An LTL carrier is a trucking company that moves freight from multiple shippers in a single trailer, with each shipper paying only for the space their goods occupy. LTL stands for “less than truckload,” meaning your shipment doesn’t fill an entire truck. If you’re shipping between roughly 200 and 5,000 pounds of goods, typically one to six pallets, an LTL carrier is likely the most cost-effective way to move them.
How LTL Shipping Works
LTL carriers operate on a hub-and-spoke model, similar to how airlines route passengers through major airports. Your shipment starts at a local service center, where a driver picks it up and brings it back to the terminal. From there, it moves to a larger regional hub where it’s sorted and grouped with other shipments heading to the same destination. The combined load then travels the long-haul leg (called “line-haul”) to a hub near the delivery area, where shipments are broken apart again and routed to local service centers for final delivery.
This process means your freight may make several stops along the way. A shipment going from Atlanta to Boston might stop at an intermediate hub where it gets loaded onto a different trailer alongside more freight heading to the same region. Each of these handoffs, called “cross-docking,” is how carriers fill their trailers efficiently and keep costs down for everyone sharing the space.
Because of this multi-stop process, LTL shipments typically take longer than a dedicated full truckload. Transit times of two to five business days are common for shipments within the same region, while cross-country moves can take a week or more depending on the route.
LTL Versus Full Truckload
The dividing line between LTL and full truckload (FTL) shipping comes down to size and weight. LTL shipments typically range from 200 to 5,000 pounds across one to six pallets. Once you cross that threshold, around 5,000 pounds or more, full truckload shipping usually becomes the better option. FTL shipments commonly range from 5,000 to 45,000 pounds and can fill 24 to 30 pallets or more.
With FTL, you’re paying for the entire trailer whether you fill it or not, and your freight goes directly from pickup to delivery without stops. With LTL, you share trailer space with other shippers. That means lower costs for smaller loads but more handling and longer transit times. If you have enough freight to fill roughly half a trailer or more, comparing FTL quotes against LTL rates often reveals that the dedicated truck is cheaper per pound.
How LTL Pricing Works
LTL rates aren’t simply based on weight. Every product shipped via LTL is assigned a freight class, a number ranging from 50 to 500, using the National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC) system. Four factors determine the class:
- Density: How heavy the freight is relative to the space it takes up. A dense, compact shipment like metal parts gets a lower class (and lower rate) than something light and bulky like foam padding.
- Handling: How easy it is to move across a dock and load into a trailer. Freight that requires special equipment or extra care costs more to ship.
- Stowability: How well the freight can be stacked or arranged alongside other shipments. Odd shapes or hazardous materials that can’t sit next to certain goods reduce stowability.
- Liability: How likely the freight is to be damaged or to damage other goods in transit. Fragile or high-value items carry higher liability and higher rates.
Lower freight classes (closer to 50) mean lower shipping costs per hundred pounds, while higher classes (closer to 500) mean higher costs. Getting your freight class right matters because carriers will re-weigh and re-measure shipments. If your actual freight class is higher than what you declared, the carrier will adjust the invoice upward.
Accessorial Fees to Expect
The base LTL rate covers standard dock-to-dock service, meaning the carrier picks up freight at a loading dock and delivers it to another loading dock. Anything beyond that triggers accessorial charges, which can add up quickly if you’re not prepared for them.
Liftgate service is one of the most common add-ons. If either the pickup or delivery location doesn’t have a loading dock, the driver needs a hydraulic liftgate to lower freight to ground level. This typically costs $100 to $400 per shipment. Inside pickup or delivery, where the driver moves freight beyond the truck’s immediate loading zone, runs $100 to $600 depending on distance, weight, and class. Residential pickup or delivery also adds $100 to $600 because homes generally lack commercial loading equipment and are harder for large trucks to access.
Other common accessorial charges include limited-access delivery (warehouses, construction sites, or gated facilities), notification or appointment scheduling (when the receiver requires a call before delivery or a specific delivery window), and redelivery fees if nobody is available to accept the shipment. When requesting an LTL quote, listing every special service you’ll need upfront prevents surprise charges on your invoice.
What LTL Carriers Handle
LTL carriers move a wide range of commercial freight. Manufacturers use them to ship parts and finished goods to distributors. Retailers rely on LTL for inventory replenishment when they don’t need a full truck. Small businesses that sell bulky items online, like furniture, appliances, or industrial equipment, often use LTL for orders too large for parcel carriers like UPS or FedEx but too small to justify a dedicated truck.
Most LTL carriers require freight to be palletized, crated, or otherwise packaged for safe handling during multiple loading and unloading cycles. Loose boxes or improperly secured goods are more likely to be damaged during cross-docking, and carriers may refuse shipments that aren’t adequately packaged.
How to Ship With an LTL Carrier
To get an accurate LTL quote, you’ll need a few pieces of information: the origin and destination zip codes, the total weight of your shipment, the dimensions of each pallet or piece, the NMFC freight class (which you can look up through the National Motor Freight Traffic Association), and any accessorial services you need. You can request quotes directly from carriers or work through a freight broker who shops rates across multiple carriers on your behalf.
Once you book a shipment, the carrier provides a bill of lading, which is the contract between you and the carrier that details what’s being shipped, where it’s going, and the agreed terms. You’ll fill this out with your shipment details and have it ready when the driver arrives for pickup. Keep a copy, because the bill of lading is your primary document if you need to file a freight claim for damage or loss.
After pickup, most carriers offer online tracking so you can follow your shipment through each hub. When the freight arrives at the destination terminal, the carrier will schedule delivery or the receiver can arrange to pick it up directly from the terminal, which sometimes saves on last-mile fees.