Managing carrier rates efficiently has always been one of the most crucial and complex aspects of freight forwarding. As global trade expands and pricing models shift rapidly, logistics professionals need a rate management system that is accurate, fast, and easy to integrate across multiple transport modes.
Recognizing this, CargoWise has introduced the Universal Rates Service (URS), an evolved, simplified replacement for the legacy Rates Service.
This migration represents a major leap forward in how freight forwarders, consolidators, and customs brokers manage, consume, and compare rates from third-party providers like CargoSphere and Cargoguide.
A single, unified, high-performance framework that simplifies how rates are stored, accessed, and used inside CargoWise, helping users save time, reduce manual work, and make smarter pricing decisions.
What is the Universal Rates Service (URS)?
The Universal Rates Service (URS) is a standardized API framework within CargoWise that replaces the previous Rates Service. It acts as a single integration layer between CargoWise and global rate platforms such as CargoSphere (for ocean rates) and Cargoguide (for air rates).
Instead of querying these external systems separately in real time, CargoWise now sends rate requests directly to the URS database, which already contains synchronized rate data from both platforms.
This approach eliminates slow API conversions, reduces system lag, and enhances the consistency of rate information across all forwarding modules.
Key Benefits of URS:
- Standardized API structure: Ensures consistent integration for ingesting and querying rates.
- Better performance: Significantly faster rate retrieval and autorating speeds.
- Future scalability: Built to support more rate sources and transport modes in upcoming CargoWise releases.
- Centralized management: Moves all configuration and permission handling directly into CargoWise for easier control.
Why CargoWise Migrated from the Legacy Rates Service?
The legacy system relied on multiple connectors that routed rate queries separately. This approach worked, but it created unnecessary complexity and performance obstacles.
With URS, everything is consolidated.
The new system:
- Sends rate queries directly to the URS database.
- Returns synchronized, standardized responses.
- Minimizes dependency on runtime conversions.
Once URS is enabled, the older Rates Service will eventually be phased out. This ensures that all CargoWise users operate under a consistent, unified structure for rate management and automation.
Integration with CarrierConnect (C3): A Unified Experience
Alongside URS, CargoWise has also enhanced CarrierConnect (C3), the interface for searching, comparing, and selecting carrier rates.
Previously, users relied on Rate Selector or Multimodal Rates Search, but both have now been merged into CarrierConnect.
This upgrade provides a smoother and data-rich experience where users can:
- Search and filter rates across CargoSphere and Cargoguide sources.
- Compare carrier options side-by-side within one interface.
- Plan shipments based on rates, schedules, and capacities (coming soon).
To get the full benefit, it’s highly recommended that CargoWise users enable URS and C3 together.
How to Enable the Universal Rates Service?
Once the Universal Rates Service is available in your system, you can activate it through the CargoWise registry.
Step 1: Enable URS Integration
Go to: AutoRating > Enable URS Integration
When set to ‘Yes’, your existing registry configurations under AutoRating > Rates Service will automatically migrate to the AutoRating > Universal Rates Service path.
This ensures a seamless transition without losing previous setups.
If URS remains disabled, your system will continue using the legacy Rates Service until migration is complete.
Step 2: Verify Automatic Configuration Migration
CargoWise configurations automatically transfer all from the old Rates Service to URS.
That means you won’t have to re-enter or reconfigure your registry, mapping, or integration details.
- Settings that are migrated automatically include:
- Fallback for Subject To Charges
- Rate Service Subscriptions
- Third-party rate provider integrations (CargoSphere and Cargoguide)
- Navigation menus for Ocean and Air rates
- Security permissions for modules and data access
All menu paths, system registries, and user permissions will be renamed to Universal Rates Service for consistency.
Step 3: Preserve Existing Mappings
All mappings related to rate management will continue to function as before, including:
- Carrier configurations for Shipping Lines, Airlines, and Agents
- Container ISO type groups
- Commodity group assignments
- Charge code and universal charge code mappings
If your company has already set up these configurations under the legacy system, no further re-mapping is required after enabling URS.
Step 4: Enable CargoSphere and Cargoguide Integrations
If your organization already subscribes to CargoSphere (for ocean rates) or Cargoguide (for air rates), the same settings will automatically apply to URS.
However, confirm that both integrations are turned on within the new registry paths.
For CargoSphere Integration:
AutoRating > Universal Rates Service > Third Party Rate Providers > CargoSphere > Enable Ocean Rate Management Integration
For Cargoguide Integration:
AutoRating > Universal Rates Service > Third Party Rate Providers > Cargoguide > Enable Air Rate Management Integration
Once enabled, users can also access the respective portals through Single Sign-On (SSO) directly from CargoWise.
Step 5: Manage User Permissions in CargoWise
One of the most significant improvements in URS is centralized user permission control.
Previously, access to rates was managed separately in the CargoSphere and Cargoguide portals.
Now, these permissions are fully managed within CargoWise.
New security access options include:
Manage > Universal Rates Service > CargoSphere – Ocean Rates > Regional Rates Access
Manage > Universal Rates Service > Cargoguide – Air Rates > Regional Rates Access
This allows administrators to:
- Grant access to specific countries or regions.
- Restrict visibility based on origin or destination.
- Deny or allow access per user group.
For companies managing Named Account Clients (NACs), where special rates are negotiated for specific customers, CargoWise now supports NAC mapping directly under carrier organizations.
This mapping ensures NAC-specific rates are only accessible to authorized staff or management groups.
Step 6: Consuming Rates via CarrierConnect or Autorating
After enabling URS and integrations, rate consumption happens in two ways:
Via CarrierConnect (C3):
Users can view, compare, and select rates across CargoSphere and Cargoguide sources in real time.
Via Autorating (Without C3):
If C3 is not enabled, URS still supports Autorating directly. The system will automatically load the best-matched rates from CargoSphere and Cargoguide during job creation.
In both cases, rate data is retrieved faster and more accurately than before, providing smoother quoting and operational workflows.
Future-Ready Framework
The Universal Rates Service isn’t just a replacement, it’s the foundation for future enhancements in CargoWise’s rate management ecosystem.
In upcoming releases, URS will integrate with additional rate providers, carrier APIs, and automated cost optimization tools, including spot rates, capacity data, and AI-based route recommendations.
This positions URS as the core infrastructure for digital freight pricing, unifying rate access across ocean, air, and multimodal operations in one place.
Conclusion
The migration from Rates Service to Universal Rates Service marks a significant milestone for the CargoWise platform, delivering faster rate retrieval, unified configuration, and enhanced control over permissions.
For CargoWise users, this is more than a system change; it’s an opportunity to simplify how rate data flows through operations, from quoting to invoicing.
With URS, you’ll spend less time configuring systems and more time making strategic pricing decisions backed by clean, synchronized data.
If your goal is to modernize rate management and keep your CargoWise system future-ready, schedule a demo with a certified CargoWise service partner today and enable URS for smarter, more efficient operations.
