Loading market headlines...

Capacity Tightness Index

The 'Fear Index' of freight — a single 0–100 score for how tight U.S. trucking capacity is right now.

LooseBalancedTight
78
out of 100
0.0 1d+0.1 7d+0.3 30d
Capacity Status
EXTREMELY TIGHT
Carriers have the leverage. Lock rates before quoting.
Why this number
The national Capacity Tightness Index sits at 78 — a carrier's market. Shippers are competing for available trucks at 8.7 loads per truck, well above the long-run balance point of ~3.0. Tightest markets today: Los Angeles (90), Houston (89), Dallas (86). Loosest markets: Seattle (54), New York (61), Minneapolis (62). Week-over-week movement is muted (+0.1 pts); expect rates to track the trend.
Load-to-Truck Ratio
Weight: 60%
8.7
loads / truck
Component score: 97 / 100DAT Load-to-Truck weekly

8.7 loads per available truck nationally

Spot Rate Velocity
Weight: 40%
+0.00%
week over week
Component score: 50 / 100DAT spot rates

Spot dry van rates +0.00% week over week

30-Day Tightness Trend

Daily index score with tight / balanced / loose reference bands.

Regional Capacity Pulse

Top metro markets ranked by tightness. Same formula applied regionally.

#1Los Angeles, CA
8.6 L/T · +3.0% rates
90
Extremely Tight
#2Houston, TX
9.1 L/T · +2.5% rates
89
Extremely Tight
#3Dallas, TX
8.2 L/T · +2.3% rates
86
Extremely Tight
#4Memphis, TN
7.5 L/T · +1.4% rates
80
Extremely Tight
#5Atlanta, GA
7.7 L/T · +0.6% rates
78
Extremely Tight
#6Phoenix, AZ
6.6 L/T · +1.6% rates
75
Tight
#7Columbus, OH
6.2 L/T · +1.8% rates
73
Tight
#8Denver, CO
6.1 L/T · +1.5% rates
72
Tight
#9Chicago, IL
6.4 L/T · -0.9% rates
64
Tight
#10Minneapolis, MN
5.5 L/T · +0.4% rates
63
Tight
#11New York, NY
5.2 L/T · +0.4% rates
61
Balanced
#12Seattle, WA
4.8 L/T · -0.7% rates
54
Balanced

Regional Pulse — Crowdsourced

Quick 2-second pulse from drivers and dispatchers. Votes reset every 24 hours.

——

How was finding a load today?

Live results — last 24h
Los Angeles, CA
Total votes
0
Where drivers are reporting most tightness

Methodology

The Capacity Tightness Index combines national load-to-truck ratios (60%) with spot-rate velocity (40%), normalizing each component to a 0–100 scale. Load-to-truck converts via a piecewise scale anchored at a 2.0 ratio (loose) through 8.0+ (extremely tight). Rate velocity maps weekly % change with 0% → 50, ±5% → 0/100. Scores: 0–39 loose (blue), 40–60 balanced (gray), 61–100 tight (red). Regional scores apply the same formula to metro-level inputs.

0 – 39
Loose
40 – 60
Balanced
61 – 100
Tight

Data Sources

Premium Content

This tool requires a Pro subscription. Subscribe to unlock full access to all premium features.