Pricing off invoice cost alone understates the real cost of imported goods — freight, duty, insurance, and other fees all land on the product before it’s ready to sell.
How it works
Product cost, freight, duty, insurance, and other fees sum to the total landed cost. Dividing by units imported gives the landed cost per unit — the real cost basis for pricing decisions.
What this does not include
This site’s separate import-duty calculator computes the duty figure itself from a customs value and duty rate — this calculator takes duty as a direct dollar input alongside the other cost components.
How to use this calculator
- Enter product cost, freight, duty, insurance, other fees, and units imported.
A worked example
Product cost $10,000, freight $1,500, duty $800, insurance $200, other fees $300, 1,000 units: total landed cost = $12,800, landed cost per unit = $12.80.
What the variables mean
| Variable | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Product cost | Base purchase price of the goods |
| Freight, duty, insurance, other fees | Additional costs to get the goods delivered and cleared |
| Units | Number of units in the shipment |
Edge cases worth knowing
Landed cost captures the true per-unit cost, not just the sticker price. Freight, duty, and fees can add a meaningful percentage on top of product cost alone — in this example, over 25% — which matters for accurate margin calculations.
Zero units makes the per-unit cost undefined — there’s nothing to divide the total landed cost by, so the calculator returns no result.
Frequently asked questions
Why does landed cost matter for pricing?
Pricing based on invoice cost alone can silently erode margins once freight, duty, and other import costs are factored in — landed cost reveals the true cost basis for setting a profitable price.
What other costs might be missing from this calculation?
Currency conversion fees, warehousing, and domestic distribution costs after import can also affect the true delivered cost, beyond the import-specific costs this calculator covers.
Does landed cost change with order size?
Yes, often significantly — freight and some fees don’t scale linearly with order size, so landed cost per unit typically improves with larger orders due to economies of scale in shipping.
