Courier Business KPIs and Metrics That Actually Matter

You can't optimize what you don't measure. Most courier owners track revenue and not much else. Here are the eight KPIs that actually move margins.

1. Revenue per Run

The starting point. Trending up means smarter job selection; trending down means you're chasing volume.

Strip out fuel to get the real number. Anything under $1.50/mi on cargo van work is a problem.

Empty miles divided by total miles. Under 15% is excellent; over 30% means routing or backhaul strategy needs work.

Per client, per route, per driver. Hospital contracts often require 98%+. Below that, you're at renewal risk.

Percentage of drivers with all certifications current. Should be 100%. Anything less is contract risk.

Active hours divided by available hours. Sustainably high utilization (70%+) is a sign you can add a driver.

Fully loaded — fuel, driver pay, vehicle depreciation, insurance allocation. Margin = revenue per run minus cost per run.

Monthly logo retention. New courier businesses focus on acquisition; mature ones win on retention.

Pull these from your dispatch software, not a spreadsheet. Rav3n's analytics surface all eight by default — per driver, per client, per route.