Softwr

Logistics · head to head

AfterShip vs Loadsmart

AfterShip logo

AfterShip

Logistics

Shipment tracking and logistics platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Loadsmart logo

Loadsmart

Logistics

Digital freight brokerage sold together with the TMS, dock scheduling and gate tools that book the loads

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only AfterShip has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: AfterShip paid tracking tiers as captured 16 November 2024 were priced at $9, $99, and $199 per month with per-extra-shipment overage fees of $0.08 (lower tiers) or $0.12 (Premium plan); Loadsmart the brokerage and the software share a parent, so quotes shown inside ShipperGuide are Loadsmart capacity offers rather than a neutral market view, and a shipper wanting a benchmark has to source rates elsewhere.
  • They diverge on capability: AfterShip covers Shipment tracking, Loadsmart covers ShipperGuide TMS.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which AfterShip and Loadsmart actually diverge.

Attributes where AfterShip and Loadsmart differ
AttributeAfterShipLoadsmart
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, MobileWeb, iOS, Android, API
Founded2011Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Logistics).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in AfterShip

  • Shipment tracking
  • Multi-carrier
  • Returns management
  • Analytics
  • Shopify
  • WooCommerce
  • Email
  • Encryption

Only in Loadsmart

  • ShipperGuide TMS
  • Instant committed quotes
  • Opendock scheduling
  • NavTrac gate automation
  • Managed transportation
  • Carrier app and load board

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

AfterShip

  • Shippingnot Loadsmart
  • Returns trackingnot Loadsmart

Loadsmart

  • A mid market shipper with no TMS that wants tendering, tracking and reporting without funding a licence and an integration project separatelynot AfterShip
  • A warehouse operator that needs to stop scheduling inbound appointments by phone and email across a fragmented carrier basenot AfterShip
  • A shipper that wants instant committed truckload capacity on lanes where it does not hold contract ratesnot AfterShip
  • A distribution centre trying to measure and reduce driver dwell time with automated gate capture rather than clipboard logsnot AfterShip

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

AfterShip

  • Paid tracking tiers as captured 16 November 2024 were priced at $9, $99, and $199 per month with per-extra-shipment overage fees of $0.08 (lower tiers) or $0.12 (Premium plan)

Loadsmart

  • The brokerage and the software share a parent, so quotes shown inside ShipperGuide are Loadsmart capacity offers rather than a neutral market view, and a shipper wanting a benchmark has to source rates elsewhere.
  • Instant quoting only works where Loadsmart has carrier depth, so a shipper running thin regional or rural lanes finds committed pricing unavailable in exactly the conditions where it would have been most valuable.
  • Opendock depends on carriers and drivers creating accounts and booking their own slots, so a facility with hundreds of small carriers spends months chasing adoption before the appointment data is complete enough to act on.
  • Pricing is not published and is negotiated per shipper, frequently alongside a freight volume expectation, which makes it hard to compare against an independent TMS licence and awkward to unwind if you later move the freight to another provider.
  • The portfolio was assembled by acquisition, with Opendock and NavTrac bought in separately, and the modules still behave as separate applications with their own logins and reporting rather than a single system.

Pricing, plan by plan

AfterShip

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Basic tracking
    • Limited shipments
  • Professional$99/month
    • Advanced features
    • Unlimited shipments

Loadsmart

On request
  • ShipperGuide$undefined/year
    • Transportation management for shippers
    • Quoting, tendering and execution
    • Reporting and rate benchmarking
  • Opendock$undefined/year
    • Dock appointment scheduling by facility
    • Carrier self service booking
    • Door and dwell reporting

Which should you pick?

Choose AfterShip if

  • You need shipment tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want multi-carrier.
AfterShip review

Choose Loadsmart if

  • You need shipperguide tms.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, API.
  • You also want instant committed quotes.
Loadsmart review

Questions people ask

Is AfterShip or Loadsmart better?
Neither clearly leads. AfterShip starts at Free and Loadsmart at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, AfterShip or Loadsmart?
AfterShip has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for AfterShip and On request for Loadsmart.
Does AfterShip or Loadsmart run on more platforms?
AfterShip runs on Web, Mobile. Loadsmart runs on Web, iOS, Android, API.
Can I use AfterShip for free?
Yes. AfterShip has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Loadsmart starts at On request.
What is AfterShip best used for?
AfterShip is most often used for shipping, returns tracking. Of those, shipping and returns tracking are not what Loadsmart is typically brought in for.
What can AfterShip do that Loadsmart cannot?
AfterShip covers Shipment tracking, Multi-carrier, Returns management, Analytics. Loadsmart covers ShipperGuide TMS, Instant committed quotes, Opendock scheduling, NavTrac gate automation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Loadsmart: Can I use ShipperGuide with my own contracted carriers and not Loadsmart capacity?

Yes, it will tender to your carrier panel, but the instant quoting and the managed service are where the product invests and where the commercial relationship sits.

Loadsmart: Is Opendock sold separately from the brokerage?

Yes. It is the most commonly standalone purchase, and warehouses buy it without ever tendering freight to Loadsmart.

Loadsmart: Does it publish pricing?

No. Every deal is quoted, and software cost is often discussed together with freight volume.

Loadsmart: How does it compare to a visibility platform like project44?

It is not a visibility network. Tracking covers freight moving through Loadsmart and connected carriers, not your whole carrier base across every mode.

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