How Many Pallets Can You Fit Inside a Shipping Container?

Ideally, when selecting either a 10ft, 20ft, 30ft, 40ft and 45ft container, it is important to fit pallets tightly to maximise the amount of cargo you can transport during ocean freight shipping.

15th June 2021

20ft Container Holding 10 Standard Pallets

The amount of pallets you can pack tightly and securely in your container will depend on the size of the container you intend to transport your goods in, and the pallets you have available.

There are currently two types of pallets that are widely used, ‘EUR Pallets’, also known as ‘Euro-Pallets’, and ‘Standard Pallets’. Euro pallets are usually the most widely used pallet, and it is estimated that 450-500 million are in circulation across the globe.

Both Euro and Standard Pallets are 1200mm in length, however a Euro Pallet is 800mm in width in comparison to a Standard Pallet which is 1000mm wide. You can find a helpful guide to the main differences of these two pallets by clicking here.

How many pallets can you fit inside a 10ft, 20ft, 30ft, 40ft & 45ft container?

From the internal dimensions of our standard 10ft, 20ft, 30ft, 40ft and 45ft containers we can calculate exactly how many pallets can fit inside each container comfortably and safely to optimise your shipping space.

The internal spaces of 10ft, 20ft, 30ft, 40ft and 45ft containers have been listed below:

10ft container: Length: 9ft 2ins. Width: 7ft 7ins. Height: 7ft 9ins.
20ft container:Length: 19ft 3ins. Width: 7ft 7ins. Height: 7ft 9ins.
30ft container: Length: 29ft 5ins. Width 7ft 8ins. 7ft 10ins.
40ft container: Length: 39ft 4ins. Width: 7ft 7ins. Height: 7ft 9ins.
45ft container: Length: 44ft 5ins. Width: 7ft 8ins. Height: 7ft 10ins.

10ft Containers

For a 10ft container, 4 Standard Pallets can be shipped, whilst 5 Euro Pallets can be held. 10ft containers are not usually used for ocean freight due to them being one of the smallest shipping containers, making 20ft, 40ft, and 45ft options more popular transport methods.

10ft Container Holding 4 Standard Pallets

20ft Containers

20ft containers can fit 10 Standard Pallets and 11 Euro Pallets.

30ft Containers

30ft containers can accommodate up to 14 Standard Pallets, and 18 Euro Pallets. 30ft containers are a great transporting alternative if a 20ft container is too small, and a 40ft container is too large for the desired amount of cargo you need to ship.

30ft Container Containing 18 Euro Pallets

40ft Containers

40ft standard containers fit up to 20 Standard Pallets, and 24 Euro Pallets. Due to Euro Pallets being 200mm narrower, they can be positioned lengthwise in a 40ft container, whilst Standard Pallets cannot.

40ft containers can also come in a ‘pallet wide’ option, although we currently do not offer this size, in which 24 Standard Pallets can securely and safely fit in the unit, whilst 30 Euro Pallets can be transported.

40ft Standard Container Carrying 24 Euro Pallets

45ft Containers

Similarly, 45ft containers also come in the pallet wide option, holding up to 33 Euro pallets and 26 Standard Pallets. However, a 45ft standard container holds 24 Standard Pallets and 27 Euro Pallets. Currently, we only supply 45ft pallet wide containers and do not offer a standard 45ft option.