Original data · updated monthly
Car Shipping Cost Index: October 2026
In October 2026 the HaulFare price model puts the average open-carrier sedan shipment across 50 major US lanes at $1,215 ($0.93 per mile; model-derived, no booked prices yet), up 0.6% from September. The cheapest lane per mile is San Francisco, CA → New York, NY at $0.57/mi; the most expensive is Los Angeles, CA → Las Vegas, NV at $1.77/mi.
Updated October 2026
License: CC BY 4.0 · Cite as “HaulFare Car Shipping Cost Index, October 2026”
October 2026 at a glance
Averages across the 50 lanes in this edition, open-carrier running sedan, hub to hub.
$1,215
average open-carrier sedan estimate (range midpoint) across 50 lanes
$0.93
average per mile
+0.6%
average change since September
50
major US lanes in this edition
$0.57
per mile on San Francisco, CA → New York, NY, the lowest rate
$1.77
per mile on Los Angeles, CA → Las Vegas, NV, the highest rate
−10% / +12%
range around each lane’s midpoint
Prices by lane, October 2026
Open and enclosed ranges for a running sedan, with the per-mile rate and the change since September. Lanes with their own route page link to it.
| Lane | Miles | Open (sedan) | Enclosed | $/mi | vs September | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona → California | 446 | $595–$740 | $840–$1,045 | $1.50 | −1.5% | model |
| Atlanta, GA → New York, NY | 880 | $840–$1,045 | $1,195–$1,485 | $1.07 | −2.3% | model |
| Boston, MA → Miami, FL | 1,485 | $1,255–$1,560 | $1,780–$2,220 | $0.95 | +12.8% | model |
| California → Arizona | 446 | $595–$740 | $840–$1,045 | $1.50 | −1.5% | model |
| California → Colorado | 979 | $885–$1,105 | $1,260–$1,570 | $1.02 | −2% | model |
| California → Florida | 2,593 | $1,405–$1,745 | $1,990–$2,475 | $0.61 | −1.9% | model |
| California → Illinois | 2,056 | $1,260–$1,570 | $1,785–$2,225 | $0.69 | −1.7% | model |
| California → New York | 2,885 | $1,500–$1,865 | $2,130–$2,650 | $0.58 | −2% | model |
| California → Texas | 1,460 | $1,085–$1,350 | $1,540–$1,915 | $0.83 | −2% | model |
| California → Washington | 1,134 | $965–$1,200 | $1,370–$1,700 | $0.96 | −2% | model |
| Chicago, IL → Los Angeles, CA | 2,056 | $1,260–$1,570 | $1,785–$2,225 | $0.69 | −1.7% | model |
| Chicago, IL → Miami, FL | 1,406 | $1,230–$1,530 | $1,745–$2,175 | $0.98 | +12.4% | model |
| Chicago, IL → Phoenix, AZ | 1,713 | $1,345–$1,675 | $1,915–$2,380 | $0.88 | +12.7% | model |
| Colorado → California | 979 | $885–$1,105 | $1,260–$1,570 | $1.02 | −2% | model |
| Dallas, TX → Los Angeles, CA | 1,460 | $1,085–$1,350 | $1,540–$1,915 | $0.83 | −2% | model |
| Florida → California | 2,593 | $1,405–$1,745 | $1,990–$2,475 | $0.61 | −1.9% | model |
| Florida → Illinois | 1,164 | $910–$1,130 | $1,290–$1,605 | $0.88 | −9.2% | model |
| Florida → Michigan | 1,130 | $895–$1,115 | $1,270–$1,580 | $0.89 | −8.6% | model |
| Florida → New Jersey | 1,105 | $880–$1,100 | $1,255–$1,560 | $0.90 | −9% | model |
| Florida → New York | 1,108 | $885–$1,105 | $1,255–$1,560 | $0.90 | −8.7% | model |
| Florida → Texas | 1,134 | $965–$1,200 | $1,370–$1,700 | $0.96 | −2% | model |
| Georgia → Florida | 474 | $610–$755 | $865–$1,075 | $1.44 | −2.1% | model |
| Houston, TX → Los Angeles, CA | 1,617 | $1,140–$1,415 | $1,615–$2,010 | $0.79 | −1.9% | model |
| Illinois → California | 2,056 | $1,260–$1,570 | $1,785–$2,225 | $0.69 | −1.7% | model |
| Illinois → Florida | 1,164 | $1,125–$1,400 | $1,600–$1,990 | $1.09 | +12.5% | model |
| Los Angeles, CA → Chicago, IL | 2,056 | $1,260–$1,570 | $1,785–$2,225 | $0.69 | −1.7% | model |
| Los Angeles, CA → Dallas, TX | 1,460 | $1,085–$1,350 | $1,540–$1,915 | $0.83 | −2% | model |
| Los Angeles, CA → Houston, TX | 1,617 | $1,140–$1,415 | $1,615–$2,010 | $0.79 | −1.9% | model |
| Los Angeles, CA → Las Vegas, NV | 285 | $450–$560 | $645–$800 | $1.77 | −1.9% | model |
| Los Angeles, CA → New York, NY | 2,885 | $1,500–$1,865 | $2,130–$2,650 | $0.58 | −2% | model |
| Los Angeles, CA → Seattle, WA | 1,134 | $965–$1,200 | $1,370–$1,700 | $0.96 | −2% | model |
| Massachusetts → Florida | 1,317 | $1,195–$1,490 | $1,700–$2,115 | $1.02 | +12.9% | model |
| Miami, FL → New York, NY | 1,289 | $960–$1,195 | $1,360–$1,690 | $0.84 | −8.9% | model |
| Michigan → Florida | 1,130 | $1,105–$1,380 | $1,570–$1,955 | $1.10 | +13% | model |
| New Jersey → Florida | 1,105 | $1,095–$1,360 | $1,555–$1,930 | $1.11 | +12.9% | model |
| New York → California | 2,885 | $1,500–$1,865 | $2,130–$2,650 | $0.58 | −2% | model |
| New York → Florida | 1,108 | $1,095–$1,360 | $1,555–$1,930 | $1.11 | +12.7% | model |
| New York → Texas | 1,617 | $1,310–$1,630 | $1,860–$2,315 | $0.91 | +12.8% | model |
| New York, NY → Chicago, IL | 839 | $820–$1,020 | $1,165–$1,450 | $1.10 | −1.9% | model |
| New York, NY → Los Angeles, CA | 2,885 | $1,500–$1,865 | $2,130–$2,650 | $0.58 | −2% | model |
| New York, NY → Miami, FL | 1,289 | $1,185–$1,475 | $1,685–$2,095 | $1.03 | +12.4% | model |
| Ohio → Florida | 937 | $1,000–$1,245 | $1,420–$1,765 | $1.20 | +12.9% | model |
| Pennsylvania → Florida | 1,019 | $1,040–$1,295 | $1,475–$1,835 | $1.15 | +12.5% | model |
| Phoenix, AZ → Chicago, IL | 1,713 | $1,090–$1,355 | $1,550–$1,925 | $0.71 | −8.7% | model |
| San Francisco, CA → New York, NY | 3,028 | $1,545–$1,920 | $2,190–$2,725 | $0.57 | −2% | model |
| Seattle, WA → Los Angeles, CA | 1,134 | $965–$1,200 | $1,370–$1,700 | $0.96 | −2% | model |
| Texas → California | 1,460 | $1,085–$1,350 | $1,540–$1,915 | $0.83 | −2% | model |
| Texas → Florida | 1,134 | $965–$1,200 | $1,370–$1,700 | $0.96 | −2% | model |
| Texas → New York | 1,617 | $1,060–$1,315 | $1,505–$1,870 | $0.73 | −8.8% | model |
| Washington → California | 1,134 | $965–$1,200 | $1,370–$1,700 | $0.96 | −2% | model |
Estimates from HaulFare price model 2026.09-seed, October 2026. The licensed transport partner confirms the actual price.
Methodology
How each lane is priced, and when a row switches from the model to booked prices.
Each lane is priced hub to hub (the main carrier metro in each state, or the city pair) using the HaulFare price model (version 2026.09-seed): a per-mile rate curve calibrated in September 2026 against published 2026 rate cards and cost studies (sources below), multiplied by the month’s seasonal index and, on snowbird lanes, the direction multiplier, with a 10% pass-through of the change in EIA weekly diesel prices ($6.38/gal in this edition) versus the $5.60 calibration baseline (May 2026 average). Ranges are −10%/+12% around the midpoint. Rows marked “model” are derived from the model; rows marked “observed” (none yet) are median booked prices, used once a lane has at least 30 booked shipments in the trailing 90 days. Quote-form estimates come from this same model, so they never count as observed. A new edition replaces the previous one on the 1st of each month, and the CSV file name carries the edition month.
The lanes are the first two waves of the HaulFare route plan, chosen by estimated search demand (the most-searched state pairs and metro pairs, including the snowbird corridors), not by shipment counts. A state row is priced between the two states’ main carrier metros, so it shares its price with the matching metro-pair row, and a lane shares its price with its reverse except on snowbird lanes in the snowbird months. The headline average is a plain mean of the rows, so those corridors count more than once.
Calibration sources
- Montway Auto Transport 2026 per-mile rate card, montway.com
- Sherpa Auto Transport car shipping cost guide (2026), sherpaautotransport.com
- Cars.com cost to ship a car (May 2026), cars.com
- uShip car shipping costs 2025, uship.com
- U.S. EIA weekly diesel prices, eia.gov
- U.S. Census Bureau ZCTA Gazetteer 2024, census.gov
Cite the index
License: CC BY 4.0 · Cite as “HaulFare Car Shipping Cost Index, October 2026”
Past editions (CSV, one file per month): October 2026. Each file keeps the numbers of its month after the live table moves to the next edition, so a citation stays checkable.
Embed this table
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About the index
What is the HaulFare Car Shipping Cost Index?
A monthly table of open and enclosed sedan price ranges for 50 high-demand US car shipping lanes (the first two waves of our route plan, chosen by estimated search demand), with the per-mile rate and month-over-month change. A new edition is published on the 1st of each month and is free to cite with attribution.
Is the index based on real shipments?
The October 2026 edition is model-derived: it applies HaulFare's published price model (calibrated to 2026 rate cards from major brokers and marketplaces) to each lane. A lane switches to observed data only once it has at least 30 shipments booked through the transport partner in the trailing 90 days, using the median booked price; our own estimates never count as observed prices. Each row is labelled with its source.
Why do you publish a range instead of one number?
Because the actual price depends on the carrier that takes each load. The range is a fixed band the price model applies, 10% below to 12% above its midpoint, so it is not a measured spread of booked prices; rows switch to booked prices only after a lane has 30 bookings in 90 days.
What does enclosed transport average in the index?
About $1,724 across the same 50 lanes in October 2026, against $1,215 open, because the price model puts enclosed transport 42% above open on every lane. Like the open figure, it is a plain mean of the model's range midpoints, not booked prices; each row's enclosed range is in the table and the CSV.
Can I download the data?
Yes, as CSV at the link above. Columns include lane, miles, open and enclosed ranges, per-mile rate, previous-month midpoint, month-over-month change, source and model version.
