Portolan is a shipping and freight reference. We explain how goods actually move across the world: what fits inside a 40-foot high cube, why one port can take a 16-meter draft and another cannot, what a bill of lading really proves, how a quote from a forwarder breaks down, and which documents a shipment needs at the border. We do not chase headlines. Each guide is written to stay useful for years, and anything that changes, such as rates, rules or route status, carries a date and gets reviewed.
Where the name comes from
Portolan charts were the working sea charts of the late Middle Ages. They first appeared in the Mediterranean in the late 13th century and showed harbors, coastlines and compass bearings between ports. Pilots used them to get cargo from one port to the next. We liked the idea of a practical chart for people who move goods, so we borrowed the name.
Who reads Portolan
- Small importers and online sellers bringing products from China and the rest of Asia into the United States, Europe, the UK or Australia.
- Junior logisticians, buyers and import coordinators who need to get up to speed quickly.
- Freight forwarders and customs brokers who want reference data at hand.
- Students in maritime, logistics and supply chain programs.
- Anyone curious about ships, ports, the Arctic, trade routes and the companies behind them.
What you will find here
Our guides are grouped into Shipping, Ships, Ports, Routes, Trade, Economics, Tech and Stories. Articles link to each other, so you can move from a definition to a worked example, or from a route to the ports along it. Over time we will add reference cards (containers, ship types, ports) and simple calculators where you enter your own rate, weight or cargo value.
Who we are
Portolan is run by a small editorial team, and articles are published under the Portolan Editorial Team byline rather than individual names. We are not ship captains, freight brokers or customs attorneys, and we do not pretend to be. What we do is find the primary source, check every number against it, explain it in plain English and show you where the data comes from. Our own view of the industry comes from the systems side, the software and IT that logistics companies run on, and from the seller’s side of importing goods. Where that experience ends, we rely on standards, regulators and official statistics, not on guesswork.
How we work
Dimensions, depths, drafts, capacities, duties and rules come from primary sources: ISO standards, the International Maritime Organization, port and canal authorities, classification societies, customs agencies and official statistics. Every figure is tied to its source and the period it describes. We draw our diagrams ourselves from that data. The full process is set out in our Editorial Policy.
What we do not do
- We do not sell freight or act as a forwarder or broker.
- We do not publish live rates, sailing schedules or shipment tracking.
- We do not give legal, customs or financial advice on individual shipments (see our Disclaimer).
- We do not take sides in conflicts. When events affect shipping, we cover routes, transit times, rates, insurance and contracts.
About our images
Our diagrams, charts and maps are built by the editors from real figures and data, with the source in the caption. Our illustrations are original images we create with AI image tools to illustrate articles. They show a type of ship, cargo or process, not a specific vessel or a real port. When it matters to show a real object, we use freely licensed photos and credit the photographer. Details are in the Images section of our Editorial Policy.
Spotted a mistake?
If you notice an error or inaccuracy in any of our articles, please let us know. We will check the data and correct it. Tell us the page, the passage and, if you can, a source for the correct figure. You will find our address on the Contact page.
