Pallet Calculator
Pallet loading is where warehouse arithmetic and shipping costs meet, and the trade describes it in two numbers: TI — how many boxes fit in one layer — and HI — how many layers high. Multiply them and you have the pallet quantity that drives freight class, container plans and rack spacing. The subtlety most calculators skip is orientation: a 13×9-inch box packs 12 per layer lengthwise on a 48×40 pallet but 15 rotated, which is a full extra layer over six layers. This calculator tries both uniform orientations, applies your height limit — 48 inches of load is the working number for double-stacking in a standard trailer — caps the count by pallet weight capacity when you provide it, and scales a shipment up to whole pallets so purchasing and freight quotes agree.
GMA standard is 48 × 40.
Excludes the ~6 in pallet deck.
Wood GMA pallets are commonly rated ~2,500.
Boxes per pallet
96
TI 16 × HI 6 — 16 boxes per layer, 6 layers high.
- Per layer
- 16 (16 straight / 12 rotated)
- Layers
- 6
- Deck utilization
- 100%
The tool quotes the better of the two uniform orientations.
At a 48 in load-height limit. 48 in is the working number for double-stacking in a standard trailer.
The count assumes uniform orientation per layer and no overhang — a mixed-rotation pattern occasionally squeezes in one more box, but it also breaks the stack. Add the pallet's own height (typically 5–6 in) before quoting total height to a carrier or a rack.
How to use Pallet Calculator
- 1
Enter the box dimensions
Outside dimensions of the shipping carton, in inches. The calculator tries the straight and rotated orientation and keeps the better one.
- 2
Set the pallet and height limit
48 × 40 inches is the standard GMA pallet; euro pallets are 800 × 1200 mm. A 48-inch load height plus the ~6-inch deck double-stacks in a standard trailer.
- 3
Add weight and shipment size
Enter per-box weight with the pallet's capacity to catch weight-bound loads, and the total box count to see how many whole pallets the shipment needs.
Why use this tool
- TI × HI with both box orientations compared
- Weight-capacity check, since heavy boxes bind before height does
- Pallets needed for a shipment of any size
- Deck-utilization figure for packaging decisions
- Handles non-standard pallets, including euro sizes
- Free and instant — runs entirely in your browser
Frequently asked questions
- How many boxes fit on a standard pallet?
- It depends entirely on the box. On a 48×40-inch GMA pallet, a 12×10×8-inch carton packs 16 per layer and 6 layers high — 96 boxes at TI 16 × HI 6. Change the box to 13×9 and the same deck packs 15 per layer. Measure the carton, not the product, and let the calculator try both orientations.
- What are TI and HI?
- TI (tier) is the number of boxes in one layer of the pallet; HI (high) is the number of layers. A pallet quoted as TI 16 × HI 6 holds 96 boxes. The notation comes from retail distribution and appears on routing guides and load diagrams — it is how warehouses communicate a load plan in two numbers.
- How tall can I stack a pallet?
- For domestic LTL and truckload, a 48-inch load height is the working standard: add the roughly 6-inch pallet deck and two stacks clear a standard 53-foot trailer's interior. Warehouse racking changes the answer — the limit is the beam spacing you plan for. Check whether your customer's routing guide specifies a lower maximum, because many do.
- Does box orientation matter on a pallet?
- Often, yes. Rotating the boxes 90 degrees changes how many fit per layer whenever the box and pallet dimensions don't divide evenly. This calculator quotes the better of the two uniform orientations; deliberately mixed rotations can occasionally fit one more box, but they produce an unstable stack that usually costs more than it saves.
- How much weight can a pallet hold?
- A standard GMA wood pallet is commonly rated around 2,500 pounds dynamic capacity, but ratings vary by pallet design and condition — check the specific pallet, not a rule of thumb. The practical check is which limit binds first: light bulky goods hit the height limit, dense goods hit the weight cap, and the calculator reports both.
- Should boxes overhang the pallet edge?
- No. Overhang crushes the outer boxes in transit, wastes the trailer cube around the pallet, and — since carriers measure the handling unit at its extremes — it inflates the dimensions that feed your freight density and class. A load that looks like it saves one box usually costs a class.
- How many pallets fit in a truck or container?
- A 53-foot dry van takes roughly 26 to 30 single-stacked 48×40 pallets depending on equipment, and double-stacking with 48-inch loads roughly doubles it. A 20-foot container fits 10 standard pallets single-stacked; a 40-foot fits 20 to 21. Euro pallets (800×1200 mm) fit more per container because they are narrower.
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