What is EDI in logistics?

The computer-to-computer exchange of standard business messages between shippers, carriers and receivers — load tenders, shipment status, ship notices and invoices — in X12 or EDIFACT format.

What is the difference between X12 and EDIFACT?

Both are EDI standards. X12, chartered by ANSI, dominates North America; UN/EDIFACT, maintained under the United Nations, is used in Europe and much of the rest of the world. Their message names differ — a 214 in X12 is an IFTSTA in EDIFACT.

Is EDI being replaced by APIs?

Partly, and slowly. In X12's survey 74% said they use or will need REST APIs and JSON, but EDI keeps strict validation that JSON conversions often lose, so many companies run both.

Term

EDI (electronic data interchange)

EDI, electronic data interchange, is the computer-to-computer exchange of business documents in a strict, agreed format — load tenders, status updates, invoices — instead of email or paper. North American freight mostly uses the X12 standards; Europe and much of the world use UN/EDIFACT. Each message type has a number or name, such as X12's 204 load tender.

Also called electronic data interchange, EDI in logistics, X12, EDIFACT, UN/EDIFACT, freight EDIUpdated 13 October 2026

Two standards

The US federal standard defines EDI as the computer-to-computer interchange of strictly formatted messages that represent documents other than monetary instruments; a 1994 European Commission recommendation describes it as transferring commercial and administrative data computer to computer using an agreed standard to structure each message. X12, chartered by the American National Standards Institute for more than 40 years, is the North American standard; UN/EDIFACT is the United Nations' set of rules for administration, commerce and transport. The split is not absolute: US Customs runs its truck manifest message in EDIFACT.

Worked example: one truckload in messages

Step	X12 message	EDIFACT equivalent
Shipper offers the load	204 Motor Carrier Load Tender	IFTMIN
Carrier accepts or declines	990 Response to a Load Tender	—
Carrier reports progress	214 Shipment Status	IFTSTA
Shipper's ship notice to the receiver	856 Ship Notice	DESADV
Carrier invoices	210 Freight Details and Invoice	INVOIC
Each side confirms receipt	997 Functional Acknowledgment	CONTRL

The messages travel over a value-added network or the internet: FedEx describes AS2 as a wrapper that lets EDI files be sent over the internet, and can also transmit through a VAN; Old Dominion offers FTP, sFTP, AS2 or VAN. The EU recommendation asks that acknowledgements be sent within one business day of receipt.

EDI or API

APIs exchange the same data as smaller, real-time requests, often in JSON. In X12's own survey, 74% said their organisation already uses or will need REST APIs and JSON — but X12 warns that a JSON payload can be up to ten times larger than the X12 transaction, and that its validation rules are lost when most EDI software converts to JSON. Many carriers now run both.

The mistake people make

Treating 'we do EDI' as one capability. Each trading partner publishes its own implementation guide — which segments are mandatory, which codes it uses, how fast it expects a reply — and a carrier that sends a valid X12 file in the wrong partner's dialect still gets rejected.

FAQ