If you are flatbed owner operator 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 flatbed (and make more money in the process). I will cover both paid and free options, so I think you will find the information here relevant to you regardless of your budget.
We’ve got a lot to cover, so 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 Flatbed Operators
1. DAT
When it comes to load boards, DAT is a clear market leader, with approximately 1.37 million loads posted daily (including tons of flatbed loads as well).
That an almost unbelievable number of loads each day!
Due to their immense size and scope, they are able to offer leading edge tech and info, including unlimited searching, 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).
What I find really reassuring (and convenient) is that if you search for flatbed loads on their load board, you find tons of subcategories in their drop down menu for “Truck Type”, including Flatbed with Sides, Flatbed w/ Tarps, Flatbed w/ Chains, Flatbed Air Ride, Flatbed Hotshot, Flatbed HazMat, and much more.
Of course, you can keep your search as broad as possible by selecting the general “flatbed” category too.
I think it says a lot that their load board can support that many subcategories. I don’t think you would bother to offer that many subcategories if you didn’t have a reasonable number of loads under each one.
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 also has a robust load board that caters to flatbed loads.
Similar to DAT, they offer three options, with the cheapest plan coming in at $39/month. The more expensive options are $125 and $149 per month, but you get access to more features, such as broker credit and days to pay information.
To explore this option, check out their website here.
3. 123 Load Board
Another well known load board is 123 Load Board. When I ran a quick search for flatbeds on their site, I was pleased to find a decent number that showed up.
123’s pricing is 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 Flatbed Operators
4. Trucker Path
Trucker Path is a popular free option to get flatbed loads.
Using their load board is simple. Just go on their website and search for loads (remember to check Flatbed “F” under the “Trailer Type” drop down menu. You get a limited number of searches per day, but can upgrade your account to a paid account and get more robust features, as well as access to the best loads.
Most flatbed 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 free load board that you can use to find flatbed loads.
You won’t be charged any fees to access their load board, but they will take a fee when you actually book a load. This is actually a really nice 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 flatbed loads, so they are definitely catering to operators like you.
7. Uship
Another free load board you can explore for flatbed loads is Uship. They have a similar pricing model where you only pay when you secure the transport work.
As with Shiply, there make specific reference to flatbed loads on their website, so you know it’s something they offer. Of course, they also offer loads for dropdeck, lowboys and vans as well.
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 interface was easy to use. I just clicked “Find Loads” at the top bar and chose “F Flatbed” for the “Trailer Type”. Boom – it pulled up a bunch of matching 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 flatbed operators, with both paid and free options for you to explore.
