AnalysisFreight forwarding · US-based against US-serving
What are the top freight companies in the US, when most of the biggest are not American?
The question hides an ambiguity worth separating. Of the nine forwarders present in both Armstrong & Associates 2025 tables, two are headquartered in the United States: C.H. Robinson at 1,256,000 ocean TEUs and $14,768M revenue, and Expeditors at 855,200 TEUs and $11,069M. Every one of the nine serves US cargo. If the question is who moves the most American freight, headquarters is the wrong variable — and licence status is the right one.
The nine, and where they are from
| # | Company | Headquarters | Ocean TEUs, 2025 | Revenue, $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sinotrans | China | 4,925,154 | 13,580 |
| 2 | Kuehne+Nagel | Switzerland | 4,325,000 | 33,836 |
| 3 | DSV | Denmark | 3,695,424 | 37,379 |
| 4 | DHL Global Forwarding | Germany | 3,274,000 | 35,538 |
| 5 | Cosco Shipping Logistics | China | 1,961,791 | 8,989 |
| 6 | Nippon Express | Japan | 1,806,197 | 17,199 |
| 7 | CEVA Logistics | France | 1,730,000 | 18,300 |
| 8 | C.H. Robinson | United States | 1,256,000 | 14,768 |
| 9 | Expeditors | United States | 855,200 | 11,069 |
Ordered by ocean volume. On revenue the order changes substantially — C.H. Robinson rises to sixth and Sinotrans falls to seventh — because revenue counts air freight, contract logistics and brokerage alongside ocean.
Why headquarters is the wrong filter
A forwarder arranging ocean carriage for US cargo needs US authority regardless of where it is incorporated. An ocean freight forwarder must be US-based to hold that licence; an NVOCC may be foreign-based, in which case it is registered rather than licensed and posts a $150,000 bond against $75,000.
So the useful question is not whose flag is on the letterhead but which entity holds the credential for your leg. The register held 3,273 licensed ocean freight forwarder records and 9,030 NVOCC records when read on 07/26/2026, and it answers that in about two minutes.
What a top-five list cannot tell a US importer
| The size ranking answers | It does not answer |
|---|---|
| How much cargo the company handles | Whether it is licensed for your leg |
| How much revenue it books | What its bond would cover |
| Which markets it is concentrated in | What it will charge you |
| Whether it is growing | How it behaves when a container is held |
Nothing in a size table is a recommendation. For a shipper moving a handful of containers a year, a top-ten forwarder's scale mostly buys allocation during a capacity squeeze — real, seasonal, and not what most of these lists imply.
Where this goes next
Three pages carry the rest of this question: the number behind it, the comparison of whoever would do it, and the check that runs before you pay.
- what the delivered container actually bills, line by line — the figure behind it
- the two forwarder orderings that exist and the three that do not — who does it
- which credential covers the ocean leg — check the licence
Two neighbouring pieces sit closer to this one than any of them: the question under the question, and when 2 of 245 pages show a licence number.
Frequently asked questions
What are the top 5 freight companies in the US?
By ocean volume among the nine in the Armstrong 2025 tables, the largest serving the US are Sinotrans, Kuehne+Nagel, DSV, DHL Global Forwarding and Cosco Shipping Logistics. Only C.H. Robinson and Expeditors are US-headquartered.
Which US freight forwarder is the biggest?
C.H. Robinson, at 1,256,000 ocean TEUs and $14,768M revenue in 2025, ahead of Expeditors at 855,200 TEUs and $11,069M.
Does a forwarder have to be American to ship US cargo?
An ocean freight forwarder must be US-based to hold the FMC licence. An NVOCC may be foreign-based, registered rather than licensed, and posts a $150,000 bond.
How many licensed forwarders are there in the US?
The FMC list held 3,273 licensed ocean freight forwarder records and 9,030 NVOCC records when read on 07/26/2026. Those are register rows, not deduplicated companies.
Is a bigger forwarder better for a small importer?
Not automatically. Scale buys allocation when capacity tightens; it does not buy attention, and the destination-side charges that dominate a small shipment are the same either way.
Sources
- Armstrong & Associates, 2025 rankings of freight forwarders by ocean TEUs and by revenue.
- Federal Maritime Commission, OTI search application — 3,273 licensed ocean freight forwarder records and 9,030 NVOCC records, read 07/26/2026.
- Federal Maritime Commission, bond program information for OTIs — bond amounts by entity type.