Dallas 3PL warehouses
Dallas-Fort Worth is the central-US ground node most brands shortlist, but the metro behaves like several markets. South Dallas near the Union Pacific ramp in Wilmer prices and staffs differently than Northwest Dallas around Carrollton. Compare vetted facilities by order volume, certifications, systems and retail programs. Partner names stay private until your team chooses who to meet.
Market data updated October 2026 · Reviewed by the 3PL Bridge network and market research team
Dallas-Fort Worth is the right single node for brands whose customers lean central and southern US, and the right second node for brands already shipping from a coast. It is not a one-warehouse answer for a brand whose buyers sit mostly in California or the Northeast, because both coasts are multi-day ground from here.
Ground reach
About 19% of the US population within roughly 600 miles (one truck day) and 53% within roughly 1,000 miles (two days), per XPO data cited by the Dallas Regional Chamber (2026). Both coasts are multi-day ground.
Warehouse rent
$9.76/SF NNN average asking, a record and up 19.9% year over year, with 7.3% vacancy (Cushman & Wakefield, Q3 2026).
Labor floor
$7.25/hr Texas minimum, unchanged since July 2009, and cities cannot set a higher one. Market pay for Dallas warehouse roles averages about $17.73/hr (Indeed Flex, January 2026).
Sales tax trigger
$500,000 in Texas sales over the prior 12 months for remote sellers, but inventory in a Texas warehouse creates nexus on its own. 6.25% state rate, up to 8.25% combined.
Ports and rail
Union Pacific's 360-acre Dallas Intermodal Terminal (Wilmer and Hutchins, on I-45) and BNSF's Alliance ramp in Haslet. DFW Airport handled 717,757 metric tonnes of cargo in 2025.
Vetted network
13 facilities across 7 submarkets, each run by an operator with a signed 3PL Bridge agreement. No cost to brands.
Filter by what your operation needs. Pins sit at the facility's town, not its street address. Click any pin or card to open the full facility profile.
A facility in Cedar Hill sits minutes from the Union Pacific ramp and the I-20/I-45 parcel cluster, while one in Grapevine sits at the airport and pays some of the highest rents in the metro. That choice sets drayage distance, the labor pool and the base rent your 3PL builds its storage rate on, before anyone sends you a quote.
Rents are average asking rates in dollars per square foot per year on a triple-net (NNN) basis, before taxes, insurance and common-area costs, and they are what a 3PL pays its landlord, not what a brand pays per pallet.
Six local factors that move a Dallas fulfillment quote more than the headline rate does.
Imported containers from the West Coast and Houston land at Union Pacific's 360-acre Dallas Intermodal Terminal at I-45 and Fulghum Road in Wilmer and Hutchins, or at BNSF's nearly 500-acre Alliance ramp in Haslet, which averages about 2,700 lifts a day. The two sit roughly on opposite edges of the metro, so a warehouse near one can mean a cross-metro dray from the other. BNSF added a Port of Houston to Alliance lane in 2023. The pending Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern merger will not see a federal decision until fall 2027 at the earliest, per the Surface Transportation Board's August 18, 2026 schedule, so ramp economics are stable for now.
Ask: Which ramp do your current clients' containers come off, and what do you charge in drayage, chassis and per diem from each? How fast do you devan and receive a floor-loaded 40-foot container?
Sources: Wilmer EDC, Dallas Intermodal Terminal; Progressive Railroading, BNSF Alliance, Aug 2024; Hogan Lovells, STB UP-NS schedule, Sept 2026.
FedEx Ground runs a 778,000-SF regional sort on Cedardale Road south of I-20 near Lancaster, built for up to 15,500 packages an hour. On the north side, Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport hosts the FedEx Express southwest regional hub and an Amazon Air hub that opened October 2, 2019. USPS installed a sorter rated for 70,000 packages an hour at its Dallas Regional Transfer Hub in September 2025, and Amazon reported more than 30 DFW operations facilities as of 2021. A warehouse near the injection point can hold a later carrier pickup than one across the metro.
Ask: What are your daily pickup times for each carrier, and do you induct at the hub or wait for a local pickup? Which carriers inject directly into the Lancaster or Alliance hubs?
Sources: NBC DFW, FedEx Ground South Dallas, Nov 2020; USPS, Dallas Regional Transfer Hub, Sept 2025; Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport.
Texas adopts the federal $7.25 minimum, unchanged since July 24, 2009, and Labor Code section 62.0515 bars Dallas and other cities from setting a higher private-sector wage. Real pay for Dallas warehouse roles averages about $17.73 an hour, with a typical range of $15.00 to $20.46 (Indeed Flex, January 2026). Third-party logistics firms took 25.2% of DFW deals over 50,000 SF in Q3 2026 and data-center users took 23.1% (Cushman & Wakefield), so peak-season hiring competes with a lot of new buildings. HB 2127, effective September 1, 2023, is widely read as overriding local rules such as Dallas's water-break ordinance, so heat protections largely depend on each employer's own policy.
Ask: What is your starting wage, your temp-to-perm share at peak, and your turnover rate last year? What is your written heat-illness and break policy for dock staff in July and August?
Sources: Teambridge, Texas minimum wage, Apr 2026; Indeed Flex, Dallas warehouse pay, Jan 2026; KLTV, HB 2127 explained, Aug 2023.
Remote sellers must register once Texas sales pass $500,000 over the preceding 12 months, and collection starts by the first day of the fourth month after crossing it. Inventory stored in a Texas warehouse is treated as being engaged in business here regardless of sales, and a seller with a Texas presence cannot use the 1.75% single local use tax rate available to remote sellers, so you collect the destination rate of up to 8.25%. The franchise tax no-tax-due threshold is $2.65 million for 2026 and 2027 reports. Goods that leave Texas within 175 days may qualify for the freeport property tax exemption where local taxing units grant it. Confirm all of this with a tax advisor before you ship inventory in.
Ask: Can you produce a monthly report of inventory that ships out of Texas within 175 days for a freeport filing? Which appraisal district and taxing units cover your building?
Sources: Texas Comptroller, remote sellers; Texas Comptroller, franchise tax 2026; Denton County, freeport exemption.
Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 knocked out power across the state, and Texas officials tied at least 111 deaths to it by March 2021. On May 28, 2024, gusts to 80 mph and baseball-sized hail left more than 800,000 people without power, mostly in Dallas County, and partially collapsed a manufacturer's warehouse in Terrell. The October 20, 2019 EF3 tornado crossed I-35E in northwest Dallas and caused $1.55 billion in damage. Summer heat is a steady load too: DFW logged 47 days of 100 degrees or more in 2022.
Ask: Do you have backup generation for the WMS, dock doors and climate control, and how long did you stay down in February 2021? Is your roof rated for hail, and what does your contract say about force majeure and storm shutdowns?
Sources: FOX 4, Uri death toll, Mar 2021; Bisnow, North Texas storm damage, May 2024; 2019 North Dallas tornado.
DFW asking rent hit a record $9.76/SF NNN in Q3 2026, up 19.9% year over year, while vacancy fell to 7.3% (Cushman & Wakefield). The firm expects a record 47.4M SF of 2026 absorption and about 6.6% vacancy by year end, and big-box space over 500,000 SF is only 1.9% available. The one soft spot is mid-size buildings of 150,000 to 499,999 SF, at 10.1% vacancy. DFW still leads the nation in construction with 33.91M SF underway (CBRE, Q3 2026), but a 3PL renewing a lease in 2027 will likely pay more and pass it through.
Ask: When does your building lease expire, and does our storage rate have an escalator tied to your rent? Will you lock pallet and per-order rates for 24 months?
Sources: Cushman & Wakefield, DFW Industrial Q3 2026; CBRE, DFW Industrial Figures Q3 2026.
Yes, if your customers lean toward the central and southern US. About 53% of the US population sits within roughly 1,000 miles, or two truck days, of DFW (XPO data via the Dallas Regional Chamber, 2026). Brands with heavy California or Northeast demand should pair Dallas with a coastal node, because both coasts are multi-day ground.
Average asking rent across DFW was a record $9.76/SF per year NNN in Q3 2026, up 19.9% from a year earlier (Cushman & Wakefield). Submarkets range widely, from $6.55/SF in South Dallas to $11.20/SF at DFW Airport (Cushman & Wakefield, Q2 2026). A 3PL turns that rent into per-pallet storage charges, so lower-rent corridors usually quote cheaper storage.
It depends on how your freight arrives and where your customers are. South Dallas around Wilmer and Lancaster suits container importers near the Union Pacific ramp and the FedEx Ground hub, with the lowest core rents. Northwest Dallas around Carrollton suits infill DTC near the northern suburbs, and North Fort Worth / Alliance suits large BNSF-fed programs.
Ice storms, hail and tornadoes are the main risks, more than flooding. Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 caused statewide blackouts, and a May 28, 2024 storm left more than 800,000 people without power, mostly in Dallas County. Ask any 3PL about backup power, roof ratings and how its contract handles storm shutdowns.
Most move by rail from the West Coast or Houston to Union Pacific's Dallas Intermodal Terminal in Wilmer and Hutchins or to BNSF's Alliance ramp in Haslet. The ramps sit on opposite sides of the metro, so picking a warehouse near your railroad's ramp cuts drayage miles. DFW Airport also handled 717,757 metric tonnes of air cargo in 2025 for urgent inbound.
Yes. Inventory in a Texas warehouse generally creates nexus by itself, even below the $500,000 remote-seller threshold, and you then collect the destination rate of up to 8.25% instead of the 1.75% single local rate. Texas has no personal income tax, and goods that leave the state within 175 days may qualify for a freeport property tax exemption. Confirm your situation with a tax advisor.
Ask which rail ramp your containers come off and what drayage costs from each. Ask for carrier pickup times and whether they inject at the Lancaster or Alliance hubs. Ask for starting wages and peak temp share, what backup power covered them in February 2021, and when their building lease expires so you know if a rent jump is coming.
Every facility belongs to an operator with a signed agreement with 3PL Bridge, and each profile reflects what the facility runs today: order volume, certifications, systems and retail programs. Operator names stay private until the brand chooses who to meet. There is no cost to brands.