How to Choose Between Ocean Freight and Air Freight

TL;DR

• Ocean freight is cheaper but slower, ideal for bulky goods.
• Air freight is faster, suitable for urgent or high-value shipments.
• Air freight is better for remote areas, ocean freight handles heavier loads.
• Air freight has a higher environmental impact.

Logistics industry can be quite intricate, mostly when it comes to determining the right mode of transport and service to use. In this article, we concentrate on the freight transportation and we give you some basic guidelines to help you choose between ocean freight and air freight.

If your businesses require the transportation of bulky goods and heavy loads overseas, you usually have two options: ocean freight or air freight. How to determine which one is appropriate for your shipping? Here are some factors to take into consideration:

1. The cost

When it comes to business, money is the most important factor to take into consideration. Every business looks for a way to lower their shipping expenditures, and sometimes, it may be necessary to choose between ocean freight and air freight.

Ocean freight rates are significantly lower than the airfreight. As a matter of fact, the rates for ocean freight can be up to 6 times lower. This led to a shift of shipping services more towards ocean freight and caused some losses for the airfreight industry.

There is probably still a long way to go until the airfreight becomes a financially competitive way for transportation. Until then, ocean freight is the best alternative.

2. The type of shipment you send

While airfreight is more suitable for lighter shipments due to the limitations in the load that can be carried, ocean freight can accommodate heavier loads. Most airline companies have been focusing on developing their fleet for travellers, in order to accommodate the increasing demand. This, in turn, led to a reduction of the space used for cargo. However, in order to optimize the cargo space of the airplane, the airline’s companies have been keen to limit the quantity of luggage that a passenger can take.

Also, airfreight is generally used for high valued goods thanks to the increased safety of the transportation. About 35% of the value of global freight is shipped by air, but this accounts for barely 1% of the total shipments.

Intermodal containers have eased the way freight is moved around the globe. They are widely used in the transportation of goods because it makes the handling of freight easier and helps to optimize the space available on ships, planes, trucks, and trains. Thus, they are designed to be suitable for different means of transportation.

Ocean freight is usually only one component in the transportation of the shipments. This means that from the starting point to the delivery, many means of transportation are used. It is expected that airfreight will be used more in combination with other types of transport in an attempt to balance the final costs.

3. Urgency of delivery

When you want to choose between ocean freight and air freight, air freight is the fastest mode of transportation. It makes it the perfect solution for high-value shipments, sensitive shipments, and products with shorter shelf life. Also, it is mainly used when businesses need to send a sample of products to prospective customers.

On the other hand, the ocean freight has the capability to ensure the shipments of a shipments of a high value, sensitive shipments, and products with shorter shelf lives. However, there are costs related to preserving food on ships over several weeks.

Depending on the destination, the airfreight transit times can be significantly lower than the delivery time via ocean freight. This is also possible thanks to the airport procedures which are generally faster than the ones in ports.

4. The delivery location

There is no question that the transit time depends on the destination. So, how to choose between ocean freight and air freight?

In comparison with ocean freight, air freight has the ability to easily reach remote areas such as islands. Through airfreight, producers can connect easier with consumers located in such areas. If your business needs a delivery to a country which is not easily accessible, airfreight is certainly the best option.

5. Environmental impact

Granted, not many businesses choose between ocean freight and airfreight on the basis of their environmental impact. Or at least, this is not the determinant factor of every single decision. However, the corporate social responsibility has been revolving in the business world for some years now.

Not only businesses are asked to be accountable for the consequences of their activities, but also to take responsibility for their business partners and the services they use from different companies.

If we go along these lines, undoubtedly airfreight has a far bigger impact due to high carbon emissions. Although ocean freight has a big impact on the water pollution, generally, shipping experts agree that airfreight is by far the mode of transport that pollutes the most. How ethical is shipping goods by air or ocean, it is on you to decide. Take your time and choose between ocean freight and air freight.