How to Send a Parcel by Pakistan Railways: Rs 140 to Rs 1,935 for Up to 50 kg by Weight and Distance

Short answer: Pakistan Railways carries a small parcel of up to 50 kg on its passenger trains for between Rs 140 and Rs 1,935, depending on the weight, the distance and the kind of train. The minimum charge is Rs 140 on an ordinary passenger train, Rs 190 on a mail or express train and Rs 210 on a non-stop train such as the Green Line or Karakoram Express. A 10 kg parcel from Lahore to Karachi, about 1,250 km, costs Rs 165 on a passenger train, Rs 225 by mail or express and Rs 250 non-stop.

We read the Parcel and Luggage Rate Table that Pakistan Railways publishes on pakrail.gov.pk on 19 October 2026. It is dated 19 September 2023 and is the latest parcel table on the official site. Parcels travel in the brake van of the train and are collected at the destination station's parcel office. For anything above 50 kg, or a vehicle or livestock, the railway charges wagon or vehicle rates from a separate table.

The charge rises with weight in 5 kg steps and distance in bands

The table has ten weight columns, from 2 to 5 kg up to 46 to 50 kg, and distance bands from 1 to 40 km up to 2,741 to 2,810 km. Each cell has three prices: passenger train, mail or express, and non-stop. Charges are rounded up to the next Rs 5. A parcel under 5 kg is charged as 5 kg.

The rates are gentle at short range. Anything up to 25 kg travelling up to 100 km costs the minimum. Even a 50 kg parcel travelling up to 100 km is Rs 165 on a passenger train. The price only starts to climb when both weight and distance are high, which is the opposite of how couriers price, where the first kilogram is the expensive one.

The three figures in each cell are passenger train, mail or express, and non-stop, in rupees. A few cells in the longest distance bands of the published table are blank, which is why the last column reads "not shown" for the top band. Distances are the railway's own route kilometres, not road distances.

Lahore to Karachi costs Rs 165 to Rs 1,020 by weight

Lahore to Karachi by rail is about 1,250 km, which falls in the 1,166 to 1,270 km band. A parcel up to 5 kg costs Rs 160 on a passenger train, Rs 220 by mail or express and Rs 240 non-stop. A 10 kg parcel costs Rs 165, Rs 225 or Rs 250. At 20 kg it is Rs 335, Rs 455 or Rs 505, and a full 50 kg parcel is Rs 680, Rs 920 or Rs 1,020.

Rawalpindi to Karachi, roughly 1,550 km, sits in the 1,551 to 1,690 km band if the route distance tips over, so a 20 kg parcel there is Rs 375, Rs 510 or Rs 565. Lahore to Rawalpindi, under 300 km, is Rs 160 to Rs 240 for 20 kg. The non-stop column covers the Green Line, Jinnah, Sir Syed, Karakoram, Islamabad and Rawal Express and any new non-stop train. Those trains run the fastest, so paying the top rate buys the next morning rather than the next evening.

For comparison, a passenger's own luggage in the compartment has a free allowance that the parcel table does not touch, set out in the Pakistan Railways luggage allowance by class. The parcel service is for goods sent without a traveller, or for weight above that allowance.

Fish, electrical goods and credit bookings cost more

The table carries surcharges that are easy to miss. Electrical consignments are charged double the full parcel rate. Fish carries a 30 per cent surcharge. Booking on credit notes rather than cash adds 5 per cent. Defence consignments are charged for a minimum distance of 100 km. Coins and currency travel at the full parcel rate as treasure.

A television sent as a parcel therefore costs twice the printed rate, and a 30 kg carton of frozen fish from Karachi costs 1.3 times. The table does not define "electrical", so expect a station parcel clerk to treat anything with a plug as electrical.

Book at the parcel office with your CNIC and the receiver's name

Parcels are booked at the parcel office of the originating station, which is usually a counter beside the goods shed rather than the ticket window. You pay the charge, get a receipt with a parcel number, and the receiver collects at the destination parcel office against that number and a CNIC. The railway's site does not offer online parcel booking.

1. Pack the parcel and weigh it. Charges go in 5 kg steps, so 10.5 kg is billed as 15 kg.
2. Take it to the parcel office of the departure station with your CNIC and the receiver's full name, CNIC number and phone number.
3. Tell the clerk which train you want. A mail, express or non-stop train costs more but arrives sooner than a passenger train.
4. Pay the charge, including any surcharge for electrical goods or fish, and keep the receipt.
5. Send the receipt number to the receiver, who collects at the destination parcel office with a CNIC.

If a parcel is delayed or missing, the complaint route is the station master first and then the railway's helplines, covered in how to complain to Pakistan Railways. The train timings check tells you which trains serve your pair of stations on a given day, which decides whether the non-stop column applies at all.

Above 50 kg the railway charges wagon or vehicle rates

The small parcel table stops at 50 kg. Heavier consignments, cars, tractors and animals go on a separate vehicle load table charged through mixed or goods trains, with a motor car starting at Rs 15,215 for the first vehicle on a 361 to 380 km journey and rising with distance. The animal columns in that table were not fully readable in the published scan, so we have not reproduced them.

Goats are the exception inside the parcel service: up to four travel in the brake van at full parcel rate, each counted as 50 kg, and more than four go at the wagon rate. A corpse travels at the full parcel rate with a minimum chargeable weight of 190 kg.

Common questions

How much does Pakistan Railways charge to send a parcel?

From Rs 140 for a small parcel on a passenger train over a short distance to Rs 1,935 for 50 kg over 2,741 km on a non-stop train, from the table dated 19 September 2023.

What is the minimum parcel charge?

Rs 140 per consignment on a passenger train, Rs 190 on a mail or express train and Rs 210 on a non-stop train.

How much is a parcel from Lahore to Karachi by train?

Rs 160 to Rs 240 for up to 5 kg, Rs 335 to Rs 505 for 20 kg, and Rs 680 to Rs 1,020 for 50 kg, depending on the kind of train.

Which trains count as non-stop for parcel rates?

The Green Line, Jinnah, Sir Syed, Karakoram, Islamabad and Rawal Express, and any new non-stop train the railway introduces.

Can I send a parcel heavier than 50 kg?

Not under the small parcel table. Heavier goods, vehicles and animals are charged on the vehicle load table through mixed or goods trains.

Can I book a railway parcel online?

No. Booking is at the parcel office of the departure station, and collection is at the destination parcel office against the receipt number and a CNIC.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

We read the Parcel and Luggage Rate Table for small parcel consignments effective 19 September 2023, published by Pakistan Railways at pakrail.gov.pk and linked from its Fares and Rates Table page, on 19 October 2026. Every rupee figure, surcharge and rule above comes from that table, and it is the latest parcel table on the site. Route distances for Lahore to Karachi and other pairs are our approximations used only to pick a distance band, and the station parcel office will use its own route kilometres. The booking steps describe the counter process in general terms and are not set out on the railway's site. A few cells in the longest distance bands are blank in the published table, and the animal and vehicle rate columns were partly unreadable, so neither is reproduced.