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I don't think the price of those small shipments from China is necessarily crazy. Looking at flights for people: you can get a return flight to China from the
by mytailorisrich 2y ago
I don't think the price of those small shipments from China is necessarily crazy.
Looking at flights for people: you can get a return flight to China from the UK for less than £350, which means less than £175 one way.
Let's say that's about 100kg (person plus luggage) then this means that flying 100g from China to the UK costs less than 17.5p or 20c in euros.
I expect that cargo will be cheaper than passenger plane, so shipping small stuff from China to Europe can indeed be very cheap. It's about volume and efficiency.
- echoangle 2y agoThe plane itself isn’t the only cost of shipping. Even sending a letter is more expensive, and there’s no plane involved. You have to pick it up, bring it to the airport, and deliver it to the door from the destination airport.
- mytailorisrich 2y agoObviously. This is just to illustrate that what the "real cost" is is not as obvious as what some comments suggest and that it is likely much lower.
- owenversteeg 2y agoAir freight rates vary wildly by demand/bulk discounts/route/etc but $2-8/kg is typical, with a median around $4/kg. Commercial flights are often cheaper, and especially when you consider the weight of seats/water/food/crew/etc.