How many pallets fit in a 40ft container?
A 40ft standard container takes 20 standard US pallets (48 × 40 in, GMA) floor-loaded in one tier. Double-stacked with low cargo: 40. Shipping euro pallets instead? That grid takes 25.
In short
The interior of a 40ft standard container is about 39 ft 6 in long and 7 ft 8 in wide (1,203 × 235 cm). A standard US pallet is 48 × 40 in — that works out to 20 floor positions in one tier.
How the 20 are placed — calculated, not copied
The 20 only work with a two-lane pattern: 11 pallets turned crosswise along one wall, 9 lengthwise along the other. Keep every pallet in the same orientation and only 18 fit. Some guides quote 21 — we could not build 21 without overhang; the best stow our packer finds is 20. This is the layout from above:
Stacked: two tiers with low cargo
If each loaded pallet stays below about 42 in (107 cm), stackable cargo fits in two tiers: 40 pallets in a 40ft standard container (interior height 94 in / 239 cm). A 40ft high cube (106 in / 270 cm) allows two tiers up to about 48 in per loaded pallet — same floor, same 20 positions, one extra foot of air that often decides the second tier.
Weight: the road limits before the box does
The container itself takes about 58,600 lbs (26.6 t) of payload. On US highways, though, the 80,000 lbs gross vehicle limit counts tractor, chassis and box too — what typically remains is only about 37,500 lbs (17 t) of cargo. Forty pallets can then average roughly 900 lbs each before the road, not the container, says stop. More on this in the road weight limits guide.
| Container | Interior L × W | Pallets 48×40 (1 tier) | Two tiers up to |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40′ Standard | 1,203 × 235 cm | 20 | 42 in per pallet |
| 40′ High Cube | 1,203 × 235 cm | 20 | 48 in per pallet |
The button opens the calculator with a matching example load — freely adjustable there, inches and lbs included.