This calculator answers the question every operator asks before a demo: what would I actually save? The defaults are conservative — typical AlwaysTracked customers see better than these numbers in their first year. Adjust the inputs to match your fleet and the math updates live.
How the math works
Three line items make up the savings:
- Hardware + service delta vs. GPS. Cellular GPS trackers run roughly $150–$300 per unit plus $10–$25/month per device. Tags run $25–$30 plus a per-asset software fee that's typically less than half the GPS monthly. Multiply by your fleet size and your time horizon.
- Recovered labor. Most fleet ops we onboard report 4–10 hours a week of manual tracking work — yard counts, locating gear, customer "where is it" calls, spreadsheet maintenance. The default assumes 80% reduction, which is conservative. Many customers see closer to 95%.
- Avoided losses. Every operator we work with has a number for "assets lost or stolen per year" and "average replacement value." Tracking won't eliminate loss entirely, but recovery rates with active tracking + theft mode run 70–90% within 24 hours. We model 85% as a conservative middle.
Why the defaults look the way they do
We set defaults at 100 assets, 3 years, $200 GPS hardware, $18/month GPS, 6 hours/week manual tracking, $28/hour loaded labor, 3 losses per year at $2,500 average. Those are median numbers across our customer base in equipment rental, construction, and landscaping. Your numbers will be different. Adjust away.
What this calculator doesn't include
Real ROI is usually higher than what shows up here, because we left some hard-to-quantify wins out:
- Damage dispute wins. Customers can't argue with location playback.
- Insurance discounts. Many carriers discount equipment policies 5–15% for tracked fleets.
- Reduced overdue rates. Live links and automated reminders cut late returns 60–80%.
- Bigger contracts won. Operators with documented asset reporting win contracts that demand it.
- Cheaper insurance claims. A documented chain of custody usually means full recovery instead of partial.
We don't try to model these because they vary too much by operator. But they're real, and they're usually the biggest wins by year two.
The honest caveat
Calculators always look optimistic on paper. Two things keep this one grounded:
- The hardware/service math is hard cost. Real prices, real fleet size, real time horizon. That number you can take to the bank.
- The labor and loss numbers are your inputs. If you put in 0 hours and 0 losses, the savings drop. The calculator doesn't lie to you about your own situation.
If you want to walk through your specific fleet on a call, that's exactly what we do on the demo — book a 30-minute live walkthrough.