If you’re thinking about buying or selling used trucks, timing has never mattered more. The used truck market in 2025 is defined by hesitation, softening prices, aging inventory, and uncertain demand.

Understanding where the market stands now could help you make smarter decisions in the months ahead.

But first, how did we get here?

The 2020 Covid-19 pandemic triggered a massive economic crash, but it was soon boom times for trucking as people stuck at home spent money on goods that they normally would have spent on services such as dining out and vacation. 

The boom didn’t last, however.

When consumers could spend on services again, they did with a vengeance. The trucks that fleets and owner-operators bought to take advantage of the hot spot market meant there was more capacity than there was freight, creating a freight recession.

In 2024, there were promising signs that the worst was past, and freight levels and rates were finally on the road to recovery. 

But Donald Trump’s reelection to the White House and his ensuing trade war changed the game, as ever-changing tariffs added layers of uncertainty that snuffed out any signs of a resurgent freight market.

The Truck Sales Market

The market for both new and used trucks has been impacted by a freight recession longer than anyone would have predicted.

“In 2022, we were optimistic that the freight market would be driving strong carrier profitability into 2025,” says Kenny Vieth, president and chief analyst, ACT Research. “It was already slowing down in ’22 when we made that prediction. And we knew freight volumes would be down in 2023.

"But typically, freight market downturns last about six to eight quarters. And, lo and behold, this one is about to enter into its 13th quarter. Our expectation back in 2022 was that carrier profitability would be peaking in 2025. And that has absolutely not come true.”

Vieth says the North American trucking industry has reached a generational low point for carrier profitability. As a result, fleets do not have the money to invest in new equipment, and many fleets are holding onto equipment longer.

“New truck buying activity continues to be soft,” confirms David Kriete, president and CEO of Kriete Truck Centers, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

“We aren’t experiencing a lot of cancellations but are seeing fleets postpone or defer purchases given the state of uncertainty that exists right now. We don’t expect changes to this stalemate until freight rates stabilize (or increase), truck pricing stabilizes, interest rates normalize, and the noise concerning tariffs calms.”

'A Whiplash Truck Market'

While used-truck sales have held steady for the first half of the year, Kriete says, they're now slowing due to general economic uncertainty gripping the U.S.

“The ports have been red hot for years, and a major source of trucking growth the past several years,” Kiete says. “But this has really slowed down in the last five months.

"Once some firm direction is established at the federal level, we expect these fluctuations to smooth out as well.

“Regionally, demand for new and used trucks in California is expected to significantly pick up following the CRA announcements.”

He's referring to the Congressional Review Act, which Congress used to revoke Environmental Protection Agency waivers for California's Advanced Clean Cars II regulation, Advanced Clean Trucks regulation, and its Heavy-Duty Low-NOx Omnibus rule.

“It’s really a whiplash truck market these days,” says Charles Bowles, director of strategic initiatives at Commercial Truck Trader, an online marketplace for buying and selling new and used trucks.

“Every day, things seem to be changing in terms of regulations and tariffs. It makes predicting the future very tricky," he says.

“The used truck market lately has done some recovery over the past few months. But I don’t know if that trend will continue.”

Holding Trucks Longer

The shimmering mirage of a freight recovery that is always just out of reach has impacted the North American used truck market in other ways, according to Steve Tam, vice president and analyst at ACT Research.

2020 began with a robust economy. Many fleets, encouraged by the economic outlook at the time, bought new trucks at the peak of the market, then or during the pandemic boom. But those fleets were challenged to make large truck payments as freight rates fell.

“We’ve seen a fair amount of loan defaults and repossessions since then,” Tam says. “But the banks really do not want to own trucks. So, they’ve done everything they have been able to keep them out there on the road.”

At the same time, Tam notes, profit margins for publicly traded fleets are below 3% — something the industry hasn’t seen in over a decade.

All of this means many fleets are hanging on to equipment longer than normal.

“The publicly traded fleets are being very stingy with their capital,” Tam says. “While some fleets are taking on new trucks, they’re doing so well below normal replacement levels. And all of this is stretching the average age of used trucks on the market today.”

Bowles also sees this in the used-truck data on Commercial Truck Trader: used trucks on the market today generally have higher mileage on them.

According to Bowles, over 2.5 million prospective truck buyers log onto the Commercial Truck Trader website every month, giving the company deep insights into buyer intent.

“Lower-mileage vehicles — trucks with fewer than 500,000 miles on them — are garnering premium prices,” he says. “But they are harder to find because people tend to hold on to those models longer.”

Used-Truck Demand and Pricing

“We still see significant demand for used trucks,” Bowles says. “But it is down for many reasons.”

From April to May, Commercial Truck Trader saw a drop in demand for both new and used trucks:

• 5.5% decrease for used sleeper cab trucks

• 13% decrease for used daycabs

• 11.2% decrease for new trucks

“And those are leading indicators,” he says. “In terms of truck sales, it generally takes two or three months for trends to fully materialize. But right now, we are seeing a definite softening in demand for both new and used daycabs and sleepers.”

According to the American Transportation Research Institute’s Operational Costs of Trucking Report, released in July, used Class 8 sleeper prices fell steeply during 2023 but stabilized last year at an average price of $59,300.

This price point is 4.8% higher than the pre-pandemic average price of $56,000 for used sleepers, ATRI said.

“Market pricing has been pressured down,” Kriete says. “For the first time in almost five years, supply far outnumbers demand. As such, OEMs and their dealer networks must flex pricing to meet demand.”

Still, to Kriete, the current resale trends are not unique in times of low demand and high supply.

“The ‘premium’ brands, within their key market segments, are holding their value and demanding the highest market pricing,” Kriete says. “This includes Volvo in the sleeper market, and Mack in vocational applications where it has consistently and historically held the highest resale values.” 

Should You Buy Used Trucks Now?

Used truck prices are slowly percolating higher, Tam says, but the increase is subtle enough that it shouldn’t affect fleets in the market for used trucks.

“The overall trend is that used-truck prices are increasingly subtly,” he explains. “So it makes sense for a lot of buyers to wait three or even six months before buying a truck, because you’re not going to be paying dramatically more for the same vehicle than you would today.

"So, buyers right now tend to have an immediate need for a vehicle. But if you don’t, it’s not going to hurt you to wait a little while longer and see how freight rates and the economy shake out.”

ACT Research analysts think used-truck prices will rise as capacity tightens — good news for sellers, not so much for buyers.

“The one lever the industry can pull to impact the used truck market is the number of vehicles that go into the fleet,” Tam says. “And right now, that number is slowing down. OEMs and new truck dealers don’t want to hear that. That’s not where they want things to go. But it’s kind of the medicine the industry needs to take right now.”