Search By Port Codes and Port Names

How do I use the seaport code and port code finder?

Using this seaport code locator is as easy as using Google Maps. Both seaports and airports are included. Search by port name, seaport code, or city and you’ll immediately see the port on the map. Clicking on the port will display specific information like port code, region, latitude/longitude position, and other key points.

Looking to identify more ports in a specific area? Zoom in on a region or search for a specific city, state, or country to find their local seaports (anchor icon) and airports (the airplane icon). If you’ve already chosen ocean freight or air freight, you can narrow the search by unchecking ‘Seaports’ or ‘Airports’ on the top right of the map.

Click here if you would prefer to focus more on airports and their codes.

Seaport Codes

Any location used in international trade and transport, including seaports, airports, and other inland destinations, is assigned a code.

This structure is used by most major shipping companies and freight forwarders. These codes appear on bills of lading, invoices, and contracts to make sure that all parties in the supply chain are aligned.

International Port Codes

Much like with Harmonized Schedule codes, the UN plays a critical role in standardization. In 1981, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), in collaboration with other major trade and transport organizations, initiated a framework to facilitate global trade. This evolved into what’s today known as LOCODE – Code for Trade and Transport Locations. The database is still maintained by the UNECE, and currently includes over 103,030 locations in 249 countries.

Every international airport and seaport code consists of five characters. Referring to the diagram’s pink numbering:

1. Country: These are standard country codes as assigned by the International Organization of Standardization. In the above example, the country, “China,” is specified with a “CN.”
2. Port / Airport Identifier: These characters represent a location within the designated country. The above example identifies “Shenyang.” In countries such as the United States, where the number of possible three-letter combinations has been exceeded, numerical digits are used.

What’s the Difference Between Major and Minor Ports?

Knowing where the largest ports in the world are located allows for more efficient – and cost-efficient – shipping. For example, some types of cargo might require access to railroads and highways, customs facilities, or cargo-handling equipment that smaller regional ports don’t offer. Additionally, freight has been trending towards larger vessels, as the ability to hold more cargo usually means lower prices. Such carriers require larger ports, and in fact often bypass smaller ports because of congestion and delays in container handling.

However, while bigger ports are necessary for certain shipping needs, there are multiple advantages to small and medium-sized ports as well:

1. Smaller ports usually have close connections with their local city, which can mean easier access and other logistical advantages.
2. Several smaller ports have adapted to some of the market challenges mentioned above by focusing on niche areas or goods, offering a competitive edge.
3. The busiest ports in the world are usually ranked by cargo tonnage and volume of container shipment. However, while some local ports may rank low globally, they can, in fact, have significant scale and capacity when compared regionally.

What are the Different Types of Ports?

While the term ‘seaport’ encompasses most facilities handling ocean-voyage vessels, there are several types that are worth understanding:

• An inland port is located on a lake, river, or canal with access to the ocean, allowing ships to unload cargo closer to an inland destination.
• A dry port is an inland facility directly connected to a seaport by road or rail.
• A warm-water port is one where the water doesn’t freeze in wintertime, making them available all year round.

Seaports can be broken down into two primary types: cruise ports, for commercial passengers, and cargo ports. Cargo ports can then be further categorized as bulk port (also known as break bulk ports), which handle goods that need to be loaded in bulk or individually, and container ports, which handle any goods that need to be shipped in a container. Most cargo ports can handle all types of cargo, but it’s worth ensuring that you’re not dealing with a port that has specific regulations about what can be brought in that may affect your shipment.

For more on key freight terms, check out our Freight Term Glossary.

When Will I Need an Airport, and When Will I Need a Seaport?

Both air freight and ocean freight have their pros and cons.

• While air freight is faster and more reliable than ocean freight, it’s also more expensive (for shipments over about 500 kg) and offers significantly less capacity for goods than cargo ships.
• Ocean freight is more subject to delays.
• More products are restricted as hazardous cargo on airplanes than on container ships.
• Sea lanes can face pirate threats and airplanes might confront engine failure, though the chance of either occurring is exceedingly rare.
• CO2 emissions are much higher in air freight.

Ultimately, deciding which one suits your shipping needs more will depend on personal requirements. What is your budget? How many goods are you shipping?  How quickly does your shipment need to arrive?

Port location might also play a part in your decision, as the accessibility of the departure and destination ports will impact your freight costs. If there’s no nearby airport but there is a local harbor that handles cargo, you might reconsider your shipping route.

Click here for more information on ocean freight.

Port Code List Top 10

The codes for the busiest and largest seaports in the world according to volume of cargo are:

1. CNSHA: Shanghai, China; 33.62 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent unit)
2. SGSIN: Singapore; 32.63 million TEUs:
3. CNSZX: Shenzhen, China; 23.28 million TEUS
4. HKHKG: Hong Kong, S.A.R., China; 22.35 million TEUs
5. KRPUS: Busan, South Korea; 17.69 million TEUs
6. CNNGB: Ningbo-Zhousan, China; 17.33 million TEUs
7. CNTAO: Qindao, China; 15.52 million TEUs
8. CNCAN: Guangzhou Harbor, China; 15.31 million TEUs
9. AEJEA: Jebel Ali, Dubai, United Arab Emirates; 13.64 million TEUs
10. CNTSN: Tianjin, China; 13.01 million TEUs

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For more helpful freight tools and calculators, check out our freight rate calculator, freight class calculator, and chargeable weight calculator. And don’t forget to check out our ultimate guide to choosing a freight forwarder.

Use this Freight Rate Calculator to get instant freight estimates for ocean and air shipments, based on the port that’s nearest to your Amazon FBA warehouse location.

How are Amazon FBA Fees Calculated

Calculating potential Amazon FBA freight costs? This Amazon FBA shipping calculator returns shipping estimates from supplier address, or nearest port, shipping directly to Amazon fulfillment centers. This tool is perfect for freight forwarders. Not shipping to an Amazon warehouse? Use our general freight rate calculator. Check estimated transit times with our freight transit time calculator. Find a list of Amazon FBA Fulfillment Centers with this map of Amazon FBA warehouse locations.

Pro Tip: Get international and domestic freight estimates for shipping to other destinations here.

How to Estimate Amazon Freight Rates

1. Select whether you are shipping full containers or boxes/pallets.
2. Enter your load dimensions, weight, quantities, origin, and Amazon fulfillment center.
3. Search!
4. Want to book? Select the “Find and compare quotes” button

About the Amazon FBA Shipping Calculator

Use this Amazon FBA Calculator, specially designed for Amazon FBA shipments, to calculate shipping costs from your supplier’s factory to an Amazon fulfillment center location. Amazon has strict requirements regarding international shipments and Freightos has built these requirements into its quoting process.

Unlike any other freight rate estimator, Freightos’ freight rate calculator and Amazon FBA calculator use real freight data to calculate instant, all-in freight quotes, including surcharges and freight costs. This calculation takes into account dimensional weight. Our data is based on live freight rates from dozens of global freight forwarders, helping us provide you with accurate, real-time quotes.

What’s Included in the Amazon FBA Shipping Calculator

The Amazon Shipping Calculator includes all fees and surcharges available for trucking, air and ocean shipping. It does not include customs duties associated with specific commodities. Since this estimator is unique in that it relies on live data from real freight companies, it may not have global coverage for every route you search.

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If you’re looking for fully binding quotes that you can book online. Check out the Freightos Marketplace.

COVID-19 has made lot of things in logistics unpredictable, including adding unusual volatility to ocean rates.

Using our Freightos Baltic Index data, we’ll send you an email alert whenever 40’ container prices fluctuate by over 7% on China – US trade lanes.

Why 7%? We looked at historical data and found that this would be a good balance of frequency (under ten times during peak season).

And it’s totally free.

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Here at Freightos, we’ve been hard at work developing a brand new calculator to help you calculate your carbon emissions.

Because more than ever, building an impactful brand means both having visibility into your impact on the environment and being able to proactively choose freight solutions accordingly.

How Much CO₂ Does Shipping Produce?

In our fast-moving, on-demand world, freight shipping is responsible for 2.1 billion tons of CO₂ emissions every year. That’s 7% of the world’s total emissions.

And these numbers are expected to nearly quadruple by 2050 as freight volumes increase and the demand for quick delivery grows.

At the same time, the goal of decreasing carbon output is more important than ever.

Most countries are committed to reducing emissions to net zero over the coming years. Businesses count reducing emissions as a priority, and more than a quarter report that doing so increased demand for their products. Which is not surprising, given that 60% of consumers say sustainability is a key factor in their purchase decisions.

So how can you keep your goods moving around the world in the least harmful way possible?

The first step is to measure your CO₂ footprint.

A few clicks of our free calculator gives you a working estimate of the carbon output of your goods. Once you have that information, you can start thinking about greater carbon efficiency and offsetting.

In addition, every price quote on the Freightos.com Marketplace includes an emissions output estimate. So you can start measuring effortlessly.

How Much CO₂ Does A Cargo Ship Produce Per KM?

Sea shipping produces much less carbon than air freight. Cargo ships emit approximately 10-40 grams of CO₂per kilometer. In comparison, air freight produces about 500 grams per metric ton per kilometer of transportation.

Air Freight Carbon Footprint

On average, air freight pollutes 20-30x more than sea freight. However, some types of fuel used for air freight are overall cleaner than fuel used for ocean freight. 

When it comes to cleaner freight, knowledge is power. Measure your carbon output and join businesses all over the world working towards greater sustainability.