How Long Does Freight Shipping Take: What Freight Service Works the Fastest

How Long Does Freight Shipping Take: What Freight Service Works the Fastest

How Fast is Freight Shipping: What Factors Affect the Delivery Time

The freight shipping industry heavily depends on transit time, especially when it comes to supplying other industries. Different transportation methods provide different time frames. You can choose from road, rail, air, and ocean freight. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. 

While air freight is the fastest option, it is the most expensive one, and it\’s only efficient for long-distance shipments. Ocean freight is the choice for international transportation; however, it is pretty slow. Ground freight includes road and rail transport provides the wides possibilities for freight shipping but they are accessible only inside your country/continent.

Also, don’t forget about things that can change or delay the delivery time. The following factors are:

• Weight and size of your shipment
• Chosen shipping method
• Distance and route
• Seasonality and weather
• Unpredicted situations (accidents, construction, traffic)

How Long Does Ground Freight Shipping Take

Ground freight is the most common method of goods transportation. It allows you to ship almost any freight and offers affordable solutions for businesses and individuals. In addition, shipping by land has multiple services that let you schedule and plan freight transit times.

How long does it take to ship by land? In most cases, ground freight takes 1 to 5 or 2 to 8 business days to deliver freight. Different shipping services have different delivery times. The faster delivery you need – the more expensive service will be.

How Long Does Sea Freight Take

Sea and ocean freight is the most popular transportation time as it allows to ship enormous amounts of commodities in a single take.

Sea shipments may take up to 6 weeks to deliver your freight. Why so long? Because freight needs to go through 4 steps:

• Ship loading. Usually, it takes from 3 to 7 days, depending on if it is an LCL or FLC shipment. LCL is longer to load as it contains freight from multiple clients.
• Ocean/Sea transit. Ships sail at a standard speed of 24 knots or 27 miles per hour. The whole journey usually takes up to 14 days.
• Ship unloading. The unloading process can take 5 or more days, and only then the goods can be taken for further transit.
• Last mile delivery. After arranging the shipments, your carrier can proceed to delivery by ground transport. Add another week if your cargo needs to be shipped from coast to coast.

What is Transit Time in Shipping

Transit time is an interval that is required for your cargo to be delivered after pickup. Basically, it is the time your shipment spends while moving to the destination point.

The transit time depends on the transportation method and many other factors that we have already listed earlier.