From factory pickup in China to delivery at your US warehouse, we handle export, the ISF, customs entry and duties. Fly urgent stock in days, or ship by ocean to the West Coast, the East Coast or inland by rail to keep costs down.
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Drag to spin
Choosing between them is a trade between days and dollars. Here’s how they compare on the China to US lane.
Daily flights from Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Hong Kong to Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and Dallas, many via Anchorage. Cargo can be in your warehouse within a week.
Containers sail to Los Angeles, Long Beach or Seattle and move inland by rail, or go all-water to New York, Savannah and Houston. Ship LCL for smaller orders and FCL once you reach about 13 cubic metres.
Enter your cartons, destination and deadline to compare arrival dates and relative costs for air, express, LCL and FCL.
Enter carton size and weight to compare options.
Planning estimates only. Transit times are typical ranges, and cost comparisons are relative, not quotes. Your quote confirms rates and schedules.
West Coast ports are fastest from China; East Coast and Gulf ports skip the rail leg for eastern destinations. We pick the gateway that gets your freight home soonest for the price.
The largest container gateway in the US and the shortest crossing from South China. Containers are trucked across Southern California or railed to Chicago, Dallas, Memphis and the Midwest.
The Northwest Seaport Alliance ports are the quickest crossing from North China, with rail service to Chicago and the Upper Midwest.
The busiest port on the East Coast, served by all-water services from China through the Panama Canal. No rail transfer means fewer handoffs for East Coast deliveries.
A fast-growing all-water gateway for the Southeast, with quick truck and rail access to Atlanta, the Carolinas and Florida.
The Gulf Coast’s largest container port, reached from China through the Panama Canal, and the natural gateway for Texas.
Los Angeles (LAX), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), New York JFK and Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) take most air freight from China. Many freighters stop in Anchorage (ANC) on the way.
Typical door-to-door days from East China (Shanghai and Ningbo). From South China, add one to two days for ocean.
| Destination | Main gateway | Ocean FCL | Ocean LCL | Air freight | Air express |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles, CA | LA / Long Beach / LAX | 18–25 days | 25–33 days | 4–7 days | 2–5 days |
| Seattle, WA | Seattle / Tacoma / SEA | 19–26 days | 26–34 days | 4–7 days | 2–5 days |
| Chicago, IL | West Coast + rail / ORD | 25–33 days | 32–41 days | 4–7 days | 2–5 days |
| Dallas, TX | LA + rail or Houston / DFW | 25–33 days | 32–41 days | 5–8 days | 3–5 days |
| Atlanta, GA | Savannah / ATL | 30–40 days | 37–47 days | 5–8 days | 3–5 days |
| New York / New Jersey | Port of NY & NJ / JFK | 30–40 days | 37–48 days | 4–7 days | 2–5 days |
Add duty, China tariffs, customs fees and freight to see the real cost per unit before you place the order.
Your supplier’s price means little until you know the Incoterm. It decides which freight costs are included and when the risk shifts to you.
Your supplier makes the goods available at their factory. You arrange and pay for everything from there, including Chinese export clearance.
Best for: Buyers whose forwarder collects from the factory and can handle export formalities.
Watch out: Chinese export declarations are filed under an exporter with export rights. Under EXW that is technically your job, so confirm your supplier will still provide the export documents.
The supplier clears the goods for export and hands them to your carrier at an agreed place: their dock, a consolidation warehouse in China, or the terminal.
Best for: Container and air shipments. The ICC recommends FCA instead of FOB for containerised cargo.
Watch out: Name the exact handover place in the contract. Who pays for loading depends on whether that place is the supplier's premises or somewhere else.
The supplier delivers the goods on board the vessel at the Chinese port, cleared for export. You control the ocean freight, insurance and everything after.
Best for: Most importers buying from China. You choose the carrier and forwarder, so destination charges hold no surprises.
Watch out: FOB is for sea freight only. For air shipments, use FCA instead.
The supplier pays the ocean freight to the destination port, but the risk passes to you as soon as the goods are on board in China.
Best for: Buyers who want one price to the port and accept less control over routing.
Watch out: Low CFR freight often comes with high destination charges on arrival, which you pay. Get them in writing before you agree.
Like CFR, plus the supplier buys cargo insurance in your favour, but only minimum cover (Institute Cargo Clauses C).
Best for: Letters of credit, and buyers who want insurance arranged at origin.
Watch out: Clauses C cover far less than all-risk insurance. For valuable goods, raise the cover or insure the cargo yourself.
The supplier delivers to the place you name, ready for unloading. You handle import customs clearance, duties and taxes.
Best for: Buyers who want door delivery but prefer to control customs and duty payments.
Watch out: If the supplier's forwarder is slow, your stock is late. Agree on transit times and what happens when shipments are delayed.
The supplier handles everything, including import clearance, duties and taxes. You receive the goods.
Best for: Small or one-off orders where simplicity matters more than control.
Watch out: The seller acts as importer of record. Check that values are declared correctly: under-declared DDP shipments can be held at the border.
| Cost | EXW | FCA | FOB | CFR | CIF | DAP | DDP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Export packing | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller |
| Loading at the factory | Buyer | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller |
| Export clearance in China | Buyer | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller |
| Delivery to port or airport | Buyer | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller |
| Origin terminal and loading | Buyer | Buyer | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller |
| Main freight by sea or air | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Seller | Seller | Seller | Seller |
| Cargo insurance | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Seller | Seller | Seller |
| Destination terminal charges | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Seller | Seller |
| Import customs clearance | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Seller |
| Import duties and taxes | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Seller |
| Delivery to your door | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Buyer | Seller | Seller |
| Risk passes to buyer | At the factory | Handover to your carrier | On board the ship | On board the ship | On board the ship | At your door | At your door |
Two to four weeks of factory closures, plus a rush to ship before them. These are the dates that matter for US-bound orders this season.
US Customs and Border Protection expects importers to be ready before cargo leaves China. Here’s what to set up.
The importer of record is responsible for the entry, duties and compliance, and needs an IRS number, usually your EIN, on file with CBP. Formal entries, generally shipments valued over $2,500, need a customs bond: a single-entry bond for occasional shipments or a continuous bond if you import regularly.
The Importer Security Filing (ISF, or 10+2) must reach CBP at least 24 hours before your cargo is loaded on the vessel in China. Late or inaccurate filings can bring penalties of up to $5,000 per violation, so we collect the supplier details early and file for you.
Most goods from China pay the regular HTS duty plus Section 301 tariffs of 7.5% to 100%, depending on the product. Further China-specific tariffs introduced since 2025 have changed several times, and the $800 de minimis exemption no longer applies to Chinese goods, so every shipment is dutiable. We check current rates for your HTS code before you book.
Food, cosmetics and medical devices fall under the FDA, electronics under the FCC and children’s products under the CPSC. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act presumes goods with inputs from Xinjiang were made with forced labor, so keep supply-chain records for cotton, polysilicon, PVC and similar materials.
The questions US importers ask us most, answered.
Send it with the packing list and we’ll tell you the best way to ship it, plus duties and tariffs.
Get a quoteAir freight takes 4 to 8 days door to door and express courier 2 to 5 days. Ocean freight in a full container takes about 18 to 26 days to Los Angeles or Seattle, 25 to 33 days to Chicago or Dallas by rail, and 30 to 40 days to New York or Atlanta, door to door. LCL adds about a week.
Ocean freight: LCL for smaller orders and a full container from about 13 to 15 cubic metres. For East Coast deliveries, compare an all-water service to New York or Savannah with West Coast plus rail; the cheaper option changes with the season.
Yes, for formal entries, which cover most commercial shipments over $2,500, and for ocean shipments that need an ISF. A single-entry bond covers one shipment; a continuous bond covers a year of imports and usually pays for itself after a few shipments. We arrange either.
The Importer Security Filing, also called 10+2, gives CBP details about your ocean shipment, including the seller, buyer, manufacturer, HTS codes and container stuffing location. It’s due at least 24 hours before the cargo is loaded on the ship in China. We file it for every ocean shipment we handle.
You pay the normal duty for the product’s HTS code plus Section 301 tariffs, which range from 7.5% to 100% depending on the product. Further China-specific tariffs introduced since 2025 have changed often, so we confirm the current combined rate for your products before you ship. The landed cost calculator shows the effect.
No. Goods from China no longer qualify for the $800 de minimis exemption, so even small parcels are dutiable and need a customs entry. That makes consolidating small orders into one shipment more cost-effective.
West Coast ports (Los Angeles, Long Beach, Seattle and Tacoma) are the fastest crossings and connect by rail to the Midwest. For the Northeast and Southeast, all-water services to New York, Savannah or Houston avoid the rail transfer. We compare both for each shipment.
We work with licensed customs brokers to file FDA prior notice for food and the data other agencies require. Before your goods ship, we’ll also tell you which certificates they need, such as FCC authorization for electronics or a Children’s Product Certificate.
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act lets CBP detain goods made wholly or partly in Xinjiang or by listed entities. Cotton, polysilicon, PVC, aluminum and tomatoes are high-priority sectors. Ask suppliers for supply-chain documentation before you ship, especially for apparel and solar products.
Factories close for two to four weeks, and the month before is the busiest of the year, with tight space and higher rates on transpacific services. Book four to six weeks ahead. See the booking deadlines.
We’re Canadian, with teams in Vancouver and Toronto. China to Canada is our home lane.
Send the basics and we’ll come back with air and ocean options, with the ISF and customs included.
Prefer a dedicated quote page? Open the full request form.
We’ve received your request and will reply with options, usually within one business day.