U.S. 3PL net revenues grew 5.1% to $138.2 billion in 2025, according to a new report from Armstrong & Associates, Inc. In 20246 the market increased by 1.8%.

Gross revenues grew 5.0% to $323.4 billion, up sharply from 2.8% growth in 2024, confirming that the freight recession that began in late 2022 is coming to an end, the group notes.

They project continued growth through 2026 and 2027.

International transport management (ITM) was 2025’s fastest-growing 3PL segment, with net revenue growth of 11% to $30.4 billion, driving a 35.4% gross profit margin.

Within ITM, the divergence between top forwarders was stark: Expeditors grew 4.4% in gross revenue to $11.1 billion and 7.4% in net revenue to $3.7 billion, while C.H. Robinson’s Global Forwarding gross revenue dropped 18.8% to $3.1 billion and net revenue fell 7.6% to $741.9 million.

Individual freight forwarders’ books are being reshaped by tariff exposure, customer mix, and lane decisions.

Summary of Key Findings in the Report

• The freight recession is ending through capacity reduction rather than demand rebound, with operating-authority revocations exceeding new entries throughout 2024 and 2025.
• The DTM segment is undergoing a structural rotation toward a new compliance technology stack — Carrier Compliance & Onboarding, Predictive Performance / Fraud Screening, Visibility / Exception Management with Compliance Signals, and TMS systems integrating compliance data — driven by high-profile cargo theft and double-brokering cases.
• Warehousing demand is bifurcating — big-box (500,000+ sq ft) facilities are competing with data center tenants for the same industrial land.
• 3PL M&A activity remained meaningful through March 31, 2026, with multiple transactions over $100 million reshaping the Top 50 Global 3PLs ranking.