Key facts
- Founded 2015 · headquartered in Seattle, WA
- Primary freight modes: Dry Van, Reefer, Flatbed
About Convoy (legacy brand)
Convoy was a Seattle-based digital freight broker founded in 2015 that became one of the most prominent and well-funded companies in the so-called 'Freight Tech' wave of the mid-to-late 2010s. Backed by more than $900 million in venture capital — with investors including Amazon, T. Rowe Price, and Baillie Gifford — Convoy built an automated freight matching platform designed to reduce the empty miles and pricing inefficiency that characterized traditional truck brokerage. At its peak, Convoy was moving hundreds of thousands of truckloads annually through its app-based platform and was widely considered one of the best-positioned digital challengers to incumbents like C.H. Robinson and Echo Global. Shippers valued Convoy for its transparent pricing, real-time tracking, and digital-first experience — particularly for dry van loads where standardization made automation most effective.
In October 2023, Convoy abruptly announced it was shutting down. The company cited a difficult macroeconomic environment — specifically the prolonged freight market downturn that began in mid-2022 after pandemic-era demand collapsed — combined with the difficulty of scaling a technology-intensive brokerage model in a low-margin market. In the months before the shutdown, freight rates had fallen sharply and shipper volumes had contracted, compressing the economics of the broker model at precisely the moment Convoy needed to demonstrate a path to profitability to continue raising capital. The closure displaced hundreds of employees and left shippers in need of immediate alternative brokerage arrangements. Flexport, the digital freight forwarder and broker, subsequently acquired certain Convoy technology assets, though Flexport did not assume Convoy's existing shipper contracts or reconstitute Convoy as an operating entity.
This page exists as a reference for shippers who previously used Convoy and are searching for information about what happened and what to do next. Convoy is no longer accepting freight, and its brokerage authority is no longer active. Shippers who were using Convoy for dry van, reefer, or flatbed loads should evaluate alternatives among the digital freight brokers that remain operational — including Flexport (which acquired Convoy assets), Uber Freight, Transfix, and traditional brokers like C.H. Robinson, Echo Global, and Coyote Logistics. The freight market challenges that contributed to Convoy's closure have eased since 2023, and shipper options for technology-forward brokerage remain strong.
Listing assembled from public records (FMCSA Li-Public, Transport Topics, company website). Are you Convoy (legacy brand)? Claim this profile →
Load Types Transport Topics Top 100
FMCSA & Licensing FMCSA Li-Public
Coverage
Convoy previously offered national US truckload coverage. All brokerage operations ceased in October 2023.
Strongest Lanes
Pros & Cons
- Convoy pioneered transparent digital pricing and automated matching that set a new standard for shipper expectations in freight brokerage
- The platform's real-time tracking and digital load management reduced the manual coordination burden that traditional brokerage required
- Instant quoting on dry van lanes gave shippers price certainty that traditional brokers often could not offer without extended negotiation
- Convoy's carrier-facing app improved carrier earnings by reducing empty miles — a model that aligned carrier and shipper incentives
- The company's data-driven approach to lane pricing provided shippers with market rate transparency uncommon in the brokerage industry
- Convoy ceased all operations in October 2023 and can no longer move freight — this is the definitive limitation
- The company's shutdown demonstrated the fragility of high-growth, venture-backed freight tech models in cyclical freight markets
- Shippers who had built procurement processes around Convoy's platform were left without a replacement at a difficult point in the freight market
- The business never demonstrated sustained profitability, raising questions about whether the digital broker model at Convoy's scale was economically viable at prevailing market rates
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FAQ
Is Convoy still in business? Can I use Convoy to ship freight?
No. Convoy shut down in October 2023 and is no longer operating as a freight broker. The company announced its closure citing a difficult freight market environment and the challenges of sustaining a high-cost technology model during a prolonged industry downturn. Convoy's FMCSA broker authority is no longer active, and the company does not have operational staff, carrier relationships, or a functioning platform. Shippers searching for a Convoy alternative should consider Flexport (which acquired certain Convoy technology assets), Uber Freight, Transfix, C.H. Robinson, or Echo Global for digital-forward freight brokerage.
What types of freight did Convoy move?
During its operation from 2015 to 2023, Convoy moved dry van truckload, refrigerated (reefer), and flatbed freight across the continental United States. Dry van was its core volume mode, where automated matching and standardized trailer types made the platform most effective. Convoy did not offer LTL, intermodal, or heavy haul brokerage. The company was best known for its dry van spot market and contract quoting capabilities.
What were Convoy's rates like compared to other freight brokers?
Convoy was generally regarded as offering competitive, market-aligned pricing on dry van lanes, with the advantage of transparent instant quotes rather than the negotiated pricing common at traditional brokers. The platform's automated matching model aimed to reduce broker margin by improving the efficiency of carrier-load pairing. In practice, Convoy's rates varied by market conditions like any broker's. Following the company's closure, former Convoy shippers should expect similar pricing transparency from digital-native alternatives like Uber Freight and Transfix, and competitive rates from contract negotiations with national brokers.