Amazon FBA Shipping from China: The Complete Process (2025)

Shipping from a Chinese factory to an Amazon FBA warehouse involves more steps than most new sellers anticipate. Get it right and your inventory lands at Amazon’s warehouse ready to sell. Get it wrong and you’re dealing with rejected shipments, additional fees, or months of delay.

This guide covers the complete process from factory to FBA warehouse.

The Two Main Shipping Routes

Route 1: Direct to FBA (Factory → Amazon Warehouse)

Your Chinese supplier ships directly to Amazon’s fulfillment center. This is the most common route for established sellers.

Pros: Fewer touchpoints, potentially faster
Cons: Amazon’s prep requirements must be met at the factory; no chance to inspect before it reaches FBA

Route 2: To Your Address First, Then to FBA

Goods arrive at your address (or a US prep center), you check quality and prep if needed, then send to Amazon.

Pros: Opportunity to inspect, repack, and prep to Amazon standards
Cons: Adds time and cost; requires warehouse or prep service

For most sellers, particularly those new to working with a supplier, Route 2 provides a valuable quality checkpoint. Once you trust a supplier’s quality and prep work, Route 1 becomes more efficient.

Step 1: Understand Amazon’s FBA Requirements

Before your goods leave China, they must meet Amazon’s specifications. Non-compliance results in shipments being refused, returned, or disposed of at your cost.

Labeling Requirements

Every unit must have an FNSKU (Fulfillment Network SKU) barcode — a unique identifier Amazon assigns to your product listing.

Create your listing first to generate the FNSKU barcode
Download the FNSKU label from Seller Central
Send the label file to your supplier to print and apply, or plan to apply labels yourself

Each unit needs one FNSKU label. If the product has a manufacturer barcode (UPC, EAN), it must either be covered by the FNSKU label or you must use Amazon’s “commingling” option.

Packaging Requirements

Polybagged items: Products that aren’t in a box need to be in a sealed polybag with a suffocation warning label
Boxed items: Must be properly closed and sealed
Sets: Multiple units sold as a set must be packed together with “Sold as Set — Do Not Separate” labeling
Bubble wrap / fragile items: Must be properly protected so they pass the “drop test”

Master Carton Requirements

Each master carton must have:

The Amazon shipment ID and FBA label on the outside
Total unit count
“Made in China” or country of origin
Weight and dimensions

Hazmat / Dangerous Goods

Batteries, certain cosmetics, aerosols, and other products require special handling. If your product contains any of these, review Amazon’s Dangerous Goods policy carefully before shipping.

Step 2: Choose Your Shipping Method

Air Express (DHL, FedEx, UPS)

Transit time: 3–7 days
Cost: $5–$12 per kg
Best for: Small quantities under 100 kg, urgent restocking, product launches
Pros: Fast, simple, door-to-door
Cons: Expensive per unit on any significant volume

Air Freight (Cargo)

Transit time: 7–12 days
Cost: $3–$7 per kg (plus airport handling, customs fees)
Best for: 100–500 kg shipments needing speed without full container cost
Pros: Significantly cheaper than express for larger volumes
Cons: Requires customs clearance at destination; handling charges add up

Sea Freight LCL (Less than Container Load)

Transit time: 25–40 days (China to US West Coast)
Cost: $80–$150 per CBM (cubic meter) + handling fees
Best for: Shipments that don’t fill a full container (1–15 CBM)
Pros: Affordable for medium volumes
Cons: Longer transit, goods consolidated with other shippers’ cargo

Sea Freight FCL (Full Container Load)

Transit time: 25–40 days
Cost: $1,500–$3,500 per 20-foot container (market rate varies)
Best for: Large volumes that fill a container (15+ CBM)
Pros: Cheapest per-unit shipping for large volumes
Cons: Requires large enough order to fill a container

Step 3: Work with a Freight Forwarder

For most FBA shipments from China, you need a freight forwarder — a company that specializes in arranging international cargo shipments.

A good freight forwarder:

Books the vessel or air cargo space
Handles export customs clearance in China
Handles import customs clearance in the US (or coordinates with a customs broker)
Manages drayage from the port to Amazon’s warehouse (for FCL)
Provides tracking and documentation

What to look for in a freight forwarder:

Experience with Amazon FBA shipments specifically — not all forwarders know FBA requirements
All-in pricing that includes customs clearance (avoid surprise fees)
Clear communication and responsive customer service

Popular freight forwarders used by FBA sellers include Flexport, Freightos, Shapiro, and numerous China-based agents.

Step 4: Create Your Shipment in Amazon Seller Central

Before goods leave China, create your inbound shipment in Amazon Seller Central:

Go to Inventory → Send/Replenish Inventory
Select your products and quantities
Amazon assigns warehouse destination(s) — note that Amazon may split your shipment across multiple warehouses
Generate FBA labels for each master carton
Download FNSKU labels if not already on products

Send the FBA shipment ID and box labels to your supplier or freight forwarder so they can apply them before the shipment leaves China.

Step 5: Customs Clearance

For shipments entering the US, you need customs clearance. Requirements:

Commercial invoice — From your Chinese supplier, showing product description, quantity, unit value, and total value
Packing list — Showing what’s in each carton
Bill of lading or airway bill — Shipping document from the carrier
Power of Attorney — If using a customs broker for the first time

Import duties: The US charges tariffs on most Chinese goods, and these have increased significantly since 2018. Check the current tariff rate for your product’s HS code at the USITC Tariff Database. Factor this into your landed cost calculation.

Common Mistakes That Cost Money

❌ Not understanding Amazon’s warehouse split

Amazon often splits your inventory across multiple fulfillment centers. This means your single shipment may need to go to 2–3 different addresses. Confirm this before your freight forwarder books transport — shipping to one address and then having to redirect is expensive.

❌ Skipping prep requirements

Amazon will reject units that aren’t properly labeled or packaged. They’ll also charge you disposal fees for rejected inventory. Check the requirements for your specific product type before shipping.

❌ Underestimating landed cost

New sellers frequently forget to include: ocean freight, customs duties (often 10–25% for Chinese goods), customs broker fees, Amazon’s FBA receiving fees, and last-mile drayage. Calculate your full landed cost before deciding whether a product is profitable.

❌ Shipping air for first orders regardless of margin

Air freight is fast but expensive. For a product with thin margins, shipping air can eliminate all profitability. Unless you need inventory urgently (product launch, seasonal, running out of stock), sea freight is almost always worth the wait.

Estimated Cost Breakdown Example

Sample: 500 units of a product, 1 CBM, shipping from Guangzhou to Amazon FBA in Los Angeles

Cost Item	Estimate
Sea freight (LCL, 1 CBM)	$120
Destination handling / THC	$80
Import customs clearance	$150
Import duties (example: 10%)	$300 (on $3,000 product value)
Drayage to Amazon warehouse	$150
Total logistics cost	$800
Per unit logistics	$1.60

For comparison, the same shipment via DHL express might cost $600–$800 in freight alone — without customs or drayage — and arrive in 5 days instead of 30.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my Chinese supplier ship directly to Amazon FBA?

Yes, but they must comply with all FBA labeling and packaging requirements. Brief your supplier in detail on Amazon’s requirements, and consider using a prep center on your first shipment to verify compliance.

How do I handle Amazon’s warehouse split?

Your freight forwarder can manage multi-destination shipments. Alternatively, you can ship to one of your warehouse addresses or a prep center, then forward to each Amazon warehouse yourself. Amazon also offers an “inventory placement” service (for a fee) that routes all inventory to one warehouse.

What’s the cheapest way to ship from China to Amazon FBA?

Sea freight FCL for full containers. For most small to medium sellers, sea LCL is the best balance of cost and practicality. Air should only be used when speed is genuinely necessary.

Do I need a customs broker?

For the first few shipments, yes — the learning curve for customs clearance is steep. Many freight forwarders include customs clearance in their quoted price. As volume grows, learning the process yourself or working with a dedicated broker saves money.