Guides
Import landed cost guides
Everything an importer needs to work out what goods will really cost on arrival, and whether they will make money. Written for one product or a mixed container, in any destination country.
The learning path
Read these in order if import costing is new to you. Start with the full landed cost method so you know the sequence charges arrive in. Then work through classification and taxes, because the tariff line and the tax base decide most of the bill. Finish with allocation and pricing, which turn a shipment total into the per-unit number you sell from.
Each guide explains general, stable principles and shows the arithmetic. None of them publishes duty or tax rates: those belong to your destination country, change often, and must be confirmed there. Our calculation methodology and review policy sets out exactly what the tool determines and what it does not.
Landed cost fundamentals
Start here. What a landed cost actually contains, which value customs works from, and the order the charges arrive in.
- How to calculate landed costThe full ten-step sequence, in the order the money is actually charged, with every formula written out.9 min read · reviewed 2026-09-09
- CIF vs landed cost: what each figure includesWhere CIF stops, what landed cost adds, and why quoting one when you meant the other costs importers money.7 min read · reviewed 2026-09-09
Customs classification and taxes
Tariff codes, duty rates, excise methods and the base import VAT or GST is charged on — the parts of a costing that go wrong most often.
- How import VAT and GST are calculatedThe customs value + duty + included levies pattern, why it varies by country, and how to check the base you are using.8 min read · reviewed 2026-09-09
- HS codes and duty rates: how they relateChapter, heading and subheading versus national tariff lines — and the verification workflow that gets you a defensible rate.8 min read · reviewed 2026-09-09
- Ad valorem vs specific excise dutyHow each excise method behaves as value and quantity move, and why the method decides whether a small shipment is viable.7 min read · reviewed 2026-09-09
Profit and planning
Turning a total into a per-unit cost you can price from: allocation across products, break-even and target margin.