EXW (Ex Works)
The factory's responsibility ends at their own door. You arrange and pay for everything from pickup at the factory onward — export customs, inland transport, ocean freight, the lot. It looks like the cheapest quote on paper but shifts the most work and risk onto you.
FOB (Free On Board)
The factory handles export customs and delivery to the port, loaded onto the vessel. You take over from there. FOB is the most common basis for furniture quotes because it isolates the factory's real cost from freight variables you'll want to shop separately.
CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight)
The seller arranges and pays for ocean freight and insurance to your destination port, built into the quoted price. It's convenient for a first-time importer, but you generally lose the ability to negotiate freight rates or choose your own forwarder.
Which one should you choose?
Most experienced furniture buyers default to FOB — it keeps factory pricing transparent and lets you or your agent control freight, insurance and destination handling directly, which usually costs less than a bundled CIF quote once you're placing orders regularly.