FREE TOOL — CONTAINER CHARGES
Detention & demurrage calculator
For Indian imports, including the days both clocks run at once. Nothing is sent anywhere — the arithmetic happens in your browser.
Running this by hand today? and we will show you the same thing on your own consignments.
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Fill in the three dates to see the estimate.
An estimate, not an invoice. Many terminals charge on rising slabs where the daily rate increases the longer a container sits, and free days vary by port and by line. Use your own contract figures above.
Why both clocks can run at once
Demurrage is the container inside the terminal. Detention is the container outside it. Where a line counts detention from the date of discharge rather than from gate-out, the two overlap from arrival until you collect, and you pay twice over for the same days.
This is the part calculators written for the US and EU get wrong, where the charges are usually sequential. Full explanation in detention vs demurrage.
Where the days actually go
Most avoidable charge is not caused at the port. It comes from a customs query nobody noticed, a document chased after assessment rather than before, or an empty return that nobody owned. Each of those is a day on both clocks.
Questions
How is demurrage calculated on an Indian import?
Demurrage runs from the date the container is discharged until it is collected from the terminal, less the free days the custodian allows. It is charged by the port, terminal, CFS or ICD, and Indian terminals commonly allow around three to five free days on import loaded containers.
How is detention calculated?
Detention is charged by the shipping line for the time you hold their container, and runs until the empty is returned. The part that catches people out is when the clock starts: some lines count from the date of discharge, others from the date you collected the box. Check your contract, because it changes the number materially.
Can detention and demurrage really run at the same time?
Yes, in India. Where the line counts detention from discharge rather than gate-out, both clocks run together from arrival until collection, and you pay the custodian and the line for the same container on the same day. In the US and EU the charges are usually sequential, which is why calculators written for those markets understate Indian costs.
What free days should I use?
Use the numbers in your own contract. As a starting point Indian terminals and CFSs commonly allow around three to five free days of storage, and shipping lines commonly allow five to ten free days of detention, but both are negotiable and vary by port and by line.
Is this calculator accurate for my shipment?
It is an estimate. It applies flat per-day rates, while many terminals charge on rising slabs where the daily rate increases the longer the container sits. Treat the result as the shape of the exposure rather than an invoice, and check the applicable tariff for the exact figure.
Counted while there is still time to act
A calculator tells you what a container cost. Ahjam Cargo counts detention and demurrage against the consignment as they accrue, next to the customs status and the container movement, so the number shows up while you can still do something about it.