Updated
Cubic capacity is the internal length × width × height of the container. It is a real number and a useful one, but nobody ever loads a container to it. Dunnage, securing, pallet footprints and the shape of the goods all take a share.
This page gives both: the theoretical figure for each size, and the pallet counts that shippers actually plan against.
Capacity by size
- 10ft — about 15.9 m³
- 20ft standard — about 33.2 m³
- 20ft High Cube — about 37.4 m³
- 40ft standard — about 67.7 m³
- 40ft High Cube — about 76.4 m³
- 45ft High Cube — about 86.0 m³
Pallets in practice
Europallets measure 1 200 × 800 mm. Eleven fit on the floor of a 20ft container in the standard pattern with nothing overhanging, and ten is what most shippers plan on so there is room to stow and secure. A 40ft takes 23 to 25 depending on the pattern, and 23 is the working figure for a load that must be strapped.
Industrial pallets at 1 200 × 1 000 mm give nine to ten in a 20ft and 20 to 21 in a 40ft.
Stacking pallets doubles the count if the goods allow it and the height works out — but check the payload before the volume. See container weight.
Why usable capacity is always lower
- Pallet footprints do not tile perfectly into a 2 352 mm internal width
- Securing and dunnage take space that does not appear in any table
- Goods are rarely cuboid, and the void inside packaging is still volume
- Loading to the roof is often impossible with a forklift working from the door end
- Weight limits stop most dense loads long before volume does