Traditional auto transport brokers like Montway, RoadRunner, Mercury, and SGT quote a price and then assign you a single carrier from their own network – you don't see or compare competing offers yourself. Compare The Carrier works differently: multiple transport providers compete to offer their best price for your shipment, and you choose among several live quotes instead of committing to one broker's fixed assignment upfront.
A traditional broker takes your shipment details, gives you a price, and finds a carrier on your behalf after you book. It's straightforward, but one company controls both the price and carrier assignment. If the price proves unrealistic or the carrier falls through, you're negotiating with the same broker rather than comparing alternatives.
Compare The Carrier flips that structure: multiple transport providers compete for the shipment up front, and you can see and compare their offers before choosing one. This gives you more visibility into pricing and flexibility to choose an offer that fits, rather than relying on whichever carrier a single broker assigns.
Montway is one of the largest direct auto transport brokers in the US, handling roughly 250,000 shipments a year with an A+ BBB rating and a carrier network made up of FMCSA-authorized companies. Once you book, Montway assigns a single carrier from its network.
Montway's TruePrice Guarantee locks the booked price for 30 days once an order is confirmed, covering operable, factory-standard vehicles – a direct response to the industry-wide complaint that broker quotes can shift before pickup. The guarantee applies to the booked price, not the initial quote, which is still an estimate until confirmed.
Best for: shoppers who want one large, established broker with a documented price-lock guarantee after booking.
RoadRunner is a licensed and bonded auto transport broker with decades in the industry, shipping to all 50 states plus Puerto Rico and the Caribbean with no upfront deposit required. Once booked, RoadRunner sources a carrier from its network on your behalf, and the company advertises transparent, quote-based pricing with FMCSA-authorized carriers.
As with any single-broker model, the trade-off is that you're relying on one company's network and one assigned carrier rather than comparing live offers from multiple providers yourself.
Best for: shoppers who prefer one broker with a long track record and a broad national carrier network.
Founded in Florida in 2007, is a licensed broker that sends your shipment request to multiple carriers in its network and helps negotiate pricing on your behalf, without requiring an upfront deposit. The broker's fee – typically $200 to $300 – is charged once a carrier is assigned, and the company publishes an A+ BBB rating.
Because Mercury still negotiates and assigns the carrier for you rather than showing you competing offers directly, some customers report the final price shifting from the original estimate once a carrier is confirmed – a pattern common to broker-assigned pricing generally, where the customer isn't comparing live bids themselves.
Best for: shoppers who want a broker with transparent fee breakdowns and a large carrier network to draw from.
Compare The Carrier connects customers with multiple transport providers who compete to offer their best price, rather than a single broker quoting a price and assigning a carrier from its own network. Shoppers can compare live offers before committing, with room to negotiate rather than accepting one company's assignment as final.
Getting a price estimate doesn't require an email or phone number – contact details are shared only when you're ready to move forward with a specific provider, limiting the flood of calls that often follows a quote request elsewhere. There's no upfront deposit or platform fee at checkout.
Every provider in Compare The Carrier's results is screened against FMCSA records for operating authority, insurance, and safety information before being shown to customers. Coverage spans all 50 states, including Alaska and Hawaii, plus military and PCS relocations.
The trade-off is scope: Compare The Carrier focuses on vehicle transport, so shoppers moving furniture or household goods alongside a vehicle need a separate service.
Best for: shoppers who'd rather compare multiple live offers and negotiate than commit to a single broker's carrier assignment upfront.
SGT Auto Transport is a licensed broker offering open and enclosed vehicle transport, with quotes that are valid for seven days and a price-match option if a customer finds a lower rate elsewhere. As with other single-broker services, SGT assigns a carrier from its own network after booking rather than presenting multiple live offers for the customer to compare – and some customer reviews describe cancellation fees and price changes as a source of frustration during that process.
What's the difference between a broker and a comparison platform like Compare The Carrier?
A broker quotes a price and then assigns a single carrier from its own network once you book. Compare The Carrier shows multiple providers competing for your shipment up front, so you can compare offers before choosing one.
Do auto transport brokers charge a deposit?
It varies. Montway, RoadRunner, and SGT don't require an upfront deposit; Mercury charges its broker fee once a carrier is assigned rather than at booking. Always confirm a broker's specific fee and cancellation terms before booking.
Does Montway guarantee its car shipping price?
Yes, through its TruePrice Guarantee: once an order is booked and verified, the price is locked for 30 days, covering operable, factory-standard vehicles.
Is Compare The Carrier a broker?
No. Compare The Carrier positions itself as a comparison platform that connects shoppers with multiple independent providers rather than acting as a broker or fleet owner itself.
