Laredo, TX to Houston, TX freight

Lanes/

The Laredo to Houston corridor runs within the U.S., feeding the border gateway.

Direction

U.S. border feeder

Equipment on this lane

Dry van-led, with reefer and open deck demand

Carrier availability

Vetted carriers cover this corridor

Marketplace activity

Posted by brokers on the Cargado marketplace

<div class="lane-viz"><div class="lane-viz-mapwrap"><img class="lane-viz-map" src="https://cargado-lane-maps.pages.dev/laredo-tx-to-houston-tx.svg" alt="Laredo, TX to Houston, TX freight route map on Cargado" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="620"></div><div class="lane-viz-panel"><div class="lane-viz-title">Transit time</div><div class="tr"><div class="trrow tot"><span>Transit</span><b>1 day</b></div><div class="trmi">350 mi driving</div></div><div class="lane-viz-title">Typical market range</div><div class="lane-rate-band" style="font-size:1.75rem;font-weight:700;color:#16295c;margin:.15rem 0 .6rem">$1K–$2K</div><a class="lane-cta" href="https://cargado.com/brokers/get-a-demo">Request a demo for detailed rates </a><div class="lane-viz-fine">Estimated drive time by road, split at the border. Border dwell varies with documentation and crossing.</div></div></div>

This corridor connects the Laredo market with the Houston market (Houston, Pasadena, Baytown, La Porte, Freeport, Rosenberg), running within the U.S., feeding the border gateway. Over the past 12 months brokers posted this corridor to the Cargado marketplace regularly.

Recent carrier bids on this corridor typically land in the $1K–$2K range. Request a demo to see detailed, current rates for this lane.

What ships from Laredo

Freight out of the Laredo market leans toward automotive parts, metals and building materials and machinery and industrial equipment based on what brokers actually post there. You can read more about moving these goods on the freight types pages.

Equipment on this corridor

Dry van-led, with reefer and open deck demand. Browse equipment definitions in the glossary if a term is unfamiliar.

Feeding the border

This U.S. leg connects inland freight with the border gateway at Laredo. Loads typically stage or transload there before crossing into Mexico, or distribute onward after clearing customs northbound. See the border crossings directory for how the gateway operates.

Cargado is where brokers post corridors like this one to verified carriers. Every carrier is checked before it can bid, and banded market-rate context from real bids is built into the product.

More lanes from these markets

Every lane guide for Laredo, TX is listed on its lane hub, by direction and destination country.

The markets on this lane

Origin market

Laredo, TX

Laredo is the busiest U.S. land port for trucks with Mexico, with 46.1% of U.S.-Mexico truck freight value in 2025. Computer-related machinery, electrical equipment and vehicles are the leading U.S.-Mexico truck commodities by value, and fresh produce from Mexico also crosses at Laredo.

Industries: Electronics, auto parts, electrical equipment, produce

Border crossings: World Trade Bridge and Colombia Solidarity Bridge commercial facilities. Source
Intermodal or rail yard: Union Pacific intermodal terminal handling container and trailer-on-flatcar traffic. Source
Industrial park: Gateway International Rail Park in Webb County, off IH-35 and TX 255, 19 miles from the World Trade Bridge. 1,950 acres. Source
Free-trade zone: Foreign-Trade Zone 94, Unitec Industrial Center site on Interstate 35. 682 acres, 3.51 activated (operating). Source

Distribution: Foreign-Trade Zone 94 industrial space on Interstate 35 and the rail-served Gateway International Rail Park.

Destination market

Houston, TX

Houston is the Gulf Coast's main gateway for containers, refined fuels, petrochemicals, steel and project cargo. The Houston Ship Channel is the nation's largest port by waterborne tonnage, and Port Houston's two container terminals handled a record 4.3 million TEUs in 2025. Freight moves on to Texas and the U.S. interior by Union Pacific, BNSF and CPKC rail and by truck, and toward Mexico on US 59 to Laredo.

Industries: Refined fuels, petrochemicals and plastics, containerized imports and exports, steel and project cargo, warehousing and distribution

Seaport: Two public container terminals on the Houston Ship Channel (Barbours Cut and Bayport), including a Bayport berth completed in late 2025. 4.3 million TEUs in 2025, a record (operating). Source
Seaport: Multi-purpose terminals for breakbulk, steel, grain and heavy-lift project cargo. Described by the port as the area's largest breakbulk, steel and project cargo complex in North America (operating). Source
Intermodal or rail yard: Union Pacific Settegast intermodal terminal. Container and trailer lifts, open 24 hours (operating). Source
Free-trade zone: Foreign-Trade Zone 84, managed by Port Houston, serving Harris, Waller and Wharton counties. 1,708.58 acres activated; 40 active sites (operating). Source
Airport: George Bush Intercontinental Airport cargo centers. Two cargo centers on 120 acres; more than 564,000 metric tons of air cargo handled by Houston Airports in 2025 (operating). Source
Plant: Oil refining and chemical production in the Houston region. Oil and refined petroleum products are the region's dominant export, followed by organic chemicals. Source

Distribution: Foreign-trade-zone sites in Harris, Waller and Wharton counties, and intermodal lifts at the Union Pacific Settegast terminal.

Market profiles describe industries and facility types from public government, industry, port, railroad and industrial-park sources. They name no shippers, manufacturers, retailers or logistics companies.

Common questions about this lane

How do I find carriers for Laredo to Houston?

On Cargado, brokers post the corridor and vetted carriers bid on it. Every carrier is verified before it can bid, which replaces cold-calling unknown carriers.

What equipment is available on the Laredo to Houston corridor?

Postings here are mostly dry van, with some reefer and open-deck. If you need a type you do not see, post the load anyway. Carriers with matching equipment get notified automatically.

Why is a U.S. lane on a Mexico freight marketplace?

Because it feeds the border. Cross-border programs need the inland leg to and from the gateway, and brokers post those legs alongside the international move so one carrier network covers the whole program.

Moving freight on this lane?

Post it to 2,350+ vetted Mexico and Canada carriers, or check market rates built from real carrier bids before you quote.

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