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Understanding Freight Class
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Understanding Freight Class
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When your business operations rely on load movement, it’s important to obtain accurate pricing information, ensure proper cargo handling and have peace of mind over movement consistency. Freight classes provide the information you need to move loads safely and efficiently with accurate price points in mind. Here, you can learn more about freight class and how to ensure proper identification of your shipments.
Freight Classes Explained
Freight classes refer to the National Motor Freight Traffic Association’s (NMFTA) grouping system for interstate, regional and foreign commerce movement for less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments. These classes use numerical ratings to reflect fees, handling procedures and shipping rates. The freight classes provide a standard price for each LTL carrier and business, allowing teams to make informed shipping decisions.
The NMFTA uses numbers from 50 to 500 to classify freight. These numbers change depending on the load’s characteristics, including:
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- Density: Density depicts how much space a shipment takes up and how tightly you pack the load. Load density provides information regarding cargo stability and allows teams to allocate the appropriate space for the shipment.
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- Handling: Bulky and large cargo is often more challenging to handle, resulting in higher shipping classes. Items like bulky sofas, some car parts, odd-shaped items and similar cargo have higher shipping classes.
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- Stowability: This metric refers to how easy or challenging it is to place cargo on a trailer. Items that are easy to stow on a trailer have high favorability and lower shipping classes. Loads requiring more space have higher shipping charges and higher freight classes.
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- Liability: Although many loads are easy to transport, some items carry varying levels of liability. For example, refrigerated goods or other cargo with specific temperature needs carry some liability and will typically have higher freight classes. Alternatively, many everyday items like mattresses, some furniture and cabinets are not considered a liability for carriers, granting them a low shipping class.
Why Is Freight Class Important?
Freight classification ensures cargo recipients and fleet managers can rely on a standard system to identify and move freight smoothly. This system ensures the efficient and safe transport of all cargo and allows teams to make informed shipping decisions.
Generally, lower classes will have lower shipping costs. If a team uses a lower class than a shipment requires, the carrier and shipper may face additional charges to make up for any losses. Accurate classification is vital for ensuring transparent pricing, guiding budgeting decisions, driving resource allocation, preventing load damage, reducing delays and maintaining consistency. For instance, if an item is larger than the shipping class indicates, teams may be unable to optimize space use, resulting in fewer items moving with the same truckload. This issue could result in fees to make up for the lost space the cargo created.
What are the Shipping Freight Classes?
There are 18 freight classes. Here’s a breakdown of each one:
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- Class 50: This class depicts very durable items that are more than 50 pounds per cubic foot and fit on a standard 4-foot by 4-foot pallet.
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- Class 55: These items weigh between 35 and 50 pounds per cubic foot. Examples include hardwood flooring, bricks and construction materials.
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- Class 60: Items like car parts and accessories fall into the category, weighing between 30 and 35 pounds per cubic foot.
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- Class 65: Bottled drinks, some car accessories and boxed books weighing 22.5 to 30 pounds per cubic foot are in this class.
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- Class 70: This class contains items weighing between 15 and 22.5 pounds per cubic foot, such as auto engines and some food items.
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- Class 77.5: Cargo like bathroom fixtures and tires weighing between 13.5 and 15 pounds per cubic foot are in Class 77.5.
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- Class 85: This class includes cargo weighing 12 to 13.5 pounds per cubic foot, such as crated machinery and cast iron stoves.
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- Class 92.5: Refrigerators, monitors, computers and similar items weighing 10.5 to 12 pounds per cubic foot fall into this class.
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- Class 100: Cargo weighing 9 to 10.5 pounds per cubic foot is in Class 100. Examples include wine cases, boat covers and caskets.
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- Class 110: Items in this category could include table saws, cabinets, framed art or other cargo weighing 8 to 9 pounds per cubic foot.
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- Class 125: Cargo like small home appliances between 7 and 8 pounds per cubic foot are in this class.
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- Class 150: Items between 6 and 7 pounds per cubic foot, such as bookcases or auto sheet metal, are class 150.
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- Class 175: This class includes stuffed furniture or clothing weighing 5 to 6 pounds per cubic foot.
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- Class 200: Loads like packaged mattresses, aluminum tables and sheet metal parts weighing 4 to 5 pounds per cubic foot fall into this category.
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- Class 250: Items weighing 3 to 4 pounds per cubic foot are in this class. Examples include box springs, bamboo furniture and plasma televisions.
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- Class 300: This class encompasses wood cabinets, assembled chairs, model boats and similar items weighing 2 to 3 pounds per cubic foot.
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- Class 400: Fragile items like deer antlers weighing 1 to 2 pounds are in Class 400.
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- Class 500: The last class depicts items with unique handling requirements or high liability. These items weigh less than 1 pound per cubic foot and could include cargo such as ping pong balls, antiques or gold dust.
How to Determine Freight Class
You can generally determine your cargo’s freight class by finding the shipment’s density. Follow these steps:
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- Measure shipment dimensions: Record cargo information, including the height, width and length. Include packing and pallets around the actual shipment in your measurement. Round measurements to the next highest inch. If you have multiple pallets or pieces, repeat this step for each one.
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- Multiply measurements: Find the total cubic inches by multiplying the measurements from the previous step. Divide this number by 1,728 to convert it to cubic feet.
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- Add the cubic measurements: If you have multiple pieces, you must complete the previous step for each piece. Add the measurements from each one to find the total before converting to cubic feet.
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- Weigh the shipment: Record the load’s weight and divide this number by the total cubic feet. If you have multiple pieces, add the weight of each item before dividing.
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- Refer to the class chart: The final number from the previous steps is your cargo density. Use this number to determine your class on the freight chart above.
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Frequently Asked Freight Class Questions
Ensuring pricing accuracy and cargo movement efficiency involves a thorough understanding of freight.
How to Understand Freight Class?
Freight class determination relies on the density, stowability, liability and handling requirements of your cargo. The best way to navigate the freight classes is to obtain accurate information about your shipments and refer to a freight class chart for identification.
What Are the Shipping Classes?
There are 18 shipping classes with numerical values ranging from 50 to 500. These classes depict the shipping requirements for a load, guiding accurate pricing for movement.
How Does LTL Classification and Density Affect Rates?
Generally, lower classes have lower shipping costs. For example, items in Class 100 will typically have lower rates than those in Class 250. Additionally, accurate labeling reduces the likelihood of fees. You can connect with a freight shipping service for more information regarding rates.
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