Comparison guide
Your options for customs clearance, compared on what they publish
Five ways a small or mid-size importer can get an entry filed. Instead of vague "typical price" claims, this page compares what each option actually publishes, with every figure cited to the company's own page and dated.
Written by Joy Xue, licensed U.S. customs broker (CBP filer code NQR) · Updated
The short answer: you can clear imports through a digital freight forwarder, an online broker, your carrier's brokerage arm, a traditional broker, or by filing yourself. Of the five named firms we checked, only two publish a per-entry rate card. The fees also scale differently (per entry, per HTS line, per invoice, or as a percentage of your duty bill), so headline rates alone can't be compared. Here is what each option publishes, verified August 30, 2026.
The comparison, at a glance
| Option | Publishes a rate card? | Published price (seen Aug 30, 2026) | Fee scales with | Disbursement fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digital forwarder e.g. Flexport | No | None found on its customs page or homepage; the path is a quote via sign-up | Not published | Not published |
| Online broker with a card e.g. Clearit | Yes | $149.95 ocean / $129.95 air / $89.95 truck per entry, incl. 3 HTS codes + 1 invoice; +$15 per extra code, +$15 per extra invoice; ISF $50; continuous bond $500/yr | Per entry + per HTS line + per invoice + % of duty | 5% of duty, MPF & all payables |
| Quote-only online brokers e.g. USA Customs Clearance, AFC International | Partly | Prices published for bonds (from $235), consulting ($495 / 45 min), IOR registration (from $175), bundles ($799 / $1,499), but no published price for entry filing itself | Quoted per account | Not published |
| Carrier brokerage UPS, FedEx, DHL | In rate guides | Published in each carrier's service and rate guide rather than a simple page; check the current guide and its effective date before relying on any figure | Varies by service tier | See current rate guide |
| Traditional broker rarely published; e.g. Strix LLC | Rarely | The one published range we found: $100–$250 per entry full brokerage (or $30/entry self-file software) plus a $500 one-time onboarding fee | Per entry, by complexity | Not published |
| Self-filing | n/a | No broker fee; your costs are software, staff time, and CBP's system-certification process | Your team's time | None (0%, no fee to advance duties) |
| Borderless | Yes, in full | $149 flat per entry pay-as-you-go with ISF, 5 HTS lines and a PGA filing bundled; $79 on a 12-month agreement; $55 and $45 at 80 and 250 entries a month; no monthly fee on any plan | Per entry, flat | 0% |
Sources, all seen Aug 30, 2026: Flexport's customs product page and homepage (no price published; its headline is "The AI-Driven Customs Brokerage Powerhouse");Clearit's US pricing page(which states "Disbursement: 5% of Duty, MPF, & all payables");USA Customs Clearance's services index(no published price for entry filing; its brokerage page routes to "Request A Customs Brokerage Quote"); AFC International's homepage (no prices; "Get A Quote");Strix LLC's pricing page; and our own rate card. Pricing pages change; if you spot a stale figure, tell us and we'll fix it.
How to actually compare these
The trap in this market is comparing headline rates that scale differently. A $149.95 base fee with 3 HTS codes included, $15 per extra code, $25 handling on all transactions, and 5% of your duty bill as a disbursement fee will invoice very differently from a $149 flat fee with lines bundled and 0% disbursement, and the difference grows with your duty bill. At 2026 tariff levels, the percentage-of-duty line is frequently the largest charge on a brokerage invoice. The honest comparison is the all-in invoice on one of your typical shipments; our cost guideitemizes every fee so you can price one out line by line.
The self-filing option, honestly
Self-filing is legal and real. The statute (19 U.S.C. 1484) lets the importer of record make entry "in person," and the broker-licensing regulation exempts an importer "transacting customs business solely on his own account" (19 CFR 111.2(a)(2)(i)). Filing electronically means joining CBP's ABI system: eligibility is open to importers (19 CFR 143.1), but the process runs through a letter of intent to CBP describing your systems and software vendor (19 CFR 143.2), and a demonstration the regulation describes as "intensive testing" of your system against CBP's specifications (19 CFR 143.5). For a company with an in-house trade team and steady volume, it can make sense. For everyone else, the broker fee buys the classification judgment, the liability backstop, and the not-doing-any-of-that.
Common questions
Can I clear customs myself without a broker?
Legally, yes: 19 U.S.C. 1484 lets the importer of record make entry in person, and 19 CFR 111.2(a)(2)(i) says an importer filing solely on its own account needs no broker license. Practically, self-filing electronically means applying to CBP with a letter of intent, naming your software vendor, and passing what the regulation itself calls intensive testing of your system. It's a real path for companies with an in-house trade team, and heavy for everyone else.
Do all customs brokers charge a duty-disbursement fee?
No. Some published rate cards charge a percentage of your duty bill (one major online broker publishes 5% of duty, MPF, and all payables) for advancing your money to CBP. The fee is avoidable at any broker that sets you up to pay CBP directly by ACH. Borderless charges 0% and sets up direct payment free.
Why don't most customs brokers publish their prices?
Of the five firms we checked on Aug 30, 2026, only two published a per-entry rate card on their own site. The rest route you to a quote form. There are legitimate reasons a quote can vary (commodity, agencies involved, line counts), but it also makes comparison shopping hard, which is why this page compares what each option actually publishes.
What's the real number to compare between brokers?
The all-in invoice for one of your typical shipments: base fee plus ISF, plus extra HTS lines beyond what's included, plus any agency filings, plus handling, plus any percentage-of-duty disbursement charge. Headline per-entry rates scale differently between providers, so the same shipment can invoice very differently on two cards with similar base prices.
Want the comparison run on your actual shipments?
Send us a recent entry summary and we'll show you the all-in number, line by line, next to what you're paying now.