Booking number vs bill of lading vs container number

Three references follow an ocean shipment from booking to delivery. They are issued by different parties at different moments and cover different things, which is why the right one to track depends on where the shipment is.

Booking number

Issued by the carrier when cargo space is reserved, before anything is loaded. It covers the whole booking, which can include several containers, and it appears on the booking confirmation. Many carriers let you track a booking from the start; some do not offer booking tracking to the public.

Bill of lading number

Issued when the carrier receives or loads the cargo. It identifies the transport document and covers every container on it. Only the master BL issued by the carrier can be tracked at the carrier; a forwarder's house BL cannot (see What is a bill of lading number).

Container number

Identifies one physical container (see Container number format). It exists for the life of the container and is reused for shipment after shipment, so tracking it shows the container's current journey.

Which one to use

• Before departure: the booking number, as long as the carrier supports booking tracking.
• After loading: the master BL number, which brings in every container of the shipment.
• One container, or when you only have a house BL: the container number.

How they relate

At some carriers the BL number is the booking number with the carrier's code in front, for example Maersk (MAEU + booking) and COSCO (COSU + booking). In BerthTime you can paste any of the three: the type and the carrier are detected, and a BL or booking brings in all its containers. Start a free trial, or read How to track a container.