Is this a reasonable cost per mile?

Discussion in 'Ask An Owner Operator' started by BosnianTrucker1994, Oct 4, 2026.

  1. BosnianTrucker1994

    BosnianTrucker1994 Bobtail Member

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    Mar 28, 2022
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    $1 for fuel which I’ll adjust accordingly
    $0.25 for maintenance and repairs, I drive a paid off 2020 Cascadia with 710,000 miles on it
    $0.10 for deductions such as insurance and registration
    $0.15 for miscellaneous truck stuff like scale tickets and tolls and everything else, whatever I don’t spend just goes into my pocket or can go towards repairs if needed

    Total of $1.50 a mile

    Including paying myself $1 per mile it’s $2.50

    This is assuming an average of 2000 to 2500 miles a week. I’m with Landstar, so before their 35% cut my absolute minimum is $3.85 a mile including the 100% fuel surcharge because I pay myself a dollar a mile salary. Haven’t really had much trouble getting these rates lately on Landstar’s board

    Maintenance wise, I’ve spent just under $15,000 in six months so I want a nice cushion. About half of that $15,000 included getting the truck healthy and in good shape from doing a full inspection at the dealer which I plan to do every four months

    Thoughts? Based on my spreadsheet, as of six months so far my overall cost per mile is $1.36. I figured that there’s nothing wrong with overestimating my expenses
     
    blairandgretchen Thanks this.
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  3. fromAtoZ

    fromAtoZ Light Load Member

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    Sep 19, 2026
    Phoenix
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    Do you own the trailer or rent it?
    Maintenance/replacement sounds pretty close. About $30k/yr on avg. Tolls should pass through 1:1 or better on load pay, so no worries on that unless you take toll roads when you could avoid them.
    The pay is problematic at $1. I'd pay whatever the comparable company would pay and save the rest in the business account for equipment upgrades and taxes. You'll be buying another truck pretty soon with those miles. It's no spring chicken.
    Also, budget for health insurance premiums you have to pay yourself. Try to run 100k miles a year to dilute the fixed costs more.
    Once you have 5 yrs to look back at, you can smooth out the annual volatility and base it on a 5yr average. Keep a $50k emergency reserve in the business account. Fine tune your spreadsheet as needed.
     
  4. BosnianTrucker1994

    BosnianTrucker1994 Bobtail Member

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    Mar 28, 2022
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    rent the trailer from the company, but they don’t charge any rental fees or anything

    I’m planning on doing an inframe/rebuild on the truck within the next 100k so it can hopefully last me another 3 years or so
     
    fromAtoZ Thanks this.
  5. fromAtoZ

    fromAtoZ Light Load Member

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    Sep 19, 2026
    Phoenix
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    Sounds good. Just don't do the inframe unless absolutely necessary. Might be better to buy another low mileage used truck. You'll get caught chasing and replacing everything else too after the inframe. Or the knuckleheads will screw up the inframe. It happens a lot.
     
  6. blairandgretchen

    blairandgretchen Road Train Member

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    Dec 9, 2011
    South west Missouri
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    I suggest putting 4-5% in the maintenance escrow, it is pulled from LH only. I use it for tires though LCAPP, and pull out of it to pay physical damage insurance, and clear annual base plates. Also clear ‘red file’ if you take a month or two off.

    They pay quarterly interest on it and it’s transferred at your will to either fuel or settlement card.
     
  7. abyliks

    abyliks Road Train Member

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    ludlow MA
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    My 97 kw was running me 52.2 cents a mile, I averaged 35-40k into it every year, you probably have another year or two left before costs really start to swing the other way so I would start budgeting a bit more,

    over is always better then under
     
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