Base freight, BAF, THC, security, documentation fees: a freight quote is read line by line. Knowing what each one covers is enough to compare two offers without surprises.
A sea freight quote adds up base freight and a series of surcharges, each with its own role: fuel, terminal handling, security, emissions, documentation. The total shown says nothing about what is covered. To compare two offers, read them line by line, with the same Incoterm and the same arrival point.
Have two quotes on the table that look nothing alike? Show them to our international transport specialists or request a detailed quote to have a point of comparison.
What lines appear on a sea freight quote?
Take a 20-foot container from China, priced on our indicative rate card, the one our calculator uses. These are not market rates, but the order of magnitude and the structure are those found on most offers.
- Base freight, €1,400: the port-to-port transport price, the one people instinctively compare, and which is only part of the bill.
- The BAF (Bunker Adjustment Factor), €168: the fuel adjustment, which tracks the price of bunker fuel and which our rate card calculates at 12% of base freight.
- The THC (Terminal Handling Charge), €210: handling the container at the terminal, from quay to vessel or vice versa.
- ISPS security, €25: it funds the ship and port security measures required by the ISPS Code, in force since 1 July 2004.
- Documentation and bill of lading issue fees, €60: the paperwork, billed once per shipment.
The total comes to about €1,860 before any inland transport. Base freight makes up only three quarters of it: comparing two offers on that line alone means comparing part of the price.
The emissions surcharge, the newest line
Since maritime transport entered the European carbon market, carriers have been passing on the cost of allowances. The timetable set by the European Commission is gradual: shipowners surrender allowances for 40% of their 2024 emissions, 70% of their 2025 emissions, then 100% from 2027. For a voyage that starts in China and ends in the Union, half of the voyage's emissions are covered.
This surcharge changes every quarter and is not always presented the same way. Maersk, for example, publishes it for Q4 2026 at €74 per 20-foot dry container between the Far East and Northern Europe, but includes it in the base freight for departures from mainland China. One offer may therefore show it separately and another may already have absorbed it: before saying a quote is cheaper, check where it is hiding.
What doesn't always appear on the quote
A quote holds true for a given scope. Whatever falls outside still ends up on your bill, on arrival or later. The lines most often missing:
- Destination charges: handling at the port of arrival, document release, sometimes billed by the local agent rather than by whoever quoted.
- On-carriage to your warehouse, which depends on the city and is added separately.
- Cargo insurance, which our rate card prices at 0.3% of the insured value with a minimum of €25, and which is never included by default.
- Customs duties and import VAT, which are not part of freight: they are owed to the authorities and calculated on a reconstructed value.
- Charges for the container standing at the port or at your premises beyond the free time granted by the carrier.
Duties deserve a closer look. Customs value is measured at the first point of entry into the Union: freight and insurance up to that point are added to the price of the goods. A quote that lumps main freight and transport within France together without separating them therefore also inflates the taxable base, as explained in our post on customs value, line by line.
How do you compare two freight quotes?
The first check is the Incoterm. Under FOB, the seller bears the costs up to loading on board; under EXW, the buyer covers everything from the factory, including loading. Two offers built on two different Incoterms simply do not cover the same journey.
- Same Incoterm and same place of collection on both offers.
- Same arrival point: port of discharge, or your warehouse, destination charges included.
- Same equipment: a 20-footer, a 40-footer and groupage by the cubic metre cannot be compared.
- Same surcharges, shown or included, including the emissions surcharge.
- Same validity period: an offer valid for a fortnight is worthless for a departure in two months.
- Same free time at the port of arrival.
The choice of equipment matters more than you might think. On a medium volume, the gap between a groupage offer and a full container offer often comes down to the billing method rather than the carrier: our post on the tipping point between groupage and container shows where it lies, and the container guide gives the usable dimensions of each box.
What to do before signing
Take your two offers and line them up in a table, one row per item. Each empty cell is a question to put in writing to whoever quoted: included, excluded, or billed by a third party? The answer sometimes changes the ranking. To get a detailed basis for comparison on your route, our calculator shows each line separately.
