Reefer vs dry van: which trailer should you use?

Two trailers, two different jobs

Most of the truckload freight we quote out of Southern California travels in a dry van or a reefer. The choice is usually straightforward once you know whether the product can ride at the temperature of the air around it. Getting that choice right matters: the wrong trailer can spoil a shipment, and the right one should be the one we actually price.

A dry van is an enclosed 53-foot trailer with no refrigeration unit. It protects freight from weather, road debris, and theft, but the temperature inside follows the ambient conditions along the route. A reefer, short for refrigerated trailer, has an insulated body and a unit that holds a set temperature for the length of the trip. That set point can be cold, frozen, or a mild chill, depending on what the product and the receiver require.

Our Los Angeles team quotes both, inbound and outbound, across the 48 states. If you already know which equipment you need, start on our reefer freight or dry van freight pages. If you are still deciding, use this guide, then send the quote form at the top of this page, or choose “Not sure” if you want us to help you pick.

When a dry van is the right choice

Choose a dry van when the freight is stable at ambient temperature and does not have a required set point. That is the usual equipment for boxed or palletized consumer goods, packaging, retail replenishment, canned and dry grocery, paper, plastics, many building materials, and transloaded container freight. If heat or cold will not harm the product, and the receiver is not asking for a temperature, dry van is the standard and usually the simpler quote.

Dry van is also the default when you have a full, or nearly full, trailer of mixed dry goods and you want a dedicated unit rather than LTL. For a closer look at when a dedicated trailer is worth it, see our FTL vs LTL guide.

A few dry products still deserve a second look in hot or cold weather. Chocolate, some beverages, certain adhesives, and some lotions or chemicals can be damaged by heat or freezing even though they are not everyday “refrigerated goods.” If a receiver has rejected a dry shipment because it arrived too warm or too cold, tell us. We can quote a dry van with a seasonal note, or a reefer, depending on what the product needs.

When a reefer is the right choice

Choose a reefer when the product cannot get warm, freeze, or swing between the two. Fresh produce, frozen foods, dairy, many beverages, protein, floral, chocolate in warm months, and a wide range of ingredients all commonly travel this way. The same is true of any freight whose shipper or receiver has written a temperature into the pickup or delivery requirements. If a set point is on the bill of lading, it belongs on a reefer, not a dry van.

Los Angeles, the warehouses east of the ports, and the rest of California handle a large share of the country’s food freight, from cold storage in Vernon, Commerce, the City of Industry, and the Inland Empire to growers and packers bound for distribution centers across the country. Our food and beverage freight page covers produce, frozen, dairy, beverages, and dry grocery in more detail, including when those commodities stay on a dry van.

A reefer is a full truckload tool in the way we quote it: you are asking for a dedicated temperature-controlled trailer. If you only have a few pallets of chilled or frozen product, say so on the form. We can talk through LTL options and any temperature limits before we send a rate, rather than assuming you need a full reefer.

Temperature ranges, in plain terms

You do not have to be a cold-chain specialist to request a reefer quote, but you should send the set point if you have one. Common ranges shippers already use include:

• Fresh produce and many floral shipments: often a mid-30s °F set point, cold enough to protect the product without freezing it
• Chilled dairy, some beverages, and similar items: just above freezing, or the specific number the receiver prints on the appointment
• Frozen foods: commonly 0°F
• Deep-frozen products: a colder set point such as −10°F, when the shipper or receiver requires it

Those are typical starting points, not a substitute for the number your customer requires. If the shipper wants the trailer pre-cooled before loading, or if the unit should run continuously instead of cycling, add that in the notes. Those are ordinary requests on food freight, and they help us send a rate that matches how the load has to travel.

A dry van has no set point to declare. If you are shipping dry freight and you are only choosing a dry van, you can leave the temperature field blank. If you are asking us to compare a dry van and a reefer for the same commodity, tell us the concern — heat, freezing, or a receiver requirement — so we are pricing the same risk you are trying to avoid.

Typical commodities at a glance

No list covers every shipment, but these are the patterns we see most often from Southern California:

Usually dry van

Canned goods, dry grocery, snacks that are stable at ambient temperature, bottled beverages that the receiver will accept without a set point, packaging, paper, plastics, apparel, housewares, and general retail merchandise. Transloaded container freight that has already been palletized also commonly moves dry van, as long as the product itself does not need temperature control.

Usually reefer

Fresh fruits and vegetables, frozen berries, frozen bakery, protein, ice cream, dairy, juice and other beverages that have a required temperature, floral, and ingredients that a plant or distributor must receive within a stated range. Many of these also travel on the California to Texas and other outbound lanes from the state.

Ask us before you decide

Chocolate and confectionery, some wines and specialty beverages, produce that is being shipped very short distances, pharmaceuticals or personal care items with a stability range, and mixed pallets that combine dry and chilled product. The right trailer depends on the season, the transit time, and what the receiver will actually accept. Send the commodity in the form and we will tell you what we recommend before you book.

How the cost differs, without a made-up number

On the same lane, a reefer quote is often higher than a dry van quote. The trailer is more specialized, so the pool of available equipment is smaller. The refrigeration unit burns fuel for the entire trip, on top of the fuel the tractor uses, and there is more process to manage — pre-cool, set point, continuous run, and a higher cost if something goes wrong in transit.

That does not mean a reefer always costs more, or that there is a fixed premium you can apply to a dry van rate. During a busy produce week, reefer trailers can be scarce and the gap can widen. On a quieter stretch, or on a backhaul where a reefer is already heading your way, the gap can narrow. That is why we quote the equipment you need instead of publishing a comparison table.

The cost conversation should start with the product, not with the cheaper trailer. If the freight needs a set point, the relevant number is the reefer rate, not a dry van rate that would put the shipment at risk. If the freight is truly ambient, a dry van is usually the cleaner fit. When you want both numbers, tell us and we will quote both.

Other factors in what a truckload costs still apply to either trailer: miles, lane balance, season, fuel, and lead time.