DAT: Spot rates decline as more truckload capacity enters market

Total load posts on DAT One fell to 3.09 million last week, down 9% from the prior week.

Equipment posts rose to 185,209, up 1%, as more truckload capacity entered the market.

Spot linehaul rates dipped 3 to 6 cents per mile across all three equipment types, and lower diesel fuel surcharges pulled broker-to-carrier spot rates down:

Spot market data for July 12–18, 2026 (Week 29)

7-day average broker-to-carrier spot rates (linehaul + fuel surcharge):
▼ Dry van: $2.99 per mile, down 8 cents week over week
▼ Refrigerated: $3.41 per mile, down 4 cents
▼ Flatbed: $3.62 per mile, down 7 cents

Van: Loads pull back, capacity loosens

▼ Van loads: 1,344,991, down 9% week over week

▲ Van equipment: 125,651, up 1%

▼ Linehaul rate: $2.44 per mile, down 6 cents week over week

▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 10.7, down from 11.8 the prior week

Reefer: Peak season demand cools

▼ Reefer loads: 717,716, down 12% week over week

— Reefer equipment: 36,355, essentially flat week over week

▼ Linehaul rate: $2.80 per mile, down 3 cents week over week

▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 19.7, down from 22.6 the prior week

Flatbed: Capacity builds as demand slips

▼ Flatbed loads: 1,022,448, down 8% week over week

▲ Flatbed equipment: 23,203, up 8%

▼ Linehaul rate: $2.95 per mile, down 5 cents

▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 44.1, down from 51.7 the prior week

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

The national average flatbed linehaul rate fell 5 cents last week, ending a run of 17 consecutive weekly increases that had added 69 cents per mile since early March. Even with the pullback, the flatbed rate was an all-time high for Week 29, 24 cents above the previous record set in 2021.

The average van rate in the country’s manufacturing core fell 12 cents to $2.93 per mile. This region (Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Ohio, North Carolina, Virginia, Michigan, and Mississippi) accounts for 40% of the nation’s van freight volume.

The average reefer rate in the country’s food-production core fell 5 cents to $3.31 per mile. This region (Illinois, Indiana, Texas, Ohio, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, and Pennsylvania) accounts for 43% of the nation’s reefer freight volume. Unlike seasonal produce hubs, these states produce year-round staples such as dairy, poultry, and processed foods, offering a more consistent barometer of the national reefer market.

The Fresno reefer freight market rose 2 cents to $3.73 per mile last week. That’s up 50% year over year and just 6 cents below the all-time high of $3.79 set in November 2021. Fresno is the heart of California’s Central Valley and accounts for 70 to 80% of the state’s produce volume.

Lower diesel prices continued to trim fuel surcharges. On-highway diesel fell 9 cents per gallon to $4.58, pulling fuel surcharges down a penny per mile across all three equipment types to 56 cents for dry van, 61 cents for refrigerated, and 67 cents for flatbed. EIA average fuel prices are expected to rise when the agency issues its next report on Tuesday, July 21. National average fuel surcharges are up roughly 34% year over year. The average dry van surcharge is 15 cents higher than in Week 29 of 2025, reefer is up 16 cents, and flatbed is up 17 cents from 50 cents.

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. Listen to Dean Croke’s latest DAT iQ Market Update at https://www.dat.com/podcast/iqmarketupdate.

Load and truck posts refer to the number of posts on the DAT One marketplace during Week 29 (July 12–18). Load volume represents the number of loads moved. Rates are aggregated from invoice data submitted to DAT iQ. Broker-to-carrier rates reflect an average linehaul rate plus an equipment-specific fuel surcharge calculated from the latest weekly average on-highway diesel price as reported by the EIA.