Below is a list of common shipping and freight terms often used within the industries.
| Term | Definition and Context |
| Accessorial Fee | A fee charged for carrier-provided services beyond standard pickup and delivery (e.g., address correction). |
| Air Waybill | A document indicating the shipment destination address; includes essential info for both the consignor and consignee. |
| BOL (Bill of Lading) | A contract between the goods owner and the carrier detailing the type of goods, origin, and destination. Acts as a receipt upon pickup. |
| Collect Shipment | A billing option where the consignee (receiver) is responsible for all freight charges. |
| Commercial Invoice | An international transaction document detailing what is being shipped, the shipper, and the end consignee. |
| Commodity | Any commercial good that is being shipped. |
| Consignee | The designated receiver of a shipment. |
| Customs | The government agency responsible for collecting duties/taxes and enforcing import/export regulations. |
| Dangerous Goods | Hazardous materials (corrosive, flammable, toxic, etc.) that require special documentation or packaging. See also How to Ship Dangerous Goods. |
| DIM Weight | Dimensional Weight; calculated using package volume (L x W x H) divided by a carrier-specific divisor. See also How to calculate DIM weight. |
| Drayage | Short-distance transport of goods, typically from a port to a staging warehouse. |
| EDI | Electronic Data Interchange; the digital transmission of business documents like invoices and packing slips. See also How to Set Up EDI with UPS. |
| FOB (Free On Board) | A contract term specifying when the title and risk of goods transfer from the seller to the buyer. |
| HS Code | Harmonized System Code; the international standard for classifying goods for customs purposes. See also How to use Tariff Codes (HS Codes) in ShipHero. |
| LTL / FTL | Less than Truckload (shared capacity) vs. Full Truckload (dedicated capacity). See also Freight Shipping. |
| Manifest | A document providing a detailed description of all contents within a shipment. |
| PRO Number | Progressive Rotating Order; a 10-digit number assigned to a shipment, used for tracking. |
| Zone Skipping | Consolidating packages to a specific zone to deliver directly to a final sort facility, bypassing intermediate hubs. |