West Virginia has 11,187 active motor carriers registered with FMCSA, the 38th most in the country. The largest share is based in Charleston. About 52% are single-truck operations (close to the national average), and 10% hold active for-hire authority (below the national 15%).
New carriers in West Virginia
168 new USDOT numbers in West Virginia were registered in the last 90 days, 1.5% of the state's active carriers (a lower 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 West Virginia's carrier records
| Signal (active carriers) | Carriers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Out-of-service order in effect | 70 | 0.63% |
| Revocation pending | 39 | 0.35% |
| For-hire authority, no liability insurance on file | 8 | 0.07% |
| Phone shared with other carriers | 204 | 1.82% |
| Email shared with other carriers | 171 | 1.53% |
| MCS-150 more than two years old | 6,011 | 53.7% |
West Virginia has 63 out-of-service orders in effect per 10,000 active carriers, close to the national average . These are signals to look into, not verdicts about any company.
Fleet sizes
| Power units | Carriers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 power unit | 5,816 | 52.0% |
| 2 to 5 | 3,856 | 34.5% |
| 6 to 20 | 905 | 8.1% |
| 21 or more | 219 | 2.0% |
| None reported | 391 | 3.5% |
Cities with the most carriers
| City | Active carriers |
|---|---|
| Charleston | 375 |
| Morgantown | 362 |
| Martinsburg | 317 |
| Princeton | 230 |
| Huntington | 227 |
| Buckhannon | 216 |
| Parkersburg | 162 |
| Beckley | 161 |
| Fairmont | 158 |
| Clarksburg | 140 |
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Frequently asked questions
How many trucking companies are in West Virginia?
As of 2026-11-09, FMCSA's census lists 11,187 active USDOT-registered motor carriers with a physical address in West Virginia, the 38th most of any state. 1,157 of them hold active for-hire operating authority (an MC number).
How many new trucking companies started in West Virginia recently?
168 USDOT numbers based in West Virginia were added in the last 90 days, including 45 in the last 30 days. That ranks 39th among states for new registrations.
How do I check a West Virginia 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.