Partial Truckload (PTL/Volume LTL)

Partial truckload sits in the gap between LTL and FTL, serving shipments that are awkward fits for either standard mode. Think 6 to 18 pallets, or roughly 8,000 to 30,000 lbs. Shipping this volume as LTL means paying steep rates at the top of the tariff curve, plus risking multiple terminal transfers. Shipping it as FTL means paying for a full trailer you're only half using. PTL gives you a third option: your freight shares a trailer but with fewer stops and handling touchpoints than LTL.

PTL – sometimes called volume LTL – typically moves on dedicated or semi-dedicated routes with just one or two other shippers' freight on the same trailer. The carrier handles the consolidation, and because there are fewer terminal transfers, transit times are closer to FTL than LTL. Pricing usually falls between the two modes and is often quoted on a per-pallet or per-linear-foot basis rather than by freight class. This means you avoid the NMFC classification headaches and reclassification risk that come with traditional LTL.

For mid-market shippers – especially those in food and beverage moving moderate volumes to regional distribution points – PTL is increasingly attractive. It reduces damage risk from handling, simplifies pricing, and often delivers faster than LTL for comparable or lower cost. The challenge is that PTL capacity isn't as widely available or as easy to quote as FTL or LTL; not every carrier offers it, and the rates aren't always surfaced in standard quoting tools.

The smartest approach is to let your system evaluate PTL alongside FTL and LTL for every shipment in the right weight and pallet range, rather than defaulting to one mode out of habit. When your quoting workflow includes partial options automatically, you catch savings that manual processes miss.