Haul Cost Calculator

Price a hauling operation from first principles: cycle time built from distance, speed, and load/dump time, multiplied across your loads at the truck’s hourly rate. Get total cost, cost per load, and how long the job takes with your fleet size.

Haul Cycle & Rates

Number of Loads

loads

One-Way Haul Distance

Average Truck Speed

mph

Load + Dump Time

min

Truck Rate

$/hr

Trucks in Fleet

trucks

Enter loads, haul distance, and truck rate to price the haul.

The math

Cycle = 2 × distance ÷ speed × 60 + load/dump → Cost = loads × cycle ÷ 60 × rate

Total cost depends on truck-hours, not fleet size — more trucks finish faster but burn the same paid hours (until queuing at the load or dump point says otherwise). Average speed should reflect the real route: loaded haul-road speeds of 15–25 mph and highway legs of 45–55 mph often average to something much lower than the speed limit suggests.

Getting the inputs right

Load + dump time of 8–12 minutes is typical when the loader and dump area keep up; congestion pushes it higher and it often dominates short hauls. Hourly rates vary regionally — around $95–140/hr for tandems in much of the US as of recent years, more for larger units; fuel surcharges may apply. Get local quotes for bids, and pair this with the dump truck calculator to derive the load count.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does dump truck hauling cost?

Hourly rates for tandem dumps commonly run around $95–140/hr depending on region and fuel; the effective cost per yard then depends entirely on cycle time — haul distance, speed, and loading pace.

Does adding trucks reduce hauling cost?

Not by itself — total cost is truck-hours × rate, which is the same with 2 trucks or 5. More trucks compress the schedule, and only help cost if they reduce paid standby elsewhere.

What is a hauling cycle time?

One full round trip: load, haul, dump, return. This calculator computes it as twice the one-way distance at your average speed, plus load/dump time.