How Long does it take to Ship from China to the USA
Shipping from China to USA Time
The transportation time of your goods will be affected by the location, shipping scale and season. Transport times are not always the same. Depending on market conditions, natural behaviour and other circumstances, shipments may be delayed.
The rule of thumb for lead time (under normal conditions) is:3 days for air express, 4 to 8 days for air freight and 30 to 40 days for sea freight. These estimates may be affected by various circumstances, so it is worth checking with your logistics supplier.
Sea Freight time from China to the USA?
Wondering how long to ship from China to US? You need to know how much cargo, choose FCL or LCL, which port you need to ship from, which port you need to shipping to USA, which shipping carriers you need, Let’s start with major ports in US.Click the link:How to Choose a Port for Shipping from China to USA.
Shipping from China to USA, the route to the East Coast and West Coast is different. To the west coast of the United States, shipping is through the Pacific Ocean, it takes about 13-16 days, if the shipper carrier is different, the price is also different, so there are long and short time. To the U.S. East Coast is through the Pacific Ocean, then through the Panama Canal, and finally to the East Coast, the time is about 25-28 days. Can also be shipped to the West Coast, and then through the inland transportation to the East Coast, commonly known as MLB, the time is about 21-23 days, just to be more expensive than the sea.
Let’s take shipping from Shenzhen for example, shipping to US West Coast ports about 14-20 days, and shipping US East Coast ports about 30 days, so you better figure out the specific from the transport to where.
Shenzhen to Los Angeles shipping time, FCL ocean freight as an example, shipping carriers HPL, KLNE, CMA, NYK about 13 days voyage, APL, WHL, OOCL, COSCO, PIL about 15 days, MSC about 17 days.
Shenzhen to New York shipping time, FCL sea freight as an example, shipping carriers KLINE, COSCO, NYK, OOCL, HPL, EMC, APL about 28 days voyage, HMM, MSK, ZIM, MSC about 30 days voyage.
Of course, the same shipping carrier, different sailing time, the time limit will also be a day or two difference. For example, if the sailing to Los Angeles (LA) is on Saturday, it will take 14 days to arrive. If the ship sails on Sunday, it will arrive in 11 days. To Oakland (OAK), also a Sunday sailing, it will take 15 days to arrive.
Shipping Container Time from China to USA
The average transit time, sailing, and vessel schedule to ship your container from China to USA from the major ports in China.
| Country of origin | Port of origin | Port of destination | Transit time (days) | 20 FCL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | Port of Shanghai | Port of New York | 36 | $3150 |
| China | Port of Shenzhen | Port of Newark | 42 | $3250 |
| China | Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan | Port of Baltimore | 38 | $3650 |
| China | Port of Hong Kong | Port of Norfolk | 42 | $3050 |
| China | Port of Guangzhou | Port of Savannah | 45 | $3850 |
| China | Port of Qingdao | Port of Miami | 40 | $2850 |
| China | Port of Tianjin | Port of Houston | 36 | $3250 |
| China | Port of Dalian | Port of Los Angeles | 37 | $3150 |
| China | Port of Xiamen | Port of Washington | 30 | $3150 |
| China | Port of Yingkou | Port of Tacoma | 35 | $2850 |
Air Freight time from China to the USA?
Standard air shipping from China to USA usually takes 4 to 8 days. It’s not that the plane is slow, but that customs clearance, transportation, etc. take time. Express air freight services are usually 2-3 days shorter than standard air freight.
When the flight schedule is confirmed, what actual process takes place?
Your China supplier needs to send the cargo from their factory to the flight agent’s warehouse (0.5 Day).
Arrange cargo loading and customs clearance in China (1-2 days).
Flight from China to the USA (2-3 Days).
Customs clearance in the USA (1-2 Days). Inland transportation to your warehouse (2-3 Days).
P.S. The above timing is just an estimate and only serves as a reference. Timing may vary according to different situations. For example, if the customs declaration in China is delayed, it may lead to the suspension of the flight schedule, thus affecting the whole delivery time.
Here is the average air freight port to port shipping time to USA below.
| USA | Port to Port | Average Time |
|---|---|---|
| West USA | Guangzhou to LA | 3 days |
| Qingdao to Seattle | 4 days | |
| Shenzhen to Atlanta | 3 days | |
| East USA | Xiamen to Houston | 6 days |
| Shenzhen to Denver | 5 days | |
| Wuhan to New York | 6 days | |
| Middle USA | Beijing to Chicago | 4 days |
Express shipping time from China to USA
Three days are allowed for shipment from China by international express. This includes either picking up the package at the Chinese supplier’s door, unless the supplier has delivered the package to their warehouse. If it is really urgent, there will be more expensive quality services, which can even be delivered overnight.
| Express | Working Days |
|---|---|
| FedEX (IP) | 2-3 (Good timing) |
| FedEx (IE) | 4-5 (Balance on cost and time) |
| UPS | 2-3 (Expensive) |
| DHL | 3-5 (Timing not as good as FedEx) |
| SF-express | 5-7 (Newbie, May delay) |
| China Post: Air | 7-15 (Faster than surface one) |
| China Post: SAL | 10-20 (Between Air and Surface) |
| China Post: Surface | 40-70 (Very slow) |
| China Post: EMS | 5-7 (Fast and safe) |
| China (ePacket/EUB) | 7-30 (Very cheap) |
Usually, FedEx is the first choice when it comes to couriers because it offers IP and IE services to cover different needs, and is great at timing control.
How long does it take to ship from China to the USA with DHL?
- International shipping from China to the USA with DHL usually takes only 3-5 days. Depending on the weight and size of your shipment and the type of shipment you are shipping, it may be cheaper to ship via DHL China or DHL Hong Kong.
- For DHL China, shipping usually takes only 2-4 days, but for DHL Hong Kong, shipping takes about 3-5 days because the shipment must first be shipped to DHL Hong Kong. Your DHL shipment will be shipped all the way to your doorstep in the USA.
- DHL is a cheaper player in the market. But the timing control is not as good as FedEx. Sometimes there are delays and deliveries arrive later than expected. But if you don’t mind waiting for 2 to 3 more days, you will enjoy the benefits of cheaper shipping costs.
SF-Express is a newbie in this market. They coordinate with some local distributors for final delivery by cooperating with UPS or other couriers. However, their focus is more on shipping to FBA warehouses of participating businesses on Amazon.
Learn more: SF Express Cost, Time and How to Track it
China Post is cheaper compared with other express, but its shipping time is very long. Many eCommerce sellers like eBay, AliExpress, GearBest, BangGood, FastTech, often use China Post to deliver purchases due to its cheaper price.
For example, there is a miracle service named China Post-ePacke/EUB. It is incredibly cheap, but you would need to wait for about 15-25 days (Official time only. It normally takes 30-60 days for deliveries to arrive) to collect the parcel.
How long does it take to ship via China Post to USA
It takes a long time to ship goods from China by surface mail. China Post offers faster and more cost-effective options in air mail and EMS, both of which may take one to two weeks.
If the document appears to be in question, US Customs will lower the priority of parcel release. Therefore, by checking whether the supplier has received the written documents before sending, you can increase the chance that you can deliver normally in only one week.
Packages from China normally take at least a month but is largely dependent on the shipping method that was used when it was mailed. If it’s sent EMS, it can take 2–3 weeks but the service called e-packet, which isn’t trackable and very inexpensive, but takes a long time to get to the U.S. taking almost 45–60 days in most cases
Estimated Delivery Time in Different Procedures
| Procedure | Ordinary Mail (Untraceable) | Registered Mail (Traceable) | EUB (Traceable) | EMS (Traceable) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seller’s Storage Time Before Shipping | 1-5 days | 1-3 days | 1-3 days | 1-2 days |
| Collecting and Dispatching Time to the Destination | 2-5 days | 2-5 days | 2-5 days | 1-2 days |
| Days from China to the USA | 6-12 Days | 10-20 Days | 6-8 Days | 3-5 days |
| Transit Time to Local Post Office for Delivery | 5-10 days | 3-5 days | 2-3 days | 1-2 days |
| Delivery | 1-2 days | 1-2 days | 1-2 days | 1-2 days |
| Total | 25-40 days | 12-35 days | 15-25 days | 7-15 days |
Note: When the package is in the destination country, it will be processed by the postal service of the country. For example, when it’s in the US, it will be processed by USPS.
Cost Of Shipping From China To USA
| Container shipping service from China to USA | Type of container | Ocean freight rates from China to USA: |
|---|---|---|
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Shanghai China to USA. | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2550 20FT average price from: $3850 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Shenzhen China to USA. | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2250 20FT average price from: $3650 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Ningbo-Zhoushan China to USA. | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2150 20FT average price from: $3750 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Hong Kong China to USA. | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2650 20FT average price from: $4050 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Guangzhou China to USA. | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2550 20FT average price from: $3850 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Qingdao China to USA | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2550 20FT average price from: $3850 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Tianjin China to USA | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2450 20FT average price from: $4250 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Dalian China to USA | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2150 20FT average price from: $3850 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Xiamen China to USA | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2150 20FT average price from: $3850 40FT |
| How much does it cost to ship a container from Yingkou China to USA | 20 foot container FCL 40 foot container FCL |
average price from: $2150 20FT average price from: $3850 40FT |
20 FT & 40 FT Container Shipping Cost From China To USA
Shipping process from China to the United States
- Step 1: Contact a freight forwarder; China is preferred.
- You can contact a freight forwarder in China or the United States. U.S. freight forwarders are most likely to rely on local freight forwarders in China. Therefore, China-based freight forwarders are preferred because much of the complexity and uncertainty of international freight lies with the origin, not the destination.
- (More on “Why you should work with a local freight forwarder in China”)
- Step 2: Provide freight details and get freight solutions and quotes
- Step 3: Connect the freight forwarder with the supplier and the freight forwarder does its job
- Step 4: Obtain cargo insurance (optional)
- Step 5: Arrange customs clearance, or simply find a freight forwarder that provides one-stop door-to-door shipping services from China to the United States.
Founded in 2008, Basenton Logistics, is a comprehensive China Freight Forwarding company with express delivery as its core business, integrating cross-border, express delivery, commerce, cloud warehouse, aviation, finance, intelligence, media and other ecological sectors.
