At a transportation company (railroad, motor carrier, ocean carrier), freight forwarder, regulatory agency, or specialty tariff-services operation, you compile tariff schedules — gathering rate information, organizing into tariff structures, supporting tariff publication and filing, and the technical work tariff compilation involves.
Tariff-compiler work runs on the technical discipline of organizing freight or transportation rates into structured tariff documents — gathering rates from carrier or shipper sources, organizing into the tariff framework specific to the mode (motor freight under FMCSA, ocean freight under FMC, rail under STB), supporting tariff publication or filing, and the regulatory work tariff publication involves. The compiler works tariff-management software (specialty platforms for each transportation mode), regulatory frameworks (mode-specific filing requirements), and the cross-functional coordination tariff work involves. Tariff accuracy, regulatory compliance, and publication-cycle adherence are the operating measures.
The reality is that tariff compilation has changed substantially with regulatory deregulation across U.S. transportation modes — trucking deregulation (1980), rail deregulation (Staggers Act 1980), and ocean-shipping changes have reduced regulated-tariff filing in many contexts, with corresponding contraction of traditional tariff-clerk roles. The role persists in regulated contexts: motor-carrier tariff work where it still applies, ocean common-carrier tariffs under FMC requirements, and specialty regulated transportation.
This role fits people who are detail-oriented, comfortable with transportation-industry regulatory frameworks, and patient with the technical work tariff compilation involves. Transportation-industry training, mode-specific credentials, and ongoing CE anchor advancement. The trade-off is the contracting employment field as deregulation has absorbed traditional tariff work and the modest pay typical of tariff-compiling positions in remaining contexts.
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Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.
Roles with similar work and overlapping career paths
View all Admin & Office roles →At a transportation company (railroad, motor carrier, ocean carrier), freight forwarder, regulatory agency, or specialty tariff-services operation, you compile tariff schedules — gathering rate information, organizing into tariff structures, supporting tariff publication and filing, and the technical work tariff compilation involves.
Median pay for a Tariff Compiler is about $51K nationally, with the field ranging roughly from $38K to $79K depending on experience, employer, and metro (BLS).
Core skills for this role include Mathematics, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Complex Problem Solving, and Active Learning.
Most people in this role hold a bachelor's degree.
Employment in this field is projected to decline about 2.5% through 2034, with roughly 5,900 people working in it today (BLS).
Closely related roles include Data Analysis Clerk, Tariff Compiling Clerk, and Fiscal Clerk.
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