Flatbed vs step-deck: which trailer does your load need?

In open-deck hauling, the trailer you choose is mostly a question of deck height. Every inch you drop the deck is an inch of load height you gain before the freight rides too tall to be legal. Here is how the two workhorses of open-deck freight compare, and when each one is the right call.

Flatbed: the everyday workhorse

A flatbed is a single flat deck about five feet off the ground, most commonly 48 feet long, rated to roughly 48,000 to 60,000 pounds. Ours are all 53 feet, which gives you five feet more deck than the industry standard. It loads from any side or from above by crane, tarps quickly, and handles the widest range of general freight: building materials, machinery, pipe, coils and palletized goods. If a load fits within legal height on a flatbed, it is almost always the simplest and cheapest option.

Step-deck: when the load is too tall for a flatbed

A step-deck (or drop-deck) has an upper deck over the tractor and a lower main deck behind it. That drop, which lowers the deck to around three and a half feet, buys you roughly 18 inches of extra clearance compared with a flatbed. For freight that is a little too tall to ride legally on a flatbed, a step-deck can be the difference between a routine move and a complicated one.

How to choose, quickly

• General freight within legal height? Flatbed.
• Freight roughly a foot or more too tall for a flatbed? Step-deck.
• Not sure how tall is too tall? Send the dimensions and the right deck is usually obvious in a minute.

Frequently asked questions