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Shipping Cost from China

Reference container, LCL, air and express rates from China by region, with every charge in a freight quote explained line by line.

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Shipping Cost from China

Quick Answer: How Much Does Shipping from China Cost?

A 20ft container from China costs about US$150–650 in base ocean freight to Southeast Asia, US$1,200–2,500 to the US West Coast, US$1,500–2,600 to the Gulf and US$2,800–4,500 to North Europe and the UK. A 40ft runs about US$1,500–3,500 to the US West Coast and US$4,500–7,200 to Europe. LCL ranges from about US$20 per CBM to Manila to US$180 per CBM to the UK.

Those figures are base freight only. A full quote adds origin terminal and document fees in China, carrier surcharges, destination handling, customs clearance, duty and inland delivery. On small LCL shipments, duty and tax often cost more than the freight itself, so compare quotes on landed cost, not on the ocean line.

Rates and transit times are indicative, not a live quote. Request a current itemised quote before booking.

Choose How Your Shipment Is Priced

The same cargo can be priced four ways. Each card shows the price basis and when it gives the lowest total.

🚢 FCL Container Cost

  • Best for: Shipments that fill most of a container, or fragile cargo that should stay sealed.
  • Price basis: One rate per 20ft, 40ft or 40HQ, however full it is.
  • Cost guide: 40ft about US$1,500–3,500 to the US West Coast; US$4,500–6,800 to North Europe.
  • Choose this if: Your volume is above about 15 CBM.

📦 LCL Cost per CBM

  • Best for: About 1–15 CBM, or orders from several suppliers.
  • Price basis: Per CBM or per 1,000 kg, whichever is greater, usually with a 1 CBM minimum.
  • Cost guide: About US$20–45 per CBM to Manila, US$60–120 to the US West Coast, US$110–160 to North Europe.
  • Choose this if: A container would be mostly empty space.

✈️ Air Freight Cost per kg

  • Best for: Urgent cargo from about 100 kg.
  • Price basis: Chargeable weight, the greater of actual and volumetric weight (cm ÷ 6,000).
  • Cost guide: About US$4.50–9.50 per kg standard, before fuel and security surcharges.
  • Choose this if: A late delivery costs more than the freight difference.

⚡ Express Cost per kg

  • Best for: Samples and parcels under about 100 kg.
  • Price basis: Volumetric weight at cm ÷ 5,000, which penalises bulky boxes.
  • Cost guide: About US$8–16 per kg door to door, with customs handled by the courier.
  • Choose this if: The box is small and needed within a week.

Want a price for your exact cargo? Send the volume, weight and delivery address.

Get My Shipping Cost

Freight quotes from China are hard to compare because each forwarder groups charges differently. One quote shows a low ocean rate and adds fees later; another bundles everything into one line.

Most importers ask three questions before booking: what the rate is on their lane, which charges a quote should include, and what the total looks like once duty and delivery are added. Getting the third one wrong is the most common budgeting mistake on small shipments.

This guide answers them in that order: reference rates by region and port, the six charges in a quote, then three landed-cost examples.

Shipping Rates from China by Region

Base ocean freight depends far more on the destination region than on the carrier: a 20ft to Vietnam costs a small fraction of a 20ft to the UK.

Region Main Ports 20ft 40ft / 40HQ LCL per CBM
US West Coast Los Angeles, Long Beach US$1,200–2,500 US$1,500–3,500 US$60–120
US East Coast New York/New Jersey, Savannah US$2,500–4,000 US$3,000–5,500 US$90–160
US Gulf Coast Houston US$2,200–3,800 US$2,800–5,000 US$80–150
North Europe Rotterdam, Hamburg US$2,800–4,200 US$4,500–6,800 US$110–160
United Kingdom Felixstowe, Southampton US$3,000–4,500 US$4,800–7,200 US$120–180
UAE Jebel Ali, Abu Dhabi US$1,500–2,200 US$2,200–3,400 US$60–90
Saudi Arabia (baseline) Dammam, Jeddah US$1,800–2,600 US$2,600–3,800 US$80–110
Qatar Hamad Port US$1,700–2,500 US$2,500–3,600 US$75–100
Philippines Manila US$250–450 US$450–800 US$20–45
Indonesia Jakarta, Surabaya US$350–650 US$500–1,100 US$30–60
Vietnam Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City US$150–350 On request On request
Thailand Laem Chabang US$200–450 On request On request
Malaysia Port Klang US$250–500 On request On request

Base ocean freight, port to port, excluding origin charges, surcharges, destination fees, duty and inland delivery. US fees, duty and worked landed-cost examples are on our container shipping cost China to USA page, and rates, transit and tax for each Southeast Asian country on our shipping cost from China to Southeast Asia page.

Special rates from Nansha and Shekou to the Red Sea and Africa

Destination Port 20GP (US$) 40GP (US$)
Sokhna 5,400 8,100
Djibouti 6,050 8,720
Abidjan 3,000 4,100
Mombasa 3,150 4,850
Maputo 3,650 5,350

Reference only and subject to change. Mediterranean and Southeast Europe port rates are on our shipping cost from China to Europe page.

Pro tip: Red Sea ports such as Sokhna and Djibouti cost about twice as much as East or West Africa from the same origin. Jeddah, Aqaba and Aden are priced on our shipping cost from China to the Middle East page, where a Jeddah 20GP costs several times the Gulf baseline for Saudi Arabia. African routes and inland corridors are covered on our shipping from China to Africa page.

In simple words: Asia is the cheapest lane, the Gulf and the US West Coast sit in the middle, and Europe, the UK and the Red Sea are the most expensive per container.

What Is Included in a Shipping Quote from China?

Six groups of charges make up a sea freight quote. The Incoterm decides which of them you pay.

Charge How It Is Billed Who Pays under FOB What to Check
1. Base ocean freight Per container (FCL) or per CBM (LCL) Buyer Lane, carrier and validity date
2. Origin charges (ORC / THC in China) Per container or per CBM Supplier Not charged twice on an EXW quote
3. Documents, seal and VGM Per Bill of Lading or per container Supplier Usually small, but listed separately
4. Carrier surcharges (BAF, PSS, GRI) Per container, set by the carrier Buyer Peak season and fuel changes move them
5. Destination charges (DTHC, delivery order) Per container or per CBM at destination Consignee Often the largest gap between two quotes
6. Customs clearance, duty and inland delivery Per entry, by HS code, by distance Consignee Duty depends on HS code and value

For US imports, formal entries also pay a Merchandise Processing Fee of 0.3464% of value (minimum US$34.58, maximum US$670.86 per entry from 1 October 2026) and, for ocean cargo, a 0.125% Harbor Maintenance Fee.

In simple words: lines 1 and 4 are the freight, lines 2 and 3 are the Chinese port side, and lines 5 and 6 are what you pay after arrival. A quote that stops at line 4 is not a landed cost. Line 1 depends on the container choice; see FCL shipping from China for container sizes and LCL shipping from China for how LCL volume is measured.

What the Total Looks Like: Three Landed-Cost Examples

  • 3 CBM LCL, Shenzhen to Toronto: about US$2,650 landed, of which US$1,450 was duty and tax, more than the ocean freight and destination charges combined. See shipping from China to Canada.
  • 4 CBM LCL, Shenzhen to Hamburg: about US$1,120 landed; duty and import VAT (US$450) exceeded the ocean freight (US$340). See shipping from China to Germany.
  • 40HQ, Shenzhen to Jebel Ali: about US$7,820 landed; duty and VAT (US$4,200) were larger than the ocean freight (US$2,850). See shipping from China to UAE.

The pattern is the same in all three: once the HS code fixes the duty, the freight rate is rarely the biggest number, so confirm the HS code before comparing freight quotes.

FAQ
Why do two forwarders quote such different prices for the same container?

Usually because the quotes cover different charges. One may exclude destination fees or surcharges that the other includes, or quote a different carrier or sailing. Compare quotes on the same Incoterm and the same end point, port or door.

How often do shipping rates from China change?

Carriers can change rates every two weeks through general rate increases, and surcharges move with fuel prices and peak seasons. Treat any quote older than about a month as expired and ask for a fresh one.

Is FCL or LCL cheaper for my shipment?

Below about 10 CBM, LCL is almost always cheaper; above about 15 CBM, FCL usually is. In between, compare both landed costs; our sea freight from China guide explains the threshold.

Does a door-to-door quote include import duty?

Not always. Door to door describes delivery scope; only a DDP shipping from China quote includes duty and import tax. If duty is excluded, ask a customs brokerage team to estimate it from the HS code.

How can I lower my shipping cost from China?

Consolidate several suppliers into one shipment, move to FCL once volume allows, pack cartons tightly to cut billed volume, and book two to three weeks before peak seasons. For urgent cargo, compare air freight from China with express shipping from China from about 45 kg.

Need help with your shipment? Send your cargo volume, weight, HS code and delivery address for an itemised quote, and check transit on our shipping time from China guide. Get a Shipping Quote

We are a Shenzhen-based freight forwarder quoting FCL, LCL, air, express and DDP shipments from China with every charge listed line by line, from the Chinese port to your door.