Freight dispatcher vs freight forwarder

The differences between freight dispatchers and freight forwarders can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a freight dispatcher has an average salary of $42,749, which is higher than the $38,215 average annual salary of a freight forwarder.

The top three skills for a freight dispatcher include DOT, shippers and OTR. The most important skills for a freight forwarder are supply chain, customer service, and booking.

Freight dispatcher vs freight forwarder overview

	Freight Dispatcher	Freight Forwarder
Yearly salary	$42,749	$38,215
Hourly rate	$20.55	$18.37
Growth rate	-	-3%
Number of jobs	10,441	6,961
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	-

Freight dispatcher vs freight forwarder salary

Freight dispatchers and freight forwarders have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Freight Dispatcher	Freight Forwarder
Average salary	$42,749	$38,215
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $73,000	Between $27,000 And $54,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between freight dispatcher and freight forwarder education

There are a few differences between a freight dispatcher and a freight forwarder in terms of educational background:

	Freight Dispatcher	Freight Forwarder
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Freight dispatcher vs freight forwarder demographics

Here are the differences between freight dispatchers' and freight forwarders' demographics:

	Freight Dispatcher	Freight Forwarder
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 64.9% Female, 35.1%	Male, 55.1% Female, 44.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 3.8% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 7.0% Hispanic or Latino, 23.6% Asian, 18.0% White, 44.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	7%	11%

Differences between freight dispatcher and freight forwarder duties and responsibilities

Freight dispatcher example responsibilities.

Manage customer service satisfaction by providing update eta and location of drivers.
Dispatch drivers from the CSX to other locations within Tennessee.
Call carriers on a daily basis to update moves in Pegasus.
Perform daily dispatching import and export container trucks, customer service, data input accuracy and maintain office operation.
Ensure proper documentation and quality containers utilize for export container drays.
Discuss cable television equipment operation with customers over telephone to explain equipment usage and to troubleshoot equipment problems.

Freight forwarder example responsibilities.

Maintain relationships with customs brokers and freight forwarders and assist in reviewing such service providers.
Book material RO/RO, LCL, and FCL loads on ocean line carrier for international delivery.
Maintain TSA clearance in order to ship freight on passenger airlines.
Use LogiSuite to create airway bills & TSA documents for cargo exports.
Communicate with U.S. Customs and FDA officials when necessary to expedite the exam process.
Negotiate rates and contracts with air freight agents as well as LTL and FTL base carriers

Freight dispatcher vs freight forwarder skills

Common freight dispatcher skills

DOT, 35%
Shippers, 22%
OTR, 13%
Load Boards, 10%
Owner Operators, 10%
LTL, 9%

Common freight forwarder skills

Supply Chain, 23%
Customer Service, 18%
Booking, 14%
Import Export, 8%
Delivery Orders, 6%
AES, 6%