DAT: Spot capacity tightened further last week

Total load posts on DAT One fell to 3.31 million last week, down 7% from the prior week, with demand softening across all three equipment types.

The supply side of the market tightened, with equipment posts down 4% to 221,154 as carriers trimmed capacity alongside the volume drop.

National 7-day average broker-to-carrier spot van and reefer rates moved lower, while the flatbed rate reflected solid demand for trucks.

Spot market data for April 12-18, 2026 (Week 16)

▼ Dry van: $2.35 per mile, down 2 cents week over week
▼ Refrigerated: $2.72 per mile, down 4 cents
▲ Flatbed: $2.98 per mile, up 3 cents

Van: Loads and trucks both retreated
▼ Van loads: 1,194,862, down 7% week over week
▼ Van equipment: 160,825, down 4%
▼ Linehaul rate: $1.99 per mile, down 2 cents week over week
▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 7.4, down from 7.6 the prior week

Reefer: Load posts declined sharply
▼ Reefer loads: 498,788, down 10% week over week
▼ Reefer equipment: 38,844, down 5%
▼ Linehaul rate: $2.35 per mile, down 4 cents
▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 12.8, down from 13.4

Flatbed: Rates keep climbing
▼ Flatbed loads: 1,616,113, down 7% week over week
— Flatbed equipment: 21,485, roughly flat
▲ Linehaul rate: $2.61 per mile, up 3 cents
▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 75.2, down from 81.0

Market analysis from Dean Croke, Industry Analyst, DAT Freight & Analytics

Lower fuel prices pull van rates down: Last week’s national average dry van linehaul spot rate dipped 2 cents to $1.99 per mile, influenced by a 25-cent drop in the national average retail diesel price to $5.56 a gallon.

Reefer equipment posts hit 10-year low: The national average reefer rate fell by 4 cents last week to $2.35 per mile. That’s 45 cents above this time last year. Reefer load posts remain strong relative to last year, exceeding figures for the same period by over 35%. Equipment posts also saw a 5% decline last week, reaching their lowest level for Week 16 in 10 years, reflecting a broader tightening of truckload capacity.

Flatbed demand keeps building: Defying the cooling trend in other sectors, the average flatbed spot rate increased for the fifth straight week and was just 3 cents per mile lower than the Week 16 record in 2021.

About DAT Freight & Analytics
DAT Freight & Analytics operates DAT One, North America’s largest truckload freight marketplace; DAT iQ, the industry’s leading freight data analytics service; the Convoy Platform automated freight-matching service; Trucker Tools, the leader in load visibility; and Outgo, the financial services platform for truckers. Check out Dean Croke’s latest DAT iQ Market Update at https://www.youtube.com/DATLoadBoards.

Load and truck posts refer to the number of posts on the DAT One marketplace during Week 16 (April 12-18). Load volume refers to the number of loads moved. Rates are aggregated from invoice data submitted to DAT iQ. dat.com