Quick Answer: Sea-air cargo from China to Mexico takes 16-25 days: ocean to Los Angeles in 12-18 days, truck to Miami in 3-5 days, then air to Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey, Cancun, Merida or Santa Lucia in 1-2 days. Port-to-airport freight starts from $3.98/kg at 5,000+ kg. Walio prices your exact lane in seconds.
- Total transit is 16-25 days port to airport, roughly half the time of all-ocean service to Manzanillo and a fraction of the cost of pure air freight.
- Sea-air freight starts from $6.03/kg at 300-499 kg, $5.13/kg at 500-999 kg, $4.44/kg at 1,000-4,999 kg and $3.98/kg at 5,000+ kg on the cheapest port-airport pairing.
- Minimum billed weight is 300 kg, and chargeable weight is the greater of actual kilos or volume multiplied by 167 kg per cubic meter.
- Walio prices nine Chinese ports to six Mexican airports instantly at #quote-calc — no signup, no email form, no follow-up call.
This page explains how the lane works, what drives the rate, and which Mexican airport fits your warehouse. The calculator below prices your exact port, airport and weight in seconds.
How does sea-air cargo from China to Mexico actually work?
Quick Answer: Sea-air combines three legs under one booking: ocean from a Chinese port to Los Angeles in 12-18 days, truck from Los Angeles to Miami in 3-5 days, then air from Miami into a Mexican airport in 1-2 days. Total transit runs 16-25 days, depending on your origin port.
Sea-air is a multimodal service sold as one movement with one set of handling charges. You book once. You do not negotiate an ocean carrier, a US trucker and an airline separately, and you do not chase three invoices.
Walio prices nine Chinese origin ports on this lane. Sailing frequency differs at each one, which is why the transit window is a range and not a single number.
- North China: Dalian, Qingdao, Xingang
- East China: Shanghai, Ningbo
- South China: Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Xiamen, Fuzhou
- South China ports usually post the fastest Pacific transits to Los Angeles
What is included in the port-to-airport service?
The scope is port to airport. The shipper delivers the cargo to the origin port in China. The consignee collects it at the destination airport in Mexico. Door pickup at your supplier's factory and door delivery to your warehouse are quoted on request through the calculator.
Six Mexican airports sit at the end of the lane: CUN (Cancun), GDL (Guadalajara), MEX (Mexico City), MTY (Monterrey), MID (Merida) and NLU (Santa Lucia). You compare all of them on six Mexican airports on one booking before you commit.
Shanghai(CNSHA)
Los Angeles(USLAX)Los Angeles(USLAX)Miami(USMIA)Miami(MIA)
Guadalajara(GDL)The Los Angeles to Miami trucking leg means your cargo crosses US territory in transit. Your commercial invoice, packing list and air waybill must describe the same goods, the same pieces and the same weights. A mismatch stops the box in Miami, not in Mexico.
Pro tip
Ask your supplier to send the final packing list before the container cuts off at the origin port, not after the vessel sails. The air waybill for the Miami-Mexico leg is built from those numbers, and a late correction costs a day of airport handling.
The service fits marketplace sellers restocking Amazon Mexico and Mercado Libre, and importers who need to move goods from China to Mexico fast without paying full air freight. Seasonal apparel, consumer electronics, spare parts and replenishment SKUs all fit the profile.
Sea air China to Mexico calculator: what does it cost?
Quick Answer: Sea-air freight from China to Mexico starts from $6.03/kg for 300-499 kg, $5.13/kg for 500-999 kg, $4.44/kg for 1,000-4,999 kg and $3.98/kg for 5,000 kg and up, on the cheapest port and airport pairing. Origin and destination handling are added per shipment in the calculator.
| Chargeable weight | Rate per kg (from) | Typical shipper |
|---|---|---|
| 300-499 kg | from $6.03 | Single-SKU restock, samples at scale |
| 500-999 kg | from $5.13 | Marketplace seller, 2-3 pallets |
| 1,000-4,999 kg | from $4.44 | Monthly replenishment program |
| 5,000+ kg | from $3.98 | Peak-season bulk, multi-supplier consolidation |
Every figure is a "from" rate. The exact number depends on which of the nine ports you load at and which of the six airports you land at, which is why the calculator asks for both.
How is chargeable weight calculated?
Chargeable weight is the greater of actual kilos or cubic meters multiplied by 167 kg per cubic meter. Two examples make the rule obvious.
- Light and bulky: 4 m³ of sneakers weighing 260 kg bills at 668 kg (4 × 167), not 260 kg.
- Dense: 1.2 m³ of machined spare parts weighing 900 kg bills at 900 kg, because 1.2 × 167 is only 200 kg.
- Mixed pallets: the forwarder measures the whole consolidated unit, so loose void fill costs you real money.
The 300 kg minimum billed weight applies to every booking. A 180 kg shipment is still invoiced as 300 kg. Combining two supplier orders into one booking usually drops your cost per kilo into the next bracket down.
What is not included in the per-kg rate?
- Origin and destination handling, added per shipment in the calculator
- Mexican import duty and the 16 percent IVA
- Customs brokerage by your agente aduanal
- Last-mile trucking from the airport to your warehouse
For the full 2026 breakdown by port and airport, see our detailed guide on Sea-Air China to Mexico Calculator: 2026 Rates. Then enter your origin port, destination airport, weight and dimensions at the calculator on this page and the price appears in seconds — no signup, no sales call.
Sea-air vs ocean FCL vs air freight: which wins?
Quick Answer: Full ocean containers to Manzanillo cost the least per kilo but run 30-45 days port to port. Pure air freight lands in 3-6 days at several times the rate. Sea-air sits between them at 16-25 days, which suits restocks of 300 kg to 5,000 kg that cannot wait for a vessel.
| Mode | Transit | Typical size | Main document | Inventory risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea-air | 16-25 days | 300-5,000+ kg | Air waybill (final leg) | Low |
| Ocean LCL | 30-45 days | 1-15 m³ | Bill of lading | High |
| Ocean FCL 20'/40' | 30-45 days | 15-67 m³ | Bill of lading | High |
| Air freight | 3-6 days | 50-2,000 kg | Air waybill | Very low |
Sea-air cuts roughly half the calendar off a standard China-Mexico ocean move, which is often the difference between catching a sales season and missing it.
When ocean still wins
Once your shipment passes roughly 10-15 m³, compare cost per cubic meter against a 20 ft container. One 20 ft box often beats LCL above 15 m³, and FCL also removes the deconsolidation step at a CFS. The trade is time: you accept 30-45 days and a demurrage clock at Manzanillo or Veracruz.
When sea-air wins
Sea-air wins when the cargo is dense, the value per kilo is decent and the stockout cost is real. It also avoids container free-time entirely. Your goods arrive as airport cargo, so there is no box to return and no detention exposure at the Mexican port.
The final leg moves on an air waybill, not a bill of lading. An AWB is not a negotiable document of title. The consignee of record and the Mexican importer details must be correct before departure, because changing them after the flight departs is slow and expensive.
If you source for several Latin American markets, compare the same structure on other lanes: Sea-Air China to Colombia Calculator: Rates in Seconds and Sea-Air China to Peru Calculator: 2026 Rates.
Which Mexican airport should you ship into?
Quick Answer: Pick the airport closest to your warehouse or fulfillment center, not the cheapest line-haul. Guadalajara serves the Bajio and the west, Mexico City and Santa Lucia serve the center, Monterrey serves the north and US border flows, and Cancun and Merida serve the southeast and tourism retail.
| Airport | Code | Serves | Air leg from Miami |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guadalajara | GDL | Jalisco, Guanajuato, the Bajio | 1-2 days |
| Mexico City | MEX | CDMX, Estado de Mexico, Puebla | 1-2 days |
| Santa Lucia | NLU | North CDMX, Queretaro, Hidalgo | 1-2 days |
| Monterrey | MTY | Nuevo Leon, Coahuila, border maquila | 1-2 days |
| Cancun | CUN | Quintana Roo, hospitality retail | 1-2 days |
| Merida | MID | Yucatan, Campeche | 1-2 days |
The rate to Guadalajara can differ from the rate to Mexico City on the same weight. Airline capacity out of Miami and ground handling at each terminal are priced separately. Compare both in the calculator before you tell your supplier where to send the cargo.
NLU (Santa Lucia) has taken on growing cargo volume with less congestion than MEX. Confirm that your agente aduanal is accredited at that airport before you book, because not every broker operates there.
Marketplace sellers should schedule inbound appointments at Amazon Mexico and Mercado Libre fulfillment centers against the airport arrival date, not the vessel ETD. The two are separated by the Miami trucking leg and the flight.
Last-mile trucking from the airport is quoted separately. Submit your delivery address in the calculator and a Walio specialist follows up with the options for your airport.
What do Mexican customs require when the cargo lands?
Quick Answer: Every commercial import into Mexico clears through a licensed agente aduanal with a pedimento filed to SAT and ANAM. You need registration in the Padron de Importadores, a Factura Comercial, a packing list, the air waybill and your HS classification under the TIGIE. IVA is 16 percent on the customs value.
| Document | Issued by | Needed for |
|---|---|---|
| Factura Comercial | Supplier in China | Valuation and pedimento |
| Packing list | Supplier in China | Piece count, weights, volumes |
| Air waybill | Carrier on the Miami-Mexico leg | Release at the airport |
| Certificado de Origen | Exporter or chamber | Preferential rates where an agreement applies |
| RFC + Padron de Importadores | SAT | Legal right to import commercially |
| NOM certificates | Accredited body | Regulated consumer goods |
The pedimento is the Mexican customs declaration your agente aduanal files electronically. Cargo is not released without it: no pedimento, no release at the airport. Appoint your broker before the flight departs, not after the goods land.
Duty depends on your HS code under the TIGIE, the Mexican tariff schedule. Goods of Chinese origin generally do not qualify for preferential rates, since no free trade agreement covers them. IVA of 16 percent applies on top of customs value plus duty.
Vague invoices trigger valuation review
Invoices that say "samples", "gifts" or "assorted goods" invite a valuation review by customs. The cargo then sits in the airport bonded warehouse accruing storage while the file is resolved. Describe each line item, state the unit price and show the Incoterm (FOB, EXW or CIF) on the face of the invoice.
NOM labeling applies to many consumer goods, electronics and textiles. Apply the labels in China before the cargo ships. Relabeling in a Mexican bonded bay costs more per unit and adds days to release.
Duty and tax questions belong with a licensed customs broker or tax adviser. Walio prices and moves the freight. Importers weighing several regional entry points can also review Sea-Air China to Guatemala Calculator: 2026 Rates and Sea-Air China to Argentina Calculator: 17-26 Days (2026).
How do you book the lane in one sitting?
Quick Answer: Confirm your cargo's weight and dimensions with the supplier, pick your origin port and Mexican airport, price it in the calculator, and appoint your agente aduanal before the flight departs. The whole sequence takes an afternoon, and the freight price appears on screen in seconds.
- Get the final packing list: pieces, gross weight and carton dimensions in centimeters.
- Calculate chargeable weight: actual kilos versus cubic meters × 167 kg/m³.
- Enter origin port, destination airport and cargo details at #quote-calc.
- Compare two or three airports before you fix the destination.
- Appoint your agente aduanal and confirm Padron de Importadores registration is active.
Walio compares real carrier rates across the ocean, trucking and air legs — the same ocean lines you already know, including Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd, plus the airlines flying Miami to Mexico. As of 2026, all nine Chinese ports on this lane route through Los Angeles and Miami.
Enter your route in the calculator above and see your price in seconds — no signup, no follow-up calls.
Sea-air takes 16 to 25 days port to airport, depending on which Chinese port you ship from. The route is ocean to Los Angeles in 12-18 days, truck to Miami in 3-5 days, then air into your Mexican airport in 1-2 days. Customs clearance in Mexico happens after arrival and is not included in that window.
Rates start from $6.03/kg for 300-499 kg, $5.13/kg for 500-999 kg, $4.44/kg for 1,000-4,999 kg and $3.98/kg for 5,000 kg and up on the cheapest port and airport pairing. Origin and destination handling are added per shipment. Enter your exact port, airport and weight in the calculator to see the full price in seconds.
The minimum billed weight is 300 kg, so a shipment lighter than that is still charged as 300 kg. Chargeable weight is the greater of the actual weight or the volume multiplied by 167 kg per cubic meter. Consolidating two supplier orders into one booking is usually cheaper than sending two small ones.
No. The freight rate covers the ocean, trucking and air legs plus handling; Mexican import duty and the 16 percent IVA are paid separately to SAT through your agente aduanal. Duty depends on your HS classification under the TIGIE, so confirm the rate with a licensed customs broker before you order.
Yes, door delivery is available but is quoted on request rather than included in the published port-to-airport rate. Submit your delivery address in the calculator and a Walio specialist follows up with the trucking option for your airport, whether that is Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey, Cancun, Merida or Santa Lucia.