Landed freight cost per case: the number that decides your margin
Landed freight cost per case is everything you pay to get one case from your dock to the distributor's dock, divided by the cases that arrive and are accepted. It includes the truck, the fuel surcharge, extra charges at pickup and delivery, handling in between, and the freight-caused deductions that come back later. Most brands only count the first one.
- Five costs in one number
- Works for LTL, shared, and full trucks
- A rate within 2 business hours
Licensed and bonded freight broker in Valencia, CA · NMSDC minority-certified · CarrierSource Top Brokerage 2026
What is landed freight cost per case?
You know what a case costs to make. Landed freight cost per case is what it costs to get that case onto the distributor's dock and accepted. It is the freight part of your landed cost, worked out one shipment at a time.
The freight quote is where the number starts, not where it ends. Charges added at pickup and delivery, the pallet work in between, and deductions that show up weeks later all belong to the same shipment. Count only the quote and the margin you planned on is not the margin you keep.
= your landed freight cost per case
Divide by the cases the distributor accepted, not the cases you shipped. A refused case still cost freight.
What goes into the number that most brands leave out?
Five costs, in the order they show up. Only the first is on the quote you approved.
The truck
The linehaul on your quote, plus the fuel surcharge, which moves with the price of diesel. LTL is priced on the space your pallets take in the trailer, not only on what they weigh.
Where it shows up: the freight quote and invoice.Extras at pickup and delivery
Charges added for things the quote did not assume: a liftgate, waiting time at the dock, a second delivery attempt, a changed appointment, unloading fees. Freight people call these accessorials. See freight broker fees explained for the full list.
Where it shows up: the freight invoice, often after delivery.Handling and storage in between
Pallets, wrap, labels, and any rebuild if a pallet misses the distributor's spec. Storage counts too if product waits for an appointment.
Where it shows up: your warehouse or co-packer invoice.Freight-caused deductions
A late delivery, a missed appointment, or a pallet problem can come back as a deduction on your remittance. Freight caused it, so it belongs in the freight number. Deductions for item setup or promotions do not. See why your invoice was short-paid and the UNFI and KeHE Compliance Hub.
Where it shows up: the remittance, weeks later.Damage and shortage you did not recover
If a claim is not filed in time or in the right form, the loss is yours. Carriers must allow at least 9 months to file a claim, but most LTL carriers' rules ask for damage found after delivery to be reported within 5 days. A note on the delivery receipt is not a claim by itself.
Where it shows up: nowhere, unless you track it.
How do you work it out for one shipment?
Take one delivered shipment and fill in what you know. Leave a line blank if it did not apply. Nothing you type here is sent or saved; the math runs in your browser.
Your landed freight cost
$0.00per case accepted
- Total freight cost for the shipment$0.00
- If you counted the quote alone$0.00
Enter the freight quote and the cases shipped to see your number.
Send us the lane and we reply with a rate within 2 business hours, with the extras spelled out before you book.
Why does the same product cost more per case on LTL than on a full truck?
Growing brands are told to ship full trucks, and the reason is handling. A full truck is loaded once at your dock and unloaded once at theirs. An LTL pallet is unloaded and reloaded at every terminal between the two.
Every extra touch adds time, adds a chance of damage, and adds cost per pallet. That is why the same case can land at a different cost depending on how it traveled, even over the same miles.
LTL is still the right tool for a pallet or two on no fixed schedule. The question is what to do once you ship a steady handful of pallets and still cannot fill a trailer.
What if you cannot fill a truck?
You do not need a full truck of your own product to get full-truck handling. Brands going to the same distribution center can share one: one pickup, one delivery, one appointment. Freight people call this consolidation.
LTL, appointment booked first
Small, irregular orders belong on LTL. Book the delivery appointment before the freight is ready, and count the extras when you price it.
A shared truck
Our retail consolidation program combines shipments from several brands through a City of Industry hub, so your pallets are loaded once and unloaded once.
Truckload
Your own truck to the building on the purchase order, with the appointment scheduled and the paperwork kept.
Price the same shipment two ways before you book it. The cheaper quote is not always the cheaper landed cost.
How does landed cost change when you add a distribution center or a region?
Growth usually arrives as a purchase order with a date on it. The freight question comes after, when the price is already set.
Price the lane before you accept the purchase order
Once the price to the distributor is agreed, freight comes out of your margin. A quote takes a few details and comes back within 2 business hours.
Ask whether orders can ride together
Two orders going to the same building, or to buildings near each other, can often share a truck. In Southern California most natural-channel freight goes to a handful of docks: see the Southern California freight map.
Track the number by building
Keep landed freight cost per case for each distribution center. When one drifts up, you will see which of the five costs moved.
What should you send to get a real number?
A quote is only as good as what it was built on. Most surprise charges trace back to a detail that was missing when the shipment was priced.
Send the list on the right and we will price the lane, tell you plainly which way to ship it, book the delivery appointment, and keep the paperwork. If the freight side of your deductions is the problem, start with a free routing guide audit.
What to have ready
- Pickup address and dock hours
- Destination distribution center on the purchase order
- Pallet count and cases per pallet
- Pallet size and weight
- Temperature: frozen, refrigerated, or ambient
- The date it must arrive
Who is this built for?
Built for
- Natural and organic food and beverage brands
- Brands already shipping into UNFI, KeHE, Sprouts, and natural grocers, and adding buildings or regions
- Refrigerated, frozen, and ambient product
- Shipments from a single pallet up to full truckloads
Not the right fit
- Large shelf-stable, household, or personal care shippers moving tens of thousands of pallets a year
- Programs built mainly around big-box retail
- Refrigerated lanes far outside the West
Landed freight cost FAQs
What is landed freight cost per case?
Is landed freight cost the same as landed cost?
What is a good freight cost per case?
Do deductions count as freight cost?
Why did my cost per case go up when my order got bigger?
Can a freight broker lower my landed freight cost?
How fast can I get a freight rate?
Sources
- Time to file a freight claim: 49 U.S.C. 14706(e) (a carrier may not allow less than 9 months).
- Reporting damage found after delivery within 5 days: National Motor Freight Classification Item 300135, as quoted in the FedEx Freight guide to loss and damage claims. This is a carrier rule, not federal law, and carriers differ.
- What counts as a claim: 49 CFR 370.3.
Last verified October 1, 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice. Charges and rules vary by carrier, lane, and distributor.
Know the number before you say yes to the order
Send us the lane, the pallet count, and the date. We will price it, book the appointment, and keep the paperwork.
Get my landed cost priced