Maersk BL vs Container vs Booking: Which One To Use When

Use the Maersk BL when you want one shipment timeline for all containers under the contract. Use a container number when you need unit-level events. Use a booking number in early stages before the BL is issued. You can retrieve your BL from the Maersk shipment binder and documents area if you are a listed…

TRADLINX

November 16, 2025

2 minutes

Container tracking, Freight Forwarding, MAERSK, Maersk B/L Tracking, Maersk Container Tracking, Ocean Freight, real-time tracking, Supply Chain Management, tradlinx

Where To Find Your Maersk BL

From the Hub home, open your shipment, then go to Documents. If you are a party to the BL, the issued document will appear there.

What You Get With Each Key

BL: shipment-level milestones suitable for multi-container moves, transshipment legs, and sharing a single view with buyers or finance.
Container: equipment-level events such as gate, yard, and vessel load or discharge for a specific box.
Booking: pre-carriage and planned information before the BL issues. Coverage can be limited after handover.

When To Prefer BL Over Container

Split legs or rolls: some boxes move to a feeder or later vessel. BL gives you one timeline while containers diverge.
PO consolidation: when the buyer wants a single link for all boxes on the same order.
Financial control: BL anchors invoice checks, free time references, and exception notes.

Troubleshooting

No record found: confirm you are using the BL, not the booking. Copy the number from the PDF rather than retyping.
Recent issuance: allow for system propagation, then retry the BL search.
Transshipment blind spots: if a feeder leg is slow to reflect, check box-level detail temporarily, then return to the BL view.

Using One Dashboard Across Mixed Carriers

When your PO uses Maersk for the main leg and a partner feeder elsewhere, the BL remains your stable key. Use one BL-centric view for status sharing, then drill into specific containers only to resolve exceptions.

Connects To TRADLINX

If you manage Maersk BLs alongside other lines, TRADLINX maps every carrier’s events to one standard BL timeline. Billing is at BL level, so you pay once per shipment and can share one live link with customers or suppliers.

Last verified: 2025-11-06 • Volatility: Low

Sources

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