Pallet sizes, set out like a cutting list
Pallet sizes are written length by width in inches: 48x40 means 48 inches along the stringers and 40 across the deck. These are the six West Michigan docks ask for.
- Size
- 48x40, 48x45, 48x48, 42x42, 48x42, Euro
- Build
- Stringer or block
- Grade
- Any
- Trades
- Food, auto, chemical, beverage, export
- Towns
- All of them
The cutting list of sizes
| Size, in | Millimetres | Common in | Trailer, straight | Trailer, turned |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48 x 40 | 1,219 x 1,016 | Food and grocery; the GMA standard | 26 | 30 |
| 48 x 45 | 1,219 x 1,143 | Auto parts and stamping | 26 | 28 |
| 48 x 48 | 1,219 x 1,219 | Chemical | 26 | 26 |
| 42 x 42 | 1,067 x 1,067 | Beverage | 30 | 30 |
| 48 x 42 | 1,219 x 1,067 | Chemical and beverage | 26 | 30 |
| 800 x 1200 mm | 1,200 x 800 | Exporters; the Euro pallet | 39 | 40 |
Trailer counts are geometry on a 53-foot trailer's interior of 636 by 100 inches, before weight. The trailer guide shows the method.
There is no single standard
No universally accepted standards for pallet dimensions exist. The 48x40 is the closest thing: it is the most common wood pallet size in North America, and ISO accepts the 48 by 40 inch specification as the North American standard pallet size. The organization that once defined the GMA pallet no longer governs pallet specifications, so size is a habit of industries more than a rule.
How an industry ends up with a size
A size sticks to a trade because the product, the rack and the trailer were all designed around it. Auto plants use the 48x45, the size listed for the automotive industry. The 48x42 shows up in chemical and beverage loads. Beverage lines favour 42x42. Chemical loads use 48x48. Exporters often use the Euro pallet, which is 800 by 1,200 millimetres.
How to pick one
- Read the customer's packaging sheetIt almost always names the size.
- Check the rackA rack bay sized for one pallet will not take another.
- Check the trailerA different size changes how many pallets fit a load.
- If nothing says otherwise, pick 48x40It is the default when a buyer is unsure.
Not on this list? A custom size is a cutting list job; custom pallets takes drawings. For the build under the deck, see types and for condition see grades.
Reading a size off a pallet in the yard
Stand at the short end, where the forks would go in, and measure the face of the top deck from one edge to the other. That is the width. Then walk the length of the stringers and measure again. Write the longer number first. A tape measure is enough, and a photo with the tape in frame answers most questions a seller has.
Some pallets are a little off nominal. A 48x40 that has been repaired with new boards can measure 47 and a half by 40, and a worn one can run an eighth of an inch short at every joint. A dock with tight racks or a conveyor with narrow guides cares about that; a floor-stacked load does not.
Why area matters as well as length
| Size | Area | Against the 48x40 |
|---|---|---|
| 42 x 42 | 1,764 | 8 percent less |
| 48 x 40 | 1,920 | baseline |
| 48 x 42 | 2,016 | 5 percent more |
| 48 x 45 | 2,160 | 12.5 percent more |
| 48 x 48 | 2,304 | 20 percent more |
| Euro | 1,488 | 22 percent less |
A larger deck holds more cartons but costs more lumber, and a bigger footprint takes more of a trailer's floor. Area explains why shippers pick a pallet to match the product, not just the habit of the dock.
Matching size to rack and trailer
Before changing a pallet size, check three things in order: the rack bay, the trailer and the receiving customer. A rack bay sized for a 48 inch deep pallet accepts a 48x40 but not a 48x48 that overhangs by two inches at each side. A trailer fills differently, as the table above shows. A customer's sheet can override both.
Square pallets and symmetric loads
A square pallet, 48x48 or 42x42, has the same dimension in both directions, so a driver does not need to check which way it faces. A rectangular pallet needs a correct orientation. For an automated line that expects a particular orientation, a square pallet removes a source of error.
Which size is the safe default
The 48x40. It is the most common wood pallet size in North America, about 30 percent of all new wood pallets in the United States, and the one a recycler is most likely to want back. If no instruction names a size, ask for it, and say so.
A last word: ask for the size by name
Say 48x45, not 'the auto pallet'. Say 800 x 1200 mm, not 'the Euro one'. A size written out in numbers cannot be misread, and a seller can check whether it is on hand.
Which size to start with
If you are not sure, begin with the size your customer or carrier already uses. The 48x40 is the most common in North American freight, and most used stock is in that size. Other sizes are usually matched to a trade or a product.
Give the size by its numbers and the way you measure it. In pallet language the first number is the stringer length, so state it clearly to avoid confusion between 48x40 and 40x48.
Sizes at a glance
Below are the sizes most often asked about in West Michigan, from the common 48x40 to the metric Euro pallet, each with its dimensions, where it is used and what to check before buying.
If your size is not listed, send it in a request anyway. A pallet can be built to almost any footprint.
Metric and imperial
Pallet sizes appear in inches in North America and in millimetres elsewhere. A request that gives both, for instance 48x40 inches or 1219 by 1016 millimetres, leaves no room for a mistake.
Ready to ask? Send us the request.