Free trucking invoice generator
Bill a load by the mile or at a flat rate, add fuel surcharge, detention and accessorials, and reference the BOL and load number so the broker can pay it the same week.
Build your freight invoice
Prefilled with a typical dry van run. Replace the load details, rate and accessorials, then download.
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What is a trucking invoice?
A trucking invoice — usually called a freight invoice — bills a broker or shipper for hauling a specific load. It is one of the most reference-heavy invoices in business: load number, bill of lading, pickup and delivery locations and dates, and often a rate confirmation number, all of which have to match the paperwork the broker already holds.
That matching is the entire game. Brokers pay from documents, not descriptions. When the load number on your invoice matches the rate confirmation and the signed BOL is attached, the invoice moves through settlement automatically. When one number is missing, it goes to a person, and a person takes days.
The rate itself is usually one of two shapes: a flat linehaul rate for the load, or a per-mile rate multiplied by loaded miles. Fuel surcharge, detention, layover and lumper fees are added on top, each traceable to the rate confirmation or a receipt.
What to include
Everything below is already in the generator above — this is what each part is for.
Carrier details and MC number
Your legal carrier name, address, and your USDOT and MC numbers. Brokers verify these against their carrier file.
Load and rate confirmation number
The broker’s load number and rate con reference. Without them the invoice cannot be matched to an agreed rate.
BOL number and lanes
The bill of lading number plus origin and destination with pickup and delivery dates.
Linehaul rate
Either a flat rate for the load, or loaded miles multiplied by your per-mile rate — stated so it can be checked.
Fuel surcharge
Shown separately, as a per-mile amount or a percentage, matching what the rate confirmation specifies.
Accessorials with backup
Detention, layover, lumper, tarp or extra stop charges, each referencing the receipt or signed record that supports it.
Three steps to a finished PDF
Enter carrier and load info
Your carrier details and MC number, the broker as the client, and the load and BOL numbers in the invoice fields and notes.
Bill linehaul and accessorials
Linehaul as a flat rate or miles × rate, then fuel surcharge and each accessorial on its own line.
Download and submit
Download the PDF and send it with the signed BOL and receipts to the broker’s billing address the day you deliver.
Getting freight invoices paid fast
Invoice the day you deliver
Freight settlement runs on cycles, and the clock starts when a complete invoice package arrives — invoice, signed BOL, lumper receipts. Scanning documents from the cab and sending the same day routinely turns a 30-day pay into a 20-day one, at no cost.
Match the rate confirmation exactly
Bill the rate on the confirmation, including how fuel surcharge was expressed. If the load changed — extra stop, detention, reweigh — get a revised confirmation or written approval before it appears on the invoice. Unapproved accessorials are the most commonly denied lines in freight billing.
Know what your accessorials are worth
- Detention normally starts after two free hours; the free time and hourly rate should be on the confirmation.
- Layover, TONU and tarp pay are negotiated per load and worth confirming in writing before you commit the truck.
- Lumper fees are reimbursed at cost with the receipt attached — keep the original.
Decide about factoring deliberately
Factoring converts a 30-day receivable into cash in a day or two for a percentage of the invoice. It solves a real cash-flow problem for new authorities and costs real margin. If you factor, your invoices must carry the factoring company’s notice of assignment and remittance details, so set the format up once and use it for every load.
Three mistakes that delay payment
Missing load or BOL number
The single most common reason a freight invoice sits unpaid in a broker’s queue.
Accessorials without backup
Detention or lumper charges with no receipt or signed record get stripped out.
Invoicing days later
Every day between delivery and submission is a day added to your pay cycle.