Quick answer: The best fleet maintenance software for a trucking fleet is the one that reads odometer and engine hours from your ELD automatically, because a preventive maintenance schedule that depends on someone typing in mileage will drift within a month. For carriers of 5 to 150 trucks that already need dispatch, IFTA and ELD, TenTrucks covers maintenance inside the same system from $145 a month flat. For fleets that want a dedicated shop tool with parts inventory and deep work-order management, Fleetio (from $4 per vehicle per month) is the standard. Whip Around is the pick when driver inspections are the main problem, and Samsara or Motive make sense if you are already on their hardware. The seven options are compared below.
What fleet maintenance software does
Fleet maintenance software replaces the whiteboard, the spreadsheet and the folder of receipts with one record per truck that tells you what is due, what has been done, and what each unit costs to keep on the road. For a trucking fleet, four functions matter; everything else is a nice-to-have.
Preventive maintenance scheduling by mileage or date
Every truck gets a service program: oil and filter every 15,000 miles, DOT annual inspection every 12 months, brake inspection every 90 days, and so on. The software counts down each interval and raises a reminder before it is due. The critical question to ask any vendor is where the mileage comes from. If a dispatcher or driver has to enter it, the schedule is only as current as the last time someone remembered. If the ELD feeds odometer and engine hours straight into the maintenance record, the countdown is always right. This is the single feature that separates tools that get used from tools that get abandoned.
Driver vehicle inspection reports and defect tracking
FMCSA requires a DVIR whenever a driver finds a defect, and a pre-trip inspection every day. Maintenance software turns that paper form into a phone checklist, timestamps and geotags it, and, when a driver flags a defect, turns it into a work item the shop can see immediately. The follow-through is what matters: a defect that is reported but not closed out is a roadside inspection failure waiting to happen. Good software will not let a defect disappear until a mechanic signs it off.
Repair and service history per asset
Every work order, part, invoice and labour hour attaches to the truck or trailer it was done on. Over a year this gives you two things you cannot get from receipts: a warranty record (was that alternator replaced 11 months ago or 14?) and the evidence for a repair-or-replace decision on an ageing unit.
Maintenance cost per truck
The report the owner actually reads. Total maintenance spend per unit, per month and per mile, side by side across the fleet. The trucks that cost twice the fleet average are either due for replacement or being driven badly, and this report is how you find out which. In a TMS-integrated tool the same report can sit next to revenue per truck, which is the number that decides whether to keep the unit at all.
Two things trucking fleets usually do not need from maintenance software, despite what the feature lists say: a full parts inventory module (useful once you run your own shop with a parts room, otherwise overhead) and fuel-card reconciliation (your IFTA tool already does this). If a vendor’s pricing tier is driven by those, you are paying for a fleet-services product designed for buses, utilities or rental fleets, not for carriers.
The 7 tools at a glance
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Standalone or TMS-integrated | DVIR | ELD odometer sync | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TenTrucks | Carriers of 1–150 trucks that want maintenance inside dispatch and ELD | $145/month flat, up to 5 trucks; all features included | TMS-integrated | Yes | Yes, from TenTrucks ELD or Motive/Samsara/Geotab | Yes |
| Fleetio | Fleets that run their own shop and want the deepest work-order and parts tools | $4/vehicle/month annual ($5 monthly) on Essential; $7 Professional; $10 Premium | Standalone | Yes (inspections; FMCSA templates) | Via telematics integrations | 14 days |
| Whip Around | Fleets whose main problem is getting drivers to do inspections | Not published; see vendor pricing page | Standalone | Yes, core feature | Via connected telematics (mileage or engine hours) | Yes |
| Samsara | Fleets already on Samsara gateways and cameras | Quote-based, by fleet size; hardware required | Telematics-integrated | Yes | Yes, native | No (demo) |
| Motive | Fleets already on Motive ELDs | Quote-based; hardware required | Telematics-integrated | Yes | Yes, native | No (demo) |
| Powerfleet (Fleet Complete) | Mixed fleets and enterprise with many asset types | Quote-based | Telematics-integrated | Via HOS & Inspections product | Yes, native and OEM | No (demo) |
| Spreadsheet | 1–3 trucks with one person doing everything | Free | Standalone | No | No | n/a |
Prices checked October 28, 2026 on each vendor’s pricing page. Fleetio’s listed prices are its example for a 5-asset fleet on an annual plan; larger fleets and monthly billing change the figure. Samsara, Motive, Powerfleet and Whip Around do not publish prices.
The 7 tools in detail
1. TenTrucks: maintenance inside the TMS and ELD
TenTrucks is a transportation management system for asset-based carriers, and fleet maintenance is one of its modules rather than a separate product. That is the point. The ELD (TenTrucks’ own FMCSA-registered device, or a connected Motive, Samsara or Geotab unit) writes odometer and engine hours to each truck’s record, so preventive maintenance schedules by mileage or date count down on their own. Drivers do DVIRs in the same app they use for loads, and a flagged defect becomes a work item the office sees immediately. Repair and service history, and maintenance cost per truck, sit next to revenue per truck in the same reports.
Pricing is flat by fleet size, $145 a month for up to 5 trucks, $280 for up to 10, $540 for up to 20, with every feature included and no contract. The ELD hardware is $29 per truck per month. The limitation is the mirror of the strength: there is no parts-inventory module or shop-floor labour clock, so a carrier running its own repair shop with a parts room will want Fleetio alongside. See the maintenance feature page.
2. Fleetio: the dedicated shop system
Fleetio is the most widely used standalone fleet maintenance platform, and its depth shows in work orders, parts and inventory, purchase orders, labour tracking and vendor management. Inspections use FMCSA-approved templates and work offline. It integrates with most telematics providers and fuel cards, so mileage can flow in automatically if you connect your ELD. Pricing starts at $4 per vehicle per month on the Essential plan (annual; $5 monthly), rising to $7 for Professional and $10 for Premium, with a 14-day free trial. Essential does not include work orders, and the richer work-order and API features sit on the upper tiers, so budget for Professional at least if you run a shop. For a carrier, the trade-off is that Fleetio knows nothing about your loads, drivers’ hours or IFTA; it is a second system to log into and a second integration to maintain.
3. Whip Around: inspections first
Whip Around began as a DVIR app and still leads with driver inspections: customisable digital checklists, photo evidence, and defect follow-up across locations. It has grown into preventive maintenance scheduling and work orders, and can take mileage or engine hours from connected telematics to trigger service. Its case studies focus on defect resolution time, which is the right metric for a fleet whose trucks fail roadside inspections. Pricing is not published on the main site, so ask for a quote; a free trial is offered. Like Fleetio, it is a standalone tool with no dispatch or IFTA.
4. Samsara: maintenance on top of the telematics gateway
If your trucks already carry Samsara vehicle gateways and dash cams, Samsara’s maintenance features (DVIRs, engine fault codes, PM scheduling, and work orders) use data you are already paying for, and odometer sync is native. Pricing is quoted by fleet size (1–5, 6–29, 30–499 and up) and hardware is required; contract length is not published, so ask before signing. The case against it for a small carrier is cost and commitment: you are buying a telematics platform to get a maintenance module.
5. Motive: the same logic, ELD-first
Motive (formerly KeepTruckin) is the ELD many owner-operators already run, and its maintenance features ride on the vehicle gateway: fault-code alerts, DVIRs in the driver app, and service reminders driven by real odometer readings. Pricing is quote-based with hardware. If Motive is already your ELD, its maintenance module is worth switching on before buying anything else; TenTrucks also reads Motive data, so you are not locked to one path.
6. Powerfleet (Fleet Complete): enterprise and mixed fleets
Fleet Complete is now part of Powerfleet, an enterprise telematics vendor whose maintenance capabilities (vehicle health, engine diagnostics, maintenance scheduling, inspections through its HOS & Inspections product) span trucks, trailers, equipment and OEM-connected vehicles from Ford, GM and Stellantis. It sells to everything from couriers to Fortune 500 fleets and prices by quote. For a trucking carrier under 150 units it is more platform than you need.
7. A spreadsheet
For one to three trucks and a single owner who does the dispatching, driving and the oil changes, a spreadsheet with one row per unit, the last service date and mileage, and the next due is honest and free. It fails the moment a second person needs to see it, a driver needs to file a DVIR from the road, or you forget to update the mileage, which is usually the week you add truck number four. When that happens, the cheapest step up is a TMS that includes maintenance rather than a separate maintenance subscription.
How to choose by fleet size
1 to 3 trucks. Your maintenance problem is remembering, not managing. A spreadsheet works until it does not. If you are already paying for a TMS or ELD, use the maintenance reminders that come with it before buying anything.
4 to 20 trucks. This is where spreadsheets break and where most carriers overbuy. You need PM schedules fed by real mileage, DVIRs on the driver’s phone, and cost per truck. You do not yet need parts inventory or a shop-floor system. A TMS with maintenance built in (TenTrucks, $145–$540 a month flat for everything) costs less than a standalone maintenance tool plus a TMS, and removes an integration. If your drivers’ inspection habits are the real problem, Whip Around is the specialist.
20 to 150 trucks. The question becomes whether you run your own shop. If you do, with a mechanic, a parts room and outside vendors to manage, add Fleetio (Professional tier or higher) for work orders and inventory, and keep the TMS as the system of record for the trucks, drivers and revenue. If you outsource repairs, the TMS-integrated maintenance module is still enough; what you need at this size is the cost-per-truck report to drive replacement decisions.
150 trucks and up, or mixed assets. Samsara, Motive or Powerfleet start to make sense as a platform, because the hardware investment is spread across enough units and the maintenance data is one of many things the telematics is doing. At this size expect a procurement process and a multi-year decision.
Whatever the size, ask every vendor one question: “Where does the odometer reading come from?” If the answer involves a person typing, keep looking. For how maintenance fits alongside your TMS, ELD and the rest of your tools, see our 2026 trucking software tech stack guide.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best fleet maintenance software for small trucking companies?
For a carrier with 4 to 20 trucks, a TMS that includes maintenance is usually the best value, because the preventive maintenance schedule runs off the same ELD mileage the TMS already uses for IFTA, and there is one system to log into. TenTrucks includes maintenance scheduling, DVIRs, service history and cost per truck in every plan from $145 a month. If you only need inspections and reminders and do not run a TMS, Whip Around or Fleetio Essential are the lightest standalone options.
How much does fleet maintenance software cost?
Standalone tools price per vehicle per month: Fleetio starts at $4 per vehicle per month on an annual plan. Telematics-based options (Samsara, Motive, Powerfleet) are quoted by fleet size and require hardware. TMS-integrated maintenance is included in the TMS price; TenTrucks is $145 a month for up to 5 trucks and $540 for up to 20, all features included.
Does fleet maintenance software handle DVIRs?
All six software options in this guide support driver vehicle inspection reports on a phone, with the defect flowing to a work item. The differences are in follow-through: whether a flagged defect can be closed without a mechanic sign-off, and whether the inspection app is the same one drivers already use for loads and hours of service.
Can maintenance software pull mileage from my ELD?
Yes, if the two are connected. Samsara and Motive do it natively because they are the ELD. TenTrucks does it from its own ELD or from Motive, Samsara and Geotab integrations. Fleetio and Whip Around do it through telematics integrations you set up. A tool that cannot do this will rely on manual mileage entry, which is the main reason PM schedules fall behind.
What is the difference between fleet maintenance software and a TMS?
A transportation management system runs the business: loads, dispatch, drivers, invoicing, settlements, IFTA. Fleet maintenance software runs the trucks: service schedules, inspections, repairs, cost per unit. Some TMS products, including TenTrucks, include a maintenance module; dedicated maintenance tools like Fleetio go deeper on shop operations but know nothing about your freight.
Keep every truck earning
Maintenance software pays for itself the first time it catches a service interval a spreadsheet would have missed. The cheapest way to get there for most carriers is not a new subscription; it is switching on the maintenance module in the system that already knows your trucks’ mileage. TenTrucks includes preventive maintenance scheduling, DVIRs, repair history and cost per truck in every plan, fed by ELD data, from $145 a month with no contract.
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Sources checked October 28, 2026: TenTrucks fleet maintenance software, TenTrucks pricing, Fleetio pricing, Whip Around, Samsara pricing, Powerfleet / Fleet Complete, Motive. Prices change; verify with each vendor before relying on them.
