Cambridge China Bridge
Free tool

China vs UK price comparison: landed cost per unit

A China factory price only beats a UK wholesale price once freight, customs duty and, if you are not VAT-registered, import VAT are added. Enter the factory quote, your own freight cost, the duty rate and the UK price to see the landed cost per unit, the saving, and the quantity at which the freight is spread thinly enough for China to come out cheaper.

How the comparison works

  1. Customs value = China unit price × quantity + freight and insurance to the UK border
  2. Duty = customs value × duty rate
  3. Import VAT = (customs value + duty) × VAT rate
  4. Landed cost per unit = (customs value + duty + import VAT if you cannot reclaim it) ÷ quantity
  5. Saving per unit = UK wholesale price (on the same VAT footing) − landed cost per unit
  6. Break-even quantity = the smallest quantity at which the freight, spread over the units, still leaves the China landed cost below the UK price
  • Duty is charged on the customs value, and the customs value includes transport, insurance and handling up to the place the goods enter the UK. That is why freight appears in the duty line.
  • Import VAT is charged on the customs value plus the duty. A VAT-registered business can reclaim it as input tax, so it is not a cost; for a buyer who is not registered, it is part of the landed cost.
  • Compare like with like. A VAT-registered buyer reclaims the VAT on a UK supplier's invoice too, so the tool compares prices without VAT. A buyer who is not registered pays VAT on both routes, so it compares prices with VAT. Tell the tool whether the UK price you enter includes VAT.
  • The break-even treats the freight you enter as a fixed cost for the shipment. In practice freight rises with volume, so rerun the comparison with a freight quote for the quantity you plan to order.

Worked example (an illustration, not market prices)

Round numbers chosen to make the arithmetic easy to follow: 1,000 units at £2.00 each from China, £500.00 freight to the UK, a 4% duty rate, a VAT-registered buyer and a UK wholesale price of £4.00 a unit before VAT. None of these is a real quote, freight rate or tariff rate for any product.

Goods value£2,000.00
Customs duty£100.00
Import VAT at the border£520.00
Import VAT kept as a cost£0.00
Landed cost per unit£2.60
UK price per unit (same VAT footing)£4.00
Saving per unit£1.40
Saving on this order£1,400.00
Break-even quantity271 units

The freight and its duty come to £520.00. Each unit from China costs £2.08 with duty against £4.00 in the UK, so each unit saves £1.92 before freight. £520.00 ÷ £1.92 = 270.8, so from 271 units China is cheaper.

Your comparison

Result

Goods value
—
Customs duty
—
Import VAT at the border
—
Import VAT kept as a cost
—
Landed cost per unit
—
UK price per unit (same VAT footing)
—
Saving per unit
—
Saving on this order
—
Break-even quantity
—

Enter a China price, a quantity and a UK price to compare.

Sources

Checked on 27 September 2026

  1. GOV.UK: Delivery costs to include in the customs value
  2. GOV.UK: VAT on imports, acquisitions and purchases from abroad
  3. GOV.UK: VAT rates

The tool applies the GOV.UK rules on customs value, duty and import VAT to the figures you enter. It holds no prices, freight rates or duty rates of its own; excise, anti-dumping duty and other charges are not included.

Questions about this tool

Is buying from China cheaper than a UK wholesaler?

It depends on the quantity. The China landed cost per unit is the factory price plus duty, plus a share of the freight, plus import VAT if you are not VAT-registered. Freight is largely fixed per shipment, so small orders carry more of it per unit; the break-even quantity shows where China starts to win.

Do I pay duty on the freight cost?

Yes, on transport, insurance and handling up to the place the goods enter the UK: GOV.UK includes them in the customs value that duty is charged on. Costs after the goods cross the UK border are not dutiable, so including them in the freight field overstates the duty slightly.

Should I compare prices with or without VAT?

On the same footing. If you are VAT-registered you reclaim VAT on the UK invoice and on the import, so compare net prices. If you are not, you pay VAT on both, so compare gross prices. The tool does this once you say whether the UK price includes VAT.

Where do I get the duty rate and exchange rate?

The duty rate comes from the UK tariff for your commodity code; the import duty calculator on this site finds it. For a quote in US dollars or yuan, convert with the monthly HMRC exchange rate converter on this site.

Want a China quote to compare against your UK supplier?

For UK delivery, send a link or specification for an off-the-shelf product and we can return a free landed-price comparison within 72 hours, whether or not you buy it today. If you buy it already, tell us your current price. Custom products take about three weeks to quote; overseas delivery and standalone audits are scoped separately.

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