Pallet Calculator

Pallet Load Calculator Guide: Sizes, Limits and Patterns

Updated

A pallet load calculator answers three questions: how many boxes fit in one layer, how many layers fit under the height and weight limits, and how the layer should be laid out so the stack does not fall over. The numbers depend on the pallet you use, the rules of whoever receives the load, and the pattern you choose. This guide covers all three with the figures a US shipper runs into most often.

Standard pallet sizes

In North America the common pallet is the GMA pallet, 48 by 40 inches (1219 by 1016 mm), a 4-way stringer pallet about 5 to 6 inches tall that weighs 30 to 50 lb. Manufacturers rate a new one at roughly 2,000 to 2,500 lb moving and 6,000 lb or more standing still, but the rating depends on the wood and the build, so check the spec sheet of the pallet you actually buy. Europe ships on the EUR or EPAL pallet, 1200 by 800 mm, and on the 1200 by 1000 mm industrial pallet. ISO 6780 lists six footprints used in intercontinental trade, including 1219 x 1016, 1200 x 1000, 1200 x 800, 1100 x 1100 and 1165 x 1165 mm. The calculator has presets for these and a custom pallet for anything else, including deck height and tare weight, because both eat into your limits.

Height and weight limits that receivers enforce

Amazon FBA in the US asks for 40 x 48 in GMA pallets, a single pallet no taller than 72 in including the pallet, no heavier than 1,500 lb, with no overhang and the heaviest boxes at the bottom; double-stacked pallets must stay under 100 in together. LTL carriers running dry vans generally take pallets up to 96 in tall, sometimes 108, and most price around a 2,000 lb single-pallet maximum with 2,500 lb as a hard cap. Going over height can reclassify the freight and raise the bill, and going over the declared weight brings a reweigh fee. Enter the limit with the pallet included, the way the receiver measures it, and let the sheet tell you whether height or weight stopped the stack.

Which layer pattern to use

Column stacking lines every box up with the one below it. The vertical edges carry the weight, so it is the strongest pattern for crush-sensitive cartons and the quickest to build, but the stack has nothing holding it sideways. Interlocked stacking keeps the same layer and turns every second one 180 degrees or mirrors it, so each box bridges a seam below; that resists shifting at the cost of some compression strength. A layer of plain columns that fills the pallet lands on its own seams however you turn it, so it cannot interlock this way. A pinwheel turns four blocks around the centre of the layer and braces itself in every direction; it usually gives up one or two boxes per layer and is the pattern to choose for tall loads, long truck runs or weak cartons. A split pattern is a compromise: most of the layer in columns, the leftover strip turned the other way. The calculator counts all of them and draws the one you pick so the person building the pallet can copy it layer by layer.

Open the tool

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