ENTRY 01 / HOTSHOT DISPATCH
Hotshot loads pay well per mile and then strand you 400 miles from the next one. Our hot shot dispatch service counts every empty mile in the rate, lines up the reload before you deliver, and checks weight and securement against your rig before the rate con reaches you. CDL or non-CDL, you sign every load.
Gooseneck, bumper pull or dually with a deck. Same desk, same fee as every other truck we dispatch.
Running more than one hotshot? Two or more trucks on one MC pay the 4% fleet rate, and each rig keeps its own floor, regions and home days.
ENTRY 02 / CDL AND NON-CDL
Federal rules put a combination of vehicles in the Class A CDL group when its gross combination weight rating is 26,001 lb or more and the towed unit is rated over 10,000 lb. That is why many hotshot owners keep the truck and trailer ratings adding up to 26,000 lb or less: they can run without a CDL, at the cost of payload.
SOURCE: 49 CFR 383.91, COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE GROUPS, OCT 2026
Non-CDL rigs. Less payload, so we check every load's weight against your ratings before it reaches you. Non-CDL drivers are outside DOT drug and alcohol testing rules, but you still need your own USDOT number, MC authority and insurance for interstate for-hire freight.
CDL rigs. More payload and more freight to choose from. With your own authority, you also need a DOT drug and alcohol testing program in place before the first load.
Ratings are on the door labels of the truck and trailer. Confirm your setup with your state and your insurance agent; this is a summary, not legal advice.
ENTRY 03 / RATE GAUGE
Put in the loaded miles, the empty miles to reach the pickup and your cost per mile. The gauge shows the broker's offer as an all-in rate against what you need, and the load appears as a rate con you can sign or refuse.
Offer, all-in per mile
With 90 empty miles counted, this load needs $867 ($1.70/mi all-in) to clear your floor. The offer works out to $2.25/mi. It clears. Check where it leaves you before signing.
YOUR INBOX · 1 NEW
EXAMPLE FLOOR
RATE CONFIRMATION · EXAMPLE
Houston, TX to Odessa, TX
TO: YOUR COMPANY · HOTSHOT
ABOVE YOUR FLOOR
For quoting your own loads, the hotshot rate calculator adds fuel, tolls and an empty trip home, so you can see the price a load needs before you call the broker.
ENTRY 04 / FREIGHT WE BOOK
Skid steers, mini excavators, light machinery and jobsite materials.
Implements, parts and supplies, heavy in planting and harvest seasons.
Parts, pipe and tools for energy regions, often urgent and remote.
Time-sensitive freight too small for a full flatbed.
Hotshot freight is driven by local economies: building season, harvest, energy activity. A hotshot dispatcher who only watches the national boards misses how quickly a region turns hot or cold. We watch where your loads deliver and what is moving out of those markets, week to week. When a region cools, we tell you early and start working loads that move you toward the next busy one, instead of waiting until the truck has sat for two days.
ENTRY 05 / DEADHEAD PLAN
The most expensive hotshot mistake is a great rate into a place with nothing coming out. So before we send you an outbound load, we look at the market it delivers to: what usually ships out, how far you would have to run empty, and whether a slightly lower outbound into a better market makes the round trip pay more.
When you are on the way, we work the reload. Ideally it is booked before you deliver, so the next rate con is in your inbox while you are still unloading.
TWO WAYS TO RUN THE SAME WEEK · EXAMPLE
| PLAN | LOADED | EMPTY | ALL-IN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top rate out, run home empty | 500 | 500 | $1.25 |
| Lower rate out, reload planned | 880 | 60 | $1.98 |
EXAMPLE: $1,250 one way with an empty return vs $1,050 out plus an $810 reload. All-in = gross / every mile driven.
Jobsites, farms and energy leases often have no freight nearby. Planning the next load from the road is hard.
Non-CDL rigs especially need every load's weight checked before committing.
Good hotshot loads are booked in minutes. Someone has to be watching while you drive.
Many small loads mean many broker setups. Packets on file save the scramble.
Hotshot dispatching services vary a lot. Whoever you talk to, including us, get straight answers to these:
Your MC and USDOT number, a certificate of insurance with auto liability and cargo, a signed W-9, the GVWR of your truck and trailer, your trailer type and length, your securement gear, your ELD provider, and your notice of assignment if you factor. CDL drivers with their own authority also need a drug and alcohol testing program in place.
On the first call we set your floor rate with deadhead in mind, the regions you like and avoid, how far you will run empty for a good load, and your home days. Every load after that is a rate con in your inbox, yours to sign or refuse.
ENTRY 06 / FEE AND QUESTIONS
A hotshot pays the same tier as every truck we dispatch: 5% of gross with one truck and an MC past six months, 7% while the MC is newer, 4% for two or more trucks. On an EXAMPLE $4,200 hotshot week the standard fee is $210. New carrier? See dispatch for new authorities. All terms are on the dispatch pricing page.
The same as every truck we dispatch: 5% of the gross on loads you haul with one truck and an MC older than 6 months, 7% while the MC is newer, 4% for two or more trucks. No setup fee, no monthly minimum, month to month with 30 days notice.
Yes. A hotshot can run without a CDL when the combined weight rating of truck and trailer stays at 26,000 lb or less. That limits payload, so we check every load's weight against what your rig can legally carry. You still need your own USDOT number and MC authority for interstate for-hire loads.
It can be, with discipline on empty miles. Hotshot rigs cost less to buy and run than a tractor-trailer, but loads are often one-way into sparse markets, and deadhead eats the margin fast. Owners who plan reloads before delivery tend to do far better than those who chase the highest posted rate.
Yes. New authorities pay 7% until month 7, then 5%. Many hotshot owners start as new carriers, and plenty of hotshot brokers book new MCs, though some want time in business or higher insurance limits.
No. Every load comes to you as a rate con in your company's name, and you sign it or say no. We never sign for you, and declining a load costs nothing. If a load's weight or securement doesn't suit your rig, pass on it.
Apply in about a minute. Tell us your rig ratings, home base and the regions you like; every rate con lands in your inbox for you to sign or refuse.