How a Freight Rate is Calculated: How much will it cost?
Freight rates are based on many factors, including
The last four elements (among other criteria) go into establishing the classification of a commodity. The NMFC, or National Motor Freight Classification tariif, contains all product classifications. There are eighteen possible classes ranging from 50 to 500. The higher the class, the higher the rate for every hundred pounds you ship.
Most less-than-truckload rates are stated as a rate per hundred pounds, or per hundredweight. Rates are structured so that as the weight of your shipment increases, the rate per hundred pounds decreases.
For example: a shipment weighing 100 pounds may cost $41.00 per hundredweight, while a heavier shipment--say, 500 pounds--of the same commodity (moving to the same destination) may only cost $35.00 per hundredweight. But doing the math, we see that the total charges for the 500 pound shipment are higher (5x$35 is greater than 1x$41). For very light shipments, most LTL carriers state a minimum charge.
This sample rate matrix illustrates how a carrier's rate table might look for rates between two ZIP codes. Weight breaks are indicated across the top. The classes are listed down the left side.
Note in the sample matrix how the rates increase as the class goes up. Also note how the rates decrease as the weight break increases. There is a similar rate table for every origin/designation ZIP code combination serviced by a carrier.
