Container Shipping UK — FCL & LCL Container Services
Need container shipping for your imports? Carrgo handles 20ft, 40ft, and 40ft HC containers with FCL and LCL options. Full customs clearance. Get your container shipping quote in 2 hours.
Carrgo Freight Solutions — UK freight forwarder handling sea freight, air cargo, road haulage, rail freight, and customs clearance for UK importers and exporters.
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Who we help: UK importers, exporters, procurement managers, logistics managers, manufacturers, ecommerce businesses, Amazon FBA sellers, wholesalers, retailers, and customs-clearance customers.
Services: Sea Freight | Air Freight | Road Freight | Customs Clearance | Port Tracker
What container sizes are available and what fits in them?
The two standard dry containers are the 20ft and the 40ft. A 20ft offers around
33 cubic metres capacity with roughly 28 usable once loaded on pallets; a 40ft
offers around 67 with roughly 58 usable. A 40ft High Cube adds about a foot of
internal height for light, bulky cargo. Specialist equipment covers the rest:
reefers for temperature control, open tops for over-height cargo, and flat racks
for out-of-gauge loads. Full detail is in the
container size guide.
How many pallets fit in a container?
As a working rule, a 20ft takes 10-11 standard UK pallets in a single layer and
a 40ft takes 20-21, before any double stacking. Actual figures depend on pallet
footprint, load height and weight limits, so confirm against your own packing list
rather than assuming the maximum.
What do container shipping companies charge for?
Ocean freight is only part of the bill. Expect the base sea freight rate, bunker
and currency adjustment surcharges, origin terminal handling, UK terminal handling,
customs entry, plus duty and VAT. Demurrage and detention start once free time at
the port expires, which is where unplanned costs usually appear. Estimate your
total with the cost calculator.
How do you avoid demurrage and detention charges?
Have the customs entry and funds ready before the vessel arrives, not after, and
route through a port that is actually clearing cargo. Free time is short and the
daily charges escalate. Check current conditions on the
port congestion tracker before
fixing the routing, and read the weekly
port congestion report for
which ports are trending worse.
What container shipping does Carrgo handle?
FCL and LCL into all major UK ports, reefer and specialist equipment, break bulk
and project cargo, customs clearance, and onward delivery. See
sea freight for the wider service or
request a quote.
How do you choose container shipping companies?
Ask whether they handle your lane and container type regularly, quote the
all-in landed cost rather than the sea freight leg alone, and can tell you which
UK port is currently clearing fastest. Carrgo publishes live
port congestion scores so
its routing advice is based on real data, not habit.
What is container freight?
Container freight is cargo moved in a standard shipping container — FCL if it
fills one, LCL if it shares one. It is the default way goods travel by sea, and
the pricing follows container size, the lane, surcharges, port handling and duty
plus VAT on arrival. Container
shipping with Carrgo covers FCL, LCL and specialist equipment.