FCL vs LCL
FCL means you ship a full container of your own goods; LCL means your goods share a container with other shippers' cargo, billed by volume.
Last reviewed 16 July 2026.
FCL (Full Container Load) and LCL (Less than Container Load) are the two ways to move goods by sea container. With FCL you book an entire container — typically a 20ft or 40ft box — for your goods alone, regardless of whether you fill it. With LCL your smaller consignment is consolidated with other importers' cargo into a shared container and you pay for the space you use.
LCL suits smaller volumes because you avoid paying for a whole container, but it is billed by volume (per cubic metre), involves consolidation and deconsolidation handling, and generally moves slower with more touch points. FCL becomes cheaper per unit once your volume approaches roughly half a container, and it reduces handling and damage risk.
The crossover point depends on rates, but a common rule of thumb is that around 13–15 cubic metres, FCL starts to beat LCL on total cost.
How it affects your landed cost
The FCL-versus-LCL choice directly moves the freight portion of your landed cost, and the cheaper option flips as your order size grows — LCL for small volumes, FCL once you fill enough of a box. Because freight per unit changes with the mode, testing both against your quantity is worthwhile. Our calculator lets you enter the freight figure for each option and see which gives the lower landed cost per unit.
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See also
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