looking for oneinternational deliverybusiness? The companies listed below are the top 20 international shipping companies in the world.
If you are moving internationally and want to compare companies, please use the form above.
The largest companies rely on data fromAlphaliner, which tracks the capacity of the world's containership fleets based on twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). Basically, it's how many twenty-foot containers a company can transport at any given time.
We also include data on where companies are headquartered, when they were founded, their total global revenue, and the number of employees.
sections
1. Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A. (MSC)
no: 4.572.036
QG: Geneva, Switzerland
Founded: 1970
revenue: $28.2 billion (USD)
Staff: 150.000
Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A. (MSC) is the world's largest private shipping company. They have 675 offices in 155 countries around the world and call a total of 520 differentdoors.
Its total fleet is made up of 730 container ships, including the 4 largestcontainer shipin the world, each of which can handle more than 19,000 twenty-foot containers.
Mediterranean Shipping Line Reviews
2.A.P. Moller-Maersk Group
no: 4.255.710
QG: Copenhagen, Denmark
Founded: 1904
revenue: $106 billion (USD)
Staff: 100.000+
The largest operating unit of A.P. The Moller–Maersk Group is Maersk Line, the world's largest international freight and cargo carrier. They have more than 900 subsidiaries and offices in 130 countries around the world and operate 711 container ships.
They estimate they ship $675 billion worth of goods each year, almost as much as Switzerland's GDP. Its Triple-E ships have a capacity for 18,000 twenty-foot containers and its current fleet has 5 of these ships in active service.
Maersk Line Reviews
3. CMA CGM Group
no: 3.384.710
QG: Marseille, France
Founded: 1978
revenue: $55.97 billion (USD)
Staff: 130.000
CMA CGM Group is the third largest shipping company in the world. They have a fleet of 599 ships calling at 420 ports in 160 countries. In total they have 755 offices around the world.
Its largest vessel is the CMA CGM Georg Forster, which can handle 18,000 twenty-foot containers. Her name is a French acronym meaning“Maritime Charter Company – General Maritime Company”.
CMA CGM Reviews
4. China Shipping Company (Grupo) (COSCO)
no: 2.863.660
QG: Beijing, China
Founded: 1961
revenue: $10.2 billion (USD)
Staff: 17.000
Following the acquisition of China Shipping Container Lines (CSCL), COSCO is now the 4th largest shipping company in the world, the largest shipping company outside of Europe, and one of only 4 companies with a total capacity of more than 2 million TEUs. .
COSCO now owns 5 of the 10 largest container ships, each of which is capable of handling 19,000 twenty-foot containers. In total, the group has 462 vessels, of which 285 are container ships. They have 224 corporate offices in China and abroad and more than 400 customer service offices around the world.
COSCO Shipping Lines Reviews
5. Lloyd's Table
no: 1.733.452
QG: Hamburg, Germany
Founded: 1847
revenue: $26.36 billion (USD) (estimate)
Staff: 14.500
Hapag-Lloyd operates 249 modern container ships calling at 350 ports in 117 different countries around the world. Every year they ship 11.9 million TEU in containers. Its more than 400 offices are located in 137 countries.
In December 2014 they merged with the Chilean CSAV to form one of the largest shipping companies in the world. Its largest ships have the capacity to carry 13,000 TEU of containers.
Hapag-Lloyd Reviews
6. Evergreen Army
no: 1.636.837
QG: Taoyuan City, Taiwan
Founded: 1968
revenue: $5.2 billion (USD)
Staff: 10.500
Evergreen Marine's Evergreen Line is the sixth largest container shipping company in the world. Currently, more than 208 ships operate, calling at 240 ports worldwide in 80 different countries.
Its largest ships are the 8,500 TEU L-type container ships, considerably smaller than the largest ships of competing companies. However, they adapted them to reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Evergreen Marine Reviews
7. Ocean Network Express (UNO)
no: 1.527.159
QG: Tokyo, Japan andSingapore
Founded: 2017
revenue: $30.1 billion (USD)
Staff: 14.000
Ocean Network Express is a new Japanese shipping company that arises from the integration of 3 large Japanese companies: Mitsui O.S.K. lines, ltd. (MOL), Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line).
Its fleet is made up of 205 vessels, of which 35 are considered super large, with the capacity to transport up to 20,000 TEUs. The company serves a network that covers more than 120 countries worldwide.
8. Hyundai Merchant Navy (HMM)
no: 818.063
QG: Seoul, South Korea
Founded: 1976
revenue: $4.9 billion (USD)
Staff: 1.678
Hyundai Merchant Marine is part of the Hyundai Group. Currently, 76 state-of-the-art ships operate, serving 50 maritime routes in more than 100 ports of call.
The company has 4 international headquarters, 27 subsidiaries, 76 branches, 5 foreign offices and 10 liaison offices.
9. Yang Ming Shipping Corporation
no: 707.354
QG: Keelung, Taiwan
Founded: 1972
revenue: $10.8 billion (USD)
Staff:A stranger
Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation currently operates 94 vessels, with containerships being the main focus. Its operational capacity is 716 thousand TEUs. Its fundamental values are: "Teamwork, Innovation, Honesty and Pragmatism".
They operate dedicated terminals at the following locations: Ports of Keelung, Kaohsiung and Taipei in Taiwan;The Angelse Tacoma noUSA; antwerp inBelgiumand Rotterdam in the Netherlands. They also cover more than 170 service points in more than 70 countries around the world.
10. Zim Integrated Shipping Services (ZIM)
no: 430.541
QG: Haifa, Israel
Founded: 1945
revenue: $3.7 billion (USD)
Staff: ~4.200
Zim Integrated Shipping Services is the largest shipping company in Israel. In 2018 they transported 2,914,000 million TEUs, using their fleet of 139 vessels.
Zim calls more than 180 ports of call worldwide and offers 70 lines and services. In recent years, they have expanded into China with 10 offices and hundreds of employees, and are also investing in IT, spending more than $100 million in recent years.
11. Linhas Wan Hai
no: 430.541
QG: Taipei, Taiwan
Founded: 1965
revenue: $9.92 billion (USD)
Staff: ~ 5.000
Wan Hai Lines was originally founded as a log shipping company, but since 1976 has been transformed into a full container shipping company.
Wan Hai is the only operator in Taiwan with exclusive terminals in the northern, central and southern regions of the island (Keelung, Taichung and Kaohsiung). It currently operates 20 routes, 15 of which call at major international commercial ports. Its fleet has 147 ships.
12. Pacific International Lines (PIL)
no: 297.163
QG: singapore
Founded: 1967
revenue: $5.8 billion (USD)
Staff: 18.000
PIL is the second largest shipping company headquartered in Singapore and is one of the largest shipping companies in Southeast Asia. They operate 91 modern vessels calling at more than 500 locations in nearly 100 countries around the world.
PIL's container lines currently operate from the Far East to Europe, the Black Sea, Canada, the Indian subcontinent, the Red Sea/Gulf, Africa,Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, and the US West Coast.
13. Shandong International Transport Corporation (SITC)
no: 157.699
QG: Hong Kong
Founded: 1991
revenue:A stranger
Staff:A stranger
SITC is a Chinese company that operates mainly in Southeast Asia. They serve about 60 major ports in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Vietnam, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Employing their fleet of 106 vessels, they provide high-quality procurement services throughout the year.
14. Korea Shipping Corporation (KMTC)
no: 150.429
QG: Seoul, South Korea
Founded: 1954
revenue: $3 billion (USD)
Staff: 500 – 1.000
KMTC prides itself on being one of the most punctual shipping services in the world. It is another remittance provider from Southeast Asia operating in more than 22 countries. They also service the Middle East, connecting it to major hubs such as Hong Kong, Busan, Singapore, and Tokyo.
KMTC's total TEU capacity exceeds 100,000 TEUs spread across its 66 ships.
15. Grupo IRISL
no: 143.468
QG: Tehran, Iran
Founded: 1967
revenue: $26.1 billion (USD)
Staff: 7.000
IRISL is the largest container shipping company in the Middle East. Although they were sanctioned by the EU, UN, and US for aiding Iran's nuclear programs, they still emerged at the top of Alphaliner's list.
Its current fleet is 33 ships and is constantly expanding.
16. Single feeder
no: 137.531
QG: Aarhus, Denmark
Founded: 1977
revenue: $1.3 billion (USD)
Staff: ~1.100
Unifeeder is considered the largest European connection and short sea network with access to niche ports in Europe, Africa and Asia. Although the company operates with short-haul container traffic, it remains one of the leaders in terms of annual TEU transport.
Unifeeder's fleet has 84 ships that make around 8,000 calls in 46 ports a year.
17. X-Press feeding group
no: 136.459
QG: singapore
Founded: 1972
revenue: $1 billion (USD)
Staff: 300+
X-Press Feeders claims to be the largest independent common carrier in the world. They operate in Asia, the Middle East, the Caribbean, Central America, the Mediterranean, and Northern Europe.
In 2015, its annual handling was estimated at 4.8 million TEU. What sets them apart is that they do not own, lease or operate any containers and provide shipping services only to container operators.
18. Zhonggu Logistics Corporation
no: 123.020
QG: Shanghai, China
Founded: 2003
revenue: $2 billion (USD)
Staff: ~2.000
Shanghai Zhonggu Logistics Co., Ltd. is primarily focused on providing logistics services exclusively for the Chinese market. They provide domestic waterway transportation, international shipping, domestic ship management business, ancillary international shipping business, and other services.
With the help of its network of road and rail services and warehouses in China, Zhonggu Logistics Corp ranks first among China's private container shipping companies with a fleet of 100 vessels.
19. TS lines
no: 108.114.117
QG: Taipei, Taiwan
Founded: 2001
revenue: $158 million (USD)
Staff: 51
Being a relatively new company, TS Lines has managed to expand from its Chinese market to the whole world. Today, they call at ports in North America, East Africa, Asia, Europe and Australia, covering more than 15 countries.
Its current fleet is 50 ships. Their annual cargo volume is 1.9 million TEU and they expect a year-on-year increase of 11%.
20. Antong Holdings (QASC)
no: 89.800
QG: Quanzhou, Fujian, China
Founded: 2003
revenue: $1 billion (USD)
Staff: ~1.000
Antong Holdings ranked last on this list with its ocean cargo fleet consisting of 91 vessels. The company is one of the largest maritime transport operators in South and East Asia.
Antong Holdings' scope of service covers everything from shipping and warehousing logistics services to international cold chain logistics. They incorporate trade, transportation, finance, and technology into one to provide customers with unique integrated services.
Visualization of the top 10 container shipping companies
Note on the data: The data provided above comes from each company's website and is accurate at the time of publication (December 2022). As many of the companies are privately owned, it was not possible to obtain complete data for all of them.