A freight exchange (or load board) is an online marketplace where shippers, forwarders and brokers post loads and hauliers post available trucks, so the two sides can find each other and agree jobs directly. Members usually pay a subscription, and the best exchanges check who their members are.
This guide is for anyone weighing up a freight exchange: hauliers looking for work, shippers looking for capacity, and forwarders who do both. It covers how exchanges work, who uses them, costs, UK vs European options, how to choose one, and how to avoid fraud. To see one in action, see how Freight1 works.
How freight exchanges work
At heart a freight exchange is two lists and a way to make contact. One list is loads: a shipper or forwarder posts the collection, delivery, dates, goods, vehicle needed and often a budget. The other is trucks: a haulier posts where a vehicle will be empty, when, and where it can go. Members search the list that matters to them, filter it by area and vehicle type, and contact the poster by phone or message.
What separates a good exchange from a classified-ads page is everything around those lists: checking members are who they say they are, showing licences and insurance, keeping a record of completed jobs, ratings, and tools to track a job once it’s agreed. Some exchanges also offer credit checks, payment services or fixed-price booking. Others, Freight1 included, keep the commercial deal between the two members and charge a flat fee for access.
Here’s a real-world example. A forwarder in Ipswich needs a 40ft container moved from Felixstowe to Northampton tomorrow. They post it at 3pm with a £780 budget. A Northampton-based haulier who is tipping in Felixstowe tomorrow morning sees it, messages with their trailer type and earliest slot, and checks the forwarder’s profile. By 4pm the job is agreed, and the haulier has a loaded return instead of an empty one. With 30% of UK lorry distance driven empty in 2024 (DfT), that match is exactly what exchanges exist for. See today’s live loads.
Freight1 guideLoads ⇄ TrucksTwo lists, one direct conversationSpeed is the reason exchanges took over from phone-round planning. A load posted at 3pm reaches every haulier filtering that area within seconds, and many jobs are agreed the same hour. The best results come to the members who check often and reply first with specifics.
Who uses freight exchanges
Hauliers and owner-drivers
Their problem is empty miles and unpredictable work. They use an exchange to find loads leaving the places they deliver to, to post empty trucks, and to build a list of shippers on their lanes. For an owner-driver, one good backload a week can cover the membership many times over. More in Freight1 for hauliers.
Shippers and manufacturers
Their problem is finding reliable capacity quickly without paying a broker’s margin. They post loads and compare offers, checking licence, insurance and ratings. Regular shippers often turn exchange contacts into a panel of trusted hauliers. See Freight1 for shippers.
Freight forwarders and brokers
Their problem is covering many client jobs, often at short notice, especially port container moves. They post jobs and search trucks, using the exchange as extra capacity alongside their regular subcontractors. Our container haulage guide covers the port side.
Customs clearance agents
Their problem is clients who need customs and transport arranged together. They use an exchange to find hauliers for cleared goods and to make contacts with forwarders and shippers who need customs help.
Market size
GB-registered HGVs lifted 1.59 billion tonnes of domestic freight and drove 19.4 billion vehicle-kilometres in 2024 (DfT). Even a small share of that moving through exchanges is a lot of work.
What all four groups have in common is speed. Road freight is planned in hours, not weeks, and an exchange is the quickest way to put a job or a truck in front of the people who can use it.
What a freight exchange costs
Exchanges charge in one of three ways, and the model matters more than the headline price:
| Model | How it works | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription per user or company | Fixed monthly or annual fee for access | Extra charges for more users, regions or features |
| Subscription per vehicle | Fee multiplied by fleet size | Make sure every vehicle gets full access |
| Commission or booking fee | Percentage or fixed fee taken from each job | Costs rise with your success; you may not set the price |
Freight1 uses a simple subscription: £51 per week or £151 per month, billed per vehicle for hauliers and as a flat rate for shippers, forwarders, brokers and customs agents. There’s no commission on jobs and no lock-in, and there’s a 7-day free trial.
To judge whether any exchange pays, compare its cost with the value of the work it brings. Recent container loads on Freight1 were posted at £900–£960 for 165–185 mile port lanes. For a haulier who would otherwise run 200 miles home empty, about £180 of diesel at late-2026 prices, a single backload covers several weeks’ membership.
The factors that change what you’ll actually pay are fleet size (per-vehicle pricing), billing period (monthly beats weekly over a year), extra users or regions on some exchanges, and add-ons such as credit checks. Full details are on the Freight1 pricing page. Comparisons are in Freight1 compared.
Worked example: does it pay?
A three-truck haulier on monthly per-vehicle membership pays three memberships a month. If each truck fills one empty 150-mile return a week with a £400 backload, that's about £4,800 of extra revenue a month across the fleet, before the fuel saved on running empty.
Freight exchange vs broker vs pallet network
Hauliers and shippers often compare an exchange with the two other common ways of finding or placing work:
| Freight exchange | Freight broker | Pallet network | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | A marketplace; members deal directly | An intermediary who sells transport and subcontracts it | A membership network that trunks and delivers pallets through hubs |
| Price set by | The two members | The broker | The network's tariff |
| Who you deal with | The other member | The broker | Your local member depot |
| Best for | Full loads, part loads, containers, backloads | Shippers who want one call and no admin | Single pallets and small consignments nationwide |
Many businesses use all three. A shipper might send single pallets through a network, use an exchange for full loads and containers, and call a broker for an unusual job. Read how to get haulage quotes for the shipper’s view.
UK vs European freight exchanges
Some exchanges are UK-focused; others, such as the large pan-European platforms Timocom and Trans.eu, cover the whole continent. The right one depends on where your trucks actually go.
| UK-focused exchange | Pan-European exchange | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Usually lower; priced for UK operators | Often higher; priced for international fleets |
| Speed | Fast on UK lanes and port work | Fast on EU lanes; UK domestic work is thinner |
| Flexibility | UK paperwork and terms (RHA conditions, UK ports) | Multi-language, multi-currency, CMR-based work |
| Checks | UK operator licences, UK insurance | EU licences and community authorisations |
| Best for | UK domestic hauliers, port container work, UK shippers | Fleets running regularly into the EU |
Our recommendation: UK domestic hauliers and shippers should start with a UK-focused board like Freight1, where the work and the checks match the UK market. Fleets that run into Europe every week may need a pan-European exchange as well. Forwarders often use both: a UK board for port collections and domestic legs, a European one for continental legs. Cross-border work brings customs, CMR insurance and EU licence requirements; see UK to Europe haulage.
How to choose a freight exchange
- Check the work matches your lanes. Browse live loads before you pay. Tip: look at a week of loads in your area and trailer type.
- Understand the pricing model. Subscription vs commission, per user vs per vehicle. Tip: work out the annual cost for your actual fleet.
- Look at the member checks. Does the exchange approve accounts and check licences and insurance? Tip: weak checks mean more fraud risk.
- See how contact works. Phone numbers, messaging, email alerts. Tip: speed matters; the first credible reply often wins.
- Check the tools after the deal. Tracking, proof of delivery, ratings. Tip: ratings from completed jobs are worth more than reviews anyone can leave.
- Use the free trial on real work. Post a real load or chase real backloads. Tip: compare the results with what you pay a broker.
- Check the exit. Notice period and minimum term. Tip: avoid annual contracts until you’ve proved it works.
Freight exchange checklist
- Live work on my lanes and trailer type
- Annual cost worked out for my fleet
- Member approval and document checks
- Direct contact and fast messaging
- Free trial and no long lock-in
Don’t judge an exchange on how many loads it claims overall. Judge it on how many loads match your trailer type, your lanes and your days, and how quickly the people posting them reply.
What to put in a listing
A good listing gets better replies, faster. Whichever side you’re on, include:
| Load listing (shippers) | Truck listing (hauliers) |
|---|---|
| Collection and delivery postcodes | Town or postcode area where the truck will be empty |
| Dates, time windows, booking references | Date and time it's free |
| Load type, pallet count, weight | Trailer type, length, weight class |
| Site equipment (dock, forklift, tail-lift) | Equipment carried (tail-lift, moffett, straps) |
| A realistic budget | Areas it can go next |
| Notes: PIN in hand, ADR, fragile | Notes: ADR, temperature range, certifications |
Getting results in your first week
- Day 1: complete your profile. Company name, contact details, and for hauliers licence and insurance with documents. Profiles with checked documents get more replies.
- Day 1: set your searches. Hauliers: your trailer type and tipping areas. Shippers: look at trucks posted near your sites.
- Day 2: post something real. A load you need moved, or a truck’s empty leg. Don’t wait for the perfect job.
- Days 2–5: reply fast and specifically. Speed wins on exchanges. Give the details the other side needs to say yes.
- Day 5: keep your contacts. Note the shippers or hauliers who were good to deal with, and save loads you’re watching to favourites.
- Day 7: count the results. Loaded miles gained or quotes received vs what you’d normally pay. That’s your answer on whether it works.
Staying safe on a freight exchange
The risk: freight fraud on load boards usually takes one of three forms: criminals posing as genuine hauliers (often by cloning a real company’s name and licence number) to steal loads; “double brokering”, where a load is re-posted and given to an unknown carrier without the shipper’s consent; and fake shippers who post loads to get hauliers to pay fees or hand over details.
The rules that protect you: any operator carrying goods for hire or reward in vehicles over 3.5 tonnes must hold a standard operator licence, which you can check on GOV.UK’s vehicle operator licensing search. Companies can be checked on Companies House. Fraud should be reported to Action Fraud, the UK’s national reporting centre. Theft of goods is a criminal matter, and the shipper may struggle to claim on insurance if basic checks weren’t made.
Freight1 approves accounts before they’re active, checks licence and insurance documents, shows a compliance badge on every haulier, and only allows ratings after a completed job. Those checks reduce risk; they don’t remove the need to do your own. More in how to spot freight fraud.
Last checked: 3 November 2026
If something feels wrong (a new email domain, a changed bank account, a different driver turning up), stop and verify by phone using the number on the official record.
Anti-fraud checklist
- Licence checked on GOV.UK and name matches
- Phone number verified from an official source, not the email
- Driver name and registration confirmed in writing before collection
- No last-minute changes of bank details or vehicle accepted without a call
- Suspicious contacts reported to Freight1 and Action Fraud
Questions to ask before you sign up
- How many loads or trucks are posted on my lanes each week? Ask for a look, or use a free trial to see for yourself.
- How are members checked? Account approval, licence and insurance checks, and what happens when a document expires.
- What exactly is included? Contact details, messaging, tracking, number of users, regions.
- Is there a commission or booking fee? On some platforms the subscription is only part of the cost.
- How do I cancel? Notice period, minimum term, and whether prices are fixed for existing members.
- Who do I call when something goes wrong? A named team you can phone is worth more than a form.
Freight1’s answers: every account is approved before it’s active, licence and insurance documents are checked, there’s no commission, there’s no lock-in, and you can call the team on 020 7692 8773.
Frequently asked questions
What is a freight exchange?
An online marketplace where shippers and forwarders post loads and hauliers post available trucks, so they can find each other and agree jobs directly, usually for a subscription fee.
How do online freight exchanges work?
Members post loads or trucks, search and filter the other side's listings, and contact the poster to agree price and details. Good exchanges also check members and offer messaging and tracking.
Is a freight exchange the same as a load board?
Yes. The terms are used interchangeably in the UK. Some people use "exchange" for larger platforms with more services, but the core idea is the same.
How much does a freight exchange cost?
It depends on the model. Freight1 is £51 per week or £151 per month, per vehicle for hauliers and flat for shippers, with no commission on jobs.
Are freight exchanges safe?
They're safe when the exchange checks members and you do your own checks: licence on GOV.UK, phone numbers from official sources, and driver details confirmed before collection.
Is there a free trial?
Yes. Every account type gets 7 days of full access, including posting, contact details, messaging and tracking, with no payment up front. Add a card only if you decide to stay.
Try a freight exchange the right way
Pick an exchange whose work matches your lanes, understand the pricing model, check the member checks, and test it on real work during the free trial.
Sources
- Department for Transport: Domestic road freight statistics, United Kingdom 2024
- GOV.UK: Goods vehicle operator licences
- GOV.UK: Check vehicle operator licence decisions and applications
- GOV.UK: Search the Companies House register
- Action Fraud: Report fraud and cyber crime
Facts last checked: 3 November 2026. Freight1 board examples are shippers' posted budgets, not quotes.