Trucking Companies in California

There are 495,664 motor carriers, brokers, and freight forwarders registered in California according to FMCSA records. This includes both active and inactive entities, large national fleets headquartered in California, and small owner-operators with a single truck.

You can search for any carrier on USDOTwatch by DOT number, MC number, or company name. Each carrier profile shows operating authority status, safety ratings, inspection history, crash records, BASIC safety scores, fleet size, and recent changes to their FMCSA record.

A USDOT number is a unique identifier assigned by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to every commercial motor vehicle operator engaged in interstate commerce. It is used to track safety information including inspections, crash history, compliance reviews, and out-of-service orders. Most carriers in California also need a USDOT number for intrastate operations involving hazardous materials or vehicles over a certain weight.

Operating status indicates whether a carrier is currently authorized to do business by FMCSA. "Active" means the carrier has a current USDOT registration and has filed their required biennial MCS-150 update. "Inactive" means the registration has lapsed. Brokers and shippers should always confirm a carrier is active before tendering a load.

Carrier data is sourced directly from FMCSA and refreshed daily. Inspection and crash records are typically published within 30 days of the underlying event. Safety ratings and BASIC scores update on FMCSA's monthly cycle. Fleet size and other census fields are self-reported by carriers and updated when they file their biennial MCS-150 update.

Operating authority can lapse, insurance can drop, and safety ratings can change between bookings. Brokers and shippers who tender loads to the same carriers regularly use monitoring alerts to learn about these changes the moment they happen, instead of finding out after a problem on the road.

A motor carrier physically moves freight using their own equipment and drivers. A broker arranges transportation but does not move the freight themselves; they connect shippers with carriers. A freight forwarder consolidates shipments and may take possession of the goods. All three are registered with FMCSA and visible in this state's carrier database.