Shipping
Air vs Sea vs Express: Real Shipping Times and Costs from China in 2026
Every seller who ships from China faces the same decision on every shipment: express, air freight, or sea freight. The right answer depends on how fast you need the goods, how much they weigh, and how much you are willing to pay per kilogram to get them there.
This article gives you the current numbers for all three methods in 2026, plus the two budget options (special lines and postal) that sit between them. Every rate listed comes from our own carrier contracts and the shipments we dispatch from our Shenzhen warehouse daily. These are operational numbers, not list prices.
Start here. This table shows the five shipping methods side by side on the factors that matter most: speed, cost, minimum weight, and what each method is best suited for.
| Method | Transit Time | Cost (to US) | Min Weight | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Express Courier | 2-5 days | From $8.50/kg | 0.5 kg | Urgent, small, high-value |
| Air Freight | 5-10 days | From $4.50/kg | 21 kg | FBA replenishment, medium bulk |
| Special Lines | 7-12 days | From $5.80/kg | 0.5 kg | Regional routes, sensitive goods |
| Sea Freight (FCL) | 14-35 days | From ~$0.35/kg* | 1 container | Large cargo, bulk inventory |
| Sea Freight (LCL) | 25-35 days | From $50/CBM | 1 CBM | Smaller bulk, not urgent |
| Postal Packets | 10-20 days | From $3.20/kg | 0.1 kg | Small parcels under 2kg |
*Sea freight FCL per-kg cost depends on container utilisation. A full 20ft container (28 CBM) to the US West Coast at $2,000 works out to approximately $0.35/kg for a 5,600kg load. A half-full container costs twice that per kilogram.
Express is the fastest and most expensive option. A package leaves our Shenzhen warehouse in the afternoon and lands at a US address in 3-4 days. UK in 3-4 days. Australia in 4-5 days. Southeast Asia in 2-3 days. Door-to-door, fully tracked, customs clearance included in the rate.
| Route | Transit | Starting Rate | Carrier |
|---|---|---|---|
| China → USA | 3-4 days | $8.50/kg | DHL |
| China → UK | 3-4 days | $9.00/kg | DHL |
| China → Europe | 3-5 days | $9.20/kg | FedEx |
| China → Australia | 4-5 days | $10.80/kg | UPS |
| China → SE Asia | 2-4 days | $7.50/kg | Various |
| China → Middle East | 3-5 days | $8.00/kg | Aramex |
These rates are through our level 1 agent partnerships with HK DHL, HK UPS, and HK FedEx. That means our shipping volumes secure wholesale pricing 30-60% below official carrier list rates. If you get a quote directly from DHL's website, it will be significantly higher than what we quote you.
When to use express: Individual ecommerce orders to customers (Shopify, Amazon FBM). Product samples to buyers. Urgent Amazon FBA replenishments under 100kg. High-value goods where the speed of cash recovery justifies the shipping cost. Documents and prototypes.
When express is too expensive: Anything over 200-300kg. Bulk inventory replenishments. Low-value, heavy products where shipping cost exceeds 15-20% of the product value.
Carriers charge the greater of actual weight or volume weight. Volume weight is calculated as L(cm) x W(cm) x H(cm) / 5000. A product that weighs 2kg but occupies a 40x40x40cm box has a volume weight of 12.8kg. You pay for 12.8kg, not 2kg. Packaging optimisation is often the fastest way to reduce express shipping costs without changing delivery time.
Air freight costs 40-50% less per kilogram than express courier but takes 5-10 days instead of 2-5. The difference is in the service model. Express is door-to-door with customs included. Air freight is airport-to-door: we handle export customs in Shenzhen, book space on a cargo airline, and arrange import clearance and delivery at the destination.
In early 2026, general cargo air freight from Shenzhen to the US runs $4.50 to $7.00 per kilogram for shipments over 100kg. Lighter shipments under 100kg pay closer to $7-9/kg because they do not fill enough space to get the bulk rate. The minimum shipment weight is 21kg.
We fly on Emirates SkyCargo, Cathay Cargo, China Southern, Singapore Airlines, and 20+ additional carriers. DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) is available on all air freight routes, which means duties and taxes are paid before the shipment arrives and your customer or warehouse sees no surprise charges.
When to use air freight: Amazon FBA replenishments over 100kg. Seasonal inventory builds where sea freight is too slow. Products with a per-unit value above $10-15 where the shipping cost is a small percentage of the product value. Any shipment where you need goods at the destination in under two weeks but express is too expensive.
Sea freight is the cheapest way to move large volumes from China. The trade-off is time. A container from Shenzhen to the US West Coast takes 14-16 days port-to-port. Add customs clearance and inland delivery, and you are looking at 20-25 days total. To the US East Coast: 25-30 days. To Europe: 30-35 days. To Southeast Asia: 7-10 days.
FCL means you book an entire container for your cargo. In early 2026, rates from Shenzhen to Los Angeles/Long Beach are approximately $2,000-$2,350 for a 20ft container (28 CBM) and $2,350-$3,400 for a 40ft container (58 CBM). To the US East Coast (New York, Savannah, Norfolk), add $400-$600 on top of the West Coast rate.
The per-kilogram cost of FCL is the lowest of any shipping method. A 20ft container carrying 5,600kg of goods at $2,000 freight works out to $0.36 per kilogram. That is 24x cheaper per kilogram than express courier. The catch: you need enough volume to fill or mostly fill a container, and you need to wait 3-5 weeks for delivery.
We book on Maersk, MSC, COSCO, CMA CGM, and other tier-1 ocean carriers. Our Shenzhen warehouse is minutes from both Yantian and Shekou container terminals, which means faster container loading and lower origin charges than warehouses that need to truck containers to a port hours away.
LCL means your goods share a container with other shippers. You pay for the cubic metres you occupy, not for a whole container. Rates in early 2026 run approximately $50-$118 per CBM from Shenzhen to major US ports, with a minimum of 1 CBM.
LCL takes longer than FCL because your goods need to be consolidated with other cargo at origin and deconsolidated at destination. Total transit is typically 25-35 days including these handling steps. LCL makes sense when you have 1-10 CBM of goods that are not urgent and you want sea freight pricing without committing to a full container.
When to use sea freight: Bulk inventory shipments where you can plan 4-6 weeks ahead. Products that are heavy, bulky, or low-value per unit (furniture, home goods, large equipment). Seasonal pre-stocking for Q4 (ship in August-September for October availability). Any shipment over 10 CBM where air freight cost becomes prohibitive.
Abstract per-kilogram rates do not tell you what you will pay on a real product. Here are three examples at different weights and volumes, shipping from Shenzhen to the US.
| Product | Weight | Express (DHL) | Air Freight | Sea (LCL) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phone case (50g) | 0.05 kg | $4.25* | N/A (under min) | N/A (too small) |
| Skincare set (400g) | 0.4 kg | $5.50 | N/A (under min) | N/A (too small) |
| 200 units of yoga mats (600kg, 4 CBM) | 600 kg | $5,100 | $3,300 | $470 |
| 1,000 units electronics (300kg, 2 CBM) | 300 kg | $2,550 | $1,650 | $236 |
| 40ft container of home goods (58 CBM) | ~12,000 kg | N/A | N/A | $2,350 |
*Express has a minimum charge per shipment, typically $15-25 depending on the carrier. The phone case example reflects volume weight pricing, not actual weight.
The pattern is clear. For individual orders and small parcels, express is the only practical option. For shipments between 100kg and 500kg, air freight hits the sweet spot of speed and cost. For anything over 500kg or 5 CBM, sea freight saves you 80-90% compared to air.
Shipping costs from China are not constant throughout the year. Three periods create significant rate fluctuations.
Sellers worldwide build inventory for the holiday season (Black Friday, Christmas, Q4). Demand for both air and sea freight surges. Container space tightens. Air freight rates can increase 30-50% above off-peak levels. Sea freight rates can double during extreme peaks. If you need Q4 inventory at Amazon or in a US warehouse by October, ship by sea no later than early September. Ship by air no later than mid-October.
Factories shut down for 2-4 weeks around Chinese New Year (which fell on January 29 in 2026). Production stops entirely during this period. The weeks before CNY see a rush of shipments as sellers try to get goods out before the shutdown. The weeks after see a slow ramp-up as workers return to factories. The practical impact: a 4-6 week window where no new goods are manufactured. Place your orders and ship inventory by early January to avoid a stockout that lasts until late February or March.
After Chinese New Year and before the Q4 build-up, shipping rates are at their lowest. Container space is readily available. Air freight rates stabilise. This is the best time to ship bulk inventory and negotiate favourable rates with carriers. If you can time your largest shipments for this window, you save the most on freight.
Many sellers do not pick one shipping method. They use a split approach: send the first 200-300 units by air freight to start selling within 10 days, then follow up with a sea freight container carrying 3-6 months of stock. The air shipment covers the gap while the container is in transit. This keeps you in stock, generating revenue and ranking, while the bulk of your inventory travels by the cheapest method.
Tell us three things: what you are shipping (product type, weight, dimensions), where it is going (country, city or postcode), and how fast you need it there. We will quote you across all applicable methods so you can compare and decide. If your goods are already stored in our Shenzhen warehouse, the quote includes pickup from your shelf and dispatch on the same day.
See our full shipping services page for detailed rate tables and carrier information. Or contact us directly for a shipping quote. We respond within 24 hours.
Product weight, destination, and urgency. That is all we need. We quote across all five methods so you can compare express, air, and sea side by side. Response within 24 hours.
Get a Shipping Quote →Express courier (DHL, FedEx, UPS) takes 3-5 business days door-to-door. Air freight takes 5-10 days airport-to-door. Sea freight takes 14-16 days to the US West Coast or 20-25 days to the East Coast (port-to-port), plus 5-10 days for customs and inland delivery.
Sea freight is the cheapest for large shipments. A 20ft container (28 CBM) from Shenzhen to Los Angeles costs approximately $2,000-$2,350 in early 2026, which works out to under $1 per kilogram for a full container. LCL starts from around $50-$118 per CBM. For small parcels under 2kg, postal services from $3.20/kg are the cheapest option.
DHL express from China to the US starts from approximately $8.50 per kilogram through a freight agent with volume rates. Direct DHL rates are higher. Rates depend on weight, dimensions (volume weight applies), and destination. DHL to the UK starts from $9.00/kg and to Australia from $10.80/kg.
Air freight is better when your shipment weighs between 100kg and 500kg, when you need delivery in under 10 days, when you are replenishing Amazon FBA inventory and cannot wait 30+ days, or when the product value is high enough that the faster cash recovery justifies the shipping cost difference.
Express shipping (DHL, FedEx, UPS) is door-to-door with customs clearance included, takes 2-5 days, and costs $8-11/kg. Air freight uses cargo airlines, takes 5-10 days, costs $4.50-7/kg, requires a 21kg minimum, and needs separate customs clearance at destination. Express is simpler but more expensive per kilogram.
Chinese New Year causes a 2-4 week factory shutdown, typically in late January or February. Factories stop production 1-2 weeks before the holiday and take 1-2 weeks to resume full capacity afterward. This creates a 4-6 week period where no new goods are manufactured. Sellers should place orders and ship inventory by early January to avoid stockouts.
Volume weight is calculated as Length x Width x Height in centimetres divided by 5000 for express, or divided by 6000 for air freight. Carriers charge the greater of actual weight or volume weight. This means lightweight but bulky products cost more to ship per kilogram than their actual weight suggests.
Yes. Many sellers use a split strategy: ship the first batch by air freight or express to get products selling quickly, then follow up with a larger sea freight shipment for bulk replenishment. This keeps you in stock while minimising total shipping cost. A Shenzhen warehouse can coordinate both methods from the same inventory.