How to Quote a Freight Shipment Without Losing Money on It

Quoting is the moment where margins are made or lost. Most freight forwarders quote based on what they remember from the last similar shipment, add a rough margin, and hope the actual costs come in close. For many, they do not. Here is a structured approach to quoting that consistently captures the right margin.

The four costs most quotes miss

• Origin charges: THC, documentation fees, seal charges, stuffing supervision — using last quarter's rate costs you on the difference.
• Customs examination risk: If your cargo has a high examination rate, factor in the cost of examination, delay, and potential restuffing as a probability-weighted cost.
• Destination charges at port of discharge: If quoting door-to-door, get a confirmed rate from your agent — not a ballpark.
• Currency risk: If your freight cost is in USD and your client invoice is in AED or INR, build in a forex buffer or quote in the invoicing currency.

Margin by service type

Not all services carry the same margin. Freight forwarding typically runs 8 to 12 per cent on gross revenue for standard FCL shipments. CHA services carry higher margins — 20 to 30 per cent is achievable. Local transportation is the lowest at 5 to 8 per cent. Apply service-specific margins and let the blended margin emerge. Do not apply a flat rate across bundled services.

Using historical data to sharpen your quotes

After three to six months of deal data, you have margin performance by route, cargo type, client, and season. A Mumbai-Dubai rate in January is not the same as June because peak season surcharges shift. Platforms that analyse your historical deal data and surface margin performance at the quoting stage turn every new quote into a data-driven decision.

Key Takeaways

1. Origin charges, examination risk, confirmed destination rates, and currency exposure are the four costs most quotes underestimate.

2. Apply service-specific margins (not a flat rate): freight 8-12%, CHA 20-30%, cartage 5-8%. Let blended margin emerge.

3. Historical deal data is your sharpest quoting tool — three months of data reveals which routes and clients are actually profitable.

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