Surviving on the market and gaining a competitive advantage require the effective management that guarantees the success of the company. Outsourcing is one of the methods. The term outsourcing derives from English and is an abbreviation of the expression outside resource using, which means the use of external resources. Outsourcing should focus on optimization of costs and employment. The main benefit should be the pursuit of increased flexibility of structures, access to the qualified staff and other resources of the company. Failures of outsourcing may result both from the side of the ordering company and providing railway freight transport services. The empirical studies on decision-making problems of recipients of railway freight outsourcing services allowed to identify the benefits, risks, communication methods and problems in partner cooperation.