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Once you are filling half a container, shared shipping stops making sense. A full container is normally cheaper per unit, moves faster because it skips deconsolidation, and gives you a sealed load that nobody else handles until it reaches our warehouse.
The switch point is usually around half a 20 foot container. Below that, LCL wins on cost because you only pay for the volume you use. Above it, the per unit economics flip: FCL avoids deconsolidation handling, reduces damage exposure because your cargo is not repeatedly moved, and typically clears faster.
A 20 foot container holds roughly 28 to 33 CBM of usable space depending on packing efficiency, and a 40 foot high cube considerably more. Bulky, low value goods hit the FCL threshold far sooner than small dense products, so the right answer depends on what you sell, not on your revenue.
Demurrage and detention charges are where container budgets die. They start the moment free time expires at the port, and they accrue daily. Avoiding them is a planning problem: documents ready before arrival, correct HTS classification, ISF filed on time, and a warehouse that can actually receive a full container on the day it arrives.
That last point matters more than sellers expect. Many 3PLs cannot take a live container unload at short notice. We receive into our own Texas building, count and photograph on receipt, and move straight into prep, so the box is returned inside its free time.
Cheapest per unit for steady restocks, 35 to 50 days door to door.
Better per unit economics once you fill half a 20 foot container.
India pickup, the main leg, US customs, our own Texas warehouse, and marketplace prep at $0.75 per unit.
21 steps from idea to first US sale. Free PDF.