Landed Cost Formula: the U.S. Duty Stack + Free Excel Template
Invoice × Tariff editorial
Landed cost = goods value + international freight + insurance + duties + border fees (MPF/HMF). For U.S. imports, duties are the customs value multiplied by each applicable rate — MFN plus Section 301/232/338 — added layer by layer, never compounded; MPF and HMF are charged on the same value. Divide the total by units for landed cost per unit.
The landed cost formula
Landed cost is what a shipment truly costs you before it can sell — not the price on the supplier's invoice. For a U.S. import:
Landed cost = Goods value (FOB) + Freight + Insurance + Duties + Border fees
Duties and fees are where most importers get burned, because 2026 duty is a stack, not a single rate:
Duties = Customs value × (MFN rate + Section 301 + Section 232/338 if hit)
Fees = MPF (0.3464%, min $33.58 / max $651.50 per entry) + HMF (0.125%, sea only)
The layers multiply the same customs value and add — they never compound. A 16.5% MFN + 7.5% Section 301 + 12.5% global 301 is 36.5% in duty, not 40.9%. And international freight is not part of the U.S. customs value (the transaction-value basis), which is why it appears in landed cost but not in the duty math.
Where each number comes from
| Component | Where to get it |
|---|---|
| Goods value | Supplier invoice, FOB terms — this is the customs value base |
| Freight | Your forwarder's quote or invoice, international leg only |
| Insurance | Policy premium for the shipment (often 0.2–0.5% of value if not quoted) |
| Duties | By 8-digit HTS code + origin country: MFN from USITC, 301/232/338 by list and tier — or let the calculator stack them |
| MPF | 0.3464% of customs value on formal entries, $33.58–$651.50 per entry (FY2026) |
| HMF | 0.125% of customs value, sea shipments only |
The HTS code is the hinge: every rate attaches to it. If you are not sure of your code yet, start with how to find the HTS code for your product.
Worked example: 1,000 knit t-shirts from China
| HTS 6109.10.00 · origin CN · $10,000.00 · ocean formal entry · 1,000 units | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Base duty (MFN) HTS Column 1 general rate · source | 16.5% | $1,650.00 |
| China Section 301 (List 4A) Trade Act 1974 §301 (USTR action, 9903.88.01 series) · source | 7.5% | $750.00 |
| Global Section 301 (CN, 12.5% tier) Trade Act 1974 §301 (global forced-labor program; FR 2026-15181 §1(a)(iii)) · source | 12.5% | $1,250.00 |
| Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF) fee, not a duty · charged on the same value | 0.125% | $12.50 |
| Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF) fee, not a duty · charged on the same value | 0.3464% (once per entry, min $33.58 / max $651.50) | $34.64 |
| Total duties + fees owed to CBP | $3,697.14 | |
| Effective tariff rate (duties + fees ÷ customs value) | 36.97% | |
| Duties + fees per unit | $3.70 |
Computed live from ruleset v0.3.1 (data as of 2026-09-19, entry date 2026-09-19). Each row's verification status is shown on the HTS 6109.10.00 page; estimates only, not customs advice.
Now finish the landed cost with the two numbers the table does not include — freight and insurance. Say the sea freight quote is $1,800 and cargo insurance is $120:
Landed cost = 10,000 + 1,800 + 120 + 3,697.14 = 15,617.14
Per unit = 15,617.14 ÷ 1,000 = ~15.62
Your true unit cost is $15.62, against a $10.00 goods price — the duty stack added roughly 56%. That gap is exactly what the formula exists to expose before you price the product.
Free Excel template (with the duty-stack columns)
Download the landed cost template (.xlsx)
The template mirrors the formula column-for-column:
- Goods value, freight, insurance rows feeding a customs-value block;
- Per-layer duty columns (MFN / 301 / 232-338) so you can paste rates straight from a code page or the calculator;
- MPF and HMF rows with the min/max caps noted;
- A per-unit column that divides by units automatically.
To fill it: enter your value, freight and insurance; copy the duty amounts from the calculator or the HTS code page for your code; the totals compute themselves.
Per-unit cost and the MPF consolidation effect
Landed cost per unit = landed cost ÷ units. Two effects matter:
- The MPF minimum punishes small entries. At $33.58 per entry, a $3,000 shipment pays over 1.1% in MPF alone; a $100,000 shipment pays 0.3464% until the $651.50 cap kicks in near $188,000. Consolidating several small orders into one entry moves you toward the ad-valorem rate.
- Per-unit math exposes fee drag. On the t-shirt example, duties + fees are ~$3.70 per unit on a $10.00 good. If you shrink the shipment (fewer units, same entry), the MPF minimum alone can add percentage points of effective cost per unit.
Landed cost vs FOB vs CIF vs COGS
| What it covers | Use it for | |
|---|---|---|
| FOB | Goods value at origin, before freight | Supplier pricing, customs value base |
| CIF | FOB + freight + insurance | EU/Canada-style CIF valuation (not the U.S. basis) |
| COGS | FOB + inbound freight + duties + fees + warehousing + other production costs | Accounting (income statement) |
| Landed cost | FOB + freight + insurance + duties + border fees — to the port of entry | Pricing, sourcing decisions, margin math |
Landed cost is narrower than COGS (no warehousing or domestic legs unless you add them) and broader than CIF (duties and fees included). When a supplier quotes DDP, the duty stack is inside their price — who actually pays tariffs explains how that shifts the burden.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the landed cost formula?
- Landed cost = goods value (FOB) + international freight + insurance + duties + border fees. For U.S. imports, duties are the customs value times each applicable layer (MFN + Section 301/232/338) added without compounding; MPF (0.3464%, min $33.58/max $651.50) and HMF (0.125%, sea only) are fees on the same value.
- How do I calculate landed cost in Excel?
- Build one row per cost element: goods value, freight, insurance, then duty columns per layer (MFN / 301 / 232-338) plus MPF and HMF, and a SUM for the total. Multiply the customs value by each layer's rate in its own column so rate changes never break the math — or use the free template linked above, which already has the duty-stack columns wired.
- What does landed cost include?
- Everything to get the goods through the U.S. port of entry: goods value, international freight, cargo insurance, all duty layers, and MPF/HMF fees. It typically excludes post-clearance costs (domestic trucking, warehousing, fulfillment) unless your business adds them — those belong in COGS.
- What is landed cost per unit?
- Total landed cost divided by units. It is the honest unit economics number: on a $10,000 t-shirt shipment with a 36.5%-plus stack and sea freight, the landed unit cost is about $15.62 against a $10.00 goods price. Watch the MPF per-entry minimum — it inflates per-unit cost on small shipments.
- Is landed cost the same as FOB, CIF or COGS?
- No. FOB is just the goods value; CIF adds freight and insurance (the EU/China valuation basis, not the U.S. one); COGS is the accounting figure that can include warehousing and domestic legs. Landed cost sits between: FOB + freight + insurance + duties + border fees, to the port of entry.
Enter your HTS code and origin — the calculator returns the same layer-by-layer table as this article, ready to paste into the template.
Estimates only — not customs, tax or legal advice. Duty is finally determined by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at entry. See the disclaimer.