/ Honest comparison

ContainerMath vs Cargo-Planner

Their over-gauge & SDK depth vs our price, AI import and compliance bundle.

Cargo-Planner is an enterprise-grade web load planner trusted by large forwarders and airlines. Its standout is equipment depth: a dynamic custom container builder, support for flat racks, open tops, MAFIs and air ULDs, centre-of-gravity optimisation, and a mature API with an embeddable 3D SDK.

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Disclosure: this page is published by ContainerMath. We aim to represent Cargo-Planner fairly, cite public sources, and say plainly when it's the better pick. Pricing as of July 2026 — verify on the vendor's site before buying.

/ At a glance

Side by side

Feature	ContainerMath	Cargo-Planner
Entry price	$19.90/mo Starter, no card to trial	~$99/mo Lite (~$59/mo annual)
AI import of messy manifests		Excel + API/SDK import
Retail unit → shipper carton (Carton Fit)
Air cargo ULDs	IATA ULDs (LD-3…PMC) on Pro Plus	Yes — a specialty
Over-gauge equipment (flat rack, open top, MAFI)	Flat rack, open top, step-deck, RGN & lowboy built in (no MAFI)
Custom/parametric container builder	Graphical equipment builder — base shapes, contour cut zones, axle config	Yes — fully parametric
Hazmat segregation (IMDG)		Not marketed
Bridge formula / axle-group legality	Yes (US Federal)	Not marketed
Pipe & cylinder nesting	Physics-accurate hex + telescopic nesting	Not marketed
Embeddable widget / SDK	Embeddable calculator widget (Pro Plus)	Embeddable 3D SDK
Public REST API	Freight Pro and up

Where Cargo-Planner wins

Air & over-gauge depth

Flat racks, open tops, MAFIs and a full ULD set, plus a parametric container builder for unusual equipment — the best in this category.

Embeddable 3D SDK

A battle-tested SDK for embedding interactive 3D load plans inside your own product.

Enterprise track record

Trusted by large forwarders, manufacturers and airlines with mature developer tooling.

Where ContainerMath wins

A fifth of the entry price

$19.90/mo vs ~$99/mo Lite. For sea, road and rail loads — most freight — you get the core job done for far less.

AI manifest import

Cargo-Planner expects structured Excel or API payloads; ContainerMath parses the messy dispatch list you actually receive.

Carton-to-container in one tool

Carton Fit plans the shipper carton, Freight loads the container — Cargo-Planner starts and ends at the container.

Compliance built in

IMDG segregation, US bridge-formula checks and EN 12195-1 load-securing estimates ship with every plan.

When Cargo-Planner is the better pick

If you routinely plan MAFI roll-trailers or other project-cargo equipment, or need their embeddable 3D SDK, Cargo-Planner is the more specialised tool and worth its price. ContainerMath covers flat racks, open tops, step-decks, RGN and lowboy trailers, and standard IATA air ULDs (LD-3 through PMC) on Pro Plus — but Cargo-Planner remains deeper across unusual air and project-cargo equipment.

/ Pricing

What each costs

ContainerMath

Free trial (no card) and a free public CBM calculator. Paid plans from $19.90/mo (Starter) to $129/mo (Pro Plus — Carton Fit + container loading, unlimited plans, air ULDs, export documents). Flat workspace pricing, ≈33% off annual. Full pricing →

Cargo-Planner

Lite ~$99/mo (~$59/mo annual, 1 user); Standard ~$139/mo (~$99/mo annual, up to 5 users); Enterprise on request; free trial. Source (as of July 2026).

/ FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is ContainerMath a good Cargo-Planner alternative?

For sea, road and rail freight — the bulk of shipments — yes: ContainerMath does dense 3D plans with CoG and axle-aware weight checks, AI manifest import and carton-level packing from $19.90/mo, roughly a fifth of Cargo-Planner's entry price. For over-gauge and specialised air equipment, Cargo-Planner stays the stronger pick.

Does ContainerMath support air ULDs like Cargo-Planner?

ContainerMath plans standard IATA ULDs (LD-3, LD-7, LD-11, PMC, PGF) on the Pro Plus plan. Cargo-Planner goes further into project cargo: flat racks, open tops, MAFIs and a parametric builder for custom equipment.

How does the pricing compare?

Cargo-Planner Lite is ~$99/mo (~$59/mo billed annually) for one user (as of July 2026). ContainerMath starts at $19.90/mo, and $129/mo Pro Plus includes both Carton Fit and container loading, air ULDs, export documents and the embeddable widget.

Also comparing: vs EasyCargo · vs Cube-IQ · vs CubeMaster · Full 2026 software guide

Run one real shipment through it

The fastest way to compare is with your own cargo — free trial, no card, a 3D plan in minutes.

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ContainerMath

The industry standard for 3D container cargo packing and loading plans. Optimize layouts, maximize volume, and reduce shipping overhead.

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