Courier / local delivery / last-mile software, built around FMCSA, DOT and proof-of-delivery capture

Arkathos gives a courier a workspace tailored to how the work actually runs — This workspace is built around routing the day's delivery orders, capturing proof-of-delivery, and billing each stop/route to B2B accounts. Arkathos tailors a courier workspace around 5 agents: Quartermaster, Treasury, Sentinel, Client Portal, Herald.

Compliance a courier can't afford to miss

Watchtower tracks every license, bond, insurance policy, and continuing-education requirement for a courier, with renewal cadences and staged reminders so nothing lapses.

• A courier must maintain a Business license / business tax registration, through the Municipal or county business licensing office (or state business registration agency where applicable), which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Local business license, through the Municipal Clerk / City Business License Office, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Commercial vehicle registration (fleet), through the State DMV / Motor Vehicle Agency, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a USDOT Number (Motor Carrier Identification), through the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), U.S. Department of Transportation, which renews every two years.
• A courier must maintain a Motor Carrier (MC) Operating Authority, through the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which has no fixed renewal cycle.
• A courier must maintain a USDOT Number (interstate / over 10,001 lb GVWR), through the FMCSA (US DOT), which renews every two years.
• A courier must maintain a Unified Carrier Registration (UCR), through the Unified Carrier Registration Plan (filed through base-state / FMCSA), which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Hired & non-owned auto insurance (1099 driver fleet), which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a State intrastate motor carrier permit / authority, through the State DMV or Department of Transportation motor-carrier unit (e.g., California DMV Motor Carrier Services), which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Cargo / inland marine insurance, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a DOT Medical Examiner's Certificate (medical card), through the FMCSA National Registry certified medical examiner, which renews every two years.
• A courier must maintain a Commercial auto liability insurance, through the State-licensed commercial auto insurer (filed with FMCSA via Form BMC-91/BMC-91X for interstate for-hire authority; $750,000 federal minimum for non-hazardous property over 10,001 lbs), which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Commercial general liability insurance, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Motor truck cargo insurance, through the State-licensed insurer (Form BMC-34 minimum $5,000/vehicle & $10,000/occurrence required for household-goods carriers & forwarders; contract-driven for general freight), which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a General liability insurance, through the State-licensed commercial insurer, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a HIPAA compliance training / Business Associate Agreement (medical courier), through the HHS Office for Civil Rights / Covered Entity, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a OSHA bloodborne pathogens training (specimen handling), through the OSHA-Authorized Trainer / Employer, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Workers' compensation insurance, through the State-authorized workers' compensation insurer or state compensation fund, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a Cyber liability insurance, through the State-licensed commercial insurer, which renews every year.
• A courier must maintain a DOT hazmat employee training (lab/medical specimens), through the PHMSA (US DOT) / Authorized Trainer, which renews every 3 years.
• A courier must maintain a Professional liability / errors & omissions (E&O) insurance, through the State-licensed commercial insurer, which renews every year.

Everything Arkathos runs for a courier

These are the agents set up first for a courier — and because it's one platform, every plan includes all 16 Arkathos agents. Also included whenever you need them: Guardhouse, Scribe, Courier, War Room, Armory, Marshall, Mint Warden, Vault Keeper, Watchtower, Bulletin Board.

• Quartermaster — Online booking & appointments, Calendar & availability, Events & waitlists, Automated reminders, Job dispatch & scheduling.
• Treasury — Invoicing & payment collection, Expense tracking, Accounting & bookkeeping, Business tax prep & filing, Recurring billing & subscriptions, Financial dashboards & reports.
• Sentinel — Contact & lead management, Deal / estimate pipeline, Task & follow-up tracking, SMS & email outreach, Pipeline reporting.
• Client Portal — Branded client login portal, Project & status sharing, Invoice viewing & payment, Approvals & intake forms.
• Herald — SEO & get-found content, Social media scheduling, Email & newsletter campaigns, Brand voice & content studio, Review & reputation growth, AI-overview & directory visibility.

Your tailored courier workspace

These are net-new, courier-specific capabilities — not a generic CRM bolted onto your industry.

• Proof-of-delivery capture (photo + signature + geo-stamp) (Dispatch): Driver step at each stop: capture recipient signature, package photo, and GPS/time stamp; attach to the delivery record and auto-notify the B2B client via Portal — the deliver-with-POD half of the core loop.
• Multi-stop route optimization + live tracking link (Dispatch): Sequence a driver's daily stops into an optimized route with per-stop ETAs, a public consumer tracking link per package, and exception flags (failed attempt, recipient not home, redelivery).
• Rate-card / zone pricing to per-stop billing (Treasury): Define delivery rate cards by zone/weight/service level, auto-rate each completed stop, and roll them into per-delivery invoices or consolidated monthly B2B account statements (net-30).
• B2B delivery-request intake to dispatch handoff (Client Portal): Authenticated B2B clients submit pickup/delivery requests (addresses, time window, special handling) that flow straight onto the Dispatch board, with status + POD visible back to the requesting account.
• Driver settlement / 1099 pay run (Marshall): Per-stop or per-route driver pay calculation with 1099-NEC vs W-2 classification handling (AB5-style litigation risk), settlement statements, and payout export — the gig/last-mile pay model.
• Lost / late / damaged-package ticketing with SLA timers (Guardhouse): Service-exception tickets linked to the delivery + POD record, with per-account SLA timers and resolution/credit tracking so B2B accounts stay protected.
• Specimen / medical chain-of-custody log (Dispatch): For medical/lab couriers: temperature-logged, signed chain-of-custody at each specimen handoff with HIPAA-aware handling and bloodborne-pathogen/DOT-hazmat notes on the delivery record.

The agents and tabs you get

Quartermaster for a courier surfaces Dispatch, Chat. Treasury for a courier surfaces Invoices, Pipeline, Financial sheet, Chat. Sentinel for a courier surfaces Contacts, Overview, Chat. Client Portal for a courier surfaces Intakes, Routing, Settings, Chat. Herald for a courier surfaces Get found, Directories, Brief, ✦Studio, Schedule, Chat, Brand voice.

Frequently asked questions

best courier delivery software for small business

Popular picks include Shipday, Routific, Onfleet, Track-POD and OnTime 360 for dispatch, routing and proof-of-delivery. Pair a routing tool with a back-office platform like Arkathos for CRM, invoicing, payroll and compliance.

how much does courier / delivery management software cost per month

Roughly $50-$600/month by volume, averaging near $180. Some bill per delivery ($0.10-$1.00/task), per driver, or per vehicle. Arkathos uses flat pricing with no per-seat or per-task fees.

how to start a courier business and what software do i need

You need dispatch/route software, a driver app with GPS, plus back-office tools for accounting, CRM, invoicing and scheduling. Arkathos covers the back-office side—clients, quotes, invoices, payroll, tax—so you only add routing.

best route planner app for multiple delivery stops

Multi-stop planners like Circuit, Route4Me, OptimoRoute, Routific and Upper solve the traveling-salesman problem using real drive times, time windows and traffic to sequence 30-50 stops. This is dedicated routing software.

what insurance and licenses do i need for a courier business

Typically a business license, commercial auto insurance, general liability, and workers' comp once you hire; cargo/inland-marine for medical or high-value goods. Some states add food/alcohol permits. Arkathos tracks renewals and compliance deadlines.

best proof of delivery app for couriers

Track-POD, Detrack, Routific and Locate2u capture e-signatures, timestamped photos, GPS and notes, often offline. Most clients require POD to confirm delivery and settle disputes; store those records with your invoices in the back office.

how do i get delivery contracts and clients for my courier business

Target law firms, medical facilities, pharmacies, e-commerce and retail; build a local website and Google Business listing, network, and hit SLAs in the first 90 days. Arkathos handles CRM, quotes and getting-found marketing.

courier dispatch software with real-time driver tracking

Dispatch platforms like iDispatch, InstaDispatch, Onfleet, Track-POD and Detrack auto-assign drivers by proximity and capacity, show live map tracking, and send customer ETA notifications. This is dedicated dispatch software, not a general business tool.

do i need separate accounting and payroll software if my drivers are 1099

Yes—dispatch tools don't keep your books. You still need invoicing, expense tracking, and 1099 contractor payments and filings. Arkathos handles finances, payroll, contractor payouts and tax compliance in one flat-priced platform.

What licenses and insurance does a courier need?

Arkathos tracks 21 items for a courier, including Business license / business tax registration, Local business license, Commercial vehicle registration (fleet), USDOT Number (Motor Carrier Identification). Each renewal and expiration is monitored in Watchtower with staged reminders.

Which Arkathos agents does a courier get?

Arkathos tailors a courier workspace around 5 agents: Quartermaster, Treasury, Sentinel, Client Portal, Herald.

How is the Arkathos workspace tailored for a courier?

Beyond the standard tools, Arkathos builds courier-specific features: Proof-of-delivery capture (photo + signature + geo-stamp); Multi-stop route optimization + live tracking link; Rate-card / zone pricing to per-stop billing.

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