ld Dominion Earns Top National LTL Quality Ranking for 17th Consecutive Year
Old Dominion Freight Line, , a leading provider of less-than-truckload (LTL) freight transportation services, has once again been recognized by shippers and logistics professionals as the #1 National LTL Carrier for Quality. The recognition comes from Mastio & Company’s 2026 Customer Preference and Carrier Performance Study and marks the 17th consecutive year that Old Dominion has earned the top position in the company’s national LTL quality rankings.
The latest recognition highlights Old Dominion’s continued focus on customer service, reliability, operational performance, and the overall shipping experience. For nearly two decades, the company has consistently maintained its position at the top of Mastio’s quality rankings, reinforcing its reputation among the shippers and logistics professionals who depend on LTL carriers to move freight across the country.
Shippers Rank Old Dominion First in 24 Categories
According to the 2026 Mastio study, Old Dominion was selected as the leading national LTL carrier across 24 evaluated categories. The categories covered a broad range of factors that influence the relationship between shippers and freight carriers.Among the areas in which OD received top recognition were carrier trustworthiness, ease of doing business, timely customer service, and shipments delivered when promised.
These factors are particularly important for businesses that rely on predictable freight transportation to maintain their supply chains. LTL transportation often involves shipments moving between multiple locations and customers, making reliability and communication critical components of the overall logistics process.By receiving the highest ranking across such a wide range of performance measures, Old Dominion demonstrated that its customer experience extends beyond simply transporting freight from one location to another.The company’s latest recognition also reflects the importance of service consistency in an increasingly demanding freight transportation environment. Shippers are looking for carriers that can provide dependable delivery performance while also making the process of arranging, tracking, and managing freight as straightforward as possible.
Independent Industry Survey Measures Carrier Performance
Mastio & Company conducts an annual independent survey designed to assess the performance, quality, and value of national LTL carriers. The study gathers feedback from logistics professionals and shippers who have direct experience working with transportation providers.For the 2026 study, Mastio surveyed 1,647 logistics professionals. The large respondent base provides insight into shipper expectations and perceptions of carrier performance across the national LTL market.
Rather than relying solely on internal carrier assessments, the study gives considerable importance to feedback from the transportation professionals who use LTL services as part of their day-to-day operations.This makes the recognition particularly significant for Old Dominion because the company’s ranking is based on the views of the customers and logistics professionals who interact with carriers and depend on them to move freight efficiently.The study evaluates carriers across multiple attributes associated with service quality and customer satisfaction. Old Dominion’s first-place position across 24 categories demonstrates the breadth of its performance according to the survey respondents.
17 Consecutive Years at the Top
Old Dominion’s latest recognition continues a long-running record of industry performance. The company has been ranked #1 in Mastio’s Quality rankings every year since 2010.The 17 consecutive years of recognition represent a sustained achievement rather than a single-year performance. Maintaining the top position over such an extended period requires consistency in operations, customer service, delivery execution, and relationships with shippers.
For Old Dominion, the recognition provides an external measure of how customers perceive the company’s approach to transportation and logistics services.The company said the recognition is especially meaningful because the ranking is determined by shippers. Customers are not only evaluating whether freight reaches its destination but also considering the broader experience they receive from their transportation provider.That experience includes interactions with customer service teams, ease of conducting business, reliability of scheduled deliveries, and confidence that freight will be handled according to expectations.
Customer Relationships at the Center of OD’s Strategy
Marty Freeman, President and CEO of Old Dominion Freight Line, said the award is especially important because it comes directly from the company’s customers.According to Freeman, shippers expect Old Dominion to do more than simply transport freight. The company aims to operate as an extension of its customers’ businesses and develop relationships that go beyond individual shipments.This approach reflects the increasingly important role transportation providers play within modern supply chains. A carrier’s performance can affect inventory availability, production schedules, customer deliveries, and overall supply chain efficiency.
When freight is delivered as promised and customer issues are handled quickly, shippers can operate with greater confidence. Conversely, delays or service problems can create additional costs and operational challenges.Old Dominion’s recognition in areas such as trustworthiness, customer service, and on-time delivery indicates that these elements remain central to the company’s relationship with its customers.
Recognition Comes Directly From Shippers
Kevin Huntsman, President of Mastio & Company, also highlighted the significance of Old Dominion’s performance in the 2026 study.Huntsman said Mastio was pleased to recognize Old Dominion as the #1 National LTL Carrier for Quality based on the results of the 2026 Customer Preference and Carrier Performance Study.He emphasized that maintaining a high level of performance is particularly notable because the evaluation is based on feedback from the people who depend on LTL carriers to support their businesses.
The perspective of shippers is important because LTL carriers operate within complex commercial supply chains. Customers often evaluate carriers on multiple dimensions simultaneously, including service reliability, communication, accessibility, and the ability to meet delivery commitments.Old Dominion’s performance across 24 categories therefore provides a broad indication of customer satisfaction rather than recognition based on a single operational metric.
Reliable Delivery Remains a Key Priority
One of the areas highlighted in the study was the ability to deliver shipments when promised. For businesses managing freight, delivery reliability can have a direct impact on operations.Manufacturers, distributors, retailers, wholesalers, and other businesses often coordinate transportation with production schedules, warehouse capacity, customer orders, and inventory planning.A carrier that consistently meets delivery commitments can help shippers maintain more predictable logistics operations. This is particularly important for LTL freight, where shipments from different customers are consolidated and transported through a network.
Old Dominion’s recognition for shipments delivered when promised demonstrates the importance of dependable transportation performance to the customers surveyed by Mastio.The company’s recognition for timely customer service also highlights another major component of the shipper experience. Effective communication can help customers address shipment questions, resolve issues, and manage changing transportation requirements.
Building a Consistent Customer Experience
Old Dominion said the Mastio recognition reflects the efforts of its employees across the organization.Freeman described the award as an honor for the entire OD workforce and said the recognition influences how the company approaches its strategy.The company’s focus on customer service extends from strategic investments to its organizational culture. Old Dominion views these investments as part of a broader effort to provide customers with dependable service and support.
For an LTL carrier, customer experience is shaped by many individual interactions. From the initial shipment arrangement through pickup, transportation, tracking, delivery, and post-delivery service, each stage contributes to the customer’s perception of the carrier.Maintaining a strong customer experience therefore requires coordination across an extensive transportation network and a workforce responsible for handling freight and serving customers.
Long-Term Recognition Highlights Operational Consistency
The 17-year streak in Mastio’s Quality rankings gives Old Dominion a notable level of continuity in an industry where customer expectations and supply chain requirements continue to evolve.Since 2010, the company has repeatedly earned the top position in the Mastio quality rankings. The continued recognition suggests that the company has been able to maintain a consistent level of service while serving changing shipper needs.
The 2026 results further strengthen that record, with Old Dominion receiving the highest ranking across 24 categories evaluated in the survey.For shippers evaluating transportation providers, long-term performance can be an important consideration. Consistency can help businesses establish confidence in their carrier relationships and plan their logistics operations around predictable service.
Supporting Customers Beyond Freight Movement
Old Dominion’s latest recognition also reinforces its positioning as a business partner rather than simply a freight transportation provider.Freeman noted that customers rely on OD to become an extension of their brands. This perspective places greater emphasis on the complete customer relationship, including reliability, communication, accessibility, and service.
In today’s supply chain environment, transportation providers increasingly serve as an important connection between suppliers, distribution centers, businesses, and end customers. The ability to deliver freight reliably is therefore only one part of the overall value that carriers provide.The Mastio results show that shippers continue to place value on a combination of operational performance and customer experience.
Continued Focus on Service and Customer Expectations
The 2026 Mastio recognition provides Old Dominion with another measure of its performance from the perspective of the logistics professionals it serves.With 1,647 logistics professionals participating in the study and 24 categories identifying Old Dominion as the top national LTL carrier, the results highlight broad customer recognition of the company’s performance.The 17th consecutive #1 ranking also adds another year to Old Dominion’s long-standing record in the Mastio Quality rankings.
For Old Dominion, the recognition represents both an achievement and an indication of the expectations its customers have for future performance. The company says its strategy, investments, and culture remain centered on serving customers and meeting those expectations.As businesses continue to rely on dependable freight transportation to support their supply chains, the ability to combine reliable delivery with responsive customer service remains a critical differentiator among LTL carriers.
Old Dominion’s latest Mastio recognition demonstrates that, according to the shippers and logistics professionals surveyed, the company continues to stand out in these areas.The 2026 recognition extends Old Dominion Freight Line’s record to 17 consecutive years as the #1 National LTL Carrier for Quality, reinforcing the company’s long-term position among national LTL transportation providers and underscoring its continued focus on customer service, reliability, and operational performance.
About Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. is one of the largest North American LTL motor carriers and provides regional, inter-regional and national LTL services through a single integrated, union-free organization. Our service offerings, which include expedited transportation, are provided through an expansive network of service centers located throughout the continental United States. The Company also maintains strategic alliances with other carriers to provide LTL services throughout North America. In addition to its core LTL services, the Company offers a range of value-added services including container drayage, truckload brokerage, and supply chain consulting.
About Mastio & Company
MASTIO, celebrating 37 years in business, specializes in providing an independent third-party perspective for clients who want to truly assess their corporate image, discover their perceived level of customer value, find new customers, understand the strengths and weaknesses of the competition, and supplement their market intelligence. Our strength is in helping clients re-think established norms, eliminate internal biases, collect and analyze data, and transform market research into actions that achieve superior business results.