When you have more to move than your ticket allows, you have two real choices: pay the airline’s excess-baggage fees, or send it as air freight. Here is an honest comparison of when each one wins.
Checked (excess) baggage is the extra bags you pay your airline to carry on your own flight. It travels with you and you collect it at the carousel. Air freight — what we do — is sending your belongings as cargo, separately from your flight, collected from your home and flown as a shipment.
Both get your things overseas by air. But they suit very different situations, and the right choice depends mostly on how much you are moving.
If you are only a little over your allowance — one extra bag, say — and you want your things to arrive when you do, paying the airline for an extra checked bag is often simplest. It travels with you, and for small amounts the fee can be reasonable.
The catch is that airline excess-baggage charges rise steeply. Beyond a bag or two, the per-kilo fees can become eye-watering, and airlines cap how much you can check. That is the point where freight takes over.
If you are moving a substantial amount — several boxes, the contents of a room, everything you own for a relocation — air freight is usually far more economical per kilo, and far less hassle. It is collected from your door, so you are not dragging boxes to the airport, and there is no airline weight cap to fight against.
Air freight does not travel on your flight, so it does not arrive at the same moment you do — it typically takes several working days. Many customers actually prefer this: they travel light with a single bag, and their belongings follow. But if you need everything the instant you land, checked baggage is the only option that guarantees it.
Our rule of thumb: a bag or two, and you want it with you — check it. A relocation’s worth of belongings, and you would rather travel light — freight it.
For larger amounts, almost always yes — airline excess-baggage fees rise very steeply per kilo, while freight is priced for volume. For just one extra bag that you want with you on the flight, checked baggage can be simpler. The more you are moving, the more freight wins.
No — air freight travels separately and typically takes several working days from collection to arrival. Many people plan for this by sending belongings ahead and travelling light. If you need everything the moment you arrive, checked baggage is the option that travels with you.
However, if you book it in advance, we can try and book this on to your flight or a few days earlier than your arrival.Absolutely, and many people do — they take essentials as checked baggage for the first few days, and freight the bulk of their belongings to follow. We are happy to advise on the best split for your move.
There is no airline-style passenger cap, but for safe handling items over 30kg carry a heavy-weight surcharge. Two 20kg boxes are better than one unmanageable 40kg box. We will advise on the most economical way to pack and split your shipment.
We have been sending personal effects and excess luggage from the UK since 1998, from our base two miles from Heathrow. Tell us what you are sending and we will give you a clear quote.
Request a quoteAll carriers require your luggage to be no more than 23kg each. Full stop. It is not a guideline and it is not negotiable at the desk.
If your luggage is over 32kg it must travel as cargo — no airline will load it as a checked bag. Your only option at check-in is to unpack everything in front of strangers and redistribute the weight. It is slow, it holds up the queue, and it is as frustrating as it sounds.
Avoid the embarrassment. Talk to Excess Luggage Co. before you fly — 0800 096 38 39 or get a quote.