What Cargoboard does

Cargoboard GmbH & Co. KG is a German digital freight forwarding company headquartered in Paderborn, founded in 2019 as a joint project between the University of Paderborn and the CargoLine transport network. The company operates an online platform that enables B2B customers — commercial businesses, trading companies, and public authorities — to book, price, and track truck freight shipments across Europe without prior registration. Supported transport types span pallet shipping (up to 6 pallets / 3,000 kg), partial loads (7+ pallets), full truckloads (up to 24,000 kg), courier services, dangerous goods, and oversized cargo, with add-on options for fixed pickup/delivery dates, intermediate storage, and fastest transit times.

The platform is built on a self-service architecture featuring an instant pricing calculator, a four-step online booking workflow, real-time shipment tracking, and a REST automation API for enterprise integration. Customers access the CargoLine network of more than 80 freight forwarding partners across Germany and Europe through Cargoboard, which acts as the sole contractual counterparty for planning, service, invoicing, and optional transport insurance. Supporting services include customs clearance for cross-border shipments and a climate protection contribution option for carbon offsetting. The platform processes over 1,500 shipments per day.

Cargoboard generates revenue through transaction-based fees per shipment, with pricing calculated dynamically based on distance, transport type, weight, quantity, and optional premium services. Volume discounts are available to high-volume shippers exceeding 10 shipments per month. The go-to-market motion is product-led: SMBs self-serve through the website, while mid-market and enterprise customers integrate via API or engage a dedicated sales team. The company operates across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, and Poland, with the website available in seven languages and ranked #1 in multiple Trustpilot freight forwarding categories.

Name

Cargoboard

Legal name

Cargoboard GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://cargoboard.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Cargoboard is a German digital freight forwarding platform founded in 2019 that enables European B2B customers to instantly price, book, and track truck shipments online, drawing on the CargoLine network of 80+ freight forwarding partners across Germany and Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Paderborn

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Freight Transport Services: Transaction-based freight fees charged per shipment. Pricing varies based on distance between pickup and delivery locations, selected transport type (pallet shipping, LTL, FTL, courier), shipment quantity and weight, and optional premium services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Cargoboard operates a digital freight forwarding platform that lets businesses instantly calculate and book truck freight shipments (pallet/LTL up to 6 pallets, partial loads, full truck loads up to 24,000 kg, courier, hazardous goods) across Germany and Europe without registration. The platform aggregates the CargoLine network of 80+ forwarding partners and delivers pricing, booking, pickup, tracking, customs handling, transport insurance, and a climate-protection contribution through a unified self-serve interface plus a REST API for enterprise automation.

Product overview

Cargoboard is a digital freight forwarding platform that provides a unified core product through which customers can book LKW transport services across Europe. The platform operates in conjunction with the CargoLine transport network (a sub-brand/project) to offer comprehensive freight coverage. The core Cargoboard Plattform serves as the central interface for price calculation and booking, supported by module add-ons including the Versandkostenrechner for instant pricing, Sendungsverfolgung for real-time tracking, and Transportversicherung for shipment protection. International shipments are facilitated through the Zollabwicklung customs service, while the Automatisierung API enables programmatic integration. Transport options scale from Palettenversand (up to 6 pallets, 3,000 kg) through Teilladungen and Komplettladungen (up to 24,000 kg), plus specialized services such as Kurierfahrten for urgent deliveries and Gefahrguttransport for hazardous materials. The company also offers optional premium express features and environmental contribution options through Klimaschutzbeitrag.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cargoboard Plattform (Digital Freight Forwarding Platform) Digital freight forwarding platform that lets businesses calculate exact truck freight costs and book shipments including pickup across Europe without registration, supported by the CargoLine network of 80+ freight forwarding partners.
• Versandkostenrechner (Shipping Cost Calculator)

Quantifiable outcome

• Daily transport capacity: 1,500+ shipments per day
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CargoLinecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019CargoLine is one of Europe's largest and most reliable transport networks with over 80 freight forwarding partners in Germany and abroad. Cargoboard was founded as a project of the University of Paderborn and CargoLine in 2019. Cargoboard acts as the primary freight forwarder for customers, handling order planning, service, invoicing, and insurance matters.
• University of PaderborncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019University of Paderborn co-founded Cargoboard as a spin-off project together with CargoLine in 2019. The university connection provides academic rigor and innovation to the company's digital freight forwarding platform.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Logsta: German digital freight forwarding platform offering road freight booking with instant pricing for SMB customers. Comparable on matching product-led growth motion, pallet/LTL/FTL offering, and DACH focus.
• Eurosender: Brussels-based digital freight comparison and booking platform offering instant pricing for road and other modes across Europe. Comparable on product-led growth, instant pricing approach, and self-serve booking mechanics.
• TIMOCOM: Established European freight and vehicle exchange connecting shippers with carriers across the continent. Comparable on core freight marketplace functionality and European market presence, though operating a closer-to-traditional freight exchange model.
• sennder: Berlin-based digital road freight operator serving enterprise shippers across Europe with full truckload and integrated carrier networks. Highly comparable on target market (road freight) and digitization of traditional forwarding.
• InstaFreight: Berlin-based digital freight forwarder offering road LTL/FTL booking across Germany and Europe. Closest direct competitor given matching digital road freight model, similar instant-pricing UX, and overlapping DACH SMB and mid-market segments.
• Trans.eu: Polish-operated European freight exchange and carrier matching platform with tens of thousands of carriers across road freight. Comparable digital freight marketplace functionality with multi-country presence, though somewhat broader in product breadth.

Broad incumbents

• DSV: Global freight forwarder with leading European road presence following its Schenker acquisition. Competitor across the same road freight market with an integrated asset-heavy model and substantially larger scale.
• DHL Freight: Deutsche Post DHL's European road freight subsidiary and the largest road freight operator on the continent. The dominant incumbent competitor Cargoboard must outperform on user experience while lacking its owned-asset network and global account base.
• Uber Freight: Global digital freight brokerage from Uber operating in Europe following its sennder joint venture merger. Comparable on digital road freight brokerage with strong technology and capital backing, but at much greater scale and geographic breadth than Cargoboard.

Emerging players

• Freightos: Digital freight marketplace with instant pricing across air and ocean, and increasingly road. Comparable on the digital instant-pricing brokerage model, though with primary focus on global air and ocean rather than European road, which is Cargoboard's core.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCdg9OS6Q3B4KF-iAOAOF5Ng
• Facebookfacebook.com/CARGOBOARD
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cargoboard-gmbh-co-kg
• Instagraminstagram.com/cargoboard
• Xx.com/cargoboard

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cargoboard