District of Columbia has 857 active motor carriers registered with FMCSA, the 51st most in the country. The largest share is based in Washington. About 47% are single-truck operations (close to the national average), and 7% hold active for-hire authority (below the national 15%).
New carriers in District of Columbia
25 new USDOT numbers in District of Columbia were registered in the last 90 days, 2.9% of the state's active carriers (a higher rate than the national 1.8%). New authorities aren't a problem in themselves, since every carrier starts somewhere, but many freight-fraud schemes use authorities only weeks old, so brokers often apply extra checks to them.
Risk signals in District of Columbia's carrier records
| Signal (active carriers) | Carriers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Out-of-service order in effect | 17 | 1.98% |
| Revocation pending | 3 | 0.35% |
| For-hire authority, no liability insurance on file | 1 | 0.12% |
| Phone shared with other carriers | 33 | 3.85% |
| Email shared with other carriers | 26 | 3.03% |
| MCS-150 more than two years old | 398 | 46.4% |
District of Columbia has 198 out-of-service orders in effect per 10,000 active carriers, above the national rate of 64. These are signals to look into, not verdicts about any company.
Fleet sizes
| Power units | Carriers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 power unit | 406 | 47.4% |
| 2 to 5 | 225 | 26.3% |
| 6 to 20 | 54 | 6.3% |
| 21 or more | 40 | 4.7% |
| None reported | 132 | 15.4% |
Cities with the most carriers
| City | Active carriers |
|---|---|
| Washington | 828 |
| Washington Dc | 16 |
| Ne | 2 |
| Fraudulent Activity | 2 |
| Northwest | 1 |
| District Of Columbia | 1 |
| Ne Washington | 1 |
| Fraudulent Activity - Do | 1 |
| Washington, Dc | 1 |
| Wash | 1 |
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Frequently asked questions
How many trucking companies are in District of Columbia?
As of 2026-11-09, FMCSA's census lists 857 active USDOT-registered motor carriers with a physical address in District of Columbia, the 51st most of any state. 61 of them hold active for-hire operating authority (an MC number).
How many new trucking companies started in District of Columbia recently?
25 USDOT numbers based in District of Columbia were added in the last 90 days, including 12 in the last 30 days. That ranks 51st among states for new registrations.
How do I check a District of Columbia carrier before booking a load?
Confirm the USDOT number is active, the operating authority is active with liability insurance on file, there is no out-of-service order or pending revocation, and the phone number on FMCSA's record matches the person you're dealing with. You can run all of these checks at once with the free CarrierTell lookup.