.
• Your fuel cost per mile = diesel price ÷ your truck's MPG.
• Base part = base price ÷ your MPG, the share of fuel the linehaul is expected to cover.

The diesel default is the US on-highway weekly average published by EIA 453213. We update it by hand, so check the week shown and replace it with the figure your schedule names if it differs. The base price and schedule MPG start with example values; use the ones on your schedule.

A worked example

EXAMPLE: diesel at $6.20 a gallon, a fuel schedule with a $1.25 base and 6 MPG, an 800-mile load, and a truck that really gets 6.5 MPG.

The surcharge covers most of the fuel, but not all of it. The base part, about $0.192 a mile for this truck, has to come out of the linehaul. That's by design: a fuel schedule assumes the base cost of fuel is already inside the rate. If the linehaul is thin, the load can still lose money on fuel even with a surcharge on the rate con.

How the surcharge moves with diesel

Every dollar on the price of diesel adds about $0.167 a mile at 6 MPG. Some schedules use steps instead of a straight formula, adding a set number of cents per mile for each few cents of diesel price. The result is close; check which method your schedule uses.

Reading the result

Schedule MPG vs your MPG

A schedule's MPG is a fixed assumption. If your truck does better, the surcharge covers more of your fuel than the schedule expects; if it does worse, less. A reefer burning extra fuel for the unit is a common reason the surcharge falls short. So is a heavy load in hilly country, where the truck burns well past its average. Enter the MPG you expect on this route, not your best week, and the comparison stays honest.

All-in rates

When a rate is all-in, there's no surcharge line, and you carry the whole fuel cost inside the rate. Use the "your fuel cost" figures here, then check the full rate with the rate per mile calculator.

Which week's price

Schedules usually name the week whose price applies, often the week of pickup. On a long load during a fast price change, that choice can matter, so read it on the rate con or contract.

Questions to ask when a rate con lists FSC

• Which schedule is it: the shipper's, the broker's, or a flat amount someone picked?
• What base price and MPG does it use?
• Which diesel index and which week: national or regional, pickup week or delivery week?
• Is it paid on loaded miles only, or on the miles the broker calculated for the lane?
• Is the FSC amount on the rate con fixed, or recalculated when you invoice?

You don't need every answer on every load, but a vague "plus fuel" with no amount on the rate con is worth one question before you sign. A number written on the rate con is what you can invoice.

When diesel jumps mid-week

Fast price moves hurt carriers on all-in rates most, because the rate was set when fuel was cheaper. If diesel has climbed since the rates on your lanes last moved, put the current price into this calculator and the trip fuel cost calculator, then use the difference as your reason in the next negotiation: "Fuel is up 40 cents since last month; at my MPG that's this much on your load." Brokers hear it all week, but a specific number for a specific load is easier to take to a shipper than a general complaint.

Common mistakes

• Using your MPG in the schedule formula. The schedule's MPG sets what you're paid; your MPG sets what you spend.
• Counting FSC twice. If the rate is all-in, don't add a surcharge on top when you compare offers.
• Ignoring deadhead. FSC is usually paid on loaded miles, but you buy fuel for the empty ones too.
• Old prices. A diesel figure from a month ago can be off by enough to matter on a long load.

Fuel on the rate con

Brokers that move contract freight often pass a shipper's fuel schedule through to carriers; others fold fuel into one spot rate. Their rate sheets usually say which. Our guide to the freight broker rate sheet explains how brokers build them. For the whole trip's fuel bill, including deadhead and reefer hours, use the trip fuel cost calculator.

On every offer we book, we confirm whether the rate is all-in or plus fuel, and we price it against your truck's fuel cost, not a schedule's. See how that works on dry van dispatch, browse all tools, or apply.