Freight Quoting & Carrier Selection

Q: Can we customize the rules that select which carrier wins a quote?

Yes. You define business rules that weight cost, transit time, carrier reliability, and service level.

Q: Will the automation work with our existing carriers and order system?

The automation integrates with your order management system and connects to carriers via their APIs. If a carrier does not offer an API, manual quotes for that carrier can still be incorporated into the comparison.

Q: What happens to our existing shipment data when we turn on the automation?

Historical shipment records remain unchanged. The automation only processes new orders going forward and does not alter past freight charges or carrier assignments.

Q: How much manual work is still required after automation is live?

Most shipments are quoted and booked automatically. Your team reviews exceptions, approves unusual selections, and manages carriers that require manual contact.

Choosing the right carrier and rate per consignment instead of defaulting.

3.2k hrs

Manual time identified

Companies have mapped

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About This Automation

Freight quoting requires manually requesting quotes from multiple carriers, waiting hours for responses, and comparing rates in spreadsheets. This process ties up fulfillment staff and delays shipment dispatch.

Automation retrieves live quotes from carrier systems in real time, compares them against business rules, and selects the optimal carrier automatically. Shipments move from order to dispatch in minutes instead of hours.

Key features:

Retrieve live quotes from multiple carriers through direct API connections

Compare rates and transit times against customizable business rules

Select the optimal carrier based on cost, speed, and reliability

Book shipments and log freight charges automatically

Notify warehouse teams of carrier assignment and tracking details

Data insights How it works Apps used What you get FAQ

Top friction points when done manually

The issues teams report most often with this process

#	Friction point	Companies Report This
1	Carrier response delays Waiting 2-8 hours for carriers to respond to quote requests holds up shipment dispatch.	80%
2	Manual data entry errors Copying rates and transit times from emails into spreadsheets introduces typos and duplicate entries.	67%
3	Inconsistent carrier selection Manual judgment on cost versus speed varies by coordinator and day, leading to suboptimal choices.	53%
4	Multi-system data entry Freight charges must be manually logged in accounting after carrier selection, creating duplicate work.	40%
5	Lack of real-time visibility No automated tracking of quote requests or carrier performance metrics for continuous improvement.	26%

Disclaimer

Automation readiness

How well-suited this process is for automation

Process Pain Score™

9.5/ 10

AI Fit Rating™

8.9/ 10

Automation Lift Index™

8.7/ 10

Hidden Overhead™

7.1/ 10

How The Automation Works

The full workflow, from trigger to completion.

1. Shipment Ready for Quotingtrigger

Order status changes to ready for carrier assignment. Shipment weight, dimensions, origin, and destination are confirmed.

2. Extract Shipment Data

Automation pulls shipment details and formats them for carrier API requests.

3. Query Carrier APIs

Automation sends requests to integrated carrier APIs (FedEx, UPS, XPO, etc.) and retrieves live rate quotes and transit times in parallel.

4. Evaluate Quotes Against Rules

The automation compares all returned quotes against business rules (cost threshold, transit time preference, carrier reliability score) and selects the optimal carrier.

5. Book Shipment with Selected Carrier

Automation sends booking confirmation to the selected carrier via API and receives tracking number and pickup details.

6. Update Order and Log Cost

Automation updates with carrier assignment and tracking number, and logs the freight charge.

7. Notify Team

Automation sends a formatted message to the warehouse team channel with carrier name, tracking number, and pickup time.

Most popular tool stack used

— the complete tool combinations companies use

52% of companies

28% of companies

15% of companies

Disclaimer

What you get when you map this process

Everything you need to understand, plan, and build your automation.

ROI and business case

What this process costs today and what changes once it's automated.

Launch schedule

What gets built, in what order, and what success looks like once it's live.

Process runbook

How the automation runs day to day, including exceptions and human decision points.

Developer handover pack

Full build spec, logic, and configuration — ready to hand off without a briefing call.

Integration and connections guide

Every tool connection, credential, and data mapping the build needs.

Test and QA plan

308 hrsIdentified

4Mapped

View

Frequently asked questions

Everything you need to know before mapping this process.

What happens if a carrier API is unavailable or returns an error?

The automation logs the failure and alerts the fulfillment team to manually request a quote from that carrier. The process continues with available carriers, ensuring shipments are never delayed.

Can we customize the rules that select which carrier wins a quote?

Will the automation work with our existing carriers and order system?

What happens to our existing shipment data when we turn on the automation?

How much manual work is still required after automation is live?

View more FAQs

Process pain:9.5/10

Mapped by:6 Companies

Map this to your business to get your exact numbers.

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Page updated 10 August 2026