Get in touch
РусскийEnglishEspañolPortuguês

Customs calculator for Mercado Libre

Find out what each unit really costs once it's sitting in your warehouse. Freight, duty, taxes, port and broker are all included. You'll see which taxes come back later and which are gone for good.

What you're importing

The duty rate depends on the product group.

If there's a trade agreement with that country, the duty can be zero.

The price of the whole shipment on the factory invoice, without freight. The unit count is used to split costs per unit.

📦 Boxes and freight

The size of one box and the number of boxes are in your supplier's packing list.

For freight, enter only shipping to the country's port or airport. By sea from China it's roughly 120 USD per cubic meter.

🏢 Your company

⚙️ Fine-tune the calculation

The port charges for unloading and storing the cargo, plus trucking to your warehouse. The broker clears the cargo through customs. Leave the fields empty and we'll use average prices. If you have the broker's invoice, enter your own amounts.

Optional. Fill it in only if you know the rate for your product's code. It replaces the table rate.

ARS

How much local currency you get for 1 USD. Used to show the price in local money.

Landed cost per unit in your warehouse
—
Already includes freight, duty and every cost that won't come back.
 

The profit calculator opens with the purchase cost already filled in. The product is saved to My products in this browser.

Cash needed on clearance day

You pay at import
—
Of which comes back later
—
Gone for good
—
Loss on top of price plus freight
—
Freight, port and broker vs. goods value
—

How it adds up

Line-by-line breakdown, USD

CIF. Customs charges duty and taxes on CIF, meaning the goods price plus freight and insurance to the country.

VAT (IVA). You pay it at customs upfront, and your company gets it back later as a tax credit.

What about a courier?

—

Taxes by courier
—
Per unit by courier
—

Courier rules in this country

FOB. The goods price at the supplier, without freight or insurance.

Checks before you buy

All import measures in this country
📘 This calculator in Excel, plus import guides The customs spreadsheet for six countries in four languages, freight references, unit-economics tables and books on direct importing. All in the PRO pack. See PRO →
What it all means, in plain words

    FAQ

    What is CIF and why is duty charged on it?

    CIF is the goods price plus freight and insurance to the country. Customs takes its percentage of exactly that amount, so expensive freight pushes up both the duty and the taxes.

    What does “comes back as a credit” mean?

    Your company pays VAT and the advance taxes at customs. The money doesn't come back to your account. Instead, your sales taxes shrink by that amount later, usually within one to three months. Without a company, these taxes are lost just like the duty.

    When is a courier cheaper?

    When the shipment is small. Port and broker cost about the same for any shipment, and on a small one they cost more than the goods. Couriers have value and weight limits, and in Argentina a courier can only bring personal items. The calculator tells you whether a courier is allowed and whether it comes out cheaper.

    Where do I get the exact duty rate?

    The rate depends on the product code. Ask your supplier for the code and look it up in the country's official tariff; the link is under the calculation. Once you have the rate, enter it under “Fine-tune the calculation” and everything updates.

    How do I move the cost into the profit calculator?

    Press “Calculate profit with this cost”. The product is saved to My products, and the profit calculator opens with the purchase cost already filled in. My products is stored only in this browser.

    Rates and rules are checked against official sources. Use them for planning; this isn't tax advice.