Cargo and Freight Agents
Expedite and route movement of incoming and outgoing cargo and freight shipments in airline, train, and trucking terminals and shipping docks. Take orders from customers and arrange pickup of freight and cargo for delivery to loading platform. Prepare and examine bills of lading to determine shipping charges and tariffs.
A wage reference for United States.
Published wage percentiles describe a distribution within the source occupation group. They provide context for a career decision; employer packages and job offers have their own terms.
This wage group may include multiple detailed occupations. The figures are for the source group, which may be broader than Cargo and Freight Agents. They are not an exact-title, employer, experience or seniority match.
May 2025 · USD · United States. Annual and hourly figures are shown only when the source publishes them; neither is calculated from the other.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage data, distributed through the O*NET® OnLine service.
Annual wage thresholds
USD per year
Hourly wage thresholds
USD per hour
| Percentile | Annual wage (USD/year) | Hourly wage (USD/hour) |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $38,340 | $18.43 |
| 25th | $45,710 | $21.98 |
| 50th · Median | $52,260 | $25.13 |
| 75th | $63,390 | $30.48 |
| 90th | $79,810 | $38.37 |
“≥” means at least the published amount; “≤” means at most that amount. These are bounds, not exact values. “Not published” means the source did not provide that figure. Occupational wages follow the source definition and do not establish an employer’s base salary, equity or total compensation.
Where does your number sit?
Compare an entered wage with the published thresholds for United States. Your entry stays on this page.
This compares wage amounts to published percentile thresholds. It does not estimate your personal percentile, adjust for your experience, or compare total compensation. Match the wage definition and occupation group before using the result.
What this career involves.
Occupation definitions describe common work. Responsibilities and requirements vary by employer and specific job.
Selected title examples
Expand more title examples (39)
Typical tasks
- Negotiate and arrange transport of goods with shipping or freight companies.
- Determine method of shipment and prepare bills of lading, invoices, and other shipping documents.
- Track delivery progress of shipments.
- Advise clients on transportation and payment methods.
- Estimate freight or postal rates and record shipment costs and weights.
- Keep records of all goods shipped, received, and stored.
Expand more tasks (18)
- Notify consignees, passengers, or customers of freight or baggage arrival and arrange for delivery.
- Retrieve stored items and trace lost shipments as necessary.
- Enter shipping information into a computer by hand or by a hand-held scanner that reads bar codes on goods.
- Prepare manifests showing numbers of airplane passengers and baggage, mail, and freight weights, transmitting data to destinations.
- Arrange insurance coverage for goods.
- Install straps, braces, and padding to loads to prevent shifting or damage during shipment.
- Check import or export documentation to determine cargo contents and use tariff coding system to classify goods according to fee or tariff group.
- Coordinate and supervise activities of workers engaged in packing and shipping merchandise.
- Contact vendors or claims adjustment departments to resolve shipment problems or contact service depots to arrange for repairs.
- Inspect and count items received and check them against invoices or other documents, recording shortages and rejecting damaged goods.
- Route received goods to first available flight or to appropriate storage areas or departments, using forklifts, hand trucks, or other equipment.
- Direct delivery trucks to shipping doors or designated marshaling areas and help load and unload goods safely.
- Assemble containers and crates used to transport items, such as machines or vehicles.
- Maintain a supply of packing materials.
- Direct or participate in cargo loading to ensure completeness of load and even distribution of weight.
- Pack goods for shipping, using tools such as staplers, strapping machines, and hammers.
- Attach address labels, identification codes, and shipping instructions to containers.
- Open cargo containers and unwrap contents, using steel cutters, crowbars, or other hand tools.
Skills used in this work
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Expand more skills (29)
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Mathematics
- Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Management of Material Resources
- Obtaining and seeing to the appropriate use of equipment, facilities, and materials needed to do certain work.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Operations Analysis
- Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Troubleshooting
- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Equipment Maintenance
- Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
- Equipment Selection
- Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
- Operation and Control
- Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- Management of Financial Resources
- Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
- Programming
- Writing computer programs for various purposes.
- Technology Design
- Generating or adapting equipment and technology to serve user needs.
- Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.
- Science
- Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
Explore wages by location.
0 retained state and local wage references are available. Start with these selected locations, or search the full market directory for this career.
Local wage references are not retained for this occupation. The national view and employer evidence may still help.
Available links reflect retained source coverage for this career.
Find the next step that fits.
Look at current disclosed job ranges, explore supported employer salary evidence, or build a proposed hiring range with your own assumptions.