Shipping in India 2025: Top 10 Companies Ranked

Ask any MSME who’s handled a late delivery, and they’ll tell you: logistics isn’t just backend—it’s the business. A good shipping partner can quietly keep things moving. A bad one? Missed deadlines, customer complaints, and cash stuck in limbo.

India’s shipping space has changed fast in the last couple of years. It’s no longer about choosing the biggest name. What matters now is who’s reliable when roads are flooded, ports are backed up, or e-comm volumes suddenly spike.

Some names on this list have held their ground with better tech and tighter systems. Others are new entrants scaling quietly but fast—serving niche routes or offering real-time updates MSMEs now expect as a basic standard.

This year’s update focuses on companies that don’t just move cargo—they understand the cost of delay, the headache of lost paperwork, and the pressure of GST filings linked to delivery.

If you’re shipping across states or starting exports, this guide can help you pick smarter—not just safer.

What Sets a Top Shipping Company Apart in 2025

A lot has changed in how Indian businesses choose their shipping partners. A few years ago, companies leaned on brand names, fleet size, or network maps. Now, they’re asking sharper questions. Can this vendor deliver consistently in Tier 2 cities? Will they flag a customs delay before it becomes a problem? Do they send accurate PODs without being chased?

For MSMEs in particular, logistics isn’t just a support function anymore. It touches cash flow, buyer trust, GST compliance, and tender eligibility. A late delivery can hold up payments. A misfiled document can delay input credits. A slow partner can knock a growing firm out of a competitive contract. So reliability isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s baked into survival.

In 2025, the companies that stand out aren’t always the biggest. Some run large fleets and manage vast infrastructure. Others use tighter systems, real-time tracking, and lean operations to outperform. What matters is whether they show up under pressure — during festival congestion, unseasonal rains, or last-minute route changes. That’s where the gap between marketing and actual service shows.

The list that follows is based on verified numbers — not branding. These companies are here because they’ve delivered where it counts. Across ports, roads, and air corridors, they’ve built reputations by solving problems, not just moving goods.

What MSMEs now expect from a top shipping partner:

• Timely deliveries backed by real-time visibility
• GST-compliant invoicing and smooth documentation
• Consistency during seasonal spikes and disruptions
• Support across urban, semi-urban, and rural destinations
• Proactive handling of delays and exceptions

Top 10 Shipping Companies in India (2025 Edition)

Notes

• The turnover figures presented here are drawn from publicly available reports and industry estimates for FY 2024–25.
• Fleet size represents assets either owned or actively operated by the company. This can include cargo vessels, tankers, rail stock, freight trucks, and delivery vehicles—depending on each company’s core operations.
• Market share figures are indicative of the company’s standing within its primary area of logistics, whether that’s containerised shipping, coastal freight, express delivery, or inland cargo—not the broader logistics market as a whole.

Let’s take a closer look at the key players driving India’s logistics engine in 2025:

Adani Ports and Logistics

• Established: 1998
• Headquarters: Ahmedabad, Gujarat
• About the Company:
  Adani Ports started with Mundra and expanded fast. It now runs a dozen major ports and links them with inland logistics, warehousing, and rail freight. The scale is unmatched—one operator covering both coastline and hinterland.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  No one else controls as much of the port-to-customer chain. With 44% of India’s containerised cargo and over ₹31,000 crore in revenue, Adani’s grip on physical infrastructure gives it a lead that’s hard to chase.

Delhivery

• Established: 2011
• Headquarters: Gurugram, Haryana
• About the Company:
  Delhivery came up during India’s e-commerce wave. What began as a parcel service grew into a national logistics grid—moving goods across trucks, air, and warehouses, all stitched together by software.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  It turned profitable in FY25 with ₹8,932 crore revenue. That’s rare for a tech-driven logistics firm at scale. It also offers partial truckload, full truckload, warehousing, and cross-border—all in-house.

Allcargo Logistics

• Established: 1993
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• About the Company:
  Allcargo built its name handling less-than-container loads—both for exporters and importers. Over time, it expanded into ports, inland depots, and contract logistics. Its international arm, ECU Worldwide, connects over 180 countries.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  What sets it apart is consistency. It crossed ₹16,000 crore in turnover, quietly moving a massive volume of consolidated cargo across land and sea.

Shipping Corporation of India (SCI)

• Established: 1961
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• About the Company:
  SCI is the country’s backbone for public-sector maritime shipping. It owns and operates crude carriers, container vessels, LNG ships, and supply vessels. Many of its voyages are government-chartered.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  Even with private competition rising, SCI holds ground. With 59+ vessels and ₹5,600+ crore in revenue, it remains a strategic asset in India’s ocean trade.

Blue Dart Express

• Established: 1983
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• About the Company:
  Blue Dart carved out India’s air express segment long before e-commerce took off. Its own freighters, tie-up with DHL, and last-mile reach gave it a niche that others still can’t fully match.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  It still delivers where timing can’t slip—banking, pharma, legal. In FY25, it held ₹5,720 crore in revenue and kept its reputation for dependability intact.

Great Eastern Shipping Company

• Established: 1948
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• About the Company:
  India’s largest private shipping company. It moves crude, petroleum products, and dry bulk like coal and ore. The company also runs offshore vessels for oil exploration support.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  It owns 43 vessels and generated ₹5,395 crore in turnover. While it doesn’t touch last-mile delivery, it dominates where deep-sea bulk matters.

Transport Corporation of India (TCI)

• Established: 1958
• Headquarters: Gurugram, Haryana
• About the Company:
  TCI runs across modes—trucking, warehousing, coastal shipping, and cold chain. It’s a large network built over decades, serving sectors from retail to auto to agri.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  With over 12,000 vehicles and nearly ₹5,000 crore in consolidated revenue, it continues to deliver consistency across India’s middle-mile freight flows.

TCI Express

• Established: 2016 (de-merged from TCI)
• Headquarters: Gurugram, Haryana
• About the Company:
  TCI Express focuses purely on time-definite road freight. No frills, just scheduled deliveries across India using a tight surface transport model.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  ₹1,208 crore in revenue and a clean reputation for on-time shipping. Many B2B businesses trust it for reliable TAT, especially in Tier 1 and 2 cities.

VRL Logistics

• Established: 1976
• Headquarters: Hubballi, Karnataka
• About the Company:
  VRL is a veteran in road freight. It began with passenger transport and moved into parcel services. Its trucks are a regular sight across highways in the South and West.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  With a fleet of 5,000+ trucks and ₹2,600 crore in revenue, it’s still one of India’s most dependable long-haul road carriers.

Gati Ltd.

• Established: 1989
• Headquarters: Hyderabad, Telangana
• About the Company:
  Gati made its name in the 1990s with door-to-door logistics. It grew fast by focusing on express delivery and B2B distribution, especially for SMEs.
• Why on Top in 2025:
  Though it’s no longer a market leader, Gati holds ground with ₹1,650 crore in turnover and deep regional networks that MSMEs still rely on.

Choosing the Right Shipping Partner: Use-Case Matrix

Conclusion

There’s no single kind of shipping company that works for every business. Some move crude oil across oceans. Others deliver a small parcel from Nashik to Nagpur overnight. What separates the top firms from the rest isn’t just size or fleet count. It’s how they respond when a vessel is delayed or a route is flooded. What matters is: Reliability under pressure. It’s how they recover without excuses.

In 2025, the companies on this list didn’t land here by chance. They’ve built their systems over years, one port, one hub, one truck at a time. Some serve bulk exports. Others focus on high-frequency city deliveries. But each has earned its place by performing where it counts.

For any business that depends on timely deliveries or compliant shipping, this list is a useful place to begin. It won’t replace due diligence, but it will keep you from shortlisting names that are no longer built for scale or risk.

Disclaimer: The article published based on the research and for information only. The list will be updated on regular basis and only after available data publically. Own research would be encouraged.

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