The Real-time Online Sea Freight Price Calculator above enables users to estimate international freight costs for shipping goods from the USA to various countries worldwide.
Select your destination country to begin calculating international shipping costs.
The website is a platform that facilitates international shipping of goods from the United States overseas. It works perfectly for shipping both commercial cargo and household goods. It integrates international LCL Sea freight rates from well-known and reliable U.S. cargo consolidators. It allows users to ship goods packed in boxes, crates, and pallets from the U.S. to other countries.
Select your destination country, follow a few steps, and receive an instant price quote. It's free, with no obligations or waiting time.
- Are you unsure about the exact size and weight of your cargo? Don't worry. Just roughly estimate everything. Once your load is delivered to the freight terminal, the shipping cost will be adjusted based on its actual volume and weight.
- Book online and get shipping instructions within 24 business hours. Submit a commercial invoice or valued packing list online. Receive your express release bill of lading in a PDF file.
- Whether involved in international trade, E-commerce, or shipping personal goods, this online freight calculator makes it easy to quote, book, and ship your goods from the United States to various destinations overseas. You can do it all from the convenience of your office or home, no matter where you are.
With this online calculator, you can get instant quotes on shipping relatively sizable cargo from the USA overseas. Click on the image below to watch a 3-minute YouTube video.
Quick help:
- To find the nearest freight terminal in the USA, select your destination country and city, then filter by state and see the list of available freight terminals. Use Google Maps to determine the distance. For US ZIP codes, try the USPS ZIP Code Lookup.
- When requesting a quote, select this option for a price quote that includes pickup (cargo collection from your door). Enter your cargo location's ZIP code (U.S. postal code) in the final step.
- The cheapest way to ship ocean freight from the USA is to deliver packed goods to an ocean carrier's freight terminal (professionally called CFS - Container Freight Station). These terminals are in uppercase and highlighted in the online freight calculator, e.g., ATLANTA, GA.
What is LCL freight shipping? Why should you consider LCL freight an ECONOMY FREIGHT SERVICE?
Regarding ocean freight from the USA, LCL is the abbreviation for 'Less than Container Load.' In shipping goods from the USA by sea, LCL refers to shipping cargo that cannot fill an entire container and is packed in boxes, crates, or stacked on pallets. I.e., if you do not need and do not want to pay for shipping from the USA a whole container as you do with FCL (Full Container Load), then shipping cargo LCL is a cost-effective method for shipping goods in crates, boxes, and pallets from the USA to overseas destinations.
If you are shipping commercial goods from the USA in boxes, crates, or pallets, and the total volume does not exceed 15-20 cubic meters (500-800 cubic feet), then it is more beneficial to ship freight LCL rather than shipping entire containers.
Suppose you ship household goods or personal effects from the USA abroad and pack everything in boxes, crates, or stacks on pallets. In that case, there are advantages to using LCL (Less than Container Load) sea freight instead of hiring an international moving company. Suppose you are new to international shipping. In that case, it is recommended that you read about the differences between shipping household goods from the USA overseas using LCL versus moving with an international moving company to avoid confusion.
Compared to air freight, FCL, or parcel services, LCL freight is the cheapest way to ship larger cargo from the USA overseas. It is also the most cost-effective way to transport cargo conveniently and flexibly. Therefore, you should consider LCL shipping from the United States economy.
If you ship goods in boxes, crates, or pallets from the United States overseas, shipping cargo LCL can significantly reduce transportation costs.
- If you share a 40-foot ocean freight container with other shippers, YOU ONLY PAY FOR THE SPACE YOU USE, NOT THE ENTIRE CONTAINER. In other words, if your cargo does not fill an entire sea freight container, it is obviously the best way to ship LCL compared to shipping FCL (Full Container Load).
- Since cargo vessels' capacity is not limited by weight but by volume, international LCL freight rates are calculated based on cargo volume in cubic meters or cubic feet, but not by cargo weight. So, in general, WEIGHT IN LCL FREIGHT IS NOT A PRICING FACTOR. The cost of LCL freight depends on the total volume of the shipping cargo. You may find more information about dimensional weight in cargo transportation on this website.
- If shipping freight LCL, YOU MAY SAVE ON INLAND CARGO TRANSPORTATION. If you deliver your shipping boxes to the nearest freight terminal, you can save on inland trucking expenses and reduce shipping costs. The cost of transporting goods within the United States is significantly high. Sometimes, the cost of domestic cargo transportation within the U.S. can exceed the cost of ocean freight in international shipping prices. If you self-deliver your cargo, you save on shipping costs when sending items from the USA to other countries.
It's important to note that the term 'Ocean Freight' in international cargo transportation from the USA refers to shipping goods between ocean freight carriers' terminals, which are professionally called CFS (Container Freight Stations) in the countries of origin and destination. If the CFSs are located in landlocked cities, the freight cost will include inland transportation to and from seaports to the CFSs.
It is flexible:
- If you deliver your cargo in loose boxes to a freight terminal, the terminal can palletize your boxes into skids. Let the terminal palletize your boxes. HANDLING SMALL AND LIGHT SHIPPING BOXES IS MUCH EASIER THAN DEALING WITH HEAVY, OVERSIZED PALLETS. Besides being convenient, palletized cargo is also safer during shipping. Smaller shipping boxes can be palletized, while bigger units can be kept loose. Then, you can eliminate extra volume charges in your shipping cost.
- While shipping LCL freight, YOU CAN SHIP BOXES, CRATES, AND PALLETS OF ANY SIZE as long as they fit into a 40-foot multimodal sea freight container. The internal dimensions of 40'STD are as follows:
Length - 39'5" = 12 meters
Width - 7'5" = 2.35 meters
Height - 7'10" = 2.39 meters - Cargo shipped from the USA in cardboard boxes complies with SPM 15 regulations. You can buy cardboard shipping boxes at stores like U-Haul, Walmart, and Office Depot. We recommend shipping cargo overseas in heavy-duty cardboard shipping boxes. After packing your cardboard shipping boxes, you should stack them on certified or plastic pallets. This process is called palletizing.
If you bring your loose cardboard shipping boxes to an ocean freight shipping terminal (CFS), they will adequately palletize and shrink-wrap them for international shipping from the USA. The fee for palletizing ranges from $35 to $50+ per pallet, depending on the freight terminal. Take advantage of this opportunity. We do not recommend palletizing shipping boxes unless you are a professional in international cargo transportation. Let the professionals at CFS handle palletizing for you. TRANSFER RESPONSIBILITIES ON THE QUALITY OF SKIDS AND COMPLIANCE WITH ISPM 15 TO THE SHIPPING FREIGHT TERMINAL (CFS). After that, your cargo should not encounter issues with ISPM 15 regulations during international transportation from the United States overseas.
