{"id":5508,"date":"2021-09-30T08:27:36","date_gmt":"2021-09-30T15:27:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/?p=5508"},"modified":"2026-01-27T08:48:57","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T16:48:57","slug":"how-to-ship-freight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/how-to-ship-freight\/","title":{"rendered":"Freight Shipping: A Beginner&#8217;s Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Freight shipping is, in short, shipping in large quantities, and in this article, we will help you figure out the best shipping solution for your needs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We will cover the basics of freight shipping:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is freight?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What are the different modes of freight transportation?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How are shipping costs calculated?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How to choose the right shipping type (LTL vs. FTL)?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How to package your shipment?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What documents do you need for freight shipping?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The primary focus of this article will be ground shipping, as opposed to air and ocean shipping.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is freight?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><b>Any shipment weighing over 150 lbs is considered freight<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Depending on the dimensions, lighter shipments are sometimes shipped as freight as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, if you\u2019re looking to ship a cabinet with the dimensions of 48\u201d x 20\u201d x 96\u201d (length, width, height), that shipment does not classify as a parcel simply due to its dimensions, regardless of weight. This isn\u2019t a strict rule, but <\/span><b>as a rule of thumb, shipments larger than 30\u201d x 30\u201d x 30\u201d are considered freight<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shipping a laptop? Easy, this is considered a parcel shipment. Shipping tens or hundreds of laptops? Sending them as freight would be the cheaper and simpler option.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What are the different modes of freight transportation?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><b>Freight is shipped via truck, train, airplane, ship, or as a combination of several of these options (<\/b><b><i>intermodal<\/i><\/b><b>)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Air shipping is the fastest and most expensive option<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> when it comes to shipping freight. As the name suggests, you would be shipping freight by airplane.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ocean shipping (which is where the phrase \u201cto ship\u201d something comes from) is done via ship. Generally, shipments are placed in 40\u2019 containers and transported in large quantities. Ocean shipping is mostly used for cross-continental shipments.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Ground shipping is the most common shipping method and involves only shipping via road or rail<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How are shipping costs calculated?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When it comes to freight quotes, there are several <a href=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/freight-shipping-guide\/how-freight-quotes-are-calculated\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">factors that impact shipping costs<\/a>:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Shipping mode<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shipping a few pallets as a less-than-truckload (LTL) shipment is a cheaper option than shipping them via a dedicated truck, or full truckload (FTL). And a shipment moving via rail is also less expensive than one moving by road or air.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Shipping distance<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A shipment moving within the same province or state would likely cost less than shipping cross-country or cross-border.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Shipment size &amp; weight<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A standard shipment with the dimensions of 48\u2033 x 48\u2033 x 48\u2033, weighing 400 lbs would likely cost less to move than the same cargo weighing 2000 lbs.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Special services<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>In an ideal scenario, you would be shipping business to business (B2B), dock to dock<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. That means that both the pickup and delivery locations are businesses in commercial areas and that they both have docks or forklifts on-site as ways to load and offload the freight. <\/span><b>Anything outside of that falls under special services<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, if your business is in a residential area, the carriers might consider your location as residential. Carriers charge extra for residential areas, limited access locations, tailgate\/liftgate services, as well as for other special services.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Freight class (the USA only)<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Freight classification is a number assigned to LTL shipments going within the US, or cross-border. Class is based on weight, size, density, handling, fragility, value, and assumed risk\/liability for hauling. The more difficult\/fragile a shipment is to handle, the higher its class is.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How to choose the right shipping type (LTL vs. FTL)?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Depending on the amount of freight you\u2019re shipping, your options would be less than truckload (LTL) or full truckload (FTL).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><b>Less than truckload (LTL)<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, if you\u2019re shipping just a few pallets your shipment is considered (standard) LTL.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">LTL also includes partial truckload shipments which means your freight would fill up more than half a truck, but not a whole one. These larger LTL shipments are also known as volume shipments.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5860\" src=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/LTL-shipments-Freightera.png\" alt=\"Illustration depicting pallet distribution in LTL shipping\" width=\"400\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/LTL-shipments-Freightera.png 310w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/LTL-shipments-Freightera-282x300.png 282w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><b>LTL is the most cost-effective option when shipping smaller amounts of freight<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Instead of having to pay for a whole truck, you would be sharing the price of one with other shippers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">LTL shipping is kind of like riding a bus. It\u2019s cheap, but you have other passengers on board with you and the bus needs to stop along the way to let people get on or off.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are three more important things to remember when it comes to LTL shipping:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another shipment might be placed on top of yours. If you do not specify that your freight is non-stackable, your shipment needs to be able to withstand the weight of another one on top of it.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">LTL is not the best option for time-critical shipments, because the truck contains shipments going to multiple locations and must make stops along the way. The pickup and delivery dates are not guaranteed for LTL shipments.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your shipment needs to be properly packaged. In most cases that means you should have it strapped to a pallet.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h4><b>Full truckload (FTL)<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><b>FTL is the best option when handling high-value, high-quantity, and time-sensitive shipments<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, if you ship 1 pallet via LTL, the trailer it is on will have to stop at multiple terminals along the way in order to unload all of the shipments that will be delivered from that terminal.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">FTL shipments do not face such delays because they go straight from point A to point B. Their transit times are mostly limited by the distance a truck can move per day.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5859\" src=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/FTL-shipments-Freightera.png\" alt=\"Illustration depicting pallet distribution in FTL shipping\" width=\"400\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/FTL-shipments-Freightera.png 310w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/FTL-shipments-Freightera-282x300.png 282w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unlike LTL, you can think of FTL as renting a car. You have the car all to yourself, and you can go wherever you want without stops, but it\u2019s not the cheapest option.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Both shipping options have their pros and cons. By the end of this article, you should have a clearer idea of what your actual shipping needs are and how to get the most accurate rate quote.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How to package your shipment?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before shipping anything, you need to make sure that your shipment is properly packaged. This makes both your and the carriers\u2019 lives easier. <\/span><b>If your shipment is not properly packaged, your shipment is at higher risk of being damaged and the driver may simply refuse to pick it up due to the potential risk it poses to other shipments<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The most common ways to protect your shipment are to palletize or crate it. Shipping on a pallet is the more common of the two. Crating your shipment is the safest way to go. In fact, if you\u2019re looking to ship something fragile such as art, for example \u2013 you will <\/span><b><i>need <\/i><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to have it crated in order to have it shipped. However, for most standard shipments a pallet offers more than enough protection and it is the less expensive option.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Note that in order for a pallet to be considered properly packaged, nothing can be protruding from the side of the pallet.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For an example of a properly packaged pallet, please see the image below.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5585 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Properly-packaged-pallet.png\" alt=\"Illustration of a properly packaged pallet\" width=\"600\" height=\"487\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Properly-packaged-pallet.png 600w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Properly-packaged-pallet-300x244.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As mentioned earlier, <\/span><b>another shipment might be placed on top of yours in order to save truck space<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> during shipping. Keeping this in mind while packaging your shipment will help you minimize the risk of any potential damage.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What documents do you need for freight shipping?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lastly, shipping documents include the bill of lading (BOL), shipping labels, and the customs invoice (for cross-border shipments only).<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><b>Bill of lading (BOL)<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Think of your BOL as your shipment\u2019s personal ID card. It has all of the information about your shipment. The carrier will use this document to figure out how to handle your shipment and where to deliver it to.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Every BOL must contain the following information:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The shipper\u2019s and consignee\u2019s contact information and address<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The shipper\u2019s and consignee\u2019s hours of operations<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The preferred pickup and delivery dates<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The shipment information (commodity, weight &amp; dimensions per pallet)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Any potential special instructions<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At Freightera, we generate a filled-out BOL for you automatically at the time of booking.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Example of BOL:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-BOL-1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5595\" src=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-BOL-1-232x300.jpg\" alt=\"Example of a Bill of Lading\" width=\"400\" height=\"517\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-BOL-1-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-BOL-1-793x1024.jpg 793w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-BOL-1-768x992.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-BOL-1.jpg 995w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h4><b>Shipping labels<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The shipping labels are your BOL\u2019s younger sibling. They contain elementary information about your shipment and generally serve as a means of confirming which pallets belong to which BOL. <\/span><b>The labels need to be placed on each of your pallets so that the carrier can accurately track your shipment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Example of a shipping label:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-shipping-label-1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5596\" src=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-shipping-label-1-233x300.jpg\" alt=\"Example of a Shipping Label\" width=\"400\" height=\"516\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-shipping-label-1-233x300.jpg 233w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-shipping-label-1-794x1024.jpg 794w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-shipping-label-1-768x991.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-shipping-label-1.jpg 996w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h4><b>Customs invoice<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can think of your customs invoice as your shipment\u2019s passport. If a shipment needs to cross the border, it won\u2019t be able to do so without its customs invoice.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The customs invoice needs to contain the following information:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The country of origin<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The shipper\u2019s and consignee\u2019s information (company name and the full address)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The list of items shipped<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The value per item shipped and the total value<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Example of a blank customs invoice:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-customs-invoice.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5593\" src=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-customs-invoice-232x300.jpg\" alt=\"Example of a Commercial Invoice\" width=\"400\" height=\"518\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-customs-invoice-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-customs-invoice-791x1024.jpg 791w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-customs-invoice-768x994.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Example-of-customs-invoice.jpg 816w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In summary<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After you\u2019ve checked if your shipment is a parcel shipment, LTL or FTL, try to pinpoint any specific services your shipment might need.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You will also want to make sure you\u2019ve properly packaged your shipment and that you have all of the necessary documentation on hand when the driver comes to pick your freight up.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You don\u2019t need to be a freight specialist in order to make shipping easy. Just make sure you know what it is you\u2019re shipping; where to and from you\u2019re looking to have it shipped and if there\u2019s anything you need to mention ahead of time in order to avoid any surprises.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With your newfound knowledge, you are now ready to get <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">your all-inclusive, free freight quote<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. If you keep the above-mentioned tips in mind, you will get your all-in rate within a few minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Freight shipping is, in short, shipping in large quantities, and in this article, we will help you figure out the best shipping solution for your needs. We will cover the basics of freight shipping: What is freight? What are the different modes of freight transportation? How are shipping costs calculated? How to choose the right [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-green\" href=\"https:\/\/www.freightera.com\/blog\/how-to-ship-freight\/\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":342,"featured_media":5587,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-about-freight-shipping","category-ltl-shipping"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Freight Shipping: A Beginner&#039;s Guide | Freightera Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In this article, we walk you through the basics of freight shipping. 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