About PlainTariff

Our Mission

We believe trade data should be accessible to everyone, not just customs brokers and trade compliance specialists. PlainTariff exists because the official Harmonized Tariff Schedule is a dense regulatory document that can be difficult to navigate for importers, small business owners, researchers, students, and journalists who need to quickly find duty rates for specific products.

Our mission is to present US import tariff data and global agricultural trade flows in a clean, searchable format. We take the approximately 13,000+ tariff lines from the USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule and the FAO agricultural trade database and make them browsable by section, chapter, product keyword, commodity, and country - so users can find the information they need without reading through hundreds of pages of regulatory text.

Whether you are an importer looking up MFN duty rates, a student studying international trade, a journalist researching tariff policy impacts, or a business owner evaluating sourcing costs, PlainTariff gives you direct access to the official numbers.

Our Data Sources

PlainTariff draws from two primary official data sources covering US tariff schedules and global agricultural trade:

• USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) - 2026 Basic Edition
  The official tariff schedule published by the U.S. International Trade Commission. It classifies every imported product into one of approximately 13,000+ tariff lines, each with a specific duty rate. The HTS is organized into 22 sections, 96 chapters, and thousands of headings and subheadings using the international Harmonized System (HS) as its foundation. Includes General (MFN) rates, Special preferential rates under free trade agreements, and Column 2 rates. hts.usitc.gov
• FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) - FAOSTAT Trade Data
  Global agricultural commodity trade flow data covering imports and exports by country, commodity, and year. Includes trade values, quantities, and unit prices for hundreds of agricultural products across all reporting countries. Used to provide global trade context for tariff-relevant agricultural commodities. fao.org/faostat

How We Process the Data

Our methodology involves parsing structured regulatory data and trade statistics into a searchable database while preserving the exact rates and classifications as published by the source agencies.

HTS tariff data: We parse the USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule, preserving every tariff line with its HS code, product description, indent level (which determines the hierarchical classification), units of quantity, and all three rate columns: General (MFN) rate, Special preferential rates with program indicators (such as USMCA, GSP, and other FTA programs), and Column 2 rates for non-NTR countries.

Rate parsing: Duty rates can be expressed as ad valorem (percentage of value, e.g., "5%"), specific (dollar amount per unit, e.g., "$1.50/kg"), or compound (combination of both). We preserve the original rate text exactly as published and additionally extract numeric percentage values where applicable for search and comparison.

Agricultural trade data: FAO trade flows are organized by commodity and country, with annual import and export values and quantities. We identify top exporters and importers for each commodity and compute total global trade values to provide context for the agricultural products covered by the tariff schedule.

Our search indexes tariff descriptions, HS codes, and product keywords so importers can quickly locate the applicable duty rate for any product without navigating the full regulatory document.

Data Currency

The Harmonized Tariff Schedule data reflects the 2026 Basic Edition as published by the USITC. The HTS is updated periodically throughout the year as trade policy actions take effect, including presidential proclamations, trade remedy orders, and legislative changes. Our data reflects the edition current at the time of our most recent download.

FAO agricultural trade data reflects the most recently available reporting year in the FAOSTAT database, which typically lags 1-2 years behind the current date due to international data collection and verification timelines.

We aim to refresh the HTS data whenever a new revision is published by the USITC and update FAO trade data as new annual figures become available.

Editorial Independence

PlainTariff transforms two public datasets, the USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule and the FAO FAOSTAT agricultural trade database, into searchable, plain-language pages through a repeatable data pipeline. Every figure on the site is queried directly from those sources, so numbers reconcile across listing and detail pages. The PlainTariff editorial identity, is responsible for editorial standards, methodology, and corrections.

We do not accept payment, sponsorship, or promoted placement from importers, exporters, customs brokers, or any entity we cover. Our only revenue source is contextual display advertising served by Google AdSense, advertisers do not influence which data we present or how we present it, and they do not receive preferential placement.

Limitations and Disclaimers

This site is for informational purposes only. Users should understand the following limitations before relying on this data:

• Tariff rates change frequently: Trade policy actions, including Section 301 tariffs, Section 232 tariffs, anti-dumping duties, and countervailing duties, can change rates at any time. Our data may not reflect the very latest modifications. Always verify current rates at hts.usitc.gov before making import decisions.
• Classification requires expertise: Determining the correct HTS classification for a product can be complex. The same product may fall under different tariff lines depending on its material composition, processing method, or intended use. We present the published classifications but cannot advise on which code applies to your specific product.
• Special rates have eligibility requirements: Preferential duty rates under FTAs (USMCA, CAFTA-DR, etc.) and programs like GSP require meeting specific rules of origin, documentation, and eligibility criteria. The presence of a special rate does not guarantee your shipment qualifies.
• Trade data lags reality: FAO agricultural trade statistics are typically 1-2 years behind current flows due to international reporting timelines. They should be used for trend analysis, not real-time trade intelligence.
• Not affiliated with government: PlainTariff is not affiliated with the USITC, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the FAO, or any government agency. For binding tariff classification rulings, contact U.S. CBP directly.

Contact

For questions about the data or this website, reach out to us at hello@plaintariff.com. We welcome feedback on data accuracy, suggestions for additional trade data we should include, and reports of tariff lines that may need updating.

If you are a customs broker, trade compliance professional, or trade researcher and notice discrepancies between our data and the current HTS, please let us know with the specific HTS number so we can verify and correct it.