Freight Forwarder from China to the USA

Freight forwarding from China to the USA is a door-to-door service: we collect your goods from the factory, consolidate them at our own warehouse in Guangzhou, and ship them to the United States by ocean (from $180 per m³, 30–35 days) or by air (from $10 per kg, 15–20 days) — insured for the whole route, with customs handled on DDP terms, so duties are settled on our side and quoted to you up front.

We handle shipments from 30 kg — from a single pallet to a full container. Below: how ocean and air compare on this lane, how the cost is calculated, what US customs clearance actually involves in 2026, and answers to the questions importers ask most.

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Air freight: 15–20 days, from $10 per kg — China to the USA
Ocean freight: 30–35 days, from $180 per m³ — China to the US West Coast
Minimum shipment: from 30 kg — below that, fixed handling and entry costs usually outweigh the savings on the goods
Consolidation: our own warehouse in Guangzhou: orders from several factories wait for each other and ship as one consignment
Insurance: included in the service package for the whole route — from pickup in China to delivery at your address
Customs: DDP: entry, duties and fees settled on our side and included in the quote; on request we deliver to port and hand documents to your own customs broker

How a shipment runs
— step by step

Request and quote: you send weight, dimensions and what the goods are — we calculate freight, duties and the domestic leg as one figure.

Agreement and pickup: we collect the cargo from the factory, or receive a domestic delivery inside China at our Guangzhou warehouse.

Check and preparation: we verify quantity and packaging condition, repack for the route where needed, and label the cartons.

Loading and freight: the goods ship by your chosen mode — ocean or air.

Customs entry: we file the entry, settle duties and fees, and pass on the full document set.

Domestic delivery: we deliver to your address in the United States.

Service reference:
timelines, terms, details

01 Shipping methods, China to the USA — transit times and entry rates

Method	Transit time	Rate from	Best for
Ocean freight	30–35 days	from $180 / m³	planned orders, furniture, fixtures, bulky and volume-heavy goods
Air freight	15–20 days	from $10 / kg	urgent restocks, electronics, samples, light and high-value goods
Rail	not available on this lane	—	China–US rail does not exist: the route crosses the Pacific. Rail serves the China–Europe lane only.

02 What the rate includes and what is quoted separately

Item	Status
Pickup from the factory in China	included in handling
Receiving and consolidation at our Guangzhou warehouse	included in handling
Cargo insurance	included in handling
Freight to the USA	per m³ (ocean) or per kg (air)
Customs duties and CBP fees	per the HTS code of your product — the amount is stated in your quote
Delivery to your US address	per the domestic leg — stated in your quote

Get a quote for your shipment — free, no obligations

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Ocean or air — how to choose

On the China–USA lane the choice comes down to three questions: what the goods weigh, how much space they take up, and when you need them on the shelf.

lowest cost

Ocean freight

Transit time30–35 days

Ratefrom $180 / m³

Worth it whengoods are bulky and the order is planned in advance

Formatconsolidated cargo (LCL) or full container (FCL)

fastest

Air freight

Transit time15–20 days

Ratefrom $10 per kg

Worth it whengoods are light and valuable, or the shelf is running empty

Formatshipments from 30 kg

Transit times are counted from loading in China to arrival at the US port or airport — customs clearance and the domestic leg are quoted separately so the two numbers stay comparable. Ocean transit to the East Coast runs longer than to the West Coast; we state the exact figure for your port in the quote.

How the freight cost is calculated

Freight from China is billed on whichever is greater — actual weight, or the space the shipment occupies. That is why two shipments of the same weight can cost very differently.

Actual weight

MAX

Volume

m³

Chargeable basis

the greater of the two

To quote you we need three things: gross weight, carton dimensions, and what the goods actually are — the last one drives the duty rate. If you already have a proforma invoice from your supplier, that is enough to start.

US customs clearance in 2026 — what changed and what we do

Two things worth knowing before you calculate a landed cost this year. First, the $800 de minimis exemption is gone: it has been suspended for every country and every mode of transport since August 2025, and in June 2026 CBP wrote that suspension into permanent regulation. Every commercial shipment, whatever its value, now needs a formal or informal entry, a 10-digit HTS classification and full payment of duties — splitting an order into sub-$800 parcels no longer works for anyone.

Second, duties on Chinese goods stack in layers, and the stack changed twice this year. We work on DDP terms: we file the entry, settle duties and fees, and you receive the goods at your address with a complete document set for your books.

Commercial invoicethe basis for customs value

Packing listcontents, weight and carton dimensions

Bill of lading or air waybillthe ocean or air transport document

HTS classificationthe 10-digit code that sets the duty rate

ISF filingImporter Security Filing — required for ocean shipments before loading

CBP entry summaryconfirmation that the goods were entered and duties paid

We do not quote a single percentage for “the tariff on Chinese goods”, and it is worth being wary of any page that does: your rate is built from your product’s own HTS code plus whichever Section 301 and Section 232 layers apply to it. What we do is classify your goods and put the resulting amount in your quote. If you would rather clear the goods yourself, we deliver to the port or airport and hand the documents to your customs broker. The layers in force, with sources and dates, are set out in our guide to US import duties on goods from China.

Consolidation: several factories, one shipment

If you buy from several suppliers at once, shipping each order separately eats the margin you gained on the goods. Orders wait for each other at our Guangzhou warehouse and travel as one consignment — one freight charge, one customs entry.

Factory #1

Factory #2

Order from 1688

Order from Alibaba

OptMaster warehouse in Guangzhoureceiving, checking, repacking

One shipment to the USAone freight charge, one entry

What we ship and what we do not

A straight answer up front: some goods either need permits we do not hold, or do not fit our transport network at all.

We take on

commercial and industrial goods in shipments from 30 kg

machinery, parts and components

furniture, fixtures and interior products

electronics and accessories (with documentation)

packaging and production materials

We do not ship

goods requiring special licences, and weapons

counterfeits and trademark-infringing products

hazardous materials without proper ADR/IMDG classification

personal parcels without purchase documents

Useful articles
on this topic

Articles US Import Duties on Goods from China in 2026

What US importers actually pay on Chinese goods in 2026: the Section 301 and 232 layers, what the Supreme Court struck down, and why the $800 de minimis is gone.

FAQ

How long does shipping from China to the USA take?+

Ocean freight runs 30–35 days to the US West Coast, air freight 15–20 days. Customs clearance and the domestic leg come on top — our quote states the door-to-door date, not just the freight leg.

How much does it cost to ship a container from China?+

Ocean freight starts at $180 per m³ for consolidated cargo. For a full container (FCL) we quote per container, which usually works out better than the sum of the cubic metres. The exact figure follows once we have dimensions and the type of goods.

Do you handle customs clearance and duties?+

Yes. We work on DDP terms as standard: we file the entry, settle duties and CBP fees, and you receive the goods at your address with the documents for your accounting. If you prefer your own customs broker, we deliver to the port or airport and hand over the paperwork.

What is the duty rate on goods from China?+

There is no single rate, and any page quoting one is guessing. Your rate is the normal HTS duty for your product plus whichever additional layers apply to it — the Section 301 lists, the forced-labour Section 301 duty introduced in July 2026, and Section 232 where the goods contain steel, aluminium or copper. We classify your goods and put the resulting amount in your quote.

Does the $800 de minimis exemption still apply?+

No. It has been suspended for all countries since August 2025, and in June 2026 CBP made the suspension permanent by regulation. Every commercial shipment now needs a customs entry and full duty payment regardless of its value.

What is the minimum shipment weight?+

We handle shipments from 30 kg. Below that, the fixed costs of handling and customs entry usually outweigh what you saved on the goods themselves.

Is the cargo insured, and can I track it?+

Insurance is included in the service package and covers the whole route, from pickup in China to delivery at your address. Every client has a dedicated manager who reports status at each stage: warehouse receipt, loading, freight, customs entry and domestic delivery.

Our
Services

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We work with orders from $2,000

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