HMM
Container Tracking
HMM renamed itself from Hyundai Merchant Marine in 2020, and several prefixes credited to it online actually belong to other Hyundai companies. Enter a container, bill of lading or booking number for the latest milestones.
What a HMM tracking number looks like
The lookup above accepts any of these in the same field. If one returns nothing, try another. Carriers release milestone data against different identifiers at different stages.
Container number
4 letters + 7 digits (11 characters)
HDMU1234567Standard ISO 6346. Only HDMU, HMMU and KOCU are registered to HMM.
Bill of lading number
Alphanumeric, no publicly documented format
HDMU1234567Sources disagree on whether HMM B/L numbers begin HDMU or HMMU, and HMM publishes no specification. Do not try to match a pattern. Enter the number exactly as printed on your document.
Booking number
Alphanumeric
12345678Accepted in the same field as container and B/L numbers.
HMM container prefixes
These owner codes are registered to HMM Co., Ltd. in the BIC ISO 6346 register. Containers moving under a HMM booking may also carry a leasing company's prefix. A leased box is still your shipment, the prefix just does not identify the carrier.
How to track a HMM shipment
- 1
Find your container or BL number
It is printed on your bill of lading, your booking confirmation, or on the container door itself. Any of the three works in the search box above.
- 2
HMM is already selected
Because you are on the HMM page, the carrier dropdown is filled in for you. If you actually need a different line, change it. The selection is not locked.
- 3
Enter the number and press Track
Type it exactly as printed. Spaces and dashes are fine, but a mistyped letter will return nothing, since the check digit at the end only validates against the correct serial.
- 4
Read the milestone timeline
You will see terminal and vessel events from origin gate-in through to empty return, plus the vessel and voyage your box is actually on.
You can also check HMM's own portal directly at HMM cargo tracking . The advantage of tracking here is keeping several carriers on one screen instead of one portal per line.
About HMM
HMM is South Korea’s largest container carrier, founded in 1976 as Asia Merchant Marine and renamed Hyundai Merchant Marine in 1983. It shortened its name to HMM in 2020, part of a restructuring that followed a difficult decade. The collapse of Hanjin Shipping in 2016 left HMM as effectively the only Korean deep-sea container line, and it spent years under creditor-led reorganisation before returning to profitability.
The company came out of that period with one of the youngest and largest average vessel sizes in the industry, having taken delivery of a series of very large ships ordered during the restructuring. It sits in the Premier Alliance on the main east–west trades.
The name change is the thing that shows up in tracking. Container prefixes are registered against the old name (HDMU is literally Hyundai Merchant Marine), and documentation from before 2020 uses the full name throughout. Both refer to the same carrier.
HMM tracking: what to check first
Verify the prefix actually belongs to HMM. This carrier attracts more wrong-owner claims than any other. HAMU is Hapag-Lloyd. HDGU is Hyundai Glovis, a separate Hyundai group logistics company. HMRU is Hyundai Motorsport. GHMU is a Chinese container manufacturer. Only HDMU, HMMU and KOCU are registered to HMM in the BIC register, and a box under any other Hyundai-looking code is not an HMM container.
Do not trust any published B/L format. Sources contradict each other on whether HMM bills of lading start HDMU or HMMU, and HMM publishes nothing official. Every “HMM B/L format” you will find traces back to a tracking blog rather than to the carrier. Enter what is printed and nothing else.
The number has not been released yet. Booking references exist from confirmation of space; movement events generally begin at origin gate-in.
HMM’s Asia–Middle East services reach Pakistan via Gulf and Southeast Asian transshipment rather than direct calls, so a quiet stretch mid-voyage while the box waits for a connecting vessel is normal rather than a sign of a problem.
What each HMM tracking status means
Ocean carriers share the same terminal and vessel event vocabulary, so these milestones read the same whichever line you are tracking.
Gate in
The container passed through the terminal gate at the origin port and is now in the terminal's custody, waiting to be loaded.
Loaded on vessel
The box was lifted onto the ship. This is the milestone that fixes your shipment to a specific vessel and voyage number.
Vessel departure
The ship has sailed from the origin port. Transit time is measured from here, and it is the point most ETA calculations are anchored to.
Transshipment
The container was discharged at an intermediate hub and will be reloaded onto a second vessel. Most delays originate here rather than at origin.
Discharged
The container came off the ship at the destination port. Free time and demurrage clocks typically start from this event.
Gate out
The container left the terminal on a truck or rail wagon. Once this fires, the terminal's storage charges stop and the haulier's clock starts.
Empty return
The unpacked container was returned to the carrier's nominated depot. This closes the shipment and stops any per-diem detention charges.
Where HMM shipments usually move
HMM tracking questions
Is HAMU an HMM container prefix?
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No. HAMU is registered to Hapag-Lloyd A.G. in Germany. It is one of the more damaging errors circulating on tracking sites, because searching a HAMU box as HMM sends you to the wrong carrier entirely. HMM's registered prefixes are HDMU, HMMU and KOCU, and nothing else.
Which prefixes are wrongly credited to HMM?
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Four common ones. HAMU is Hapag-Lloyd. HDGU is Hyundai Glovis, a different Hyundai company. HMRU is Hyundai Motorsport. GHMU is Guangdong Hyundai Container, a box manufacturer. None of them are HMM containers.
Is HMM the same company as Hyundai Merchant Marine?
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Yes. The company was founded as Asia Merchant Marine in 1976, became Hyundai Merchant Marine in 1983, and shortened its name to HMM in 2020. The container prefixes still reflect the old name: HDMU stands for Hyundai Merchant Marine, which is why both names appear on documentation.
What does an HMM container number look like?
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Eleven characters: HDMU, HMMU or KOCU, then the letter U, then seven digits, as in HDMU1234567. The final digit is a checksum over the preceding ten characters.
What is HMM's SCAC code?
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HDMU. Some sources list HMMU as an alternate SCAC, but HMMU is confirmed only as a container prefix in the BIC register, a different registry entirely. Use HDMU for customs and EDI purposes.
Why is my HMM number not found?
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Check the prefix first, since the wrong-carrier confusion above accounts for a lot of failed searches. Beyond that, the usual causes apply: a booking reference the carrier has not released movement events against yet, a transcription error, or a closed shipment.
Does Maalbardaar charge for HMM tracking?
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No. Tracking is included with a free Maalbardaar account, which also lets you keep shipments across several carriers on one dashboard instead of checking each carrier's portal separately.
Every carrier on one dashboard.
Stop checking HMM's portal separately from everyone else's. Track your whole book of shipments in one place.
Not shipping with HMM?
Track any of these lines from the same dashboard, or use the general tracking page if your carrier is not listed.
Ocean carriers
Air cargo
Maalbardaar is an independent logistics technology platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by HMM Co., Ltd.. "HMM" and all related marks are trademarks of their respective owners and are used here for identification purposes only. For official information, visit the carrier's own website . Carrier data sources: Prefixes confirmed individually against the BIC ISO 6346 owner-code register, all registered to HMM CO., LTD. HAMU, HDGU, HMRU and GHMU are deliberately excluded: they belong to Hapag-Lloyd, Hyundai Glovis, Hyundai Motorsport and a Chinese box manufacturer respectively. HQ address from the BIC registrant record. SCAC cross-corroborated across two published lists.