Sea · LCL
LCL shipping from China, from one CBM
You pay for the space you use, not for a container you cannot fill. Weekly consolidation out of China, several suppliers grouped into one consignment, cleared in Hyderabad.
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Goods + freight + duty + IGST + clearance, in one number.
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Weight or measure, whichever is greater
LCL is quoted per CBM, but the rule is “W/M”, weight or measure. The carrier charges on your volume in cubic metres, or your weight in tonnes, whichever produces the larger number.
For most consumer goods, volume wins and you are charged on CBM. For tiles, hardware, machinery parts, fasteners and anything dense, weight can win instead. Ask your supplier for both figures before you book, not just one.
Calculating your CBM
- Take carton length × width × height in centimetres
- Divide by 1,000,000 to get cubic metres per carton
- Multiply by the number of cartons
- Round up, carriers measure the outer dimensions, including any pallet
Where LCL stops making sense
Above roughly 12 to 15 CBM, a 20ft container usually works out cheaper per cubic metre than buying the space by the metre, and it moves faster, because it is not opened and sorted at a CFS. If you are near that line, price both.
These are usable figures, not the nominal capacity on a spec sheet, cartons do not tessellate perfectly and nothing loads to the roof at the doors. Note the payloads: a 40ft is twice the length of a 20ft but carries slightly less weight, which is why dense cargo like tiles or hardware sometimes ships as two 20ft boxes rather than one 40ft.
Where the crossover sits
| LCL | FCL 20ft | |
|---|---|---|
| Sensible volume | 1–12 CBM | 15 CBM and above |
| Charged on | Per CBM (W/M) | Flat per container |
| Deconsolidation at CFS | Yes, adds days | No |
| Handling stages | Most | Fewest |
| Door to door | 22–28 days | 20–26 days |
| Multi-supplier | Straightforward | Possible, needs planning |
| Damage exposure | Higher, shared handling | Lower, sealed at origin |
Why LCL exists
You can test a product for one CBM
LCL is what makes a first import survivable. You can bring in a single cubic metre, find out what it really lands at, find out whether it sells, and only then commit to container volumes. Importers who skip that step and start with a 40ft box learn the same lessons with fifty times the exposure.
About LCL shipping
What does LCL mean?
Less than Container Load. Your cargo shares a container with other importers’ cargo. You pay for the space you occupy rather than for a whole box, which is what makes importing viable from a single CBM.
How is LCL priced?
Per CBM, or per 1000 kg, whichever is greater: the shipping term is weight-or-measure. Light bulky cargo is charged on volume; dense cargo like tiles, hardware or machinery parts can be charged on weight instead.
What is the minimum?
One CBM. Below that you still pay the one-CBM minimum, so half a cubic metre costs the same as a full one. If your cargo is genuinely small, compare against air and courier before booking LCL.
Is LCL slower than FCL?
Usually by a few days. An LCL container is deconsolidated at a container freight station on arrival and the individual consignments are sorted before clearance, which adds a handling stage FCL does not have.
Is my cargo safe sharing a container?
Cargo is stowed and secured by the consolidator, but it is sharing space with goods you did not pack. Pack for it, double-walled cartons, palletised where possible, nothing relying on being the only thing in the box. We check packing suitability at the warehouse before loading.
Can I mix goods from several suppliers into one LCL shipment?
Yes, and you should. Suppliers deliver to our China warehouse, we hold until everything arrives, then ship as one consignment on one bill of entry. It is the single largest saving available to a small importer.
Get an LCL quote
Send your carton dimensions and count, or your total CBM, and where you are buying from. We come back with a doorstep figure.