Many shippers are surprised when a shipment that looked cheap at the quoting stage ends up costing much more in the end. This is very common in ocean freight, and it usually happens because the cheapest route focuses only on the freight price and ignores what happens after the container starts moving.
What it is:
When you receive a shipping quote, the first number you see is usually the ocean freight rate. This is the cost of moving a container from one port to another. It looks clear and simple, so it becomes the main decision factor. However, ocean freight is only one part of the journey. The real cost of shipping also includes how long the container stays in ports, whether it arrives on time, and how easy it is to pick up and deliver the cargo. These costs are not always visible in the quote, but they often have a bigger impact than the freight rate itself.
How it works:
Cheaper routes often rely on more complex logistics. They may use transshipment ports, where containers are unloaded from one vessel and loaded onto another. They may use carriers with fewer sailings or ports that are already congested. Each extra step adds risk. If the first vessel arrives late, the container may miss the next vessel. If the port is congested, containers may wait days before being discharged. If trucking or chassis are not available, the container stays in the terminal even longer. Ports and carriers give only a limited number of free days. Once this free time is over, they charge daily fees called demurrage, detention, or storage. These charges start automatically and increase every day until the container moves. So while the freight rate stays the same, extra costs begin to grow quietly in the background.
Examples:
- A shipper chooses a route that is cheaper because it includes a transshipment port. On paper, the saving looks good. But the container misses the connecting vessel and waits six days for the next one. During those six days, demurrage and detention charges apply. By the time the container moves again, the extra charges are three times higher than the original savings.
- In another case, a cheaper route arrives during peak season. The port is crowded, and there are not enough trucks or chassis available. The container cannot be picked up on time, even though it arrived. Storage charges apply every day, and the shipment becomes more expensive than a slightly higher-priced route that arrived earlier and moved smoothly.
- Sometimes the issue is not the ocean leg at all. A shipment arrives on time, but documents are delayed or customs clearance is slow. The container stays in the terminal, and fees continue to grow. None of these costs were included in the original quote.
Facts:
More than 60 percent of shipping delays start at ports or during handovers, not while the vessel is at sea. Demurrage and detention charges commonly reach $800 to $1,200 per container, and in busy ports they can be even higher. Missing a vessel connection often adds five to ten days to the transit time, which affects inventory, production, and customer delivery.
Misinterpretations:
- Many shippers believe that choosing the lowest freight rate means choosing the cheapest shipment. In reality, the freight rate is often the smallest part of the total cost.
- Another common misunderstanding is that delays are rare or unpredictable. In practice, delays are frequent and follow clear patterns related to port congestion, transshipment, and carrier schedules.
Who solves it:
Skypace looks beyond the freight price. When planning a route, Skypace’s platform analyzes historical delays, port congestion, carrier reliability, and free-time limits. This allows the system to estimate the total cost risk, not just the base rate. Instead of showing only the cheapest option, Skypace shows which route is more likely to arrive on time and move without extra charges. In many cases, a slightly higher freight rate results in a lower final cost because it avoids delays, port fees, and operational problems. For shippers, this means fewer surprises, more predictable deliveries, and better control over total shipping costs.
