The quote stops at the factory door
Unless the term says otherwise, an EXW price excludes everything that happens after the goods are packed. Freight, duty and delivery are all still ahead of you.
01 BUYER'S GUIDE
Landed Cost for Squishy Toys
from China
The factory price is not your cost. Here is what actually sits between an EXW quotation and the money that leaves your account — and the parts most first orders forget to budget for.
02 THE GAPWhy the quote is never
Why the quote is never
the cost.
A supplier quotation answers one question — what the goods cost at origin. Your business pays a different number.
Toys are bulky and light
Squishy toys occupy far more space than their weight suggests. Freight is billed on whichever is greater, weight or volume — and for this category it is almost always volume.
Fixed costs punish small orders
Brokerage and entry fees do not shrink with your order. On a first order of a few hundred pieces, fixed per-shipment costs can add more per unit than the product itself.
Compliance is a cost, not a formality
Testing and documentation for the destination market carry a price. A quotation that omits them has not made them free — it has just left them out of the number.
03 THE COMPONENTSWhat the landed
What the landed
number contains.
Six lines. The first is the one you were quoted; the other five are the ones you pay.
EXW unit cost
What the factory charges at their door. This is the number suppliers quote, and it is the smallest part of the story once freight and duty land on top.
Export and freight
Carton handling, export clearance and the actual movement. For squishy toys this is driven by volume (CBM) far more than weight, because the product is bulky and light.
Duty and additional tariffs
Toys sit under HTS Chapter 95 (heading 9503.00.00 for most toy forms). On top of the base rate, additional tariffs have applied to Chinese-origin goods and the rates have changed repeatedly — so the number must be verified for your HTS code at the time you order, not taken from an old quote.
Customs brokerage and entry fees
Someone has to file the entry. Brokerage, MPF and related charges are largely fixed per shipment, which is why they hurt small first orders disproportionately.
Destination charges
Terminal handling, delivery order, chassis, drayage and final delivery. On LCL sea freight these can quietly exceed the ocean freight itself.
The costs first orders forget
Sample cost, third-party inspection, wire and FX fees, and the cash tied up while goods are in transit. None of these appear on a supplier quotation, and all of them are real.
04 INCOTERMSWhich term you buy
Which term you buy
decides who carries what.
The same product can be quoted three ways with three very different risk profiles.
EXW
You own the goods at the factory door. You arrange everything after that.
Buyers with their own freight forwarder and customs broker.FOB
The supplier gets the goods onto the vessel and clears export. You handle the rest.
Buyers who want to control freight and see the actual cost.DDP
The seller delivers to your door with duty paid. One number, no paperwork on your side.
Buyers who want a predictable cost and no customs involvement — and who accept less visibility into each component.WHAT WE QUOTEEXW for comparison, DDP when you want one number.
Most buyers start by comparing EXW so they can see the product cost clearly, then ask us for DDP once the range is fixed — so the delivered figure is known before the order is placed, not after the invoice arrives.
Request a DDP quote →05 WHERE IT GOES WRONGFive ways buyers
Five ways buyers
misjudge the number.
Every one of these shows up as a surprise on an invoice rather than in a plan.
Comparing quotes at different Incoterms
An EXW price and an FOB price are not comparable, and neither is comparable to DDP. Before you compare two suppliers, make them quote the same term.
Ignoring volume weight
A squishy toy is mostly air. Freight is charged on volumetric weight, so a carton that weighs 4 kg can be billed at 12 kg. Ask for carton dimensions and CBM per carton, not just unit weight.
Assuming duty is a fixed percentage
Base duty, additional tariffs and any exclusions change. Treat any duty figure older than your order date as unverified.
Forgetting the fixed costs per shipment
Brokerage, entry fees and destination charges do not scale down with order size. A 500-piece first order can carry the same fixed cost as a 5,000-piece order, which is why unit landed cost falls fast with volume.
Leaving compliance out of the budget
Testing and documentation for the destination market cost money. If your supplier's quote does not mention it, that does not mean it is free — it means it is not in the number yet.
06 THE CHECKLISTAsk these before
Ask these before
you compare quotes.
Two suppliers only have comparable prices if you asked them the same questions.
Which Incoterm is this?
EXW, FOB or DDP. Without this, the number is not comparable to anything else you have been quoted.
What are the carton dimensions and CBM?
Not just unit weight. Volume determines your freight, and it is the single most common reason a freight quote comes back higher than expected.
Which HTS code applies, and what is the current rate?
Ask them to state the code they are using. Then verify the current duty and any additional tariffs for that code at the time you order.
What is excluded from this price?
Testing, inspection, artwork, tooling and shipping documents are the usual omissions. Ask directly rather than discovering them later.
We will not pretend duty is simple
Duty and tariff treatment for Chinese-origin goods has changed repeatedly, and any figure quoted from memory goes stale. We confirm the applicable code and current rate for your product and market at the time of your order, and we will say plainly when something needs to be verified by your broker rather than guessed by us.
Ask us to work through your number →07 FAQLanded cost
Landed cost
questions.
What is the difference between EXW price and landed cost?
EXW is the price at the factory door and includes nothing after packing. Landed cost is everything you actually pay to get saleable goods into your hands: the product, freight, duty and additional tariffs, customs brokerage, destination charges, and the costs most first orders forget such as samples, inspection and payment fees.
Why is freight so high for squishy toys relative to their weight?
Because the product is mostly air. Carriers charge on volumetric weight, so a carton that physically weighs 4 kg can be billed as 12 kg or more. This is why carton dimensions and CBM matter more than unit weight when you are budgeting freight.
Should I buy EXW, FOB or DDP?
EXW gives you the clearest view of product cost but puts all logistics risk on you. FOB lets you control freight and see the real number. DDP gives you one predictable delivered price with no customs involvement, at the cost of less visibility into each component. Buyers who are new to importing usually start with DDP; buyers who already import usually prefer FOB.
Does a small first order always have a worse landed cost per unit?
Almost always, yes. Fixed per-shipment costs — brokerage, entry fees, destination charges — do not scale down with order size, and freight rates improve at higher volumes. A 500-piece order can carry a similar fixed cost to a 5,000-piece order, which is why unit landed cost falls quickly as volume rises.
How do I know the duty rate is right?
Ask your supplier to state the HTS code they are using, then verify the current base duty and any additional tariffs applicable to Chinese-origin goods for that code at the time you order. Rates and additional measures have changed repeatedly, so a figure from an older quotation should be treated as unverified rather than used.
NEXT KEEP READING
Related sourcing pages.
Turn this guide into a number — reference pricing, live estimates and the compliance checklist.