CNAE codes for freight carriers and logistics companies in Brazil
The main CNAE code for freight carriers and logistics companies in Brazil is 4930-2/02 – Transporte rodoviário de carga, exceto produtos perigosos e mudanças, intermunicipal, interestadual e internacional (Road freight (intercity, interstate, international)). Within-municipality freight uses 4930-2/01, hazardous goods 4930-2/03 and logistics operators 5250-8/04. To prospect this segment, search codes 4930-2/02, 4930-2/01, 4930-2/03, 4930-2/04, 5250-8/04, 5211-7/99 as both primary and secondary CNAE, keep only active CNPJs, then filter by company size and city.
CNAE codes for freight carriers and logistics companies
CNAE (Classificação Nacional de Atividades Econômicas) is Brazil's official activity classification. Every company registered with a CNPJ declares one primary CNAE and any number of secondary ones. These are the CNAE 2.3 subclasses most used by freight carriers and logistics companies:
| CNAE | Official description (pt) | English | When it shows up |
|---|---|---|---|
4930-2/02 | Transporte rodoviário de carga, exceto produtos perigosos e mudanças, intermunicipal, interestadual e internacional | Road freight (intercity, interstate, international) | Long-haul carriers |
4930-2/01 | Transporte rodoviário de carga, exceto produtos perigosos e mudanças, municipal | Road freight within a municipality | Urban and last-mile freight |
4930-2/03 | Transporte rodoviário de produtos perigosos | Road transport of hazardous goods | Fuel and chemicals |
4930-2/04 | Transporte rodoviário de mudanças | Moving services | Moving companies |
5250-8/04 | Organização logística do transporte de carga | Freight logistics organization | Logistics operators and freight brokers |
5211-7/99 | Depósitos de mercadorias para terceiros, exceto armazéns gerais e guarda-móveis | Warehousing for third parties | Warehouses and fulfillment centers |
Search primary and secondary CNAE
Many freight carriers and logistics companies register their real activity as a secondary CNAE, because the CNPJ was opened under another primary activity or because they do more than one thing. Carriers often declare warehousing (5211-7/99) and logistics organization (5250-8/04) as secondary. Filtering on the primary code alone misses part of the market.
Who sells to freight carriers and logistics companies
Carriers have high, recurring costs for fleet, fuel, insurance and technology.
- Tracking, telematics and fleet management
- Cargo insurance and truck financing
- Tires, parts, maintenance and fuel
- TMS, route planning and electronic freight documents (CT-e, MDF-e)
- Shippers looking for new carriers
How to build a list of freight carriers and logistics companies in Brazil
- Pick the codes: start with
4930-2/02and add4930-2/01,4930-2/03,4930-2/04,5250-8/04,5211-7/99depending on what you sell. - Search them as primary and secondary CNAE.
- Keep only active registrations (situação cadastral ativa) to drop unfit, suspended or closed CNPJs.
- Narrow by location (state, city, neighborhood) and company size (MEI, ME, EPP, other). EPP-size carriers and above own fleets and have more decision-makers; MEIs are usually owner-operators.
- Keep companies with contact data (email or phone) and save the filter as a reusable segment.
- Write a segment-specific opener and track replies in a pipeline.
1Lead runs all of these filters in one search over Brazil's public company registry, and its AI suggests adjacent CNAE codes from a plain-language description such as "I sell telematics to carriers with their own fleet in Paraná". The product interface is in Portuguese.
Qualification signals
- Primary 4930-2/02 and high share capital: own fleet and interstate routes.
- Branches in several states: national operations.
- 4930-2/03: extra regulatory requirements (hazardous goods) and higher spend on insurance and technology.
How to approach this segment
Margins are thin: talk about cost per kilometer, fuel, claims and downtime. Fleet managers respond to concrete numbers.
Example first message (in Portuguese, with translation)
Frequently asked questions
What is the CNAE code for a trucking company in Brazil?
4930-2/02 for intercity, interstate and international freight, and 4930-2/01 for freight within a municipality.
Which CNAE do logistics operators use?
5250-8/04, freight logistics organization. Third-party warehouses use 5211-7/99.
Which CNAE covers moving companies?
4930-2/04, road transport of household moves.
Where is the official CNAE table?
IBGE publishes it in the CONCLA online search, with the full hierarchy (section, division, group, class, subclass) and notes on what each code includes and excludes.