Difference Between FBA Air Freight Forwarding and Land Transport Services

Difference Between FBA Air Freight and Road Freight

In the field of cross-border e-commerce logistics, FBA Fulfillment by Amazon first-mile transportation services are indispensable for many sellers. Among these services, air freight and road freight are two common transportation methods, each with its own characteristics and suitable for different business scenarios. This article will compare these two transportation methods in detail from aspects such as definition, advantages and disadvantages, and applicable scope, and combine the latest industry trends to help sellers choose the most suitable logistics solutions for themselves.

First, let us clarify the concepts of air freight and road freight. Air freight refers to the process of transporting goods from the shipping location to Amazon's warehouse via air transport. This method is usually faster and can meet the needs of orders with high timeliness requirements. For example, an industry report in 2025 mentioned that a certain e-commerce company successfully shortened the delivery cycle of its cross-border orders using air freight services, significantly improving customer satisfaction. Road freight, on the other hand, completes the first-mile delivery through truck transport. Compared to air freight, road freight has lower costs but takes longer to reach the destination.

From the perspective of advantages, the biggest advantage of air freight lies in its efficiency. Due to the use of air transport, air freight can quickly cross borders, making it an optimal choice for products that are either distant or time-sensitive. With the continuous improvement of international flight networks, more and more cities have direct flights available, further enhancing the service capabilities of air freight. However, air freight also has obvious limitations; its high price is a significant burden for many small and medium-sized sellers. According to market research data, the cost of air freight is usually more than twice that of road freight, which is no small expense for companies with limited budgets.

By contrast, road freight is known for its cost-effectiveness. Its low prices make it the preferred choice for many small and medium-sized sellers. In particular, in some remote areas or inland cities where convenient air resources are lacking, road freight becomes the only bridge connecting domestic and international markets. However, road freight also has certain shortcomings; its long transportation time is one of them. For instance, within the country, transporting goods from the eastern coastal regions to western provinces may take several days or even a week. Such delays might cause some buyers to cancel their orders due to prolonged waiting times, thus affecting the overall performance of merchants.

So, how should we reasonably choose between air freight and road freight in actual operations? The answer depends on the specific situation of the enterprise and the characteristics of the target market. If your product belongs to a high-value-added category with high demand, and you hope to minimize the risk of inventory backlog, then air freight would be a better choice. For those products with high price sensitivity, road freight can reduce operating costs while ensuring basic logistics coverage. Of course, in certain special cases, companies can also consider adopting a hybrid model, i.e., using air freight to deliver urgent orders to the destination first, then gradually supplementing the remaining goods through road freight.

To sum up, both air freight and road freight have their own advantages and disadvantages. As sellers, when formulating logistics strategies, they should comprehensively consider multiple factors, including but not limited to product type, sales scale, and target market. Only in this way can efficiency and benefits be maximized simultaneously. In the future, with the progress of technology and the acceleration of globalization, FBA first-mile transportation will undoubtedly more innovations and development opportunities, injecting new vitality into global trade.