Freight Sidekick

Estimate the density-based LTL freight class (NMFC) for ONE piece of freight from its total packaged weight in pounds and its outer length, width and height in inches. Use it when a user asks what class their freight is. You do not need it before get_freight_quote: that tool derives the class from the dimensions itself. An estimate, not a carrier ruling: commodity-specific NMFC items can override density.

estimate_freight_class

Get a freight quote from Freight Sidekick for one shipment: LTL, partial truckload or full truckload. We serve the US and Canada. LTL is priced from live carrier rates (allow up to a minute), partial and truckload from our automated rate engine; a shipment that cannot be priced automatically is saved for our team to price. The mode is chosen from the freight, so it is not an input. BEFORE calling, collect: origin and destination (5-digit US ZIP or Canadian postal code, or city + 2-letter state or province); whether each end is a business or a residence, and whether it needs a liftgate, inside service, or is a limited-access site (school, military base, storage unit, construction site and so on); and for each item the weight of ONE handling unit in pounds, the quantity, and the dimensions of ONE unit in inches. Dimensions are REQUIRED for LTL and partial shipments (anything up to 30,000 lb in total): without them the tool returns a question for the user instead of a rate, and nothing is saved. A rough tape-measure size is enough. A full truckload does not need dimensions. Set temperature_control on refrigerated or frozen items. Set hazmat: true when the user says an item is hazardous material. Don't ask every user, but if the commodity suggests it (paint, solvents, aerosols, lithium batteries, fuel, chemicals), ask once. If hazmat is true, ask for hazmat_class (the DOT hazard class 1 to 9, not the NMFC freight class); it's fine if the user doesn't know it, so leave it empty and carry on with the quote. Hazmat changes the LTL price and we ship it, except explosives (all of Class 1, fireworks included), radioactive materials (Class 7) and poison-inhalation hazards (Division 2.3, or anything the user calls an inhalation hazard, PIH or TIH), which we don't ship on any load type. Set trailer_type only when the user needs specific equipment (flatbed, step deck, reefer and so on); it selects equipment and does not force a full truckload. Reading the result: `quotes` is up to five LTL carriers, cheapest first. `rate` is a partial or truckload price. needs_more_info: true is NOT a failure: `message` holds the question the user needs to answer before the tool is called again. requires_manual_review: true means our team prices it by hand; `message` explains that for the customer and the link lets them continue. service_notice, when present, is customer-facing text meant to be shown as written. code HAZMAT_NOT_ACCEPTED means a hazmat class we don't ship: nothing was priced, show `message`, and don't call again for that freight with the class removed. booking_url is the customer's link to this saved quote: it is unique to the quote and cannot be constructed, so pass it on exactly as returned. reference_number is the quote number the customer can cite. Rates are quotes, not bookings: the customer saves and books on freightsidekick.com, and pickup times and delivery dates are confirmed at booking, not by this tool. Not for small parcels.

get_freight_quote

List Freight Sidekick knowledge-base entries carrying a tag (up to 20), when a search result shows a tag worth following.

kb_by_tag

List the titles and excerpts of Freight Sidekick's public knowledge-base entries, to discover what topics exist before searching or reading one.

kb_list

Turn loose boxes or cartons into a palletized shipment plan, when the user has NOT already given a finished pallet count. Returns how many pallets, the gross weight and outer dimensions of each, total linear feet, a density-based freight class, and warnings. The `quote_items` it returns can be passed straight into get_freight_quote as `items`. It computes the pallet count from the box sizes, so no estimate is needed.

plan_pallets

Read one Freight Sidekick knowledge-base entry in full, by the id or slug that kb_search, kb_by_tag or kb_list returned.

kb_by_id

Search Freight Sidekick's published knowledge base: services and coverage, how LTL / partial / truckload shipping works with us, accessorial and service fees, policies, claims, cargo coverage, payment, and how booking works. This is the authoritative source for facts about Freight Sidekick (what we ship, where, what something costs, what a policy is); those details change, so an answer taken from here is more reliable than general knowledge. Returns up to 5 best matches; read the full entry with kb_by_id.

kb_search

Look up US states' LEGAL truck size and weight limits (max width, height, lengths, overhang, gross and axle weights) from Freight Sidekick's state DOT data. It answers questions about a state's legal limits or whether a load is over-dimensional there, with the figures for each state. For a route, pass every state it crosses, not just the endpoints. Legal limits only: exceeding one means the load needs permits; permit maximums, escorts and bridge clearances are NOT included. Each result has a page_url for that state's full public table.

get_state_dot_limits