The flatbed load-to-truck ratio rose to 41.38 last week from 39.34, the firmest reading of any equipment segment, according to DAT Freight and Analytics data published Sept. 28. Flatbed equipment posts dropped 5.7% on the week and are down 21.4% from a year ago. Load posts slipped 0.8% but remain 19.2% above last year.

Flatbed spot linehaul rates paid to carriers averaged $2.59 per mile, minus fuel, down 0.5% from the week before. Rates are 28.0%, or $0.57 per mile, above a year ago and 23.4%, or $0.49 per mile, above the nine-year seasonal average of $2.10.

The chart shows the 7-day rolling average for 2026 against the range of 2017 through 2025. The 2026 line rose from about $2.15 in January to a July peak just under $3.00, then declined through August and September to $2.59.

Across the flatbed bellwether states, the moves-weighted outbound rate was $3.20 a mile, down 0.3% on the week and 26.4% above a year ago. Those states carried 53.0% of outbound flatbed loads, up from 50.9% the prior week. The top 10 outbound markets accounted for 87.9% of loads, with year-over-year gains of roughly 12% to 39%. The Carolinas posted the strongest weekly gain among them, up 1.8%, or $0.05 a mile, to $2.95.

The 35-day DAT Rate Forecast places flatbed spot near $2.56 a mile by late October, within a band of about plus or minus $0.07. That endpoint sits about $0.53 above the $2.03 recorded on the same date last year.

Source: DAT Freight & Analytics - https://www.dat.com/blog/flatbed-report-farm-iron-stacks-up-and-flatbed-demand-will-feel-it