Steplane › Guides › Freight forwarding KPIs
Updated 19 October 2026 · Written by Paul, founder of Steplane, a logistics process specialist with over 13 years in logistics, including at some of the biggest freight forwarders in the world.
In short: The most useful freight forwarding KPIs for a small company are quote win rate, time to quote, margin per job, extras billed, days from delivery to invoice, DSO, POD return time, on-time pickup and delivery, and claim rate. Each needs one formula, one data source and one owner, and a target set from your own last 3 months.
Published industry benchmarks for small forwarders are rare and often not comparable, so this page does not invent any. Where a law or a common contract term gives a useful anchor, it is named. Everywhere else: measure first, then set the target.
"Set your own baseline" means: calculate the KPI for your last 3 months, then aim to improve on it. A target that someone else reached in a different business tells you little.
| # | KPI | Formula | Data from | Starting target | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quote win rate Sales | Quotes accepted ÷ quotes sent × 100 | Quote log | Set your own baseline; track by customer and lane | Sales |
| 2 | Time to quote Sales | Median hours from price request to quote sent | Quote log timestamps | Set your own baseline | Sales |
| 3 | Margin per job Sales | (Sell price − all buy costs) per job; also as % of sell price | Job file: invoice and carrier costs | Set your own baseline; agree a minimum margin | Manager |
| 4 | Jobs below minimum margin Sales | Jobs under your margin floor ÷ all jobs × 100 | Job file | Your floor is the rule; aim for none without approval | Manager |
| 5 | Extras billed % Billing | Value of extras invoiced ÷ value of extras logged × 100 | Extras log and invoices | Every logged extra that the terms allow should be billed | Billing |
| 6 | Days from delivery to invoice Billing | Invoice date − delivery date, median and worst 10% | Job file and invoices | Set your own baseline. US carriers under 49 CFR 377.205: 7 days for collect shipments | Billing |
| 7 | Delivered, not invoiced Billing | Number and value of delivered jobs with no invoice at month end | Job file | None at month close | Billing |
| 8 | Credit note rate Billing | Credit notes ÷ invoices sent × 100 | Accounting system | Set your own baseline | Billing |
| 9 | DSO (days sales outstanding) Cash | Trade receivables at period end ÷ sales in the period × days in the period | Accounting system | At or below your payment terms | Finance |
| 10 | Overdue receivables % Cash | Overdue receivables ÷ all receivables × 100 | Aged debtors report | Set your own baseline | Finance |
| 11 | On-time pickup % Operations | Pickups inside the agreed window ÷ all pickups × 100 | Driver times, carrier updates, tracking | Set your own baseline; use the window in the order | Operations |
| 12 | On-time delivery % Operations | Deliveries inside the agreed window ÷ all deliveries × 100 | POD times, tracking | Set your own baseline | Operations |
| 13 | POD return time Operations | Date POD received − delivery date, median | Job file | The deadline in your transport order | Operations |
| 14 | Claim rate Quality | Claims opened ÷ shipments × 100 (or per 1,000 shipments) | Claims log | Set your own baseline; also count notices sent on time (CMR: 7 days for hidden damage, Sundays and public holidays excluded) | Claims owner |
| 15 | Carriers with valid documents Quality | Active carriers with valid licence and insurance ÷ active carriers × 100 | Carrier register | 100%: no load to a carrier with expired documents | Operations |
Use the median for time-based KPIs. One quote that took a week hides behind a good average.
| If your main problem is | Start with | First fix to try |
|---|---|---|
| Losing quotes | Win rate, time to quote | A price request checklist and a same-day quote rule |
| Busy but no profit | Margin per job, jobs below minimum margin, extras billed % | An extras log filled in the same day |
| Cash is tight | Days from delivery to invoice, DSO, overdue % | Invoice on POD receipt, not at month end |
| Unhappy customers | On-time pickup and delivery, claim rate | Clear windows in every transport order |
| Carrier risk | Carriers with valid documents, claim rate | A carrier register with expiry warnings |
A small company does not need a data warehouse. Five records feed all 15 KPIs:
| Record | Fields you need | KPIs it feeds |
|---|---|---|
| Quote log | Date and time of request, quote sent, outcome, price | 1, 2 |
| Job file | Sell, buy costs, pickup and delivery windows and actual times, POD date, invoice date | 3, 4, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13 |
| Extras log | Job, type of extra, amount, proof, billed yes or no | 5 |
| Accounting system | Invoices, credit notes, receivables, overdue | 8, 9, 10 |
| Claims log and carrier register | Claims opened and deadlines; carrier licence and insurance expiry | 14, 15 |
If a field is not recorded today, the KPI cannot be measured. That is often the first finding: the process step is missing, not the metric.
These are rules and terms, not industry averages. They give some KPIs a hard edge.
| KPI | Anchor | Source |
|---|---|---|
| DSO, overdue % | EU business-to-business terms over 60 days only if expressly agreed and not grossly unfair; default 30 days when no term is agreed | Directive 2011/7/EU, art. 3 |
| Overdue % | UK statutory interest 8% plus base rate; fixed sum £40, £70 or £100 by debt size | Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 |
| Days from delivery to invoice | US collect shipments: freight bill within 7 days of delivery, for carriers covered by the rule | 49 CFR 377.205 |
| Claim notices on time | CMR: visible damage at delivery, hidden damage 7 days (Sundays and public holidays excluded), delay 21 days | CMR art. 30 |
| Claim handling (US) | Carrier acknowledges within 30 days and decides within 120 days | 49 CFR 370.5, 370.9 |
| POD return time | The deadline you wrote in the transport order | Your contract |
If you want a second pair of eyes on which steps feed which numbers, the process review checks your current process and gives written fixes: €149 for one process, €349 for up to three, from €690 for larger reviews.
The six kits cover the steps that produce these numbers: quote to invoice, booking and carrier, carrier onboarding, claims and damage, customer onboarding and credit, and shipment documents and customs. Each has a written process with owners and records, plus Word and Excel templates such as the quote log, extras log, carrier register and claims log. EU and US versions.
All 6 kits €199 (about $225), one-time. Or €49 (about $55) per kit, any 3 for €99. 14-day money-back guarantee.
For a small forwarder: quote win rate, margin per job, extras billed %, days from delivery to invoice and DSO. They show whether you win work, make money on it and get paid for it.
Trade receivables at the end of the period, divided by sales in the period, times the number of days in the period. €180,000 receivables on €240,000 quarterly sales over 90 days gives 67.5 days.
There is no reliable public benchmark for small forwarders. Measure your last 3 months, split by customer and lane, and improve on that. Spot quotes and contract tenders behave very differently.
Start with 5, each with one owner, reviewed monthly. Add more only when the first ones are measured reliably.
The days between delivery and the signed proof of delivery reaching your job file. It drives how fast you can invoice, so it often explains a high DSO.
Log every extra the same day it happens (waiting time, extra stops, storage) with proof. At month end, divide the value invoiced by the value logged.
Answer simple questions about how your company works today. You get the process map with owners, triggers and records, the money leaks with estimates and a written procedure. Free, no sign-up.
Start the free check