CARVO vs Excel: which is better for managing import shipments?
CARVO is a shipment management platform built for small and medium European importers. It replaces the spreadsheets, emails, and WhatsApp groups that import teams use to track their shipments, manage supplier documents, and stay on top of customs deadlines. Excel is a general-purpose spreadsheet used by most import teams as their default tracking tool. This article compares the two for managing import shipments, so you can decide which fits your operation.
Why compare CARVO and Excel?
Most European importers start with Excel. It is familiar, free (or near-free with an existing Microsoft licence), and flexible enough to track a handful of shipments. For many small teams, a spreadsheet is the first and only system they have.
The comparison matters because the decision is rarely "Excel or software" from day one. It is "when does Excel stop working, and what replaces it?" If you manage 5 shipments a month and work alone, Excel is fine. If you manage 15 or more across multiple suppliers, forwarders, and customs brokers, the cracks start showing.
This is not a case of one tool being universally better. They serve different stages of growth.
Side-by-side comparison
| Feature | Excel | CARVO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free with Microsoft 365 (from ~€6/user/month) | Free plan (5 shipments); Pro €49/month (3 seats) |
| Setup time | Minutes (build your own template) | Minutes (guided onboarding, no implementation) |
| Shipment tracking | Manual entry — you update every status, ETA, and reference by hand | Centralised dashboard with status workflow and morning briefing |
| Document management | Files in email or shared drives — no link to shipments | Documents attached to shipments, auto-requests to suppliers, AI extraction |
| Multi-party coordination | Email and WhatsApp alongside the spreadsheet | Built-in document exchange with freight forwarders, customs brokers, warehouses |
| Live visibility | None — the spreadsheet shows whatever was last entered | Live shipment map with animated routes |
| Notifications | None — you check the spreadsheet or rely on email | Automated alerts for delays, missing documents, customs deadlines |
| Customs tracking | Manual — you track procedures and deadlines yourself | 20 EU customs procedures, country compliance checklists, deadline alerts |
| Landed cost | Manual formula (if someone builds one) | Automatic landed cost calculation with 5 allocation methods |
| AI document processing | None | Extract data from purchase orders and invoices automatically |
| Reporting | Pivot tables (if someone builds them) | Built-in analytics: volume trends, transit times, supplier scorecards |
| Multi-user access | Shared file or cloud sheet — no roles, no audit trail | Team roles, audit trail, assignment tracking |
| Scales to 50+ shipments/month | Poorly — manual updates become a full-time job | Yes — designed for 5–200 shipments/month |
Where Excel works well
Excel is the right tool in specific situations, and there is no reason to replace it if these apply to you:
You import fewer than 10 shipments per month. You are the only person managing logistics. Your freight forwarder provides a portal with tracking updates. You do not need to share shipment status with colleagues in real time. Your document management is simple — a few files per shipment, all from one supplier.
In these cases, a well-maintained spreadsheet does the job. The overhead of learning a new tool is not worth it when the volume is low and the process is straightforward.
Where Excel breaks down
The problems with Excel for import management are not about Excel itself — it is a powerful tool. The problems come from using a general-purpose spreadsheet for a job that involves multiple parties, dozens of documents, and time-sensitive deadlines across different countries.
Stale data. Every field in a shipment tracker has to be updated by hand. When your freight forwarder emails you a new ETA, someone has to open the spreadsheet, find the right row, and type the update. Multiply that by 20 active shipments and 3–7 parties per shipment, and the spreadsheet is always behind reality. A 2023 survey by Havi and CSCMP found that 73% of supply chain professionals still rely on spreadsheets, despite citing data accuracy as their top challenge.
Documents live elsewhere. Excel cannot store or manage documents. Bills of lading, commercial invoices, packing lists, and certificates of origin live in email threads or shared drives with no link to the shipment they belong to. When a customs broker asks for a missing document, someone has to search through email to find it. Not sure which documents you need? Start with our free Import Document Checklist Generator.
No proactive alerts. A spreadsheet does not tell you when something needs attention. If a customs deadline is approaching, a document is overdue, or a shipment has been stuck in transit for too long, nobody finds out until someone manually checks. By then, it is often too late — demurrage charges, customs holds, and delivery delays have already started.
The human router problem. In teams of 2 or more, the logistics coordinator becomes a human information router. Colleagues ask "where is the Shanghai shipment?" or "has duty been paid on order 4521?" and the answer requires opening the spreadsheet, cross-referencing emails, and sometimes calling the forwarder. According to McKinsey, supply chain workers spend up to 60% of their time on manual data collection and reconciliation rather than decision-making.
No audit trail. When someone changes a cell in a shared spreadsheet, there is no reliable record of who changed it, when, or why. For compliance-sensitive operations — particularly EU customs — this lack of traceability can become a real problem.
When to switch from Excel to CARVO
There is no single breaking point, but these are the patterns that typically trigger the move:
- Volume exceeds 10–15 active shipments. The spreadsheet update cycle takes more than an hour a day.
- A second person starts handling imports. Handover is painful because there is no system — just a spreadsheet only one person fully understands.
- A costly mistake happens. A shipment is held at customs because a document was missing. Demurrage charges accumulate because nobody tracked container free time. A supplier dispute escalates because the wrong PO version was used.
- Colleagues keep asking you questions. You spend significant time answering "where is my shipment?" instead of managing shipments.
- You cannot find a document quickly. Searching through email threads for a bill of lading that was sent three weeks ago is a sign the process has outgrown email.
The switch does not have to be dramatic. CARVO's free plan covers 5 shipments with no time limit, so you can run both side by side before committing.
What CARVO does not replace
CARVO is not a replacement for Excel in every context. If you use spreadsheets for financial modelling, inventory planning, ad-hoc analysis, or anything unrelated to shipment tracking, those use cases stay in Excel. CARVO replaces the specific spreadsheet (or set of spreadsheets) that tracks your import shipments, documents, and costs. It does not attempt to be a general-purpose tool.
If you are still using Excel, at least start with purpose-built templates: our free Freight Forwarder Scorecard and Shipment Cost Comparison templates save hours of setup.
CARVO also does not replace your freight forwarder, customs broker, or carrier relationships. It sits alongside them, giving you a single place to see what is happening across all your shipments and all your partners.
How CARVO works alongside your existing process
One concern importers often have is that switching tools means changing their entire workflow. With CARVO, the workflow stays largely the same — you still work with your existing freight forwarders, customs brokers, and warehouses. The difference is that instead of tracking everything across email, WhatsApp, and a spreadsheet, you track it in one place.
Your freight forwarder sends an update? It goes into CARVO. A supplier needs to upload a commercial invoice? CARVO sends them a secure link. A customs deadline is approaching? CARVO alerts you before it becomes a problem. The morning briefing tells you what needs attention today so you are not spending the first hour of the day scanning email threads.
Frequently asked questions
Is CARVO free?
CARVO offers a free plan that includes up to 5 active shipments, 3 suppliers, and 3 AI document extractions per month. The Pro plan costs €49 per month and includes 3 team seats with unlimited shipments. The Team plan costs €99 per month with 10 seats, role-based access, audit trail, and API access.
Can I import my existing Excel shipment data into CARVO?
Yes. CARVO supports bulk import from Excel files. You can upload your existing shipment data, supplier list, and product catalogue to get started without re-entering everything manually.
Does CARVO work with my freight forwarder?
CARVO works alongside any freight forwarder. It does not require your forwarder to use specific software or change their processes. CARVO's document exchange feature lets you request and receive documents from any external party via email.
Is my data secure?
CARVO uses Supabase (PostgreSQL) with row-level security, encrypted storage, and EU-hosted infrastructure (Vercel CDG1, Paris). The platform is ICO registered (ZC101688) and GDPR compliant.
How long does it take to set up?
Most teams are up and running within 30 minutes. The onboarding wizard walks you through creating your first supplier, adding a shipment, and uploading a document. There is no implementation project, no consultant, and no training course required.
Can I use CARVO and Excel at the same time?
Yes. Many importers run both side by side during their first month, gradually moving their active shipments into CARVO while keeping the spreadsheet as a reference. There is no pressure to switch everything at once.
What makes CARVO different from a TMS?
Transport management systems like CargoWise and SAP TM are designed for large freight forwarders and enterprises. They cost €100,000 or more per year, require months of implementation, and are built for a different scale of operation. CARVO is built specifically for small and medium importers who need to get organised without an enterprise budget or IT team.
Does CARVO calculate landed cost?
Yes. CARVO includes a landed cost engine with 5 allocation methods (by value, weight, volume, quantity, and equal split). It tracks all cost categories — product cost, freight, duty, insurance, handling — and calculates cost per unit automatically.
Sources
- CSCMP and Havi, 2023 Third-Party Logistics Study, 2023
- McKinsey & Company, "Supply chains: To build resilience, manage proactively," 2022
- European Commission, TARIC database, 2026
- CARVO product documentation, www.getcarvo.com
CARVO is a shipment management platform built for small and medium European importers. Try the free plan or explore the EU import duty calculator.
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