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True Fuel

Know the True Fuel Cost of Every Load.

True Fuel connects TMS, telematics, fuel card and reefer data to show what each load actually costs in fuel⁠—and how that compares with the fuel surcharge paid or received.

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True Fuel / Load economics

Sample data

Sample Data • April 2026 • 18,000 total miles

Actual Fuel Cost
$8,640
Fuel Surcharge
$7,320
Recovery / Variance
−$1,320

Variance = fuel surcharge − actual fuel cost. Negative values indicate cost above surcharge.

Tractor Fuel
$7,200
Reefer Fuel
$1,440
Loaded Miles
16,200
Deadhead Miles
1,800
Actual Fuel Cost Per Mile
$0.48
Fuel Reimbursement Per Mile
$0.41

Actual fuel cost vs. reimbursement

ActualReimbursement

USD • Weekly totals • Scale: $0–$3,000

Load-level detail • Sample Data

Load / LaneActualSurchargeVariance
FF-1042 / DAL–ATL$640$550−$90
FF-1043 / CHI–MEM$510$460−$50
FF-1044 / ATL–MIA$420$380−$40

All figures are Sample Data—hypothetical, not customer results.

The Problem

Fuel surcharge tells you what was billed. It doesn’t tell you what the load actually cost.

Traditional fuel programs rely on indexes, mileage assumptions and standardized formulas. But actual freight doesn’t operate on averages.

A refrigerated load can include tractor fuel, reefer fuel, empty miles, different operating conditions and fuel purchased across multiple locations. True Fuel connects those costs back to the individual load so carriers and shippers can understand what actually happened.

  • Tractor Fuel

    Tie tractor fuel consumption back to the freight being moved.

  • Reefer Fuel

    Separate refrigeration fuel from tractor fuel instead of burying it inside total fuel expense.

  • Deadhead

    Assign empty miles to the load, lane or customer that created them.

  • Fuel Surcharge

    Compare what was paid or received with the actual fuel economics of the load.

One Load. One Fuel Record.

Bring the entire fuel story together.

True Fuel brings data that traditionally lives in separate systems into a single load-level record.

  1. TMS
  2. Telematics
  3. Fuel Card
  4. Reefer Data
  5. FreightFlow True Fuel

Every load can be analyzed by:

  • Customer
  • Carrier
  • Lane
  • Origin
  • Destination
  • Tractor
  • Trailer
  • Loaded miles
  • Deadhead miles
  • Tractor fuel
  • Reefer fuel
  • Fuel surcharge
  • Cost per mile
  • Recovery or variance

Interactive Product Demo

See the True Economics of a Load.

FreightFlow / True Fuel

Hypothetical Sample Data
Lane
Dallas, TX → Atlanta, GA
Loaded Miles
780
Deadhead Miles
92
Customer
Sample Customer
Equipment
Refrigerated Trailer
Fuel Surcharge Paid / Received
$550
Actual Tractor Fuel Cost
$470
Actual Reefer Fuel Cost
$95
Deadhead Fuel Cost
$75
Total Actual Fuel Cost
$640
Recovery Shortfall
$90

Actual Fuel Cost Composition

Fuel Surcharge
$550
Actual Fuel Cost
$640

Tractor fuel cost excludes separately accounted deadhead fuel cost to avoid double counting.

See whether the fuel program actually covered the cost of operating the load.

Actual Fuel Expense
$640
Surcharge Received
$550
Tractor vs Reefer
$470 / $95
Deadhead Cost
$75
Recovery Shortfall
$90
Actual Fuel Cost per Mile
$0.73

Based on 872 total miles (780 loaded + 92 deadhead).

Simple Data Flow

  1. TMS Load Data
  2. Tractor Telematics
  3. Fuel Card Transactions
  4. Reefer Fuel Data
  5. Deadhead Miles
  6. Fuel Surcharge
  7. True Fuel

One Load Shows the Detail. Your Network Shows the Pattern.

Separate sample network data (top load card remains fixed).

  1. Load
  2. Lane
  3. Customer / Carrier
  4. Facility
  5. Fleet
  6. Network
Displayed Loads
4
Total Surcharge
$2,140
Total Actual Fuel
$2,290
Total Variance
−$150

Actual Fuel Cost vs. Fuel Surcharge

  • FF-1042 — Dallas, TX → Atlanta, GA−$90
    Fuel Surcharge$550
    Actual Fuel Cost$640
  • FF-1043 — Chicago, IL → Memphis, TN−$50
    Fuel Surcharge$460
    Actual Fuel Cost$510
  • FF-1044 — Atlanta, GA → Miami, FL−$40
    Fuel Surcharge$380
    Actual Fuel Cost$420
  • FF-1045 — Houston, TX → Memphis, TN+$30
    Fuel Surcharge$750
    Actual Fuel Cost$720

  • Recovery

    Which customers, carriers or lanes show meaningful differences between actual fuel cost and fuel surcharge?

  • Reefer

    Where is refrigeration materially increasing fuel expense?

  • Deadhead

    Which lanes or facilities are creating additional empty-mile fuel cost?

All figures, lane identifiers, facility names, customer/carrier references, and metrics shown are hypothetical sample data for demonstration only and are not customer results. Recovery Shortfall means actual fuel expense not recovered through fuel surcharge (e.g., $90 of this hypothetical load’s fuel expense was not recovered).

Want to see True Fuel against your own loads?

Give FreightFlow a sample of your transportation data and we’ll show you the true fuel economics at the load level.

For Carriers

Are you actually recovering what fuel costs you?

Most carriers know their total fuel expense. True Fuel shows where that expense was created and whether the shipper’s fuel program actually covered it.

  • Measure fuel recovery by customer

    See which customers’ fuel programs align with actual cost—and where meaningful gaps exist.

  • Understand every lane

    Compare actual fuel economics across lanes instead of relying solely on network-wide averages.

  • Separate tractor and reefer fuel

    Understand how much refrigeration adds to the true cost of temperature-controlled freight.

Analyze recovery by load, lane, customer, fleet or period⁠—so pricing conversations are based on actual operating data.

Explore FreightFlow for Carriers

For Shippers

Build fuel programs around actual costs⁠—not estimated MPG.

True Fuel connects fuel surcharge payments with the actual fuel activity behind each load. Shippers and carriers can use that shared record to build a transparent fuel program around agreed operating costs⁠—not assumed MPG or network-wide averages.

  • Understand fuel spend

    See fuel surcharge paid by load, lane, carrier and operating segment.

  • See the cost drivers

    Understand the impact of tractor fuel, reefer consumption and deadhead instead of seeing fuel as one blended number.

  • Agree on your fuel program

    Build reimbursement terms with your carriers using shared operating data—not assumptions alone.

Keep fuel in the fuel budget⁠—not hidden in linehaul.

Explore FreightFlow for Shippers

Reefer Fuel

Refrigerated freight has another engine running.

Reefer fuel is often treated as a minor operating detail even though refrigeration requirements can materially change the economics of a load.

True Fuel separates tractor fuel from reefer fuel so users can understand the incremental fuel required to protect temperature-controlled freight.

  • Reefer fuel by load
  • Reefer fuel by customer
  • Reefer fuel by lane
  • Tractor versus trailer fuel separation
  • Continuous versus cycle-sentry operating impact where data is available

Deadhead

Empty miles aren’t free miles.

Deadhead creates real fuel expense, but that cost is often disconnected from the customer or load that caused it.

True Fuel connects empty miles and their associated fuel expense back to the freight, providing a clearer picture of the true economics of serving a customer or lane.

Hypothetical Sample Trip • Sample Data

  1. DeadheadFuel expense: $60
  2. PickupFuel expense: $20
  3. Loaded MovementFuel expense: $530
  4. DeliveryFuel expense: $30

Sample Data • $640 fuel expense across the entire trip. Bar segments show cost—not mileage.

Actual Cost vs. Fuel Surcharge

Put actual cost next to reimbursement.

True Fuel reconciles the fuel surcharge associated with a load against the actual fuel activity behind that load.

Hypothetical Sample Load • Sample Data

Actual Fuel Cost
$640
Sample Data
Fuel Surcharge
$550
Sample Data
Variance
−$90
Sample Data

Sample Data • Variance = fuel surcharge minus actual fuel cost. In this hypothetical load, fuel cost exceeds surcharge by $90.

  1. Load
  2. Lane
  3. Customer
  4. Fleet
  5. Network

One load provides detail. Thousands of loads reveal patterns.

From Data to Decision

Turn fuel data into better decisions.

  • Operations

    Understand where fuel consumption is occurring.

  • Pricing

    Price freight using actual operating economics.

  • Procurement

    Evaluate fuel programs with greater transparency.

  • Finance

    Reconcile fuel expense and reimbursement with greater detail.

See True Fuel against your own freight.

Give FreightFlow a sample of your loads and see the relationship between actual fuel cost, reefer fuel, deadhead and fuel surcharge at the load level.

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Built for refrigerated transportation. Designed for enterprise operations.