How do you calculate owner operator costs?
Add up one week of costs in two groups: fixed costs you pay whether the truck moves or not (truck payment, insurance, plates) and running costs that grow with miles (fuel, maintenance, tires). Subtract the total from weekly gross for net before tax, then divide it by miles and by moves.
- Fuel: miles ÷ mpg × diesel price, or your weekly fuel receipts.
- Running costs: maintenance and tires per mile × weekly miles.
- Fixed costs: monthly or yearly bills (truck note, premiums, plates, HVUT) converted to a weekly figure.
- Net: weekly gross minus all of the above.
- Tax set-aside: self-employment tax of 15.3% on 92.35% of net, before income tax.
At the defaults (700 miles and 15 moves a week, $6.352 diesel, 5.1 mpg), fuel is about $872 a week and all costs come to about $1,717: $2.45 a mile and $114 a move.
What is a typical cost per mile for a drayage owner operator?
No public survey covers drayage alone. ATRI's 2026 update puts the 2025 average for trucking fleets at $2.336 a mile, but $1.028 of that is driver wages and benefits, which an owner operator takes as net instead. Without them the fleet average is about $1.31 a mile before local adjustments.
That fleet average assumes 85,991 miles a truck a year, about 1,654 a week. A local drayage truck runs far fewer, so the same costs land on fewer miles. Use the calculator's cost per mile for your own truck rather than a national average.
Why is cost per mile higher in local drayage?
Two reasons: fixed costs are spread over fewer miles, and port and city traffic burns more fuel. The drayage trucks NREL measured at the Port of New York and New Jersey averaged 5.1 mpg and 140 miles a day, against 8.3 mpg for regional-haul tractor-trailers in the same report.
A $463 weekly truck payment adds $0.66 a mile at 700 miles a week, but only $0.28 a mile at 1,654. That is why drayage operators usually judge a week by cost per move and weekly net, not cost per mile.
How do you find your break-even revenue?
Your weekly break-even gross equals your total weekly costs: below it the truck loses money before you are paid anything. Divide it by your moves for a break-even per move. At the defaults that is $1,717 a week, or $114 a move.
Fixed costs do not stop in a slow week or a week off, so check the break-even against your slowest realistic week, not your best one.
How much should an owner operator set aside for taxes?
At least the self-employment tax: 15.3% (12.4% Social Security plus 2.9% Medicare) on 92.35% of net earnings, roughly 14.1% of net. Income tax comes on top and depends on your whole return, so many operators set aside more and pay estimated taxes each quarter.
Owner operator cost categories and typical ranges
Per-mile averages from ATRI's 2026 update (2025 fleet data), with the range across U.S. regions, and how the calculator handles each one for local drayage.
| Cost | ATRI 2025, per mile | By region | In this calculator |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel | $0.482 | $0.45 (Southeast) to $0.54 (West) | 5.1 mpg at $6.352/gal ≈ $1.25/mile |
| Truck payment | $0.28 (trailers another $0.12) | Varies by fleet size | $463/week, truck only (drayage pulls a chassis, not an owned trailer) |
| Repair and maintenance | $0.22 | $0.19 (South-Central) to $0.22 (Northeast) | $0.22/mile |
| Insurance (liability and cargo) | $0.11 | $0.10 (Midwest) to $0.12 (Northeast) | $182/week; physical damage and OCC/ACC are your quotes |
| Tires | $0.05 | $0.046 (West) to $0.052 (South-Central) | $0.05/mile |
| Tolls | $0.043 | $0.021 (West) to $0.079 (Northeast) | Add under other costs if your lanes have tolls |
| Permits and licenses | $0.008 | $0.007 (Midwest) to $0.011 (South-Central) | $11/week (the $550 federal HVUT); add plates |
| Driver wages and benefits | $1.028 | n/a | Not a cost line: what is left is your pay |
Source: FleetOwner's breakdown of the ATRI 2026 update. Fleet averages, not quotes.
Next steps
Compare your estimate with how settlements work in owner operator pay and weekly settlements, what a lease covers in leasing on with Eagle Systems, and what you need in owner operator requirements. New to port work? Start with the intermodal drayage guide or browse open owner operator jobs.