WorldscaleWS
A unified index of nominal tanker freight rates that lets the market quote any tanker voyage as a single percentage.
Worldscale is a system of nominal flat rates ("Worldscale 100") published for thousands of tanker voyages, calculated annually to give a standard reference round-voyage cost. A fixture is then quoted as a percentage of that flat rate — for example WS 75 means 75% of the published rate for that route.
Quoting in Worldscale lets owners and charterers compare and negotiate across very different tanker voyages on one scale. The actual dollars earned depend on the WS points fixed and the flat rate for that specific route and year.
On TheMaritime
Also known as: WS, worldscale points, flat rate.
Related terms
Time Charter EquivalentTCE
A voyage’s daily earnings net of voyage costs — the single number that makes a voyage charter comparable with a time charter rate.
Voyage Charter
A contract to carry a specific cargo between named ports for a freight rate, with the owner paying the voyage costs.
Very Large Crude CarrierVLCC
A crude oil tanker of roughly 200,000–320,000 DWT — the backbone of long-haul Middle East–to–Asia oil transport.
Aframax
A crude/product tanker of roughly 80,000–120,000 DWT, the largest size historically rated by the Average Freight Rate Assessment scale.
Plain-English reference definition — our own explanation of a standard shipping concept, not a licensed source or legal advice. See the full glossary or the broader maritime dictionary.
Last reviewed: June 2026.