The most common question in sea freight is “how much for a container?” The question is not wrong, only incomplete. What you pay is not one figure: terminal handling, documentation, destination charges and waiting penalties all sit alongside the ocean freight. And the choice between FCL and LCL is not decided, as most people assume, by whether the container is full — it is decided by cost per cubic metre.
What FCL and LCL actually mean
- FCL (Full Container Load). You take the whole container. The price is the same whatever your fill rate. The cargo is sealed once and is not handled again in transit.
- LCL (Less than Container Load). Your cargo shares a container with other consignments. You pay for the space or weight you occupy. Consolidation at origin and a deconsolidation warehouse at destination both come into play.
The real crossover: around 13-15 m³
In practice the crossing point varies by lane, season and destination port, but it generally sits around 13-15 m³. Below that LCL wins; above it a 20 ft FCL is cheaper per cubic metre. A 20 ft container holds roughly 33 m³ of usable space — so even half-empty, an FCL can come in below a 15 m³ LCL.
| Equipment | Internal volume (approx.) | Typical limiting factor | When it makes sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| LCL | What you occupy | — | Below 13 m³, irregular shipments |
| 20′ DV | ~33 m³ | On dense cargo weight fills before volume | Above 13 m³; heavy goods |
| 40′ DV | ~67 m³ | Volume usually fills before weight | Above 28 m³ of light cargo |
| 40′ HC | ~76 m³ | Similar to 40′ DV | Bulky, light cargo |
One warning: LCL is charged on whichever is greater, volume or weight — commonly 1 m³ treated as 1,000 kg. A consignment of 3 tonnes occupying 2 m³ is invoiced on 3 revenue tons, not 2. This is why LCL comes in more expensive than expected on dense cargo.
The charges outside the ocean rate
This is where quotations really differ. A quote with a cheap ocean rate can end up the expensive one once destination charges land:
| Charge | What it covers | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| THC | Terminal handling, charged at both ends | Excluded from most cheap-rate quotations |
| B/L or documentation fee | Issuing the bill of lading | A fixed charge, proportionally heavy on small shipments |
| CFS / deconsolidation | LCL only; splitting the container at destination | The main charge that narrows the gap to FCL |
| Demurrage | Container sitting inside the port | Runs daily once free days expire |
| Detention | Container held outside the port, with you | Often confused with demurrage; two separate clocks |
| ISPS / security | Port security contribution | Small but fixed |
When reading a quotation one question is enough: is this door to door, or port to port? If the answer is not clear, the comparison is meaningless. We quote sea freight as a single figure and state plainly what is excluded.
Free days: the detail that costs the most money
Every shipment comes with a number of free days on the container. Whether that window is enough for clearance depends entirely on whether the documents are ready. A single day in customs is rarely a problem; five days will consume the whole saving on the ocean rate. This is why we check the documents before the goods leave, not when they arrive.
Why container rates move so much
Ocean freight is not a tariff, it is a supply-and-demand price. Capacity, blank sailings, fuel, routing changes and seasonal demand shift the number weekly. That is why our quotations carry a validity date — confirming a figure quoted three weeks ago is usually not possible.
Six lines that speed up your quote
- Port or address of loading, port or address of delivery
- Total volume in m³ and gross weight
- Number and type of packages (pallets, crates, cartons)
- Description of the goods and HS code if known
- The Incoterms rule you want
- Whether any dangerous goods are involved — if so, the safety data sheet
Before the container choice comes the question of who organises the shipment: what a sea freight forwarder actually does, and the charges that never appear in the rate, are covered separately.
Frequently asked questions
At how many cubic metres does FCL become cheaper?
Usually somewhere around 13-15 m³. The exact crossover depends on the lane, the season and the destination port’s charge structure. Send us your volume and we will compare both options on cost per cubic metre and tell you which wins — even when it is not the answer you expected.
Why was my LCL invoiced on weight rather than volume?
LCL is charged on whichever is greater, volume or weight, commonly with 1 m³ treated as 1,000 kg. On dense cargo the weight figure is larger and the invoice follows it. This is standard practice rather than a surprise, and it should be stated in the quotation.
What is the difference between demurrage and detention?
Demurrage is the container waiting inside the port area. Detention is the container out of the port and in your possession. They run on separate clocks and are invoiced separately; one can begin before the other ends.
How many pallets fit in a 20 ft container?
With standard Euro pallets in a single tier, typically eleven; more where stacking is possible. But the governing constraint is rarely the pallet count — on dense cargo a 20 ft container reaches its payload limit long before it runs out of floor space.
How long is a freight quotation valid?
Ocean freight is a market price and moves weekly, so our quotations carry a validity date. For regular volumes a fixed-rate agreement can be arranged; for one-off shipments the figure comes from the spot market.
Is customs clearance included in the freight rate?
No, it is a separate line — but we quote both together. Keeping clearance and transport in the same team means a missing document shows up before loading rather than at the port.
Can I hold the container without clearing it?
Yes, using a bonded warehouse. The goods wait without being imported and duty and VAT are deferred until release. This is the standard structure when the buyer is not yet confirmed or when import is being deferred for cash flow reasons.
Send the volume, the weight and both ends of the lane, and we will put FCL and LCL side by side with every charge included. Use the quote form or write to us directly.