FOB, CIF & DDP Explained: Understanding Shipping Terms in Apparel Sourcing

FOB — Free On Board

With FOB, the factory delivers your goods, cleared for export, onto the vessel at the origin port. From that point the cost and risk of freight, insurance, and destination handling are yours — usually managed through your own freight forwarder.

FOB gives you the most control over shipping cost and is common once a buyer has a forwarder they trust.

CIF — Cost, Insurance and Freight

With CIF, the supplier arranges and pays for freight and insurance to your destination port. You still handle import customs, duties, and delivery from the port onward. It is a middle ground — less for you to arrange than FOB, but you take over at the destination port.

DDP — Delivered Duty Paid

With DDP, the supplier delivers to your door with everything handled — freight, insurance, customs, and duties. It is the simplest for the buyer and the easiest way to know your true landed cost upfront, which is why many smaller and first-time orders choose it.

Which should you choose?

• New/smaller orders, want simplicity: DDP — one price delivered, though not a term we quote
• Have a freight forwarder, want control: FOB — lowest freight cost
• Somewhere in between: CIF — supplier ships to your port

To put real numbers against these terms for your own market, use our landed-cost calculator.

What we quote, and what we do not

We prepare full export documentation and quote FOB, CIF, or our standard door-to-door terms with freight included in the unit price. We do not quote DDP — import duty and VAT stay with you, shown as a separate line so your landed cost is never buried inside a per-piece figure.