Fleet software for small US fleets (under 10,001 lbs)
Smart Strix is fleet operations software for the US fleets the ELD mandate doesn't reach — cargo vans and light trucks under 10,001 lbs GVWR, run by teams of 2 to 50 vehicles.
Who is Smart Strix for in the United States?
Delivery companies, couriers, movers, and field-service businesses running Transits, ProMasters, Sprinter 1500/2500s, Express vans, and light pickups — fleets whose vehicles sit under the federal commercial motor vehicle threshold and whose problems are operational, not regulatory. The trucking software giants sell you ELD certification, IFTA calculators, and CSA score dashboards you will never use at this weight class, usually bundled with hardware and multi-year contracts. Smart Strix takes the opposite bet: everything runs through the driver's phone and a web dashboard, plans are Starter (up to 3 drivers) and Advanced (unlimited drivers plus GPS tracking), it's free to get started, and you can cancel anytime.
What does the platform cover?
- Dispatch — kanban job board from creation through assignment, status, photos, and signed proof of delivery;
- Phone-based GPS — live driver map and breadcrumb history with zero hardware to buy, install, or return (Advanced plan);
- Customer tracking links — signed, expiring links so customers watch progress instead of calling;
- Vehicle photos and records — check-out/check-in condition photos, maintenance history, fuel logs, and expiry alerts on insurance and registration documents;
- Quote-to-cash — quotes become jobs become invoices, with payment reminders, partial payments, and QuickBooks export;
- Team management — roles, shift clock-in/out, time-off approvals, and a driver document vault.
US compliance guides: where the 10,001 lbs line sits
Written for fleet owners, FMCSA-derived, and honest about what varies by state:
Software roundups for light fleets
Why focus on fleets under 10,001 lbs?
Because that threshold splits the market into two different products wearing one label. Above the line, fleet software is fundamentally a compliance system — its value is keeping logs, forms, and filings audit-ready, and it is priced and contracted like the regulatory insurance it is. Below the line, none of that machinery earns its cost; what moves the needle is winning the job, dispatching it fast, proving it was done, and getting paid without chasing. Most vendors serve the first market and upsell the second. Smart Strix was built for the second from the start, which is why there is no device to install, no per-vehicle hardware fee, and no long contract — the economics of a 6-van courier company simply don't support them.
How does getting started work?
Sign up free on the web dashboard, add your vehicles and invite drivers by email, and have them install the iOS or Android app — there is nothing to fit to a van, so a small fleet is typically dispatching real jobs the same day. A sensible first week: run two or three drivers on live work, take one job all the way from quote to paid invoice with the QuickBooks export, and have drivers photo-check a van out and in each shift so the condition trail starts building. If it earns its keep, upgrade when you need GPS tracking or a fourth driver; if it doesn't, cancel — plans are monthly with no termination penalty and your data exports out.
What Smart Strix deliberately doesn't do
No electronic logging, no hours-of-service records, no FMCSA registration or filings, no IFTA fuel tax reporting, no telematics hardware, and no certified DVIR forms. If part of your fleet crosses 10,001 lbs GVWR — a Sprinter 3500, a box truck, a van-and-trailer combination — those vehicles carry federal obligations that need purpose-built compliance tooling alongside anything we provide. We would rather tell you that on the first page you read than after you've signed up. Regulatory facts across these guides are FMCSA-derived summaries, not legal advice — verify with FMCSA and your state before acting.