How to Reduce Freight Costs in 2026: 8 Practical Strategies

2026 begins with a significant challenge for logistics managers: rising fuel taxes across Europe, combined with toll adjustments and driver shortages, are already eroding margins for many businesses. For an SME shipping 50 loads per month, this can translate into thousands of euros in additional costs per year.

In this article, we analyze 8 concrete and immediately actionable strategies to contain freight costs without compromising service quality. These aren't indiscriminate cuts, but smart optimizations that the most competitive companies are already implementing.

Why Freight Costs Have Increased in 2026

Before discussing solutions, it's essential to understand what's happening in the market. Freight costs don't increase randomly: there are structural factors that every logistics manager needs to know to plan effective strategies.

Fuel Tax Realignment: The New Reality

Across Europe, governments are adjusting fuel taxation policies as part of environmental commitments and budget requirements. In Italy, diesel excise duty increased by €0.0405 per liter from January 1st, 2026. Including VAT effects, the real impact approaches €0.05 per liter.

For a carrier covering 100,000 km/year with average consumption of 30 liters/100 km, we're talking about approximately €1,500 in additional costs per vehicle. Costs that inevitably reflect on transport rates.

Highway Tolls and Tariff Adjustments

From January 1st, 2026, highway toll adjustments for inflation have taken effect across most of the European network, with average increases of 1.5-2%. For those who intensively use highways for national shipments, this translates into a significant increase in operating costs.

Impact of Driver Shortage on Spot Prices

Europe faces a structural shortage of approximately 400,000 professional drivers, with 30% of the current workforce set to retire within a few years. This structural shortage is creating upward pressure on spot rates, especially for urgent and last-minute shipments, with estimated increases between 4% and 9% throughout the year.

8 Strategies to Reduce Costs Without Sacrificing Quality

Let's get to the heart of the article: concrete actions you can implement immediately. Each strategy is designed to be applicable by both large freight forwarders and SMEs with internal shipping departments.

1. Consolidate Shipments and Optimize Partial Loads

Here's an eloquent statistic: in Europe, truck fill rates average 80% for outbound journeys but drop to just 60% for returns. This means there's enormous room for optimization.

Concrete actions:

• Group shipments to the same geographic area on a single day
• Coordinate with other company departments to unify transport orders
• Consider groupage services for partial loads instead of dedicated vehicles
• Use load optimization software to maximize fill rates

2. Leverage Carriers' Empty Returns (Backhaul)

25% of trucks in Europe travel completely empty on their return journey. If you can intercept these vehicles, you can obtain significantly lower rates—up to 30-40% less than standard tariffs.

How to do it:

• Use digital platforms that show available vehicles in real-time
• Plan your shipments with 24-48 hour flexibility when possible
• Build relationships with carriers who regularly serve your areas of interest

3. Compare Multiple Offers on Digital Platforms

Always relying on the same 2-3 regular carriers may seem convenient, but it limits negotiating power and prevents capturing savings opportunities. Digital freight exchanges allow you to compare dozens of offers in minutes.

Benefits of digital comparison:

• Transparency on real market prices
• Access to verified carriers you wouldn't otherwise know
• Reduced search and negotiation time
• Ability to find last-minute solutions at competitive prices

4. Negotiate Volume Contracts with Flexible Clauses

If you have predictable volumes, negotiating framework contracts can guarantee lower rates and service priority. The mistake to avoid is binding yourself with rigid commitments that don't reflect operational reality.

Clauses to include:

• Volume bands with scaled rates (not fixed minimum commitments)
• Quarterly rate review based on fuel costs
• Flexibility on pickup/delivery dates and times
• Service KPIs with mutual penalties and bonuses

5. Plan Shipments in Advance to Avoid Spot Rates

Urgent and last-minute shipments systematically cost more. The general rule: each day of advance booking can reduce the rate by 5-15%.

Best practices:

• Implement an order collection process with daily cut-off
• Communicate deadlines for shipping requests to internal customers
• Plan recurring shipments at least 48-72 hours in advance
• Reserve a dedicated budget for true emergencies, tracking their frequency

6. Eliminate Hidden Costs: Waiting Times, Delays, Documentation

Beyond the base rate, there are costs that often escape control: loading/unloading waiting times, unplanned stops, documentation errors causing delays. New regulations across Europe are introducing caps on loading/unloading times with compensation for delays.

How to reduce hidden costs:

• Optimize loading/unloading windows to reduce waiting times
• Prepare documentation in advance and in digital format
• Monitor and analyze actual times for each shipment
• Negotiate with internal warehouses for dedicated loading slots

7. Diversify Carrier Portfolio to Avoid Dependency

Dependency on few carriers creates operational risks (what happens if they're unavailable?) and reduces negotiating power. A diversified carrier portfolio offers flexibility and competitiveness.

Diversification strategy:

• Identify at least 5-10 reliable carriers for main routes
• Distribute volumes so that no single supplier exceeds 30%
• Include in the mix both large operators and local owner-operators
• Periodically test new carriers with trial loads

8. Digitize Processes to Reduce Errors and Administrative Time

Manual processes (phone calls, emails, Excel) are slow, error-prone, and difficult to analyze. Digitization is no longer an option: it's a competitive necessity.

Benefits of digitization:

• 70% reduction in document management time
• Complete traceability of every shipment
• Historical data for better negotiations with suppliers
• Elimination of transcription and communication errors

How to Quantify Potential Savings

Talking about "savings" in the abstract isn't enough. Here's how to calculate the concrete impact for your company.

KPIs to Monitor: Cost per km, Cost per Pallet, % Urgent Shipments

Before optimizing, you need to measure. The fundamental KPIs are:

• Average cost per km: the competitive benchmark in 2026 is between €1.45 and €1.58/km for an articulated truck
• Cost per load unit: pallet, package, cubic meter - depends on your goods
• % urgent/last-minute shipments: if it exceeds 20%, there's a planning problem
• Average booking lead time: how many days in advance do you typically book?
• Fill rate: how much space do you actually use on vehicles?

Practical Example: Manufacturing SME, 50 Shipments/Month

Consider a manufacturing company with 50 national FTL shipments per month:

The Role of Freight Exchanges in Cost Control

Digital demand-supply matching platforms are transforming how companies manage transport. It's not about replacing established relationships, but integrating them with more efficient tools.

Direct Access to Carriers vs Traditional Intermediation

The traditional model often involves multiple steps: shipper → freight forwarder → sub-carrier → owner-operator. Each step adds costs. Freight exchanges allow shortening the chain, directly connecting those with goods to ship with those who have available vehicles.

Rate Transparency and Real-Time Comparison

One of the main advantages is transparency. Seeing in real-time what different carriers offer for the same route allows you to:

• Understand if your usual rates are in line with the market
• Identify savings opportunities on specific routes
• Negotiate with greater awareness with historical suppliers
• React quickly to demand peaks or emergencies

Operational Checklist for the Shipping Department

Here's a practical checklist to implement immediately:

This week:

• ☐ Calculate current KPIs (cost/km, % urgent, average lead time)
• ☐ List your top 10 carriers and % volume with each
• ☐ Identify the 3 most frequent and expensive routes

This month:

• ☐ Register on at least one digital transport platform
• ☐ Compare current rates with market rates
• ☐ Implement a daily cut-off for shipping requests
• ☐ Review contracts with main carriers

This quarter:

• ☐ Test at least 5 new carriers on selected routes
• ☐ Implement a hidden cost tracking system
• ☐ Train the team on new planning procedures
• ☐ Analyze results and refine strategy

Start Optimizing Your Freight Costs Today

The cost increases of 2026 are a reality to deal with, but they don't necessarily have to translate into lower margins. Companies that react proactively, implementing the strategies described in this article, can not only offset the increases but actually improve their competitiveness.

The first step is always awareness: measure your current KPIs, identify areas of inefficiency, and start testing new solutions. Digital platforms like Truckscanner can help you compare offers, find reliable carriers, and digitize processes—all free for those looking for transport.

Want to see how many carriers are available for your usual routes? Register for free on Truckscanner and start exploring savings opportunities for your company.

Sources:

• EU Budget Law 2026 - Fuel tax realignment provisions
• Il Sole 24 Ore - "Diesel, highway tolls and insurance: 2026 increases" (January 2026)
• TrasportoEuropa - "2026 opens with three cost increases for logistics" (December 2025)
• Freight Insights Observatory - Most/Conftrasporto - "Report on Italian logistics 2025"
• European Commission - Road freight statistics and empty running data
• Unioncamere/TCR - "Collaborative logistics: -15% empty trips" (January 2025)
• ANFIA - "Road freight transport dossier" - Data on vehicle fill rates and operating costs