What is your cost 2 run per mile?

[DreamTeam44]

One of the several reasons why we are jumping into the expedited business is an attempt to make a positive jump in our per mile profit. Have you figured out what your cost is to run your rig per mile? What are all the cost factors you include on top of the fuel and MPG, if you reply, please list your unit type and any formula that has worked for you to get a cost per mile figure. Thanks!

 

[JohnO]

For folks who haven't figured out cost per mile or those who would like to refresh their figures here is a link that should assist you

Cost Per Mile Worksheet

 

[ATeam]

This cost per mile worksheet is a good resource, and it helps make my point that gross revenue is not meaningless. Two owner-operators can complete the same sheet and arrive at two different CPM numbers. Which one is financially better off? It is impossible to say without looking at the gross revenue too.

 

[nightcreacher]

in ruffly 138000 miles,thats what i ran in 2007,my total expenses were $148000.00.thats including depreciation and interest on truck,and what really surprized me,my fuel costs were only $60000.00,really paid to slow down,thats almost the same as it was in 2006 and I ran less miles in 2006.If you dont have a calculator,thats about $1.07 for every mile the truck ran

 

[davekc]

Phil.....do me a favor and don't twist around what I said in another post. I said, "There are numerous variables in this business that can't come anywhere close to an answer by looking at a 1099.
Gross revenue numbers mean nothing. It is the net numbers you need. Same with mileage figures. Not a lot of value there either unless you know what mileage is paid, what isn't and at what rate. Then you have to take those numbers and put them against the type of vehicle and the costs to operate that vehicle. Quote from "opinions on income.

Without the other numbers whether investment or operating costs, just the gross revenue number means nothing.

Don't complicate the simple.

 

[ATeam]

Dave,

Are we not saying the exact same thing, only in different ways? No number, in and of itself, is meaningful alone. A complete analysis is not complete without gross, net, ROI, CPM and other numbers. The better handle an expediter has on all such numbers, the better business decisions one can make.

 

[Telecaster]

Hi, all --

Back to the original question, CPM is a meaningful number no matter how it's calculated. Thank you, nightcreacher, for a straight answer.

DT44--what is your CPM at Werner and what was your after-tax net per mile in 2007?

 

[davekc]

Phil wrote
Dave,

Are we not saying the exact same thing, only in different ways? No number, in and of itself, is meaningful alone. A complete analysis is not complete without gross, net, ROI, CPM and other numbers. The better handle an expediter has on all such numbers, the better business decisions one can make

That was my point. I didn't want to blur the message for someone new thinking that just looking a gross revenue numbers would in of itself be a basis for decisions.

 

[FEDEXCARHAULER]

If you know your cost per mile,then you can determine what you need to make to show a profit at the end of the year.As nightcreacher showed,if his operating cost is 1.07 per mile,then if he ony averages 1.08 per mile on every load he has a profit,sure it wont make the car payments but thats a profit,and what we all are after is a profit.

 

[TeamCaffee]

Every person has a different cost per mile to be profitable. Figure out your cost per mile and what you need to make a day and then you can decide which company will fit you best.

 

[CharlesD]

The biggest variable is the number of miles you run in a month. If I do 10k miles in a month, with fuel being what it is now, my cpm is roughly .34 a mile. That's with a Sprinter that does pretty well on fuel though. The biggest mistake I made when I started out was that I would look at just what a load was paying per mile and think I was making a decent profit, but I didn't always look at the deadhead miles and then I would wonder why at the end of the month I hadn't cleared what I thought I should have. You have to figure in those deadhead miles too.

 

[ebsprintin]

So many people here tell prospect drivers how important it is to do research before making a business move into something like expediting then when the prospector asks for hard data they are told they can't use someone else's numbers because everyone's numbers are different, or some other excuse. Is there something to hide? Maybe it would be helpful for the prospector to see how many expediters are really just hobbyists.

eb

 

[Vinnie T]

Everyone's CPM is totally different! It's apples and oranges to compare one person to another.

Truck payments
Fuel used
Repairs
Driver pay (still pay yourself as an O/O)
Driving expenses: Tolls, scale tics etc.
Misc Expenses: QCom, Occu Ins, Escrole etc.

all expenses divided by total miles (including d/h)?

What if you pay a driver
What if your a fleet owner
What if your truck is paid for
What if you just bought a new truck and have a huge payment


Everyone's circumstances are different

 

[ebsprintin]

As different as everyone is from one another insurance companies can build up data that will create a generalized picture. Expedite companies know enough about the industry to come up with different pay scales for different truck types. Again it's a workable generalization. Why is it in other threads us drivers can say we were talking to some driver off the street and the numbers they claimed to be running sound suspect. Again it's because there are rough figures that do or can't meet reality. What's the purpose of a business plan if everyones numbers are so different that the numbers don't make any difference? That's why I'm convinced peoples numbers can't be that different--the numbers are going to fall within a predictable range.

eb

 

[Falligator]

For a Cargo Van with a Van Payment​

Here is a breakdown of what I am paying per month I edited this thread to verify my numbers and repost any errors I think I have made.

Last month (January) of course I ran a total of 7,283 loaded miles. My figures are based on loaded miles only not deadhead.

I drive a Ford Econoline 350 and it gets approximately 17 mpg on the highway.

• Gas @ $3.00/gal = .18/mile
• Company expenses = $130/week QC, insurance, etc. = $520/month = .14/mi
• Food avg = 30$/day = $900/mth =.12/mi
• Van Payment = $540/mth = .13/mi
• Tolls = $100/mth = .01
• Vehicle Maintenance (oil changes, wipers, regular stuff) $100/mth= .01
• Cell phone (must have) = $127/mth = .02 rounded up from .017

This comes to a grand total of .60/mile I’m not including dh and I also know that gas is a lot higher in other states…IE: Illinois and New York. Also not including the cost to idle. If I am adding my figures wrong someone please let me know on this thread as I don’t want to lead anyone in the wrong direction. Any input would be greatly appreciated as this affects my running operation as well. Thanks.

 

[nightcreacher]

not counting this or that?when you figure what you spent for the year,thats the cost of doing business.the revenue you take in,you then subtrack the expenses,this is your profit.your dead head,loaded and everything associated ith that truck,goes into the final mix.Once you know these numbers,you can have a better hold on your own situation,but writing down numbers,and then saying this doesnt count dead head or idiling,it sure does as that goes into the fuel you bought,you just dont buy fuel to stay loaded.

 

[nobb4u]

When you figure your cost per mile you have to include your deadhead or your financial picture will be extremely off as deadhead is as much a part of your operating cost as insurance. You can not pick up a load until you get to where it is loading.

As an example you have a load paying $3000.00 going 1500 miles but you have to deadhead 1000 miles to get it, your pay just went from $2.00 a mile to $1.20 quite a difference. So in any figures relating to cost to operate you have to figure in your deadhead.

As an example I can tell you I made $150000.00 and only ran 75000 miles and that sounds good but if my deadhead was say 40% I have to add an additional 30000 miles so my gross just went from $2.00 to $1.42 a mile quite a difference.

Not trying to nit pick just offering my own humble opinion.

 

[TeamCaffee]

We are also very concious of the dead head miles. We also feel if the load pays enough we do not care what the dead head miles are and at time we like the dead head miles as we are running empty and are not spending as much on fuel as we would when loaded.

 

[cheri1122]

Eb: nobody's keeping secrets. or hiding things, when they say that the only numbers that matter to YOU, are your own. The reason is that your cost per mile includes both fixed & variable monthly figures, and even the fixed amounts (such as truck payment) can be pretty different, from one person to another - so why would knowing their CPM help you any?
The worksheet that JohnO linked to will help figure out your own CPM, and that's really all you need to know, to decide whether a particular load is going to make money for you. (I use the word 'you' as a general term, not meaning you in particular)

 

[DreamTeam44]

We are just investigating the CPM, trying to learn as much as possible in helping our decision process. We were just curious about what others CPM was, if someone does not want to share that information no big deal...we thought it would be interesting to see what others are doing just for fun and to compare information....we like fun, we like to learn, leaning is good, making good decisions is our goal but we make no demands to divulge private details of anyone who doesn't want to make it public, just questions and suggestions in hopes we can get positive and friendly feedback. We are not as knowledgeable as you experienced and intelligent long time senior expediters. we hope to learn from your wisdom!