For US importers pricing a trade platform
KYG Trade alternative: HTS classification software on a monthly plan
KYG Trade is an enterprise trade and tariff management platform, and its smallest published plan starts at $825 a month, prepaid for the year, plus a platform fee. If what you need is a defensible 10-digit HTSUS code and the 2026 duty for the products you import, you can test the narrower tool right now. Describe a product and read the code, the reasoning and the duty.
From $59 a month · Monthly billing · A classification recommendation for your review, not a CBP ruling
Customs declaration · AI classifier
FORM TW-01
The short answer
KYG Trade is a full trade compliance platform from Newport Beach, California: import and export classification, free trade agreements, forced-labor tracing, first sale, rulings research, screening and ERP connectors. Its plans run from $825 a month for 5,000 classifications to $18,334 a month for 500,000, billed annually in advance, plus a separate platform fee. A US importer that only needs import codes and duty usually buys far more than it uses. TariffWise does that one job: a plain-English description in, a 10-digit HTSUS code with the General Rules of Interpretation written out and the 2026 duty back, from $59 a month.
How much does KYG Trade cost?
Unusually for this category, KYG Trade publishes a rate card, which makes an honest comparison possible. The plans below are copied from kygtrade.com/pricing. KYG states that the prices reflect a 20 percent discount for annual subscriptions paid in advance, and that a separate platform fee applies to all plans. The per-classification column is our arithmetic on the included volume, before that fee.
| KYG Trade plan | Price, annual prepay | Included HS or ECN classifications | Per classification, if all used |
|---|---|---|---|
| Micro | $825 a month | 5,000 | About $1.98 |
| Small | $1,650 a month | 30,000 | About $0.66 |
| Medium | $4,584 a month | 100,000 | About $0.55 |
| Large | $18,334 a month | 500,000 | About $0.44 |
| Enterprise | By discussion | Unlimited | Not published |
The per-item number only holds if you use the allowance, and that is the whole question. On the Micro plan the annual commitment is $9,900 before the platform fee. An importer launching 300 new products a year is paying roughly $33 per product on that basis, because the other 4,700 classifications a year go unused. KYG's allowances make sense for a manufacturer re-classifying a big bill of materials or a broker classifying for clients. They are hard to justify for a brand that classifies a season at a time.
For comparison, our classification pricing is $59 a month for 100 classifications, $199 for 1,000 with bulk CSV and five seats, and $499 for 10,000 with twenty seats, billed monthly. That is about 59 cents, 20 cents and 5 cents per classification, and you can stop paying in the months you are not launching anything.
What KYG Trade sells, and which part a US importer actually uses
KYG Trade describes itself as an AI-native global trade and tariff management platform, and the tool list on its site is broad. Here it is module by module, with an honest note on whether a focused classifier replaces it. Most rows say no, and that is the point of the exercise: it tells you whether you are buying a platform or a code.
| KYG Trade module | What it does | Replaceable by TariffWise? |
|---|---|---|
| ChatHTS | Import HS classification from descriptions, BOMs, specs and images | Yes, for US imports. Full 10-digit HTSUS from a description, with the reasoning written out |
| HS Code Reference Panel and Tariff Calculator | Tariff rates, trade remedy rates, PGA and AD/CVD flags | Partly. We price the 2026 Section 232 and 301 layers per code; we do not run a multi-country rates library |
| ChatECN | Export control classification | No. See our note on ECCN vs HS code |
| ChatFTA | Free trade agreement qualification | No |
| ChatFL | Forced-labor supply chain tracing | No |
| ChatFSE | First sale for export valuation | No |
| ChatRULINGS | Regulations and rulings research assistant | No. We cite the rule behind each code, not a rulings library |
| Smart Screen | Restricted party screening | No. Keep a dedicated screening tool |
| Customs entry audits and tariff analytics | Reviews of filed entries and duty spend | No |
| ERP connectors | Pre-built API connectors for SAP, Oracle, Infor, NetSuite | Partly. Our HS code API writes codes back, but there is no packaged ERP connector |
If you export controlled goods, claim FTA preference or run a first sale program, KYG Trade is doing real work that a classifier cannot, and swapping it out would be a mistake. If you export anything with a technology angle, the ECCN vs HS code guide explains why that is a separate classification with separate liability. The alternative case is narrow: a US importer whose compliance week is spent deciding what a new product is and what it will cost to land.
KYG Trade vs TariffWise, side by side
The rows where KYG Trade wins are in the table too. Vendor claims are marked as vendor claims.
| KYG Trade | TariffWise | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary job | Enterprise trade and tariff management across import, export and FTAs | US import classification, duty and landed cost |
| Import classification | Yes, from descriptions, BOMs, specs and images | Yes, from a plain-English description or a catalog CSV |
| Export classification | Yes, ChatECN | No |
| Country coverage | Tariff content for 130 plus countries, per the vendor homepage | US HTSUS only, on purpose |
| Shows why the code applies | AI assistant with rulings research | Yes. GRI and chapter notes on every result, plus two runner-up codes |
| 2026 US duty layers | Tariff calculator and trade remedy flags | Section 232 and 301 layers priced per code |
| Users | Unlimited on every plan | 1, 5 or 20 seats by plan |
| Smallest published plan | $825 a month, annual prepay, plus a platform fee | $59 a month, monthly billing |
| Free trial | None published; demo request | Try the classifier on this page before you create an account |
| Built by | Founded by Todd R. Smith, a licensed customs broker formerly at KPMG and EY | A software team; codes are recommendations for your review |
KYG Trade's own site cites more than a million HS and export classifications across 40 countries, and its FAQ and homepage give different country and agreement counts. Those are the vendor's numbers, not ours, and we have not tested them. What you can test in an hour is whether a tool explains your own products well enough that you would put the code on an entry.
Who should stay with KYG Trade, and who should switch
Stay with KYG Trade if
- You classify exports as well as imports and need ECCNs in the same record.
- You claim USMCA or other FTA preference and want qualification analysis built in.
- You need forced-labor tracing or a first sale program documented.
- You re-classify tens of thousands of BOM lines a year and will use the allowance.
- You want a packaged SAP, Oracle, Infor or NetSuite connector.
Switch the classification work if
- You import into the US and do not file export classifications.
- You classify hundreds of products a year, not thousands a month.
- An annual prepayment plus a platform fee is a harder budget line than a monthly plan.
- You want the duty for each code, including the 2026 layers, on the same screen.
- You want to test on your own products today rather than after a demo.
Other KYG Trade alternatives worth a look
Only prices the vendor publishes appear below. Where a vendor quotes privately the table says so rather than guessing.
| Vendor | Shape of the product | Best for | Published pricing |
|---|---|---|---|
| TariffWise | US import classification, duty and landed cost | US importers who want 10-digit codes with reasoning on a monthly plan | $59, $199, $499 a month |
| SAP GTS | ERP-embedded trade suite | Large importers running compliance inside SAP | Not published |
| Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE | Enterprise global trade suite, 220 plus countries | Enterprises with export controls and screening in scope | Not published |
| Descartes CustomsInfo | Multi-country tariff content library with AI assist | Teams that research rulings before committing to a code | Not published |
| Gaia Dynamics | AI classification with ruling citations, credit based | Teams wanting citations across several countries, yearly billing | $99, $379, $1,399 a month, billed yearly |
| Tarifflo | Per-item classification plus refund audit work | Importers who want a firm doing the work | $125 per item, or $7,500 a year for 500 |
Each has its own comparison: SAP GTS alternative, ONESOURCE Global Trade alternative, Descartes CustomsInfo alternative, Gaia Dynamics alternative and Tarifflo alternative. The whole field is on the best HS code classification software roundup.
Test it on your own catalog before you sign the annual plan
1
Count your real volume
Pull last year's new SKUs and the ones you re-classified. That number, not the plan allowance, is what you are buying.
2
Pull the awkward ten
Take the ten products your team argued about most, plus anything with metal content or a Chapter 99 line. Easy products prove nothing.
3
Classify them cold
Run the same descriptions through both tools with no hints. Compare all 10 digits and read the rule each one cites.
4
Price what you use
Divide the annual cost, including the platform fee, by your real volume. Then compare that per-product number, not the list rate.
Two 2026 checks separate tools that track the US schedule from tools that return a code and stop. First, a metal-bodied product: since 6 April 2026 Section 232 metals duty applies to the full customs value of a covered article, so ask which Chapter 99 subheading the tool returns. Second, an electronics part from China: semiconductors under headings 8541 and 8542 have carried a 50 percent Section 301 rate since 1 January 2025. We walk through both on best HS code classification software for steel and aluminum importers and best HS code classification software for electronic components importers.
KYG Trade alternative questions
What is the best alternative to KYG Trade?
It depends on how much of the platform you use. If you need export classification, free trade agreement qualification, forced-labor tracing and restricted party screening in one place, the peers are other enterprise suites such as SAP GTS, Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE and Descartes. If the job is getting a defensible 10-digit HTSUS code with the 2026 duty attached, a focused classifier like TariffWise covers it from $59 a month.
How much does KYG Trade cost?
KYG Trade publishes its plans: Micro $825 a month for 5,000 AI-assisted HS or ECN classifications, Small $1,650 for 30,000, Medium $4,584 for 100,000, Large $18,334 for 500,000, and Enterprise by discussion. Those prices reflect a 20 percent discount for annual subscriptions paid in advance, and a separate platform fee applies to every plan. The platform fee amount is not published.
Does KYG Trade have a free trial?
No free tier or free trial is published on kygtrade.com. The route in is a demo request with the sales team. You can run your own products through the TariffWise classifier on this page without creating an account, which is a quick way to see a code and its reasoning before either conversation.
Is KYG Trade worth it for a small importer?
Only if you will use the volume and the modules. The smallest published plan is $825 a month, prepaid annually, for 5,000 classifications plus a platform fee. A small importer launching 50 to 300 products a year uses a fraction of that. A monthly plan sized to 100 or 1,000 classifications costs $59 or $199 and can be cancelled when the season ends.
What does KYG Trade do that TariffWise does not?
Quite a lot. KYG Trade sells export classification (ChatECN), free trade agreement analysis (ChatFTA), forced-labor tracing (ChatFL), first sale for export (ChatFSE), rulings research, restricted party screening, customs entry audits and pre-built connectors for SAP, Oracle, Infor and NetSuite, with multi-country tariff content. TariffWise does US import classification, duty and landed cost only.
How do I compare two HS classification tools fairly?
Take the ten products your team argued about most this year and run the same plain descriptions through both tools with no hints. Compare all ten digits, not the first six, read the rule each tool cites, and check whether the duty shown includes the 2026 Section 232 and 301 layers. Then divide the annual cost by the classifications you will actually use.
Classify the ten products with the most duty on them here, then walk into the KYG Trade demo with a benchmark.
Related: tariff classification software, HS code API, HTS code lookup.