The State of Carrier Entry: August 2026
Every month FMCSA issues USDOT numbers to thousands of new for-hire trucking companies. This report tracks that flow of new entrants nationally and by state, from the agency's own registration census, and updates automatically as the data changes. Over the last twelve months 69,762 new for-hire carriers with operating authority entered the market, +3% versus the twelve months before, and 48,132 of them (69%) started with a single truck. The most recent three months averaged 4,787 per month, −26% versus the prior three and −22% versus the same period a year earlier.
Key findings
- Fastest-growing states (12-month entries vs prior 12): South Dakota +25%, New Hampshire +19%, Louisiana +17%, Arizona +16%, Nebraska +16%.
- Shrinking fastest: Hawaii −78%, Alaska −33%, Delaware −14%, California −9%, Kansas −9%.
- Highest entry rate (new carriers per 1,000 active, 12 months): District of Columbia 153, Rhode Island 125, Pennsylvania 120, New Jersey 119, Connecticut 114.
- Largest by volume: Texas 8,482, California 6,870, Florida 5,760, Illinois 3,594, Pennsylvania 3,458.
All states, last 12 months
| State | Last 12 mo | Prior 12 mo | Change | Active carriers | Entry rate / 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 8,482 | 8,024 | +6% | 81,151 | 104.5 |
| California | 6,870 | 7,587 | −9% | 85,829 | 80.0 |
| Florida | 5,760 | 5,377 | +7% | 50,600 | 113.8 |
| Illinois | 3,594 | 3,352 | +7% | 36,278 | 99.1 |
| Pennsylvania | 3,458 | 3,125 | +11% | 28,707 | 120.5 |
| Georgia | 3,442 | 3,421 | +1% | 35,869 | 96.0 |
| Ohio | 3,137 | 2,861 | +10% | 27,688 | 113.3 |
| New Jersey | 2,772 | 2,680 | +3% | 23,318 | 118.9 |
| North Carolina | 2,577 | 2,604 | −1% | 24,885 | 103.6 |
| Indiana | 1,889 | 1,831 | +3% | 17,025 | 111.0 |
| New York | 1,676 | 1,659 | +1% | 19,059 | 87.9 |
| Virginia | 1,521 | 1,442 | +5% | 14,265 | 106.6 |
| Michigan | 1,473 | 1,403 | +5% | 15,088 | 97.6 |
| Maryland | 1,468 | 1,401 | +5% | 13,704 | 107.1 |
| Tennessee | 1,450 | 1,377 | +5% | 13,768 | 105.3 |
| South Carolina | 1,323 | 1,382 | −4% | 12,666 | 104.5 |
| Arizona | 1,321 | 1,134 | +16% | 12,610 | 104.8 |
| Minnesota | 1,166 | 1,070 | +9% | 14,646 | 79.6 |
| Missouri | 1,128 | 1,048 | +8% | 12,558 | 89.8 |
| Washington | 1,080 | 1,142 | −5% | 15,296 | 70.6 |
| Alabama | 1,016 | 914 | +11% | 10,624 | 95.6 |
| Massachusetts | 999 | 978 | +2% | 10,037 | 99.5 |
| Colorado | 982 | 1,000 | −2% | 11,274 | 87.1 |
| Kentucky | 928 | 820 | +13% | 8,499 | 109.2 |
| Wisconsin | 826 | 834 | −1% | 12,108 | 68.2 |
| Oklahoma | 792 | 748 | +6% | 8,207 | 96.5 |
| Mississippi | 768 | 782 | −2% | 7,612 | 100.9 |
| Connecticut | 702 | 725 | −3% | 6,163 | 113.9 |
| Nevada | 690 | 702 | −2% | 6,224 | 110.9 |
| Louisiana | 678 | 581 | +17% | 6,229 | 108.8 |
| Utah | 598 | 556 | +8% | 6,554 | 91.2 |
| Iowa | 555 | 532 | +4% | 9,628 | 57.6 |
| Oregon | 555 | 541 | +3% | 7,639 | 72.7 |
| Arkansas | 525 | 481 | +9% | 5,907 | 88.9 |
| Kansas | 436 | 478 | −9% | 6,343 | 68.7 |
| Nebraska | 424 | 367 | +16% | 6,495 | 65.3 |
| Idaho | 395 | 396 | −0% | 5,223 | 75.6 |
| New Mexico | 354 | 373 | −5% | 4,100 | 86.3 |
| Delaware | 305 | 354 | −14% | 2,705 | 112.8 |
| Wyoming | 238 | 216 | +10% | 2,640 | 90.2 |
| North Dakota | 209 | 198 | +6% | 3,376 | 61.9 |
| New Hampshire | 203 | 171 | +19% | 1,977 | 102.7 |
| Rhode Island | 200 | 183 | +9% | 1,605 | 124.6 |
| South Dakota | 179 | 143 | +25% | 3,025 | 59.2 |
| Montana | 174 | 174 | +0% | 2,747 | 63.3 |
| West Virginia | 173 | 173 | +0% | 2,177 | 79.5 |
| Maine | 119 | 124 | −4% | 2,224 | 53.5 |
| Vermont | 62 | 65 | −5% | 886 | 70.0 |
| District of Columbia | 51 | 50 | +2% | 334 | 152.7 |
| Alaska | 29 | 43 | −33% | 705 | 41.1 |
| Hawaii | 10 | 45 | −78% | 316 | 31.6 |
Use this data
Everything on this page is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0: cite “HaulBench, from FMCSA census data” and link to this page.
- Chart image: /embed/new-carriers.svg (SVG, updates monthly)
- Embed the live chart:
<iframe src="https://haulbench.com/embed/new-carriers/" width="800" height="340" style="border:0;max-width:100%" loading="lazy" title="New trucking companies per month, U.S."></iframe>
- JSON: /data/new-carriers.json (national and by state, 24 months) · /data/diesel.json (weekly diesel by region)
- Press: contact us for custom cuts (by fleet size, by county) or comment on trends.
Method
Source: FMCSA Company Census File (data.transportation.gov), reloaded monthly. A "new carrier" is an active, US-based entity with an MC docket whose USDOT number was issued in the month shown. Carriers that later go inactive drop out of the census, so older months understate original entries slightly; the two most recent months are provisional because of census lag and the delay in MC docket assignment. Entry rate divides 12-month entries by currently active carriers in the state. 2026 month-to-month swings coincide with FMCSA's registration-system migration; trends are best read on 3- and 12-month windows.
Last updated 2026-09-07. Data sources are listed on each page; see About for methodology.