The Short Version
Amazon Relay is a digital freight platform owned and operated by Amazon. It allows motor carriers — from owner-operators running a single truck to fleets running hundreds — to haul freight directly for Amazon's transportation network. You're not going through a broker. You're not dealing with a middleman. You sign on as an approved carrier, your drivers pick up loads from Amazon facilities, and Amazon pays you directly.
The platform launched as Amazon began building out its own logistics infrastructure to reduce dependence on UPS and FedEx for its internal linehaul operations. Today it's a major piece of how Amazon moves trailers between its fulfillment centers, sort facilities, and delivery stations across the country.
What Relay Is Not
Relay is not Amazon Flex (that's for individual gig drivers delivering packages in personal vehicles). It's not Amazon DSP (that's a separate franchise program for last-mile delivery). Relay is strictly truckload freight — Class 8 semi trucks hauling 53-foot trailers between Amazon facilities. If you're running a box truck or a sprinter van, Relay isn't for you.
How the Network Works
Amazon operates an enormous internal freight network connecting its fulfillment centers (FCs), air hubs, sort centers, and delivery stations. Relay carriers plug into this network by picking up pre-loaded trailers at one Amazon facility and dropping them at another. Most loads are drop-and-hook, meaning your driver pulls a loaded trailer from a yard without waiting for it to be loaded. This keeps dwell time low and predictable.
The loads are primarily:
- Linehaul runs — longer trips between major fulfillment hubs, often 200–600 miles
- Short-haul transfers — moving trailers between nearby facilities in the same metro area
- Block work — recurring scheduled runs that operate like a route
The App-Driven Model
Everything in Relay runs through the Amazon Relay app. Dispatchers book loads through the carrier portal on desktop, and drivers use the mobile app to check in at facilities, accept arrival notifications, and get gate codes. Amazon's facilities are geofenced, so the app knows when your driver arrives and departure times are logged automatically. There's no calling a dispatcher at the shipper — the app handles facility communication.
This is genuinely one of Relay's strongest points. Drivers aren't sitting at a gate waiting for a guard to verify their load manually. Check-in is digital, dock assignments come through the app, and departure is recorded automatically. For carriers who've dealt with facilities that still use paper check-in sheets, this is a meaningful improvement.
Who Qualifies
To operate on Relay you need:
- An active USDOT number and MC authority
- A satisfactory safety rating (or no rating, which is acceptable — unsatisfactory disqualifies you)
- Insurance meeting Amazon's minimums: $1,000,000 auto liability, $100,000 cargo, $1,000,000 general liability
- Equipment that meets Amazon's specifications (more on that in a separate article)
Amazon runs a carrier onboarding process that includes a background review of your safety record via FMCSA data. Carriers with a history of serious violations, out-of-service orders, or a poor CSA score may be declined. New authorities can apply, but Amazon tends to scrutinize them more carefully.
Payment Structure
Amazon pays carriers weekly via ACH. Rates are set by Amazon — you're not negotiating individual loads the way you might with a broker. The rates are per-load or per-block depending on load type, and they're displayed in the app before you book. What you see is what you get. Fuel surcharges are typically built into the rate rather than shown separately, which matters when you're comparing Relay rates to broker rates.
The Trade-Off
Relay gives you consistency, reliable payment, and relatively predictable work. What it doesn't give you is rate negotiation leverage. Amazon sets the price. In a soft freight market, Relay's posted rates often beat what brokers are offering. In a hot market, you might leave money on the table compared to spot loads. Most carriers who run Relay heavily use it as a base layer of consistent volume and supplement with other work when market rates are favorable.
Understanding this dynamic — Relay as a volume stabilizer rather than a ceiling — is the mental model that separates carriers who do well on the platform from those who feel like they're grinding for Amazon's benefit.