Every Cargado rate comes with a confidence score that tells you how firmly the data behind it is drawn, calculated from real carrier bid activity.
Plenty of recent bids from many different carriers over the trailing 12 weeks, with a narrow margin of error. Multiple carriers are actively bidding similar freight. Brokers: quote this rate with conviction. Shippers: the middle of the band is a solid reference for where the lane has sat over the window; compare like for like against your own baseline.
Fewer bids and carriers than a high-confidence lane, with a moderate margin of error. Many cross-border lanes sit here: reliable for benchmarking and quoting, with a reasonable buffer. Read the whole band, low to high, rather than the mid alone.
Only a thin set of bids behind the rate. Sometimes shown as an extended-market rate, estimated from the surrounding markets when the lane itself does not have enough data. Treat it as directional guidance and read the whole band. Brokers: post the lane to gather fresh bids.
Cargado won't show a rate until at least 3 unique carriers have bid on the lane. A single carrier bidding low on a backhaul doesn't represent the market, and a specialized carrier bidding high for hazmat equipment doesn't either. The minimum keeps any one bid from standing in for the market.
The margin of error is the maximum expected difference between the true market median and the median Cargado observed, based on the number of bids and how much they vary. Tight margins mean carrier bids on the lane have been consistent; wide margins usually mean mixed freight types, seasonal swings, or limited data. Brokers: widen your quote range accordingly. Shippers: give the band less weight while you ask why a quote sits where it does.
"Not enough data" means the lane hasn't reached the carrier minimum, most common on intra-Mexico and intra-Canada lanes, niche equipment, and remote origins.
Brokers: post the lane as a potential load. Carriers bid on it, and those bids flow straight back into Market Rates, so the next lookup has real data. Shippers: the lane fills in as brokers post it and carriers bid.
A lane fills in as brokers post it and carriers bid; once the carrier minimum is met, the next weekly refresh can carry a rate.
Each confidence score tells you how much weight a rate can carry.
Explore Market RatesHow to read P25 / P50 / P75