Motor Carrier DAT Power vs Truckstop PRO - Who wins the title as best load board?

Mike

Well-Known Member
I was looking for comparisons to these two "fully loaded" load boards. What I found is that all the discussions out there were outdated because both of these systems have undergone some pretty big upgrades in the last year or two.

Does anybody out there actually run both of the boards with all the features? I am currently due to getting frustrated with DAT Power working at the speed of snail at the beginning of this week, throwing up all sorts of errors, and ultimately being told that they are aware of the problems, and no timetable of a fix. These errors has become more and more of a problem in recent months, so I talked Truckstop.com into a trial of their best service.

I have three months now to compare.

Bringing this up on the forum, because it would be great if others here using truckstop could possibly toss out there tips and tricks for getting the most out of that system. Truth be told, I keep going back to my security blanket (DAT) because I know the system.

One thing I am not liking about Truckstop Pro is that when you post your truck, you have no option to just select your email address as a contact.

One thing I do like about Truckstop Pro in regards to truck posting is that there are more default options available. I like the idea of being able to put a rate in the posting in situations where I am posting a truck to a specific area. That feature is not so valuable when you are selecting a large region to post your truck, particularly when you are not one of those truck owner fixated with wanting a specific rate per mile everywhere you go. $2/mile could be shooting myself in the foot for some locations, and at the same time eliminating potential contacts for other locations.

I like the rate negotiation tool that Truckstop Pro has ( I think the lower versions have it as well). That said, I don't know if any brokers actually pay attention to it. I have posted offers with it, never gotten any response.

Both top of the line programs use ProMiles as a fuel purchase tool, I have no use for it. Probably a good tool for many though.

Credit rating, days to pay, and reviews for brokers? They both have it.

DAT has a specific factoring company they endorse (Triumph Business Capital), and when you are searching loads, it tells you if they are set up to factor loads through them. If they are not, it's a good flag to let you know to look deeper into the specifics of that broker. This also is where the information is obtained, as far as I know, from DAT for the Days to Pay number. Not sure who or what truckstop uses.

So, with all that said, lets hear your input on these two so we can get some good information on both load boards.
 
Throw a dart blind folded. That's about how similar they are.


We use truckstop pro. Seems to have fewer duplicate listings.

Promiler is great. Especially when going into areas you're unfamiliar with the fuel stops.

I'd run coast to coast, I'd plot my course, pull promiler on the route, I could save myself $300-500 on one trip picking my fuel stops. In a month, it was huge. $1700-2000 in fuel savings running long
 
We use truckstop pro. Seems to have fewer duplicate listings.

When I was getting setup with my trial version this week, they told me this. They said they take efforts to ensure this, wasn't sure how true this was. DAT shows more loads, this could be the difference.
 
Yes. Got both. I haven't made the money to buy the buffalo shit off a nickel with ITS. Maybe it depends on your industry segment.

I get all my freight from DAT.
 
Yes. Got both. I haven't made the money to buy the buffalo **** off a nickel with ITS. Maybe it depends on your industry segment.

I get all my freight from DAT.

You have the top level of both products?

I’m finding it hard to focus equal time on both products, because the natural instinct is to stick with what is familiar.
 
You have the top level of both products?

I’m finding it hard to focus equal time on both products, because the natural instinct is to stick with what is familiar.
Yup - DAT Power, and ITS without the carrier specific tools. There's a higher level of DAT tools as well, but your talking about the broker tools there.
 
I have no problems with ITS other than the idle logout timer is stupid when there's an alert feature for new postings on your searches.
 
The market sucks right now.
Yes it does.

Comparing the two load boards while in Phoenix, DAT was the winner there, but it was close.

One thing Truckstop seemed to do well was preventing the brokers from listing the same load multiple times with bogus locations. I watched a couple brokers doing that on DAT, while the same load had just one posting on Truckstop, and the location was accurate.
 
Yes it does.

Comparing the two load boards while in Phoenix, DAT was the winner there, but it was close.

One thing Truckstop seemed to do well was preventing the brokers from listing the same load multiple times with bogus locations. I watched a couple brokers doing that on DAT, while the same load had just one posting on Truckstop, and the location was accurate.
because ITS has had so many complaints about it, they have actually done something about it.

I don't see that type of action from DAT
 
I've bit several loads on ITS and have never had any takers. Competitive bids. Usually don't even get a reply. Worthless feature. The rate info has little value also.
 
I am there with you.

But I don't think many brokers who put those loads up really pay attention to them.

They post it, you call in and talk to their lacky minions and then they get screened questions.
 
It's difficult to choose between these companies because they are known for serious mistakes in their work. It's like choosing between cashews and hazelnuts if you're allergic to nuts...
 

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