The floor of a 40ft container takes 25 Euro pallets (1200 × 800 mm) or 22 pallets of 1200 × 1000 mm in a single layer; a 20ft takes 11 and 9. A 40ft high cube has the same floor, so it takes the same number, and its extra 305 mm of height only counts if the load can be stacked. What runs out first depends on the load: the floor if you don’t stack, the roof if you do, and the weight if each pallet is heavy, since the payload is 28,130 to 28,750 kg in one carrier’s example units.
Try it with your load
How many pallets fit, and what limits the load
Inside 12,032 × 2,352 × 2,395 mm, door 2,340 × 2,292 mm, 67.7 m³, payload 28,750 kg. Example unit from Hapag-Lloyd (read 11/10/2026); real units vary by manufacturer.
With the example values (a standard 40ft, Euro pallets 1.5 m tall at 600 kg, not stacked), 25 pallets fit and weigh 15,000 kg: the payload is just over half used and the floor is what binds. Tick stackable and bring the height down to 1,100 mm: space allows 50, but at 600 kg the weight only allows 47.
The floor layout, in numbers
The count is a division rounded down. The Euro pallet measures 800 × 1200 mm (the title of its standard, EN 13698-1, says so) and the 1200 × 1000 pallet has a sister standard, EN 13698-2; ISO 6780 sets the principal dimensions of flat pallets for intercontinental handling. The example 40ft container is 12,032 mm long and 2,352 mm wide inside.
Three Euro pallets side by side lengthwise take 3 × 800 = 2,400 mm: they don’t fit in 2,352. What does fit is one row of pallets turned across (1,200 mm wide each) next to one row lengthwise (800 mm): 2,000 mm. Each row fills on its own:
| Container | Pallet | Turned row | Lengthwise row | Width used | Positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20ft (5,900 mm) | 1200 × 800 | 5,900 ÷ 800 = 7 | 5,900 ÷ 1,200 = 4 | 2,000 mm | 11 |
| 20ft (5,900 mm) | 1200 × 1000 | 5,900 ÷ 1,000 = 5 | 5,900 ÷ 1,200 = 4 | 2,200 mm | 9 |
| 40ft and 40ft HC (12,032 mm) | 1200 × 800 | 12,032 ÷ 800 = 15 | 12,032 ÷ 1,200 = 10 | 2,000 mm | 25 |
| 40ft and 40ft HC (12,032 mm) | 1200 × 1000 | 12,032 ÷ 1,000 = 12 | 12,032 ÷ 1,200 = 10 | 2,200 mm | 22 |
If every Euro pallet goes lengthwise in two rows, a 40ft takes 2 × 10 = 20: five fewer. And 25 is tight: 15 × 800 = 12,000 mm of the 12,032, which leaves 32 mm. A load that overhangs its pallet a little is enough to lose positions: with 10 mm of play per side, the calculator gives 23.
Inside dimensions and payload
ISO 668:2020 classifies series 1 containers by their external dimensions and sets their ratings; for internal dimensions it refers to ISO 1496 and gives only minimums for some types. The standard is paid for, so the table below is not ISO’s: it shows the example units Hapag-Lloyd publishes for its fleet (20ft, 40ft and 40ft HC), and the carrier notes that containers vary by manufacturer.
| 20ft | 40ft | 40ft HC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inside length | 5,900 mm | 12,032 mm | 12,032 mm |
| Inside width | 2,352 mm | 2,352 mm | 2,350 mm |
| Inside height | 2,395 mm | 2,395 mm | 2,700 mm |
| Door (width × height) | 2,340 × 2,292 mm | 2,340 × 2,292 mm | 2,340 × 2,597 mm |
| Capacity | 33.2 m³ | 67.7 m³ | 76.3 m³ |
| Max gross | 30,480 kg | 32,500 kg | 32,500 kg |
| Tare | 2,350 kg | 3,750 kg | 3,900 kg |
| Max payload | 28,130 kg | 28,750 kg | 28,600 kg |
Payload is max gross minus tare: 32,500 − 3,750 = 28,750 kg for the 40ft. That is why a 40ft does not carry twice the weight of a 20ft, even with twice the floor.
When weight binds first
Weight binds when a pallet weighs more than the payload shared out over the positions. Divide the payload in the table by the pallets that fit and you get these weights per pallet; above them, the payload runs out before the space does:
| Container and pallet | One layer | Two layers |
|---|---|---|
| 20ft, 1200 × 800 | 11 pallets: 2,557 kg | 22 pallets: 1,278 kg |
| 20ft, 1200 × 1000 | 9 pallets: 3,125 kg | 18 pallets: 1,562 kg |
| 40ft, 1200 × 800 | 25 pallets: 1,150 kg | 50 pallets: 575 kg |
| 40ft, 1200 × 1000 | 22 pallets: 1,306 kg | 44 pallets: 653 kg |
| 40ft HC, 1200 × 800 | 25 pallets: 1,144 kg | 50 pallets: 572 kg |
| 40ft HC, 1200 × 1000 | 22 pallets: 1,300 kg | 44 pallets: 650 kg |
With dense goods such as copper tube, profiles or gas cylinders, a container can easily fill up by weight with half the floor empty (inferred from the table). In that case a 40ft adds little over a 20ft loaded to its limit: 620 kg more payload in the example units.
Height, stacking and the door
For two layers in a standard container, each pallet can be up to 1,197 mm tall (2,395 ÷ 2). But if the pallets go in already stacked on the forklift, the stack has to pass a 2,292 mm door: 1,146 mm per pallet. In the high cube the limits are 1,350 mm inside and 1,298 mm through the door. A pallet taller than the door, 2,292 mm or 2,597 mm, does not go in.
Stacking also needs the bottom load to bear the top one: the packaging decides that, not the container. If you don’t stack, the high cube adds no pallets, only empty volume.
What the count leaves out
- Every unit is different. Dimensions change by manufacturer and carrier. Before promising 25 pallets with 32 mm to spare, measure the container you are given or ask for its data.
- The door. The 2,340 mm door width lets a 1,200 mm pallet in turned across without trouble; what limits is its height.
- Securing. With 25 Euro pallets in a 40ft, 352 mm of width (2,352 − 2,000) is left free along the whole container. That gap has to be blocked or braced so the load cannot shift.
- The road. In Spain, the Reglamento General de Vehículos, Annex IX, sets a maximum authorised mass of 44 tonnes for articulated vehicles with 5 or more axles, and allows up to 2 tonnes more for intermodal transport operations (table as amended by Orden PJC/780/2025, in force since 23 October 2025). That mass covers tractor, chassis, container and cargo, so a 40ft at its max gross may not fit under it, depending on the truck’s tare. Other countries set their own limits.
To spread the container’s freight over the products inside it, see the landed cost calculator; who provides each shipping document depends on the incoterm: import documents by incoterm. All guides are in the guides index.
How HeavyDeals does it
In HeavyDeals, the customer quote estimates the order’s logistics: weight, volume, pallets and a proposed container with its occupancy and what limits it. In the order, a container configurator shows weight and pallets as bars against each container’s limits, which are your company’s own, and logistics reviews and confirms the proposal before it moves on. See how it works.
Frequently asked questions
How many Euro pallets fit in a 40ft container?
On the floor, 25 in a single layer: one row of 15 pallets turned across and one row of 10 lengthwise, using the 12,032 × 2,352 mm inside of the example unit. That count leaves only 32 mm of length spare, so with 10 mm of play per pallet side it drops to 23.
Does a 40ft high cube take more pallets than a standard 40ft?
Not on the floor: it has the same inside length and practically the same width, so it takes the same 25 Euro pallets or 22 pallets of 1200 × 1000 mm. Its extra 305 mm of inside height only adds pallets if they can be stacked.
How many 1200 × 1000 pallets fit in a 20ft container?
Nine on the floor: one row of 5 pallets turned across and one row of 4 lengthwise, side by side in 2,200 mm of the 2,352 mm inside width. A 40ft takes 22 the same way, 12 turned and 10 lengthwise.
When does weight limit a container before space does?
In the example 40ft unit, with a payload of 28,750 kg, a single layer of 25 Euro pallets runs out of payload above 1,150 kg per pallet. Stacked two high, 50 pallets run out above 575 kg each.
Sources
- ISO 668:2020 Series 1 freight containers — Classification, dimensions and ratings ISO · consulted 11 Oct 2026
- ISO 6780:2003 Flat pallets for intercontinental materials handling — Principal dimensions and tolerances (preview) iTeh Standards · consulted 11 Oct 2026
- EVS-EN 13698-1:2003 Pallet production specification — Part 1: Construction specification for 800 mm x 1200 mm flat wooden pallets Estonian Centre for Standardisation (EVS) · consulted 11 Oct 2026
- EVS-EN 13698-2:2009 Pallet production specification — Part 2: Construction specification for 1000 mm x 1200 mm flat wooden pallets Estonian Centre for Standardisation (EVS) · consulted 11 Oct 2026
- 20' Standard (container specification) Hapag-Lloyd · consulted 11 Oct 2026
- 40' Standard (container specification) Hapag-Lloyd · consulted 11 Oct 2026
- 40' Standard High Cube (container specification) Hapag-Lloyd · consulted 11 Oct 2026
- Real Decreto 2822/1998, Reglamento General de Vehículos, Anexo IX (texto consolidado) BOE · consulted 11 Oct 2026
Every figure and rule was checked against the sources above, on the date shown next to each; last review of this guide: 11 October 2026. The examples use illustrative figures, not today’s quotes. This is not legal or tax advice. Written with the help of AI and reviewed by the HeavyDeals team.