---
title: "Should I Ship by Air or LCL?"
description: "Compares shipping by air vs LCL: air is faster but pricier, LCL adds transit days but is cheaper with consistent pricing, labeling, and weekly sailings."
language: en
canonical: https://www.flexport.com/help/ship-air-or-lcl/
lifecycle: live
author:
  - "Flexport Editorial"
publishedAt: 2018-01-22T17:00:19.909Z
dateModified: 2026-07-31T03:22:17Z
readingTimeMinutes: 1
topics:
  - "Save Money on Intl Freight"
  - "Air Freight"
  - "Ocean Freight"
---

# Should I Ship by Air or LCL?

If you’re not sure whether you want to ship by air or [LCL (less than container load)](https://www.flexport.com/help/lcl-vs-fcl/), then consider how quickly you want your cargo to reach its destination, and how much you’re willing to spend to get it there.  

Cargo shipped via air will [reach its destination](https://www.flexport.com/help/shipment-transit-time-final-delivery/) several days faster than an LCL shipment, but air is significantly more expensive, even if you’re using the cheapest of the [three air services](https://www.flexport.com/help/air-service-express-deferred/).  

Shipping via [Flexport’s LCL service](https://www.flexport.com/help/flexport-lcl-service/) will add several days onto your transit time but it is significantly less expensive and offers: a consistent low price, labeling and palletization services, and reliable weekly sailings.

![Table comparing LCL and three air service levels (Deferred, Standard, Express) by Shanghai-to-LA transit time and relative cost](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/ynj1yl20/development/8f39d1b54864570906d852135de868bea4ca113f-1368x366.png)

---

*This is a markdown version of [https://www.flexport.com/help/ship-air-or-lcl/](https://www.flexport.com/help/ship-air-or-lcl/) for AI/LLM consumption.*