When searching for auto transportation, it’s important to know as much as you can in regards to how much you will be paying and why you will be paying that much. Auto transportation is anything but cheap - it costs hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars, for auto transportation, and there are several reasons for this. Mainly, auto transportation carriers have to make sure that they cover all their costs and still be able to make a bit of money at the end of the day, so it’s important to know where your money is going to and what exactly you will be paying for.

Auto transportation companies, especially carriers, have three main costs: fuel, maintenance and salaries for their drivers and office workers. For a company that has to operate and maintain those huge auto transportation trucks, this is no easy feat - those auto transportation companies need to make sure that they’re able to keep their auto transportation fleet maintained and make sure that they have enough fuel to get from point A to point B, then from point B to point C, and so forth.

The prices that the auto transportation carriers charge are usually based on the mileage. They don’t have set prices for routes, but they know what the costs are much better than anyone else, and they are willing to work for prices that seem reasonable. However, the only real way for auto transportation companies to book enough loads is to get them from auto transportation brokerages, who charge their own fees for shipping through them. Shipping through an auto transportation brokerage is the best way to save money - auto transportation carriers can charge whatever they want, but the brokerages keep the prices in check.

Auto transportation brokerages usually charge anywhere from $150 to $250 to ship your vehicle; however, they mitigate a lot of the problems that customers have had shipping directly with the auto transportation carriers because brokerages have the time to spend talking to customers. Auto transportation brokerages should always be the companies you book your shipping through.

Auto transportation brokerages charge different prices for different vehicles on behalf of the auto transportation carriers. For instance, if you’re shipping a large pickup with a lift kit, most auto transportation carriers won’t be able to ship it, but flatbed auto transportation carriers could - however, they charge more, and brokerages help to keep their costs reasonable for what they’re shipping.

Depending on where you’re shipping from and to can have a major impact on what your price will be. Longer shipments always will cost more than short shipments, again because auto transportation carriers have to cover their fuel costs.