What does a courier service cost per km?

Currently €1.55 per kilometre for the compact van and €1.80 for the van on a regional route, €1.68 for the van on the long-distance route – each including the driver and the base price spread over the distance. Within a city the kilometre price is higher and the entry price (€21.72 for the compact van) is the more useful figure.

What does shipping by courier cost?

A courier run within the city starts from €22 in the compact van; a van for pallets or furniture starts at €30.46. Unlike parcel pricing there is no weight class and no bulky surcharge – the price depends on distance, vehicle and extras and is shown in full before you book.

What does 1 km with a van cost?

€1.80 on the regional route and €1.68 on the long-distance route, as of 24 September 2026. The figure already contains the driver; toll only applies above 3.5 t.

How much does 1 km with a truck cost?

The 3.5 t box van, the largest class bookable online, costs €2.80 per kilometre regionally and €2.30 on long distance. Trucks from 7.5 t are priced per request because toll, driving-time rules and loading equipment change the calculation.

Is there a minimum price?

Yes – the entry price of the vehicle class covers approach and loading even on a two-kilometre run. Within a city that is currently from €22 for the compact van; the list above shows the entry price for every city we serve.

Which surcharges can apply?

Only the ones you book: carrying help, two-person handling, tail lift, waiting time beyond the free window and fixed delivery slots. There is no fuel, weight or bulky surcharge, and nothing is added after the drive.

What does a courier cost in Cologne?

A courier run within Cologne currently starts from €26. The Cologne page lists example routes with current prices, pickup times and the vehicle classes available in the city.

Courier prices: what a courier really costs

No industry averages: these are the current entry prices from the Maxmove rate card – per vehicle class, per distance, per city. A courier run within the city starts from €22; the binding price for your route comes from the calculator.

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Courier prices at a glance

Entry prices for a direct drive with driver, calculated on 24 September 2026 for real routes from Cologne: within the city, to the neighbouring city, regional and long distance. Extras such as carrying help or a fixed time window come on top; the last column shows what a kilometre costs on the regional route.

Courier prices at a glance
Vehicle class	In town	Neighbouring city	Regional	Long distance	€ per km (regional)
Compact van	from €21.72	from €73.38	from €146.89	from €272.77	€1.55
Transporter	from €30.46	from €83.71	from €171.35	from €321.44	€1.80
Sprinter L2	from €37.27	from €104.15	from €211.59	from €395.57	€2.23
Box truck	from €99.89	from €164.10	from €265.88	from €440.18	€2.80

As of 24 September 2026, rate card version 3 / 5. Entry prices for a direct drive with driver, without extras; the binding price for your route is shown before booking.

What does a courier cost per kilometre?

On the regional route a van currently costs €1.80 per kilometre, the compact van €1.55; on the long-distance route the van drops to €1.68. Short city runs are more expensive per kilometre because the base price for approach and loading weighs more – which is why a kilometre price on its own says little and the entry price per route is the better comparison.

For the 3.5 t box van – the largest class the platform books – the regional route works out at €2.80 per kilometre and the long-distance route at €2.30. Trucks above 3.5 t add the German toll and are quoted as special runs.

Courier prices by city

The entry price for a courier run within each of the 30 cities we serve in NRW, from the same price snapshot the city pages use. Click through for routes, vehicles and pickup times in your city.

NRW transport price index: median cost per kilometre

Every quarter Maxmove publishes the price index for 2026-Q3: the median kilometre price per vehicle class across 35 routes in NRW, as open data. It shows how courier prices move over time – the table above shows what they are today.

NRW transport price index: median cost per kilometre
Vehicle class	Within the city	Regional	Long distance
Compact van	€4.39 / km	€1.30 / km	€1.06 / km
Transporter	€6.14 / km	€1.55 / km	€1.19 / km
Sprinter L2	€7.37 / km	€1.76 / km	€1.31 / km
Box truck	€21 / km	€3.55 / km	€2.14 / km

Median per band and class, 2026-Q3, CC BY 4.0. Read the full price index

What moves the price

Distance and approach

The largest block: kilometres between pickup and delivery plus the driver's approach. That is why two short runs cost more than one long one.

Vehicle class

A car for documents and small parcels, the compact van for anything up to about 1.8 m, the van for pallets and furniture, the 3.5 t box van for long goods. Pick the smallest class that fits.

Time window

Pickup as soon as possible is the standard. A fixed delivery slot, evening or weekend runs are priced as options because they bind a vehicle to the clock.

Extras

Carrying help, two-person handling, waiting time at the ramp or a tail lift are booked explicitly and shown in the price before you confirm – never added afterwards.

Frequently asked questions about courier prices

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