What Is Nearshoring?

By Jeremy Bowman – Updated Dec 17, 2024 at 9:44 AM

Key Points

Nearshoring moves jobs closer to the employer’s home country, like U.S. jobs from China to Mexico.
It responds to offshoring issues such as high freight costs and supply chain delays.
Nearshoring benefits include better control over production and reduced cultural barriers.

If you haven't heard of nearshoring, you're probably familiar with offshoring, the practice of shipping jobs like manufacturing and assembly overseas to lower-cost markets like China, India, or Mexico. The practice, a form of outsourcing, gained momentum in the 1970s and 1980s, hollowing out once-strong U.S. industries like steel and textiles.

These days, there may be more talk about nearshoring, which is a cousin of offshoring. Rather than outsourcing jobs to distant countries, nearshoring refers to outsourcing jobs closer to home, in nearby countries.

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Inside of a factory with assembly line. — Image source: Getty Images.

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About the Author

Jeremy Bowman has been a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst, covering technology, consumer goods, and macroeconomic trends since 2011. Before The Motley Fool, Jeremy was a newspaper reporter, restaurant manager, and English teacher abroad. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Colorado College and a master’s degree in business administration from American University. One of his Motley Fool headlines was briefly featured on Late Night with Stephen Colbert.

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Jeremy Bowman has positions in GXO Logistics. The Motley Fool recommends GXO Logistics. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.