LCL (Less than Container Load) means your goods share a container with other shippers' cargo — you pay only for the space you use. FCL (Full Container Load) means you book a whole 20ft or 40ft container to yourself. LCL is cheaper for small loads; FCL is faster, lower-risk and better value once you have enough to fill a container. Rolats offers both.
What LCL and FCL actually mean
Both are sea-freight options; the difference is how the container is filled. With LCL — also called groupage or consolidation — your barrels, boxes and bags are loaded alongside other people's cargo into a shared container, and you pay for the volume (cubic metres) or number of bags you occupy. With FCL you take an entire container — a 20ft or 40ft box — for your goods alone, sealed from origin to destination. The right choice comes down to how much you're sending.
The trade-offs: cost, speed and risk
- Cost. LCL is cheaper when you only have a few barrels, bags or boxes — you're not paying for empty space. But as your volume grows, the per-unit cost of LCL rises, and at a certain point a full container becomes better value than paying for lots of LCL space.
- Speed. FCL is usually faster: the container is loaded, sealed and moved as one unit. LCL takes longer because cargo must be consolidated before departure and de-consolidated on arrival, and it waits for the container to fill.
- Risk & handling. FCL is lower-risk — your goods are sealed and handled less, with no other shippers' cargo against them. LCL involves more handling and shared space, so packing well (reinforced barrels and bags) matters more.
- Customs. With FCL only your consignment is in the box, so clearance is straightforward. LCL shipments can occasionally be held longer if another shipper's goods in the same container trigger an inspection.
Which should you choose?
- Choose LCL if you're a typical diaspora shipper sending a few barrels, Ghana Must Go bags or boxes home — it's the affordable, flexible default, and most personal shipments go this way.
- Choose FCL if you're moving a full household, a car plus goods, a large building-materials order, or commercial stock, or you want maximum speed and security and have enough to fill a 20ft or 40ft container.
A simple rule of thumb: once you're paying for roughly half a container or more in LCL space, ask us to price an FCL — it often works out cheaper and faster.
LCL and FCL with Rolats
From our Dagenham depot Rolats ships both ways to around 45 African countries. Our sea cargo (groupage/LCL) starts from £70 per bag — ideal for barrels, bags and boxes — while full 20ft and 40ft containers (FCL) are priced on application (POA) for households, commercial loads and cars. We handle collection, consolidation, customs and door-to-door delivery either way. Not sure which fits? Send us your item list and we'll price both.