Freight economics

LTL and Parcel Fuel Surcharges: Read the Carrier’s Schedule, Not Just the Diesel Price

By VerifyCarrier · October 4, 2026 · 5 min read

An LTL or parcel fuel surcharge is a percentage read from the carrier’s own published table, applied to the charges that table names, for the dates the table says it covers. The diesel price is only the lookup key. EIA’s national on-highway diesel average for September 28, 2026 was $6.382 a gallon. On October 4, FedEx Freight, XPO and Old Dominion each published an LTL percentage tied to that same value: 59.60%, 57.25% and 54.32%, effective on three different dates.

Sources: EIA Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update: weekly on-highway diesel prices by region (release of September 29, 2026); FedEx Freight: weekly LTL and TL fuel surcharges; XPO: LTL fuel surcharge table (CNWY 190, Volume Shipment Pricing, CNWY SCP 190); Old Dominion Freight Line: current and historical fuel surcharge

One index value, three LTL percentages

The schedules below were read on October 4, 2026. Each ties its percentage to the EIA national average rather than a regional series, and each sets its own base price, step size and tariff rules. A percentage from one carrier says nothing about another carrier’s invoice.

FedEx Freight: 59.60% for LTL and TL, effective September 30 through October 6, 2026, based on the fuel price reported for September 28. FedEx Freight says the surcharge takes effect the Wednesday after the weekly index update, and later if the EIA price is received after Tuesday.
XPO: 57.25% under its CNWY 190 LTL tariff for the week beginning October 5, 2026, listed against a national price of $6.382. Shipments with an actual weight of 15,000 pounds or more take the volume percentage, 114.50%, and XPO also lists per-mile rates for Volume Shipment Pricing ($0.606 LTL, $1.212 volume).
Old Dominion: 54.32% for LTL shipments quoted Wednesday, October 7 through Tuesday, October 13, 2026, against the September 28 national average of $6.382. Old Dominion says two additional percentage points may apply depending on origin or destination, under its ODFL 128 tariff series.
Estes: its percentage follows the national average updated on Tuesday and takes effect the following Wednesday. Above 361 cents a gallon, the surcharge moves 0.2 percentage points for each 2-cent change. The current-week table did not render to an automated request on October 4, so no Estes percentage is given here.

Sources: FedEx Freight: weekly LTL and TL fuel surcharges; XPO: LTL fuel surcharge table (CNWY 190, Volume Shipment Pricing, CNWY SCP 190); Old Dominion Freight Line: current and historical fuel surcharge; Estes Express Lines: fuel surcharge basis and table

Parcel schedules can use a different fuel entirely

FedEx bases the surcharge for FedEx Ground, Home Delivery, International Ground and pickup services on the weekly national on-highway diesel price. For October 5 through 11, 2026 it is 29.25%, based on the September 28 diesel price. The table effective June 1, 2026 puts $6.34 to under $6.43 at 29.25%, so the $6.382 benchmark can be checked against the row directly. At and above $4.99, the percentage moves 0.25 points for each $0.09 change.

FedEx’s other package and express freight services use the weekly U.S. Gulf Coast spot price for kerosene-type jet fuel, not the EIA diesel benchmark. For the same week, FedEx lists 31.75% for domestic package services, 44.25% for export and import, and $0.704 per pound for domestic express freight, all based on the September 25 jet fuel price. Express freight is therefore a per-pound charge, not a percentage, and the page excludes FedEx International Express Freight and International Airport-to-Airport from this surcharge. FedEx states that the customer agreement is the final authority on the calculation and how often it adjusts.

Sources: FedEx: weekly fuel surcharge rates and tables for package and express freight services

Lag: which week’s diesel price applies

EIA observes prices on Monday and publishes on Tuesday, or Wednesday after a government holiday. Carriers then apply that number on different days. From the schedules above, the September 28 observation took effect on September 30 at FedEx Freight, October 5 at XPO and FedEx Ground, and October 7 at Old Dominion. FedEx says it may use a longer lag when the EIA price is delayed.

Rate a shipment by the carrier’s effective window, not by the latest EIA release. Illustration: an XPO LTL shipment picked up on Thursday, October 1, 2026 falls in the week beginning September 28, which XPO lists at 59.25% from the September 21 national price of $6.529. A FedEx Freight shipment picked up the same day takes 59.60% from the September 28 price. The same calendar day uses different benchmark weeks, which matters when a shipper asks you to explain the percentage on an invoice.

Charge base: what the percentage multiplies

FedEx Freight applies its percentage to all linehaul transportation charges and to other fuel-consuming services specified in Item 570 of its FXF 100 Series Rules Tariff. XPO switches to a separate volume percentage at 15,000 pounds of actual weight. Old Dominion’s origin or destination adjustment comes from its tariff, not from the weekly figure. Read the named tariff item before treating a weekly percentage as complete.

Arithmetic only, with an invented charge: on $800 of eligible linehaul, 57.25% is $458.00, 59.60% is $476.80 and 54.32% is $434.56. Whether eligible means the charge before or after a negotiated discount, and which accessorials are included, is set by the tariff and your pricing agreement. This page does not establish that for any carrier.

What to save with the quote

Record the carrier, tariff or service level, percentage or per-pound amount, effective window, the index value and its observation date, the schedule URL and the date you read it, the charge base and the result. Carriers revise the weekly figure and the table behind it; the FedEx diesel table shown on October 4 is labeled effective June 1, 2026. Keep these fields in the same log as the rest of the load, so a later dispute is checked against what you knew at quote time rather than against today’s schedule.

VerifyCarrier’s fuel workspace lists published LTL and parcel percentages with their effective and retrieval dates and a source link. It marks a schedule stale when either date is more than ten days old and labels a future effective date as not yet effective. It does not hold base tariffs, negotiated discounts or accessorial rules, so the charge base still comes from your agreement.

Sources checked October 4, 2026. Procedures are VerifyCarrier’s recommendations; examples are illustrative. How we prepare and correct these guides.