Amazon SEND vs Standard FBA Shipping from China: What's Actually Different for Sellers
Amazon SEND lets you book a Partnered Carrier directly inside Seller Central and pay for freight like any other Amazon fee. Standard shipping means you arrange the forwarder yourself and hand Amazon a delivery plan. Both get inventory to the same FCs — but the accountability, pricing and paperwork are different.
What Amazon SEND actually is
SEND (Seller Export and Delivery) is Amazon's cross-border program: you pick a Partnered Carrier inside Seller Central, enter your carton data, and the freight is booked against your inbound plan. The carrier is vetted by Amazon, delivers under the plan, and the cost shows up on your seller statement instead of a separate forwarder invoice.
For China-to-US FBA, SEND covers ocean and air from the major Chinese ports into every US fulfillment center.
How standard (non-SEND) shipping works
With a standard forwarder you get a quote by email, book separately from Seller Central, and the forwarder coordinates appointments against your inbound plan. Good forwarders do this smoothly; weak ones miss FC appointment windows and your cartons sit. The key difference is where the accountability lives — with SEND, the carrier operates inside Amazon's delivery SLA framework.
Cost comparison: what to look at
Neither option is universally cheaper. Compare the all-in shipment total, not a per-CBM rate: China pickup, export declaration, freight, customs entry and delivery to every FC on the plan. SEND rates are carrier-published and competitive on core lanes; a strong non-SEND forwarder can win on volume or multi-FC splits.
- SEND: freight billed through Seller Central, no separate forwarder invoice
- Standard: one invoice from your forwarder covering pickup to FC delivery
- Both: customs duty, ISF and entry fees apply the same way
Where Linktrans sits
Linktrans is both an Amazon SEND Partnered Carrier and an Amazon SPN service provider, so you can book us through Seller Central on SEND lanes or directly through our online quoting tool — the same trucks, warehouses and clearance team either way.
Get an instant all-in quote at us.link-trans.com/quote.