Export specialist vs freight agent

The differences between export specialists and freight agents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an export specialist has an average salary of $50,208, which is higher than the $34,524 average annual salary of a freight agent.

The top three skills for an export specialist include logistics, booking and forwarders. The most important skills for a freight agent are logistics, DOT, and data entry.

Export specialist vs freight agent overview

	Export Specialist	Freight Agent
Yearly salary	$50,208	$34,524
Hourly rate	$24.14	$16.60
Growth rate	5%	-3%
Number of jobs	1,414	32,620
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	-	-

What does an export specialist do?

An Export Specialist is in charge of managing the foreign sales and transactions of a company. It is their duty to monitor the quality of products to ensure it adheres to export standards, manage paperwork, perform research and analysis, utilize cost-efficient methods, verify documents, produce progress reports, and liaise with external parties such as distributors and custom authorities. An Export Specialist must be proactive and alert for any issues or conflicts, resolving them promptly and efficiently.

What does a freight agent do?

Freight agents are independent contractors who help shippers to connect with carriers willing to haul the freight. They work with a freight broker and play a role in the movement of freight, and have to find available carriers to ship a client's freight. Being a freight agent no longer requires a license, does not require a freight broker bond, and does not assume the risk of the client's creditworthiness in terms of invoice collections. The agents use load boards to find a carrier. This provides them with a marketplace to post their client's freight for potential carriers to agree to haul.

Export specialist vs freight agent salary

Export specialists and freight agents have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Export Specialist	Freight Agent
Average salary	$50,208	$34,524
Salary range	Between $35,000 And $70,000	Between $24,000 And $49,000
Highest paying City	Elizabeth, NJ	New York, NY
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New York
Best paying company	Brookhaven National Laboratory	TPI
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Transportation

Differences between export specialist and freight agent education

There are a few differences between an export specialist and a freight agent in terms of educational background:

	Export Specialist	Freight Agent
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Export specialist vs freight agent demographics

Here are the differences between export specialists' and freight agents' demographics:

	Export Specialist	Freight Agent
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 38.1% Female, 61.9%	Male, 61.9% Female, 38.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 23.6% Asian, 16.8% White, 48.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 7.4% Hispanic or Latino, 19.3% Asian, 14.2% White, 51.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between export specialist and freight agent duties and responsibilities

Export specialist example responsibilities.

Manage OEM exports throughout Europe for a veterinary equipment manufacturer.
Prepare export documentation and hire freight forwarders with proven accuracy.
Interact with freight forwarders and transportation management personnel to ensure timely delivery of shipments.
Complete NAFTA and CAFTA certificates as required.
Handle customs clearance process such as, FDA, classification and Hazmat shipments.
Coordinate the release of goods with carriers, CBP, and other governmental agencies as required.

Show more

Freight agent example responsibilities.

Manage and carry out specific program and regulatory activities such as enforcing hazmat and weight restrictions.
Prepare, issue and submit documentation to ensure proper exportation of client FCL and LCL shipments.
Solicit votes for annual and special shareholders meetings as well as for proxy fights.
Work with AS400 data system to enter nd update shipment details, carrier status and tracking and tracing.
Trace key transaction information such as HBL, commercial invoice and other require documents to determine if record is available.
Provide guidance and clarification on proxy materials, voting methods and specific proposals.

Show more

Export specialist vs freight agent skills

Common export specialist skills

Logistics, 17%
Booking, 6%
Forwarders, 5%
Import Export, 5%
Data Entry, 5%
Freight Forwarders, 5%

Common freight agent skills

Logistics, 75%
DOT, 4%
Data Entry, 4%
Freight Carriers, 3%
US Customs, 2%
Air Cargo, 1%

Export Specialist vs. similar jobs

Export Specialist related careers

Export Specialist related jobs

What similar roles do

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse office and administrative jobs

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z