An importer asked me last month for a 40HQ quote from Ningbo to Columbus. I gave her a number. She came back with two others, both lower, and asked which one was right.
All three were right. They were just counting different things.
That is the problem with shopping for a “40ft container cost from China to the US.” You are not comparing prices. You are comparing scopes, and the scopes differ in five places.
This is what those five places are.
The five segments, in order
A 40HQ from a Chinese factory to a US warehouse costs money in five places, and they occur in a fixed sequence.
| # | Segment | What it covers | Where it happens |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Origin charges | Factory pickup, export declaration, terminal handling, documentation | China |
| 2 | Ocean freight | Carriage from origin port to destination port, plus surcharges | At sea |
| 3 | US import clearance | Brokerage, entry filing, release coordination | US port |
| 4 | Duty and taxes | Assessed on the HTS classification and declared value | US entry |
| 5 | Destination delivery | Terminal handling, drayage, truck to the final address | US inland |
Most quotes you find online cover segment 2 only. That is why the number looks low, and why it does not survive contact with the arrival notice.
If you want the contractual view of who pays which segment, the DDP door-to-door scope lays it out.
Segment 4 is the one that varies most between two quotes for the same goods, because it depends on the classification used — and two forwarders can classify the same product differently. How HTS classification works is worth understanding before you compare duty figures.
Why three quotes for the same box differ
They assume different origins
One quote includes factory pickup in Guangdong. Another assumes your supplier delivers to a Shenzhen warehouse. That is a real cost difference, not a rounding error.
They assume different destination conditions
A quote built on a commercial dock in Long Beach and one built on a residential address in Ohio with a liftgate requirement are not comparable — even though both say “delivered to your door.”
They assume different duty bases
Duty follows the HTS classification. Two forwarders can read the same product description and land on different codes. The difference goes straight into the total.
They carry different validity periods
Ocean freight moves weekly. A quote from Monday and a quote from Friday may simply reflect two different markets. Ask for the expiry date before you compare anything.
They write down different exclusions
One quote states in writing that examination fees are excluded. Another excludes them silently. The number looks lower until CBP selects your container.
What is fixed, and what is not
The origin-side and vessel-side work involved in a standard FCL booking is covered in more detail under ocean freight and customs clearance.
Some things about a 40HQ are fixed facts you can plan around. Others are not.
Fixed (approximate, subject to the actual container):
| Spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Internal length | ~12.03 m |
| Internal width | ~2.35 m |
| Internal height | ~2.69 m |
| Nominal capacity | ~76 CBM |
| Typical payload | ~26–28 t, depending on carrier and route |
| Door height | ~2.58 m |
Not fixed — never trust a published figure:
- The freight rate
- The surcharge amounts
- The transit time in days
- The duty rate
The loading decision that changes your cost
Before you compare prices, the box has to be right. Two things decide it: volume and weight.
A 40HQ holds about 76 CBM in theory. You will not load 76 CBM. Carton shapes, palletization, and stacking all waste space — and the more irregular the cartons or the higher the palletization ratio, the more you waste.
Palletization is the item most often left out of a quote request. A load that fits in one container at 65 CBM loose can become 72 CBM palletized — and 72 CBM does not fit in a 40HQ. That is a second container, decided by a detail nobody mentioned.
Weight catches heavy cargo first. Take a 40HQ with a 26 tonne payload and 76 CBM capacity. That works out to 26 ÷ 76 ≈ 0.34 t per CBM. If your cargo is denser than that, you hit the weight limit before you fill the box.
Worked example (hypothetical): cartons at 0.12 CBM and 45 kg each give a density of about 0.375 t/CBM. By volume, 76 CBM would take 633 cartons. By weight, 633 cartons is about 28.5 t — over the limit. The real ceiling is around 26 t, or roughly 578 cartons and 69 CBM.
So “how many cubic meters do I have” and “how many containers do I need” are two different questions.
Six details that make a quote usable
A quote is only useful if it can be compared. These six details make that possible.
| # | What to provide | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Product name, material, intended use | Drives the HTS classification, which drives duty |
| 2 | HTS code, if you have one | Two forwarders may classify the same product differently |
| 3 | Packed volume and weight | Decides container count, fill rate and whether you hit the weight limit |
| 4 | Pickup location in China | Segment 1 is priced by distance |
| 5 | Delivery address — state, city, ZIP | Segment 5 is priced by address and access conditions |
| 6 | Trade term — EXW, FOB, CIF, DAP or DDP | Decides who pays which segment, and who pays duty |
| 7 | Cargo-ready date | Decides which sailing you can make |
The two most often missing are #3 and #6.
#3: “65 CBM” is usually the loose volume. Palletized, it may be 72. See above.
#6: “Delivered to Los Angeles, how much?” does not say DDP or DAP. The difference between those two is clearance and duty, not freight.
Delivery address: enough to quote, not enough to book
For a first-pass quote, a city and ZIP will get you a usable range.
Before you book, the delivery address needs to be nailed down, because it decides which accessorial services apply and what they cost:
| Detail to confirm | What it changes |
|---|---|
| Commercial or residential | Residential delivery is priced and scheduled differently |
| Loading dock or no dock | No dock means a liftgate |
| Liftgate required | An added service, an added charge |
| Appointment required | Some warehouses only accept scheduled deliveries; waiting time is billable |
| Limited access | Schools, hospitals, military sites, trade shows |
| Inside delivery | Standard delivery stops at the door |
“Delivered to Los Angeles” can mean a commercial warehouse with a dock, or a storefront downtown that needs an appointment, has no dock, and requires a liftgate. The second costs materially more, and it is not the same delivery service.
Quote with the ZIP. Book with the details.
How to compare two quotes properly
Five questions turn a price comparison into an actual comparison.
1. “Which of the five segments are included?” Ask for a line-by-line confirmation. A forwarder who can answer in a table has thought about your shipment. If you are still working out what a DDP total normally contains, what’s included in DDP shipping from China to the US breaks the same five segments down for a DDP quote.
2. “What is excluded, and which exclusions could apply to this cargo?” The second half is the important half.
3. “What HTS classification and duty basis did you use?” Without the basis, you cannot compare totals.
4. “What delivery address and what access conditions did you assume?” Dock, appointment, residential, liftgate.
5. “What is the quote’s validity period, and what happens if the container is examined?” The answers tell you whether the quote is a plan or a headline. Examination and terminal delays connect to demurrage and detention, which sit outside a standard quote in both cases.
Back to the three quotes
I asked the importer for the six details. She had five. The sixth — whether the receiving warehouse had a dock — she did not know, so she called them.
The two lower quotes turned out to exclude US destination charges and to assume a residential delivery. Once those were added, the three numbers converged.
The gap was never in the price. It was in the scope.
If you have a shipment in hand and want a quote you can actually compare, send the six details above and we will price it in segments, with duty shown separately.