A 3PL (third-party logistics provider) manages warehousing, fulfillment, and transportation services, while a freight broker strictly arranges carrier capacity - the key difference is scope of service.

A logistics orchestration model where a single provider manages and coordinates a shipper's entire supply chain - including overseeing 3PLs, carriers, freight brokers, and technology platforms - acting as a strategic control tower.

A transportation company that owns and operates its own trucks, trailers, and equipment, moving freight with drivers on its own payroll rather than subcontracting loads to other carriers.

The ongoing verification that carriers in your network maintain valid operating authority, adequate insurance coverage, acceptable safety ratings, and adherence to regulatory and contractual requirements.

The complete pool of approved carriers and brokers a shipper can tender freight to - including asset-based carriers, freight brokers, and specialty providers across all modes and geographies.

The process of vetting, approving, and setting up a new carrier in your transportation network - covering insurance verification, authority checks, rate agreements, and system configuration.

A transportation provider that offers freight services to the general public under published rates and standardized terms, with a legal obligation to serve all shippers without discrimination.

A transportation provider that moves freight for specific shippers under individually negotiated rates and service agreements, rather than offering service to the general public.

A licensed intermediary that arranges the transportation of freight between shippers and carriers without owning trucks, earning a margin on the spread between what the shipper pays and the carrier receives.

A logistics intermediary that organizes and coordinates the shipment of goods across international borders, managing documentation, customs clearance, and multimodal transportation on behalf of the shipper.

An outsourced logistics model where a third-party provider takes operational responsibility for some or all of a shipper's transportation management - including carrier selection, load execution, freight audit, and performance reporting.

The federal operating license issued by the FMCSA that grants a trucking company the legal right to transport freight for hire in interstate commerce.

A Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier - a company that issues its own ocean bills of lading and sells ocean freight capacity to shippers without owning or operating the vessels that carry the cargo.

A transportation intermediary that arranges freight movement using a network of subcontracted carriers rather than operating its own trucks - encompassing freight brokers, non-asset 3PLs, and digital freight platforms.