Other ways to use FMCSA Carrier Safety

Same data, different audiences.

Chat & MCP

Use the same data from Claude, Cursor or ChatGPT. AI agents can call every tool the app uses.

Open Chat & MCP
REST API

Call every tool from your own backend. OpenAPI spec + cURL examples.

Open API docs

Where the data comes from

FMCSA Company Census
US Department of Transportation — Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Complete motor carrier census including company name, address, fleet size, cargo types, operating authority, and MCS-150 data for all registered carriers.

~4.4M carriers (~2.2M active)
Source updated: Monthly
We refresh: Weekly
CSV (1.6 GB)
US — all FMCSA-registered motor carriers
FMCSA QCMobile Safety API
US Department of Transportation — Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Real-time carrier safety data including crash counts, inspection results, out-of-service rates vs national averages, safety ratings, and BASIC percentile scores for passenger carriers.

Live query per DOT number
Source updated: Real-time
We refresh: On-demand (per carrier lookup)
JSON API
US — all FMCSA-registered motor carriers
FMCSA data is provided for informational purposes only. Safety ratings and inspection data should not be the sole basis for carrier selection decisions. BASIC percentile scores are publicly available for passenger carriers only (property carrier scores removed by FAST Act of 2015).

Live snapshot

Records
4,305,502 carriers
Refresh cadence
Daily
Last refreshed
3d ago

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does the carrier data come from?

Two FMCSA sources: the bulk Company Census (~4.4M carriers, refreshed weekly) and the live QCMobile Safety API (real-time crash counts, inspection results, OOS rates, and BASIC scores). Both are public US Government data with no auth.

How do I uniquely identify a carrier?

Use the USDOT number — it is the canonical FMCSA carrier ID and the right key for any 'this exact carrier' lookup. MC, MX, and FF numbers are operating-authority IDs (one carrier can have several); EIN and DUNS are recorded but not indexed for search.

Why are BASIC scores missing for some carriers?

Public BASIC percentile scores are available for passenger carriers only — the FAST Act of 2015 removed property-carrier scores from public display. Crash counts, inspection results, and OOS rates remain available for every carrier.

Is it safe to use this for broker-carrier onboarding?

Yes for triage, screening, and carrier discovery. For final onboarding decisions, confirm operating authority and insurance directly via FMCSA's official systems — this dataset is for fast lookup and analysis, not the system of record.

Use it from Claude, Cursor or ChatGPT

Same dataset, exposed as a Model Context Protocol server. Drop the URL into Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, Cline, Windsurf, or any other MCP client.

https://mcp.mcpbundles.com/bundle/fmcsa-carrier

One-click install:

The link prefills the Add custom connector dialog — you still review the values and click Add, then Connect to complete OAuth.

Or add manually

  1. Open claude.ai → Settings → Connectors.
  2. Click the + button and choose Add custom connector.
  3. Set Name to FMCSA Motor Carriers and paste the MCP URL into Remote MCP server URL.
  4. Click Add. FMCSA Motor Carriers will appear under Not connected — select it and click Connect to complete OAuth.
Name: FMCSA Motor Carriers
Remote MCP server URL: https://mcp.mcpbundles.com/bundle/fmcsa-carrier
Authentication: OAuth

Custom connectors at claude.ai require a paid Claude plan (Pro, Max, Team, or Enterprise).

Search 4.3M carriers now

No API key or third-party login required. Chat with AI and run live queries instantly.

FMCSA Motor Carriers — 4.3M+ carriers, daily | MCPBundles