i am wondering if anyone here is or has used a software for tracking the trucks revenue and profit per mile. i have gone to the hammerlane site and they have a pretty good system. does any use hammerlane? did you like it or dislike it? what other software is out for one to monitor the business without having to get pen and paper out each time. also, how reliable is the fuel optimizer feature on the software. are the fuel prices accurate?

thx

 

does anyone here use software to help manage expenses and help control expenditures? im sure that there would not be so many different types of truckers software out if no one is using them.

 

There are several software packages catering to the trucking industry. It depends on what you want the software to do for you. I primarily use Trucknpro and Easy Trucking. If you are an owner operator leased to a carrier Trucknpro will work for you and it is simple to use. They have a version for drivers and another for owner operators. Easy Trucking will do most everything including the fuel taxes and invoicing. Truckers Helper is a good program but is more complex than these other two. I suggest checking the website of some of the programs. Some have a trial subscription for you to try it. Others have on line demo's you can view. www.foglinesoftware.com, www.easytrucking.com, www.truckershelper.com.

You need to find a program which is easy to use and will give you the information you need to run your business. I am assuming that you are an owner operator. Some programs have different versions for various size operations. What exactly do you want from your software? Do you only want to check your profit per mile? Track fuel costs? Average per load?

 

thats exactly what i am looking for. i would also like to track mpg and fuel tax. idealy i would like something that works with gps. i have the demo of hammerlane and its nice but requires too much input to get the info, ie; trip numbers and pronumbers.

 

Truckers Helper and Easy Trucking will do the fuel taxes for you. Trucknpro will do the report but not the calculations. I believe all three will calculate the mpg for you. Most will ask for a pro number, invoice number, etc., Some will assign a number if you don't have one. If you plan on using the software for tax calculations, it would be better to put in a bill of lading or pro number in case you are audited. I don't know whether any of them works with gps. The qualcomm people have a smaller device which can be hooked up to your truck and do the calculations for you using gps. I believe it costs about $1,600 plus about $40/month or so. It is a handheld unit. You will need to input your fuel purchases. For you to get back accurate data, you will need to spend the time putting in the information.

 

i am going back through the Truckers Helper software now. putting in some of my records that i put into Hammerlane to see how they both work. So far, Truckers Helper seems a little easier, in addition, the support center emailed back and they do have a GPS addon for the software that will track stateline crossings for fuel tax and routing. i think that will be the software that i go with. i use the fuel tax addon to ensure that i am not getting to much $$$ taken out by the company. they seem to be cutting corners lately.

Thanks GMAN.

 

You are welcome, mudflap. I would be interested in hearing how you like Truckers Helper once you get all of your information put in.