Stainless Steel Sheet MOQ from China: What 1, 5 and 25 Tonnes Cost (2026)
The stainless steel sheet MOQ from China is 1 tonne for stock sizes, 3 to 5 tonnes if the size or grade has to be rolled, and 20 to 25 tonnes to fill a 20ft container. The price per tonne drops at every step. Not because suppliers punish small buyers, but because inspection, packing, documents and trucking cost the same on one tonne as on twenty-five. Spread that over 1 tonne and it hurts. Spread it over 25 and you stop noticing it.
Where the MOQ Line Actually Sits
Three things decide your minimum: what is already on the floor, what has to be rolled, and how the lot ships.
Stock sizes. 1219x2438 mm 304 2B in 0.5 to 3 mm sits in most Chinese exporters' warehouses. One tonne is normal, 500 kg is possible with a surcharge, and you ship in 7 to 10 days. 1500x3000 mm covers plate work, 1000x2000 mm covers kitchen and elevator panels.
Rolled sizes. 316L, 2205, 310S, BA or 8K finish, or any width that is not a stock width, goes back to the mill. That means 3 to 5 tonnes per size. A mill will not open a heat for less, and one coil is already 20 to 25 tonnes.
Mill direct. If price is the only thing that matters and you can wait 25 to 35 days, buy a full coil or a full container of one size. That is where the lowest tonne price lives.
| What you need | Typical MOQ | Lead time | How it ships |
|---|---|---|---|
| 304 2B stock size, 0.5-3 mm | 1 t (500 kg with surcharge) | 7-10 days | LCL or shared 20ft |
| 201 or 430 stock size | 1 t | 7-10 days | LCL |
| 316L, 2205, 310S sheet | 3-5 t per size | 25-35 days | 20ft |
| Non-standard width or BA/8K finish | 5 t per size | 30-40 days | 20ft or 40HQ |
| Full coil, mill direct | 20-25 t (one coil) | 25-35 days | 20ft |
What Each Tier Costs Per Tonne
Start from the mill price and then add the fixed cost of the lot. For 304 cold rolled, Chinese domestic prices sat at RMB 15,000-15,050 per tonne in early July 2026, roughly USD 2,100 per tonne at 7.15 (BigMint, 7 July 2026). 430 cold rolled was RMB 7,300-7,750 per tonne. The February 2026 reference for Chinese stainless plate was USD 1,925 per tonne (Procurement Resource, 24 February 2026).
Now the part nobody quotes you upfront. A third-party inspection runs USD 300-500 per lot. Export packing with VCI film and fumigated pallets adds USD 40-70 per tonne. Documents and bank charges are small but real. Inland trucking plus container stuffing is USD 400-700 per lot. On 1 tonne, all of that is USD 700-1,200. On 25 tonnes it is USD 30-50.
| Order size | Fixed cost per tonne | Indicative premium | Best used for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 t | USD 700-1,200 | +USD 120-200/t vs 25 t | Trial, sample run, urgent repair stock |
| 5 t | USD 150-250 | +USD 60-110/t | First production order, one grade |
| 10 t | USD 80-130 | +USD 30-60/t | Monthly repeat, two or three sizes mixed |
| 20-25 t | USD 30-50 | Base | Full container, best tonne price |
One thing that trips importers up: freight does not follow the same curve. A 1 tonne LCL booking often costs more per tonne in ocean freight than a full 20ft, and LCL handling damages edges. If your volume is 3 to 8 tonnes, ask for a shared or partial container quote before you accept LCL.
How Many Tonnes Fit in a 20ft and a 40ft
Stainless sheet is weight-limited, never volume-limited. A 1219x2438 mm sheet at 1 mm thick weighs 23.6 kg. One tonne is about 42 sheets. Twenty tonnes is about 848 sheets, and the stack is only around 0.85 m high inside a 2.39 m container.
So the question is payload, not space. A 20ft takes 22 to 25 tonnes in practice, a 40ft high cube 24 to 26 tonnes. Above that you are arguing with the shipping line and with the truck that has to move it. In the United States a 20ft container is capped near 17-18 tonnes net by highway weight rules.
Thick material changes the sheet count fast: 3 mm is 70.7 kg per sheet, about 14 sheets per tonne. 5 mm is 117.9 kg, about 8 sheets per tonne. If you order heavy gauges, you hit 25 tonnes at 210 sheets, and that is where packing and pallet limits start to matter more than weight.
Payment Terms You Should Expect
First order: 30 percent T/T deposit, 70 percent against the B/L copy. Small lots sometimes go 100 percent in advance, and you should push back on that unless the supplier has shipped to you before.
Repeat orders: 30/70 stays normal, and some suppliers will move to 20/80 after three clean shipments. Above roughly USD 50,000, letter of credit at sight is standard practice and costs about 0.1-0.3 percent in bank charges. That fee buys you a document check, which is worth it when the supplier is new.
The rule I give every buyer: never release the balance before inspection, and never accept a B/L copy from a forwarder you did not choose yourself. Freight collect or a named forwarder costs a little more and removes a whole category of problem.
Lead Time Has Three Clocks
Stock. 7 to 10 days from order to port, if the size is on the floor and the payment clears.
Mill rolling. 25 to 35 days, plus 5 to 7 days for cutting, slitting or leveling. Custom widths and BA finish push it to 40 days.
Processing. Cut-to-length, slitting, edge trimming and laser blanks add 5 to 7 days. If you need blanks cut from full sheets, tell the supplier at quote stage. Quoting sheet and then adding cutting later is how shipments slip a week.
Add 12 to 18 days of ocean transit for Europe, 25 to 35 for the US East Coast, 18 to 25 for the Gulf and Latin America. Nothing in that list is under the supplier's control, so build it into your own promise date.
How to Test a Supplier on One Tonne
Use a stock size. A trial on a custom size tells you nothing except that the mill can make it, and it costs three weeks.
- Ask for a mill test certificate to EN 10204 3.1 before you pay. Not a photocopy of a generic one.
- Check thickness at three points per sheet and at both ends of the lot. Two percent under nominal is common and legal in some standards, annoying in fabrication.
- Look at the edges: burrs, cracks or a wavy cut line mean the slitting line is tired.
- Check flatness on a bench, not on the floor of a warehouse.
- Book the third-party inspection yourself. USD 300-500 is cheap compared to a 25 tonne mistake later.
- Photograph the packing. Sea-worthy pallets, VCI film, corner protection. If the trial packing is sloppy, the container will be worse.
Full specification details are on our stainless steel plate and coil page. If you are still choosing the grade, start with the 304 vs 316 vs 2205 grade guide before you ask for a price.
What Moves the Number After You Sign
Nickel sets the floor. The SHFE nickel contract sat at RMB 125,580 per tonne on 1 July 2026, down nearly 4 percent week on week, on expectations of more Indonesian ore supply (BigMint, 7 July 2026). Indonesia kept its 2026 national ore quota at 250-260 million tonnes, so the downside has a limit.
Supply is still heavy. China's 43 major stainless mills made 3.5154 million tonnes of crude stainless in June 2026, down 7.88 percent month on month but still up 6.8 percent year on year, with July forecast at 3.5999 million tonnes (Mysteel, via RonScowire, 16 July 2026).
Trade policy moves tonnage around. The EU cut its cold-rolled stainless tariff-rate quota by about 47 percent to 496,342 tonnes from 1 July 2026, with hot-rolled and plate quotas down 65 and 62 percent. That tonnage does not disappear, it looks for other buyers, which is why Asian export prices stayed flat while European mill offers climbed.
And a note on what buyers actually value this year: in the BSSA conference survey reported by IndexBox in June 2026, supply stability ranked above price as the top purchasing priority for stainless buyers. A quote that is USD 40 per tonne cheaper and slips three weeks is not cheaper. We quote both the price and the ship date, in writing, so you can compare before you commit.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum order quantity for stainless steel sheet from China?
One tonne for stock sizes such as 1219x2438 mm 304 2B in 0.5 to 3 mm. Some exporters will take 500 kg with a small-lot surcharge. If the size or grade has to be rolled, the MOQ jumps to 3-5 tonnes per size, because that is the mill minimum. The full range we stock is on the stainless steel sheet and coil page.
Is it cheaper per tonne to order 1 tonne or 25 tonnes?
Always 25 tonnes. Inspection, packing, documents and trucking are fixed per lot, so on a 1 tonne order those costs can add USD 120-200 per tonne. On a full 20ft load the same costs come to USD 30-50 per tonne. Same material, different overhead share.
How many tonnes of stainless steel sheet fit in a 20ft container?
22 to 25 tonnes is the practical working range for a 20ft, and 24 to 26 tonnes for a 40ft high cube. The container is weight-limited, not volume-limited. Watch the road limit at your end: a US 20ft container is capped near 17-18 tonnes net by highway weight rules, so plan the load with your forwarder.
What payment terms should I expect on a first stainless steel order?
A first order is usually 30 percent T/T deposit and 70 percent against the bill of lading copy, or 100 percent T/T in advance if the lot is small. Above roughly USD 50,000, letter of credit at sight is normal and adds about 0.1-0.3 percent in bank charges. Never pay the balance before you or a third party have inspected the lot.
Can I mix grades and thicknesses in one container?
Yes, and on small volumes you should, because you are paying for the container either way. Keep at least one tonne per size so the mill packing and the customs declaration stay clean, and split the bill of lading lines by grade. If you need blanks instead of full sheets, laser cut-to-size blanks can ship in the same container.
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