What is door-to-door freight shipping?
The carrier picks the freight up at the shipper’s address and delivers it to the receiver’s. You do not haul it to or from a terminal.
Door-to-door freight shipping, defined
Door-to-door freight shipping means one booking covers the whole move: pickup at the shipper’s dock or door, the line haul, and delivery at the receiver’s dock or door. U.S. truckload and LTL work this way by default, so in domestic trucking the term mostly tells you what is left out: no drop-off at a terminal, and no collection from one at the far end.
The alternative is terminal service. Some LTL carriers let the shipper drop freight at their terminal, or let the receiver collect it there. That can cost less for someone with a truck and the time.
Where the door ends
Standard delivery ends at the dock or the outside door at ground level. Everything past that is an extra service with its own charge: a liftgate where there is no dock, a residential delivery for a home, inside delivery past the threshold, and an appointment when the receiver sets one.
Those are accessorial charges. Put them on the quote request and the carrier prices them before the move. If the driver finds them at the door, they come back on the invoice.
Door to door across a border or an ocean
In international shipping, door to door means one provider runs every leg: pickup at the factory, export, the ocean or air leg, customs, and the final truck to the warehouse. Port-to-door and door-to-port quotes cover only part of that, and the rest is yours to arrange.
For an import, the leg after customs is a domestic truck move, and that is the part we book: see domestic freight for importers.
Related terms
Quick answers
Is LTL door to door?
Yes, by default. The carrier picks up at your address and delivers to the receiver’s. In between, the freight moves through the carrier’s terminals, which is why LTL takes longer than a truckload.
Do I need to be there for a door-to-door pickup?
Someone has to hand the freight to the driver and sign the bill of lading during the pickup window. Have it packed, labeled and on pallets before the truck arrives.
Can you ship freight door to door to a home?
Yes. Book it as a residential delivery, and add a liftgate unless the home has a loading dock, which few do. Put both on the quote request.
Need it picked up and delivered?
Send both addresses, the pallet count and the weight, and we quote it door to door.