California said “we’re back.”

Los Angeles, Ontario, and San Diego just reclaimed the top three dry van spots after the Midwest ran the show for weeks. Sioux Falls posted its strongest reefer reading of the entire summer. And Kentucky? Still locking up all three top flatbed spots for the second week running — Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green, top to bottom.

A lot stayed the same this week. A lot came back. Here’s the full September 21 breakdown, powered by a morning snapshot of the Spotter Index.

Dry Van Hot Markets: The California Corridor Is Back

For the past several weeks the Midwest owned dry van — Duluth, Evansville, Bloomington running the top spots. This week California walked back in and took them.

Los Angeles at #1. Ontario at #2. San Diego at #3. That’s the California corridor back on top, and it happened fast. Saginaw, MI held onto #4 — a bit of a surprise — and Duluth dropped to #5 after leading the board last week. The Midwest didn’t disappear but it clearly handed the keys back west.

Flagstaff had the biggest single-day move on the dry van board this week — one of the sharper daily jumps we’ve seen in a while on a market that doesn’t usually make headlines. Bismarck and South Bend also had strong daily moves, so the interior isn’t completely cold.

The overall dry van market is essentially flat week over week. It’s been grinding sideways for several weeks now without a clear direction — California coming back to the top is the biggest signal of the week.

Avoid: Miami, Brooklyn, and the Florida markets continue to anchor the bottom. Lakeland and Jacksonville are both struggling. The Pacific Northwest on the dry van side is soft too.

Reefer Hot Markets: Sioux Falls Posts Its Best Number of the Summer

Sioux Falls is back at #1 — and it posted its strongest reading of the entire summer. The Plains are firmly in control and showing no signs of letting up.

The Pacific Northwest hung around for a second straight week. Spokane at #3, Pendleton at #6, Portland at #9. Two weeks in a row with three Northwest markets in the top ten is not a coincidence — there’s real freight demand up there right now.

Des Moines jumped into #4, and Kansas City crept into the top twenty — the Midwest is pushing into reefer alongside the Plains, which has been a building trend over the past few weeks.

The South woke up on the daily moves. Texarkana posted the wildest single-day gain on the entire reefer board — nearly a twenty percent jump in one day. San Antonio popped big too. Austin and Laredo both had strong daily gains. Whether that momentum holds into next week or snaps back is the question.

The overall reefer market pulled back week over week after last week’s big jump — not a collapse, just giving back some of what it gained.

Avoid: Miami, Jacksonville, and Lakeland are near dead last again. Florida reefer has been the worst spot on the board all summer with no sign of a turnaround.

Flatbed Hot Markets: Kentucky Tightens Its Grip

Louisville at #1. Lexington at #2. Bowling Green at #3.

Same top three. Same state. Second week in a row.

Kentucky has completely locked up the top of the flatbed board, and the margin over the rest of the field is widening. Decatur, AL jumped into #4 this week, and Memphis holds at #5. The broader Southeast is still stacked — Birmingham, South Bend, Cincinnati, N. Charleston, Huntington all in the top ten.

Augusta, ME posted the biggest single-day gain on the entire flatbed board this week — by a wide margin, and not a market anyone was watching. Worth a look if you have capacity up there.

The overall flatbed market barely moved week over week. Consistent, steady, the most predictable of the three modes — same as it’s been all summer.

What Is the Spotter Index?

The data in this breakdown comes from the Spotter Index, which measures profitability per hour by freight market in real time. It accounts for rate, load characteristics, and time — giving a cleaner read on where trucks actually make money compared to rate-per-mile alone. The snapshot used here was pulled on the morning of September 21.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the hottest freight markets this week?

For the week of September 21, the top dry van markets are Los Angeles, Ontario, and San Diego — California reclaimed the top three after weeks of Midwest dominance. Reefer is led by Sioux Falls, SD with its strongest reading of the summer, and Spokane, WA remains in the top three for a second straight week. Flatbed is locked up by Kentucky — Louisville at #1, Lexington at #2, Bowling Green at #3 for the second consecutive week.

Why did California suddenly take back the top dry van spots?

Freight markets shift week to week based on load volumes, available capacity, and seasonal demand. California’s size, import activity, and population density make it a consistently strong dry van market — the Midwest surge of the past few weeks appears to be easing as California demand picked back up. The corridor can flip fast, and this week it did.

Why is the Pacific Northwest still in the top ten for reefer?

Spokane, Pendleton, and Portland have now held top ten reefer positions for two straight weeks. End-of-season agricultural and produce freight moving out of the Northwest is the most likely driver — late summer and early fall tend to be strong for refrigerated freight in that region.

Why has Kentucky locked up the top three flatbed spots two weeks in a row?

Lexington, Louisville, and Bowling Green reflect strong manufacturing and construction demand in the Kentucky corridor. The state has been consistently near the top of the flatbed board all summer — this stretch of two weeks at the very top is notable but not a complete surprise given how steady the underlying demand has been.

How often is this market report published?

This breakdown is published weekly, based on a morning snapshot of the Spotter Index. Subscribe to the newsletter to get it in your inbox every Monday before you dispatch.

Where to Run Your Trucks This Week

Dry van: California is back. LA, Ontario, San Diego — the corridor is paying again. The Midwest is still viable but it’s no longer leading.

Reefer: Plains and Pacific Northwest. Sioux Falls, Spokane, Des Moines. The South had big daily moves — watch Texarkana and San Antonio heading into next week.

Flatbed: Kentucky and the Southeast. Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green. Two weeks in a row at the top and no sign of giving it up.

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Market data powered by the Spotter Index. Real-time profitability data, snapped fresh this morning.