Terminal Handling Charges Calculator: THC Per Booking

Formula, assumptions, and limits

Terminal handling charges (THC) are the per-container fees a terminal levies for the quay-crane lift, yard transport, and stacking, charged at both the load and discharge port. To calculate them, multiply each container count by its per-box THC at each end, then add the four products:

$$C_{\text{THC}} = \sum_{t} n_t \cdot \left( T_{O,t} + T_{D,t} \right)$$

n_t - number of containers of type t (20’ and 40’). T_O,t / T_D,t - THC per box of that type at origin and destination, from the terminal tariff or the quotation’s local-charges section.

The per-TEU normalization counts a 20-foot box as 1 TEU and a 40-foot box as 2 TEU, which lets bookings of mixed sizes be compared on one scale. THC is a per-box charge in almost every tariff, so a 40-foot container does not cost twice its 20-foot figure; per TEU it is usually the cheaper way to move volume through a terminal, and the calculator makes that visible.

Assumptions and limits: the tool models the standard dry-box THC lines. Reefer, hazardous (IMDG), out-of-gauge, and transhipment boxes carry their own tariff lines and surcharges; enter their rates directly if your booking carries them, or treat the result as the dry-box floor. THC is also distinct from the wharfage, ISPS, and documentation lines that share the local-charges section of a quotation: this page totals terminal handling only, and the ocean freight cost calculator assembles the full all-in figure with THC as one of its inputs.

How to use this calculator

1. Enter the number of 20-foot and 40-foot containers in the booking.
2. Enter the per-box THC at origin for each size, from the origin terminal tariff or the quotation.
3. Enter the per-box THC at destination for each size.
4. Read the origin, destination, and booking totals plus the per-TEU figure.
5. The chart splits the total by end and by box size, so the heavy end of the booking is visible at a glance.

Who pays which end

The liner term on the ocean quotation cuts across the Incoterm: under liner terms (full liner terms, LILO) the carrier’s rate includes the terminal moves at both ends; under free in liner out (FILO) the shipper arranges and pays the loading end. When a dispute arises over an unexpected THC invoice, the answer is almost always in the mismatch between the Incoterm of the sale and the liner term of the booking, two documents that different desks negotiated.

A worked example, run through the same arithmetic: six 20-foot and four 40-foot boxes. Origin THC: USD 120 per 20’ and USD 180 per 40’. Destination THC: USD 150 per 20’ and USD 225 per 40’. Origin: 6 × 120 + 4 × 180 = USD 1,440. Destination: 6 × 150 + 4 × 225 = USD 1,800. Booking total: USD 3,240 across 14 TEU, or USD 231 per TEU. The 40-foot boxes carry 57% of the volume capacity at three-quarters of the 20-foot boxes’ per-TEU handling cost in this tariff (90 against 120 at origin), the usual pattern. All rates here are illustrative inputs; real THC comes from the terminal’s published tariff and changes with it.

THC in the landed-cost build

THC sits between the ocean rate and the inland legs in a landed-cost build, and it behaves differently from both: the ocean rate moves with the market weekly, the inland legs with fuel and distance, while THC moves only when a terminal republishes its tariff, typically annually. That stickiness cuts two ways. It makes THC the most forecastable line in the build, and also the one worth auditing when a forwarder’s quotation shows it moving between quotes on the same lane in the same tariff year. On a per-TEU basis the destination end of the worked example above runs USD 129 against USD 103 at origin, a 25% spread from two tariffs covering the same physical lift; spreads of that order are normal between terminals, which is why routing decisions on margin-thin trades sometimes turn on the terminal, not the ocean rate.

Common errors

1. Adding THC to an all-in rate. If the ocean quotation is on liner terms, the terminal moves are already inside the rate; adding tariff THC double-counts it.
2. Carrying one end only. Origin and destination tariffs differ; a landed-cost build that copies the origin figure to the destination end is wrong in whichever direction the tariffs diverge.
3. Applying dry rates to special boxes. Reefer and IMDG boxes carry higher tariff lines; six dry rates and two reefer boxes priced as dry understates the invoice.
4. Confusing THC with wharfage. Wharfage is the port authority’s charge on cargo over the quay; THC is the terminal operator’s charge for handling the box. Some tariffs bundle them, most do not.

About This THC Calculator

Terminal handling charges are the largest local charge on most container bookings, and they are levied per box, per end, from tariffs that two different terminals publish independently. This calculator is for shippers, consignees, and forwarders who need the THC line of a booking computed correctly: it takes the box counts and the four per-box rates (two sizes, two ends) and returns the end totals, the booking total, and the per-TEU cost.

The arithmetic mirrors how the charge lands on the invoice: count times rate, summed per end, with nothing folded in that the tariff does not state. The per-TEU normalization uses the standard equivalence (a 40-foot box is 2 TEU) so mixed bookings compare cleanly against alternatives. The who-pays table maps the Incoterm against the liner term, which between them settle nearly every THC allocation dispute.

The chart draws the four cost blocks (each end, each size) side by side with hover and keyboard tooltips, so the expensive corner of the booking stands out before the invoice arrives. Pair this page with the ocean freight cost calculator for the full all-in build, and the port disbursement estimator for the vessel-side costs of the same call.

Further reading

• Terminal handling charges
• Ocean freight rates
• Ocean freight cost calculator
• Port disbursement account estimator

Frequently asked questions

What is THC in shipping?

THC, terminal handling charges, covers the container's moves inside the terminal: the quay crane lift between ship and shore, yard transport, and stacking. It is charged per container, at both the load port and the discharge port, by the terminal or via the carrier's tariff.

Who pays terminal handling charges?

It follows the sales contract and the liner term. Under FOB the seller typically carries origin THC and the buyer destination THC; under CIF/CFR the destination THC commonly falls to the consignee. The quotation's liner term (for example FILO, free in liner out) states which ends the ocean rate already includes.

Is THC the same at both ends?

No. Each terminal publishes its own tariff, and origin and destination THC routinely differ by tens of dollars per box. A comparison or landed-cost build must carry both ends separately, which is why this calculator takes four rates, not one.

How much is THC per container?

There is no standard level: each terminal publishes its own tariff, by box size and type, and the two ends of one booking differ. Find the figure on the terminal's published tariff or the quotation's local-charges section, and compare bookings on the per-TEU basis this calculator reports.

Why is THC charged separately from ocean freight?

Carriers unbundled terminal costs from the ocean rate so port-cost changes pass through without re-quoting the sea leg. Some quotations re-bundle them: an all-in rate already contains THC, so check the rate's liner term before adding it again.