Is rail freight from China faster than sea?

Yes - CR Express rail typically takes 12–21 days depending on the route, against 28–35 days for sea freight, while costing roughly 2–4 times more than sea per unit.

Where does China-Europe rail freight enter the EU?

Most CR Express trains enter at Małaszewicze on the Polish border, where cargo is transloaded from the broader Eurasian rail gauge onto the European standard-gauge network.

What cargo is best suited to rail instead of sea or air?

Mid-value, moderately time-sensitive goods, electronics, automotive parts, machinery components, where a 2–3 week transit is acceptable but air freight rates aren't justified.

Do I need special documents for rail freight from China?

Yes, a CIM consignment note or rail waybill covers the rail leg, alongside the usual commercial invoice, packing list, and any certificates (such as EUR.1 or phytosanitary) the specific goods require.

Is there a rail route from China that avoids Russia and Belarus?

Yes, the Middle Corridor, running through Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan and Georgia, is a growing alternative to the classic Malaszewicze route, though it's less mature and generally slower.

Road Freight

Road Freight to China: Door-to-Door via Sea, Rail & Air

There's no road connecting Poland, Germany, Spain or the UK to China - "Road Freight" here means we plan the main leg by rail, sea or air, clear customs at each handover, and run the truck for the European delivery once the container or wagon arrives. We quote the whole chain as one number, not a patchwork of separate legs for you to stitch together yourself.

Rail, sea or air, which one for China?

Sea freight - cheapest per unit, 28–35 days port to port from Shanghai or Shenzhen to Rotterdam, Hamburg or Gdynia. Best for large volumes with no urgency.
Rail freight - the middle option: roughly 2–4x the cost of sea but 4–6x cheaper than air, with a transit time of about 12–21 days depending on the route. Runs on the China Railway Express (CR Express) network on fixed timetables, which makes it more predictable than sea freight, where port congestion can add unpredictable delay.
Air freight - fastest at 3–6 days, but the most expensive by far. Worth it only for genuinely time-critical or high-value cargo.

Get a quote in 15 minutes. Send loading and delivery points plus the pallet count. We reply with the format, transit and a rate.

How does the China Railway Express actually work?

CR Express connects major Chinese industrial hubs to European rail terminals on containerised block trains running to fixed schedules:

Route	Distance	Typical transit
Chongqing → Duisburg (Germany)	~11,000 km	13–18 days
Chengdu → Łódź (Poland)	~9,800–9,965 km	12–19 days
Xi'an → Małaszewicze (Poland)	~10,000 km	11–15 days (as little as 10–11 days on the newest full-timetable service)
Yiwu → Madrid (Spain)	~13,000 km	16–21 days

Most CR Express trains enter the EU at Małaszewicze, right on the Polish border, which happens to put the gateway for most of Europe's China rail freight inside the same country as one of our own offices. Trains arriving from China, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia run on a broader rail gauge, so every wagon is transloaded or re-gauged at Małaszewicze before continuing into the EU standard-gauge network. That transload point is also where we typically take over for the European road leg.

Some rail volume now also runs via the Middle Corridor, through Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan and Georgia, bypassing Russia and Belarus entirely. It's a newer, less mature routing than the classic Małaszewicze line, but growing as shippers weigh up routing risk against transit time.

Who arranges freight from China. You or us? (Incoterms)

The Incoterm on your purchase order decides where our job starts, and it changes the quote more than almost anything else:

EXW (Ex Works) - we collect from the supplier's factory floor in China. You carry the origin-country risk and cost until we take over; gives you the most control but the most to manage.
FOB (Free on Board) - the supplier delivers to the port and loads the vessel; our sea, rail or air leg and everything after starts from there. The most common term we see on China lanes.
CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight) - the supplier's forwarder handles the main leg and insurance to the destination port; we take over for import clearance and the European road leg only.
DAP / DDP (Delivered at Place / Duty Paid) - we run the whole chain door-to-door, including import clearance (DDP: including duty), and deliver to your warehouse. This is what most of our China clients actually ask for once they've tried managing FOB or CIF splits themselves.

Get the Incoterm wrong on the PO and you can end up paying for the same leg twice, or find nobody has arranged insurance for the gap between two forwarders. Tell us the term on your contract before we quote, it's the first thing our logistician checks.

Which cargo suits rail vs sea vs air?

Rail, electronics, automotive parts, machinery components, EVs and solar (PV) modules: goods where the 2–3 week transit is fine but air rates aren't justified.
Sea, high-volume, low-urgency goods: furniture, bulk consumer goods, anything where cost per unit matters more than speed.
Air, high-value or genuinely time-critical shipments where a 3–6 day transit is worth the premium.

What documents does a China shipment need?

Whichever main leg you use, the paperwork follows the same shape: a commercial invoice and packing list, a bill of lading for sea freight or a CIM consignment note / rail waybill for CR Express, an EUR.1 certificate where preferential tariff treatment applies, and import customs clearance once the shipment reaches the EU. Certain goods, food products in particular, also need a phytosanitary certificate. We handle the T1 transit paperwork for anything moving under customs control between the port or rail terminal and its final EU destination.

What affects the price of freight from China?

Mode chosen, sea, rail and air sit on a clear cost ladder, roughly 1x / 2–4x / 10x+ against each other.
Origin city, rail routes from Chongqing, Chengdu, Xi'an and Yiwu each have different distances and transit times to different European terminals.
Volume, full container (FCL) versus consolidated (LCL) load changes the per-unit cost significantly.
Cargo type - industrial equipment and machinery generally moves more easily than goods needing special certificates or temperature control.
Seasonality, rail and sea capacity both tighten ahead of Chinese New Year and during peak retail restocking periods.

Regular shipments from China?

If you're shipping the same lane every month, components on rail, retail stock by sea, a contract rate is worth setting up: a fixed price, a guaranteed slot, and a manager who already knows which mode fits your cargo and your timeline.

Request a route quote and we'll come back with pricing and the next available slot the same day.