Bookkeeping for Trucking & Logistics

Trucking books that cannot produce cost per mile cannot tell you whether a lane is worth running. Fuel, maintenance, settlements, and per diem land in general accounts, and IFTA reporting depends on mileage records nobody reconciled to the books.

Cost per mile

By truck and by lane — the number that decides whether a run was worth it.

Settlements clean

Driver and owner-operator pay recorded with 1099 reporting intact.

Factoring not double-counted

Factored invoices recorded once, so revenue is not inflated.

Fuel records reconciled

Mileage and fuel tied to the books, which is what IFTA depends on.

What we handle

Cost-per-mile tracking by truck and by lane
Fuel, maintenance, insurance, and permit expense tracking
Driver settlements and owner-operator 1099 reporting
Records supporting IFTA and IRP filings, reconciled to the books
Factoring and advance tracking so receivables are not double-counted

Common problems we fix

No cost-per-mile visibility, so lane decisions are guesses
Factored invoices recorded twice, inflating both revenue and receivables
Fuel records that do not reconcile to mileage reporting

Why your state matters here

Bookkeeping for trucking and logistics is not the same in every state. Sales tax rates and what is taxable, registration and licensing, payroll rules, and filing cadence all vary — and for this industry those differences change real work, not just a number on a form. Pick your state below for specifics.

Trades and specialisms we cover

Trucking & Logistics is a broad category, and the bookkeeping differs meaningfully between the trades inside it. Here is what actually changes, trade by trade — each is handled under this service rather than as a separate engagement.

Owner-Operators — jump to this section

A single-truck operation lives or dies on cost per mile, and the number is only real if the truck payment, insurance, permits, maintenance reserve, and tyres are all included rather than just fuel and repairs. Settlement statements from a carrier arrive net of deductions — fuel advances, insurance, escrow, trailer rental — and each of those is a different account, not a reduction in revenue. Per diem and home-time affect the picture and need recording consistently.

Freight Brokers — jump to this section

A broker books gross revenue from the shipper and pays a carrier out of it, and the difference is the entire business — so recording gross revenue against carrier cost is essential, and netting them destroys the only margin figure that matters. Carrier payables move fast and factoring is common on both sides, which means a broker can be paying carriers in days while collecting from shippers in weeks. The trust position is real: money owed to carriers is not working capital, and the bond exists because that distinction gets ignored.

Last-Mile and Amazon DSP — jump to this section

A delivery service partner operation is dominated by driver payroll and van costs against a revenue figure largely set by the contracting party, which leaves very little room and makes weekly labour tracking the whole game. Rented fleet, fuel cards, insurance, and damage recharges all arrive as deductions on a settlement rather than as invoices. Because the revenue side is comparatively fixed, cost per route and overtime hours are the only levers, and they are only visible in books that track them per route.

Moving Companies — jump to this section

Moving revenue is quoted per job — hourly, by weight, or flat — and costed in crew hours, fuel, materials, and truck time, so job-level costing is the difference between an accurate quote next time and a guess. Deposits taken at booking are a liability until the move happens. Interstate work brings additional operating authority and cargo insurance requirements, and claims for damaged goods are a recurring cost that belongs in its own account rather than buried in repairs.

Towing Operators — jump to this section

Towing mixes private-pay calls, motor club work paid at contracted rates weeks later, and police rotation work with its own rate schedule and paperwork — three revenue streams with three collection profiles. Storage and impound fees accumulate daily and are a receivable that may never be collected, so they need recording in a way that reflects that. Equipment is expensive and heavily used, which makes per-truck cost tracking worthwhile in a way it is not for a light vehicle fleet.

Courier and Hotshot — jump to this section

Hotshot and expedited work is high-rate, low-volume, and load-board driven, which makes deadhead miles the number that decides profitability — a well-paid load that required four hundred empty miles to reach may have earned nothing. Costing per load rather than per week is the only way to see it. Many operators run as single-truck businesses under their own authority, which brings the full set of permit, insurance, and filing obligations onto a very small operation.

Dump Trucks and Aggregate Hauling — jump to this section

Aggregate hauling is usually paid by the load or by the ton on short local runs, so ticket reconciliation is central: the quarry ticket, the delivery ticket, and the invoice all need to agree, and where they do not the difference is either unbilled revenue or a load nobody was paid for. Equipment is heavy and maintenance-intensive, and where the operator also sells material rather than only hauling it, that is a second revenue stream with a cost of goods attached.

Refrigerated Carriers — jump to this section

Reefer operations carry a second engine with its own fuel consumption and maintenance schedule, and separating reefer fuel from tractor fuel is what makes cost per mile accurate for a business whose rates are supposed to compensate for exactly that cost. Claims for temperature excursions are a real and occasionally large exposure, and the deductible needs to be accounted for as a cost of doing this work rather than as an anomaly.

Not listed? Tell us what you do — these are the ones we are asked about most, not the limit of what we handle.

We keep the books. You run the business.

Categorization, reconciliation, month-end close, and clean financial statements — with nothing left for you to chase.

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How It Works

Free review

We look at how your trucking and logistics books are set up today.

Fix the structure

Chart of accounts rebuilt around how your industry actually earns and spends.

Catch up

Anything behind gets cleaned up at a fixed quoted price.

Close monthly

Current, reconciled books every month — ready for your CPA.

Trucking & Logistics Bookkeeping by State

Sales tax nexus and taxability, licensing, payroll rules, and filing cadence differ by state. Pick yours for a state-specific guide.

Trucking & Logistics — Frequently Asked Questions

Do you understand trucking and logistics specifically?

Yes — that is the point of setting the books up by industry. Trucking books that cannot produce cost per mile cannot tell you whether a lane is worth running. Fuel, maintenance, settlements, and per diem land in general accounts, and IFTA reporting depends on mileage records nobody reconciled to the books.

What does bookkeeping for trucking and logistics actually involve?

Cost-per-mile tracking by truck and by lane; Fuel, maintenance, insurance, and permit expense tracking; Driver settlements and owner-operator 1099 reporting; and 2 other recurring pieces. It is done monthly rather than reconstructed at year end, so the numbers are usable while the decisions are still open.

What usually goes wrong in trucking and logistics books?

The three we see most: no cost-per-mile visibility, so lane decisions are guesses; factored invoices recorded twice, inflating both revenue and receivables; fuel records that do not reconcile to mileage reporting. Cost per mile is the only number that matters, and most books cannot produce it.

Do you work with owner-operators, freight brokers, last-mile and amazon dsp?

Yes — those are three of the 8 trades covered under this service, and each is listed on this page with what changes about its books. They are handled under one engagement rather than quoted separately.

Do you work in the accounting file my trucking and logistics business already uses?

Yes. We work inside your file so you keep ownership and full visibility. If you do not have one set up yet, we build it around your industry from the start, including a chart of accounts that matches how you actually earn.

Can you clean up trucking and logistics books that are months behind?

That is our specialty. Cleanup is quoted at a fixed price after a short no-obligation review, so you know the cost before any work begins. Scope varies enormously, so we look first and quote second.

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