If you are an owner operator of a dry van trailer looking for some great load boards, you are in the right place.
In this article, we are going to cover 7 load boards you can explore to get more loads for your dry van business (and make more money in the process). You will see paid and free options, so I think you will find the information here relevant to you regardless of your budget.
The nice thing about dry vans is that they are a very versatile and popular trailer type, so you are going to enjoy a broader selection of loads than operators who trailers suited for more specialized loads.
Ok, with that out of the way, let’s get into it!
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The information contained in this post is for informational purposes only. It is not a recommendation to buy or invest, and it is not financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. You should seek the advice of a qualified professional before making any investment or other decisions relating to the topics covered by this article.
Paid Load Boards For Dry Vans
1. DAT
When it comes to load boards, I think DAT is a clear market leader, with approximately 1.37 million loads posted daily (including of course tons of dry van loads).
Seriously…that an almost unbelievable number of loads each day!
Due to their size and scope, they offer leading edge tech and info, including unlimited searches, instant alarm match notifications, broker credit scores, days to pay, market rates, mileage routing and much more.
Despite their dominant place in the market, I think their pricing is reasonable and it’s actually in line with other premium paid load boards. As of this writing, DAT offers the following plans:
- DAT TruckersEdge: Standard ($45/month) – includes unlimited truck posts and load searches, load match alarms, month to month billing, mileage and routing features, broker credit data and load counts by state.
- DAT TruckersEdge: Enhanced ($85/month) – includes all standard features plus the ability to call and search for loads (for when you are on the road), and average rates for lanes you are searching (30 day).
- DAT TruckersEdge: Professional ($135/month) – includes all Enhanced features plus average rates for past 15 days, access to Tri-Haul (which suggests higher paying routes with triangular route suggestions), DAT Assurance (which helps you collect past due accounts), and North American database (which includes Canadian loads)
There are higher tier plans available for companies with multiple trucks (Power Select Carrier) and multiple dispatchers (Power Office Carrier).
I have an affiliate relationship with DAT and secured a deal where if you use my link, you can get a free 30 day trial for any of their plans. So, you get to try out this industry-leading load board for a full month for free. I would note that this deal is only for new subscribers. Moreover, you have no long-term commitments, so you can cancel your subscription at any time.
Simply click on the banner below to take advantage of this no-risk offer.
2. Truck Stop
Truck Stop is another premium load board that offers plenty of dry van loads.
You have 3 pricing options to choose from, with the cheapest plan coming in at $39/month. The more expensive options are $125 and $149 per month, but you can enjoy more features, like broker credit and days to pay information.
Unfortunately, I don’t have a 30 day free offer for these guys, but I wanted to mention them as an alternative to DAT for the sake of completeness.
Check out their website here if you want to learn more.
3. 123 Load Board
123 Load Board fills out my top three paid load boards for dry van operators. I did search for dry van loads on their site, and I was pleased to find a respectable number that showed up.
123’s subscription fees are as follows:
- Standard Plan: $35 (includes access to load board, real time load alerts, website and mobile access)
- Premium Plan: $45 (includes everything that the standard plan includes, plus mileage and maps and document capturing and storage)
- Premium Plus: $55 (includes everything that the premium plan includes, plus enhanced mileage and maps & tolls, industry freight rates, etc.)
They offer a 10 day trial for all of their plans, so you can try them out without risk and see if their platform works for you.
Free Load Boards For Dry Vans
4. Trucker Path
Trucker Path is a popular free option to obtain dry van loads.
Their load board is simple to use and very intuitive.
Just go to their website (link below) and search for loads (you will need to check Van (V) under the “Trailer Type” drop down menu). You get a limited number of searches per day (I think it was 5), but can upgrade your account to a paid account and get more robust features, as well as access to the best loads on their platform.
Be aware that most of these dry van loads needed an upgraded paid subscription for you to unlock them, so I think you should be prepared for that.
If you want to check them out, here is the link to their website.
5. Shiply
Shiply is another great free load board that you can use to find dry van loads.
What I really like about this platform if that you won’t be charged any fees to access their load board but you still get access to the full loads on their platform. The rub is that they will take a fee when you actually book a load. I don’t mind this structure because you don’t pay anything unless you actually book a load and make some money.
They are a general load board so they offer a wide variety of loads, but their website specifically mentions dry van trailer loads, so they are definitely catering to operators like you.
6. Uship
Another free load board you can explore for dry van loads is Uship. They have a similar pricing model where you only pay when you secure the transport work.
As with Shiply, they offer a wide selection of dry van loads.
7. Direct Freight
Direct Freight is a well-known load board, which offers a permanent free option. You will not get access to their premium loads, but if you are looking to save some money, this can be a platform you can add to your arsenal.
Their dashboard is simple. All you need to do is just click “Find Loads” at the top bar and chose “V (Dry Van)” for the “Trailer Type”. Boom – you’ll pull up a bunch of dry van loads.
Of course, if you want to get access to a larger selection of loads, you will need to sign up for their paid subscription, which is $34.95 per month. However, when I checked their website at the time of writing, they were offering a 15 day free trial. Go to this page and click on “Create Free Account” to see more details.
Conclusion
So there you have it – 7 great load boards for dry van operators, with both paid and free options for you to explore.
