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Logistics · head to head

Loadsmart vs Shipwell

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
Shipwell logo

Shipwell

Logistics

Cloud transportation management with a built-in carrier network, sold on freight volume not seats

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Shipwell pricing is not published and is set on freight volume, so the cost rises through a peak season regardless of how much anyone uses the software.
  • They diverge on capability: Loadsmart covers ShipperGuide TMS, Shipwell covers Rate shopping.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Loadsmart and Shipwell actually diverge.

Attributes where Loadsmart and Shipwell differ
AttributeLoadsmartShipwell

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android, API), 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 Loadsmart

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

Only in Shipwell

  • Rate shopping
  • Automated tendering
  • Real-time tracking
  • Freight audit and pay
  • Carrier network
  • Analytics

What people use each for

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

Loadsmart

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

Shipwell

  • A mid-market shipper running truckload tenders on spreadsheets and emailnot Loadsmart
  • A broker replacing a legacy operating system without building one in-housenot Loadsmart
  • A manufacturer that needs proof of delivery and exception alerts pushed into its ERPnot Loadsmart
  • A logistics team that wants freight audit to catch accessorial overbilling automaticallynot Loadsmart

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Shipwell

  • Pricing is not published and is set on freight volume, so the cost rises through a peak season regardless of how much anyone uses the software.
  • Shipwell operates a carrier network as well as the TMS, so the vendor running your tender is also a bidder in it, which weakens the neutrality a competitive sourcing process depends on.
  • Coverage is heavily North American, and international ocean, air and customs handling is thin compared with a forwarder-grade platform.
  • ERP and WMS integrations turn deployment into a project with its own cost and timeline rather than a configuration exercise.
  • The company is small relative to the enterprise TMS incumbents, which matters for a system that sits in the path of every shipment if support or roadmap continuity slips.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Shipwell

On request
  • Shipwell TMS$undefined/year
    • Annual contract priced on freight volume
    • Rate shopping, tendering and tracking
    • Freight audit and payment

Which should you pick?

Choose Loadsmart if

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

Choose Shipwell if

  • You need rate shopping.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, API.
  • You also want automated tendering.
Shipwell review

Questions people ask

Is Loadsmart or Shipwell better?
Neither clearly leads. Loadsmart starts at On request and Shipwell at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Loadsmart or Shipwell?
Loadsmart starts at On request and Shipwell at On request.
Does Loadsmart or Shipwell run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, API, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Loadsmart best used for?
Loadsmart is most often used for a mid market shipper with no tms that wants tendering, tracking and reporting without funding a licence and an integration project separately, a warehouse operator that needs to stop scheduling inbound appointments by phone and email across a fragmented carrier base, a shipper that wants instant committed truckload capacity on lanes where it does not hold contract rates, a distribution centre trying to measure and reduce driver dwell time with automated gate capture rather than clipboard logs. Of those, a mid market shipper with no tms that wants tendering, tracking and reporting without funding a licence and an integration project separately and a warehouse operator that needs to stop scheduling inbound appointments by phone and email across a fragmented carrier base are not what Shipwell is typically brought in for.
What can Loadsmart do that Shipwell cannot?
Loadsmart covers ShipperGuide TMS, Instant committed quotes, Opendock scheduling, NavTrac gate automation. Shipwell covers Rate shopping, Automated tendering, Real-time tracking, Freight audit and pay.

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.

Shipwell: How much does Shipwell cost?

It is not published. Contracts are annual and priced on freight volume; third-party listings suggest entry engagements around $1,000 a month, which should be treated as indicative only.

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.

Shipwell: Does Shipwell broker freight as well as sell software?

Yes. It operates its own carrier network alongside the TMS, which speeds up sourcing but means the platform provider also competes for your loads.

Loadsmart: Does it publish pricing?

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

Shipwell: Is it suitable for international freight?

It is built around North American truckload and LTL. International ocean and air handling is limited.

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.

Shipwell: Is there a free trial?

No. Deployment involves configuration and integration work, so evaluation happens through a demo and a scoped implementation.

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