For import and trade compliance teams
Customs compliance software with AI tariff classification, duty and landed cost
Most customs compliance software is a database with a search box. TariffWise is built around the actual bottleneck: turning a real product description into a defensible HS/HTS classification, then pricing what that code costs at the border. Test it on one of your own products right here.
Free demo · No card required · A classification recommendation for your review, not a CBP ruling
Customs declaration · AI classifier
FORM TW-01
What to look for in a tariff classification tool
Judge trade compliance tools on five things: whether the output is a full 10-digit HTSUS number rather than a six-digit HS code, whether the reasoning is shown so a human can check it, whether the duty math carries the current Section 301, Section 232 and merchandise processing fee layers, whether classifications are stored against the SKU so the same product never gets two answers, and whether there is an API for catalogs that live in an ERP or a PIM. Vendors differ far less on raw accuracy than on those five, and the last four are what an audit actually tests.
| Criterion | Why it decides the purchase | TariffWise |
|---|---|---|
| Output granularity | A US entry needs 10 digits. The last four carry the rate splits where duty exposure hides. | 10-digit HTSUS when the description supports it, otherwise the 6-digit HS code with a confidence level |
| Visible reasoning | A bare code with a confidence score cannot be reviewed, so it cannot be corrected before it reaches CBP. | Written rationale plus runner-up codes |
| Current duty stack | The 2026 layers changed twice. Tools that simply add percentages get the ceiling lanes wrong. | General-rate duty and import tax computed on your value, with origin layers such as Section 301 noted beside the code. Fees and freight are left out. |
| Consistency and audit trail | Inconsistent codes for identical goods across entries is a long-standing audit trigger. | Saved history with reasoning on every plan, exported to CSV or Excel |
| Catalog scale and API | Per-line pricing punishes wide catalogs. Cost should track products, not shipments. | Bulk CSV from Growth, and an HS code API from Business |
If you are weighing software against paying a broker per line, the customs broker vs classification software comparison runs the cost, accuracy and liability side by side and shows the volume at which the arithmetic flips.
Who are the leading providers of tariff rate and duty cost information?
The underlying rates come from one place: the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, published by the US International Trade Commission, plus the Chapter 99 provisions that carry Section 232 and Section 301. What vendors sell is not the data, it is how quickly the schedule turns into a defensible code and a duty figure for your specific product. That is the axis to compare them on.
| Provider | What it is built for | Published pricing |
|---|---|---|
| TariffWise | US classification and duty from a plain-English product description, with the reasoning shown | $59, $199, $499, $998 a month |
| Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE | Enterprise global trade content and screening across 220 plus countries | Not published |
| Descartes CustomsInfo | Tariff content library and rulings research for multi-country catalogs | Not published |
| Avalara | Cross-border tax and classification, including a managed classification service | Not published |
| Zonos | Checkout-time landed cost for ecommerce merchants shipping worldwide | Per order plus a share of duties |
| SAP GTS and iCustoms | Trade suites built around declaration filing, in SAP and in the UK and EU respectively | Not published |
| USITC and CBP | The primary schedule and the rulings database, free but unindexed by product | Free |
The head-to-head detail lives on the dedicated pages: tariff classification software covers the category and how the tools differ, and the vendor comparisons run through ONESOURCE Global Trade, Descartes CustomsInfo, SAP GTS and iCustoms.
The capability grid
What the demo shows, and what your account adds
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AI HS/HTS classification
Plain-language description in, most likely code out, with the official heading text and a confidence level. Try it on the live demo.
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Written rationale
Two or three sentences naming the material, function or construction that drove the code. Reasoning you can repeat to a broker or an auditor.
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Runner-up codes
The two nearest alternative codes with the single factor that would flip the classification, so edge cases surface instead of hiding.
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Duty and tax estimates
General-rate duty for the destination plus its import VAT or GST, applied to your shipment value with the arithmetic computed exactly. Origin surcharges such as Section 301 are named in a note, not added.
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Landed cost of entry
Value, duty and tax totalled per lane. The full freight-and-fees formula lives in the landed cost calculator.
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Compliance flags
Real regulatory considerations surfaced with the code: dangerous goods testing for lithium batteries, FDA prior notice for food, labeling rules for textiles.
Every plan
Saved classification history
Every result stored with its rationale and date, so one SKU never gets two answers from two people. A new account includes 3 saved classifications, no card.
Growth and up
Bulk CSV classification
Upload the catalog, classify every row in one run, review the low-confidence lines first.
Growth and up
Team seats and roles
Owner and member seats: 5 on Growth, 20 on Business, 50 on Enterprise. The owner manages billing and the team, members classify, and everyone sees the same record.
Nothing above is a mockup: the live rows run today on the harmonized tariff schedule lookup demo. The other rows come with your account, on the plan named on each card.
The record behind every code
Customs compliance software that keeps an audit-ready record
When CBP sends a CF 28 request for information, or your broker asks why a SKU moved from 6109 to 6110, the question is never only "which code". It is "who picked it, on what facts, under which rule, and what did it cost". TariffWise saves every classification as one row with those answers already filled in, and the whole history or any bulk run downloads as CSV or Excel. These are the actual columns in that file.
| What it answers | Columns in the export | Why a reviewer needs it |
|---|---|---|
| Which product | Reference, Description, Origin, Destination, Value USD | Ties the code to your own SKU or PO number and to the facts it was classified on. If the description changes, you can see the code was right for the old one. |
| Which code | Tariff code, HS6, Heading, Confidence | The 10-digit line, its 6-digit international root and the official heading text, with an honest confidence level so low-certainty lines get a second look first. |
| Why that code | GRI applied, GRI reasoning, Rationale | Names the General Rule of Interpretation used (GRI 1, 3(b) for sets, and so on) and the material, function or construction that decided it. This is the paragraph you hand a broker or an auditor. |
| What it costs | Duty rate %, Duty USD, Import tax, Tax rate %, Tax USD, Landed cost USD, Duty note | The duty on the declared value with the arithmetic done, plus a note where an extra layer such as Section 301 or 232 depends on origin or material. |
| What to watch | Compliance flags, Error | Regulatory checks attached to the code (lithium battery testing, FDA prior notice, textile labeling) and any row that could not be classified, so nothing fails silently. |
| When | Classified at (UTC) | A timestamp per row, so you can show the code was set before the entry, and re-check lines that predate a tariff change like the July 24, 2026 forced-labor layer. |
Records are kept in a shared workspace, so the person who classified and the person who signs off look at the same row. Bulk CSV runs keep their own result file per upload. If you want the codes in your ERP or storefront instead of a spreadsheet, the HS code API returns the same fields per call.
Which plan carries which part of the record
| Plan | Classifications a month | Seats | Bulk CSV | REST API | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | 100 | 1 | No | No | $59 a month, or $29 a month billed yearly |
| Growth | 1,000 | 5 | Yes | No | $199 a month, or $99 a month billed yearly |
| Business | 10,000 | 20 | Yes | Yes | $499 a month, or $249 a month billed yearly |
| Enterprise | 20,000 | 50 | Yes | Yes | $998 a month, or $499 a month billed yearly |
Every plan saves the full record and exports it. The difference is volume, how many people share the workspace, and whether rows arrive one at a time, by CSV or by API. Full plan details are on the pricing page.
Customs compliance software questions
What does customs compliance software do?
For a US importer it assigns the 10-digit HTSUS code to each product, works out the duty and fees that code carries, and keeps a record of how the decision was made. Broader suites add denied party screening, export licensing and FTZ inventory. TariffWise covers the classification, duty and record part on a monthly plan.
What should an HTS classification audit trail include?
At minimum the product description and value the code was based on, the 10-digit code, the rule of interpretation applied, the written reasoning, who classified it and when. Add the duty calculated at the time and any regulatory flags. TariffWise saves all of these per row and exports them to CSV or Excel.
How do I show reasonable care on tariff classification?
Under 19 USC 1484 the importer of record must use reasonable care, and the practical evidence is a consistent, documented process: the facts you classified on, the reasoning, and a review step for uncertain lines. A saved record per SKU, with low-confidence codes sent to a broker or a binding ruling, is what that looks like on paper.
Can I export my classification history to Excel?
Yes. The full history and every bulk CSV run download as CSV or Excel with the code, HS6 root, heading, confidence, GRI and rationale, duty, import tax, landed cost, compliance flags and a UTC timestamp per row, so the file works as both a working list for your broker and an audit record.
For the decision maker
Built to satisfy the person who signs off
Compliance managers do not buy speed, they buy defensibility. Every TariffWise classification carries its reasoning, its alternatives and its history, so the answer to "why this code?" is never "the intern picked it".
- Consistent codes across the whole team, not per-person guesses
- Rationale and runner-ups attached to every classification
- Compliance flags for controlled or regulated goods, surfaced early
- Owner and member seats: the owner manages billing and the team, members classify
TariffWise vs the alternatives
Where each option actually fits
A customs broker, per line
The right call for genuinely contested classifications and binding rulings. But paying a per-line fee and waiting days for routine SKUs is how classification became your bottleneck. Use TariffWise for the routine 95 percent, your broker for the fights.
Enterprise compliance suites (Avalara Cross-Border, Descartes CustomsInfo)
Deep tariff content and entrenched in Fortune 500 trade departments. Also: sales-led contracts, long onboarding, lookup-style UX, and pricing that assumes a trade department. Overkill and out of reach for an SMB ops team.
Checkout landed-cost widgets (Zonos and similar)
Good at showing a duties-included total at ecommerce checkout. But classification happens in a black box, there is no rationale, and there is no workspace where a compliance manager reviews anything.
TariffWise
The self-serve middle that was missing: AI classification with a written rationale, duty and landed cost on the same screen, honest confidence levels, at team pricing. Guidance in seconds, and a reviewable audit trail behind it.
Already quoted by one of the enterprise suites? The Descartes CustomsInfo alternative comparison goes module by module through what you would actually be replacing. See how teams apply it on the trade compliance software use cases page, or check the pricing. Selling physical product online? Start with import compliance software for ecommerce brands, which covers the entry costs that arrived with the end of de minimis.