Pallet dimensions in inches

Only three common pallets are true inch sizes: the 48×40, the 48×20 and the 42×42 (1067×1067). The EUR1 is 47.2 × 31.5 in and the 1200×1000 is 47.2 × 39.4 in. Mixing that one up with the 48×40 overstates the count in a 40ft container by two: 22 instead of 20.

By Oliver Bennett · Published 29 October 2026 · Data as of 27 October 2026, from spec sheets retrieved that day

Pallets are specified in millimetres in most of the world and in inches in North America, and the conversion is where small errors creep in. Below are all 11 footprints on PalletSpec in imperial units, which of them are true inch sizes, which are metric sizes with awkward inch values, and what happens to a load plan when one is mistaken for another.

Every pallet in inches

Pallet	Inches	Feet and inches	sq ft	Height, in	Weight, lb
1165×1165 (AU)	45.9 × 45.91,165 × 1,165 mm	3 ft 10 in × 3 ft 10 in	14.61	5.9	75
CP3	44.9 × 44.91,140 × 1,140 mm	3 ft 9 in × 3 ft 9 in	13.99	5.4	–
48×40 (GMA)	48.0 × 40.01,219 × 1,016 mm	4 ft 0 in × 3 ft 4 in	13.33	5.6	51
1100×1100	43.3 × 43.31,100 × 1,100 mm	3 ft 7 in × 3 ft 7 in	13.02	–	–
EUR2	47.2 × 39.41,200 × 1,000 mm	3 ft 11 in × 3 ft 3 in	12.92	6.4	77
1200×1000	47.2 × 39.41,200 × 1,000 mm	3 ft 11 in × 3 ft 3 in	12.92	6.4	73
1067×1067	42.0 × 42.01,067 × 1,067 mm	3 ft 6 in × 3 ft 6 in	12.25	–	–
EUR1	47.2 × 31.51,200 × 800 mm	3 ft 11 in × 2 ft 7 in	10.33	5.7	55
48×20 half pallet	48.0 × 20.01,220 × 508 mm	4 ft 0 in × 1 ft 8 in	6.67	5.0	–
EUR6 half pallet	31.5 × 23.6800 × 600 mm	2 ft 7 in × 2 ft 0 in	5.17	6.1	21
600×400 quarter pallet	23.6 × 15.7600 × 400 mm	2 ft 0 in × 1 ft 4 in	2.58	5.7	–

Inches to one decimal, converted from the millimetre figure the pallet pools publish; feet and inches rounded to the nearest inch. Height and weight where EPAL, CHEP or Loscam publish them; the weight is the midpoint where two sources differ. – means not published.

Three of them are inch sizes

Only three footprints in the data come out at whole inches: the 48×40, its half the 48×20, and the square 1067×1067, which is 42×42 in written in millimetres. Their metric figures are rounded conversions. Forty-eight inches is 1,219.2 mm, so CHEP lists the 48×40 as 1,219 × 1,016 mm, yet the same pool lists the 48×20 at 1,220 mm long. The millimetre between them is a rounding choice, not a different pallet.

Everything else is a metric size. The EUR1 is 47.2 × 31.5 in, not 47×31 or 48×32, and the Australian pallet is 45.9 in square, which is why it is always called the 1165 rather than by an inch figure.

The 48×40 is not a 1200×1000

The most common slip is to treat the North American 48×40 and the 1200×1000 as the same pallet. They are 19 mm apart in length and 16 mm in width, and the 48×40 has 3.2% more footprint: 13.33 against 12.92 sq ft.

In most units that difference costs nothing. In five of the 20 containers and trailers it changes the answer. Every 40ft box in the data with a full-width floor, standard, high cube and both open tops, takes 22 of the 1200×1000 but only 20 of the 48×40. On the 53 ft flatbed the figures are 32 and 30. A plan built on the wrong pallet promises two positions that are not there.

20 48×40 (GMA) pallets, best layout · 87.6% of the floor

12,030 × 2,350 mm planning length

2,350

Top view · doors on the right

2,350

2,390

Door end

48×40 pallets in a 40ft container. Drawn to scale from the planning floor size, doors on the right.

22 1200×1000 pallets, best layout · 93.4% of the floor

12,030 × 2,350 mm planning length

2,350

Top view · doors on the right

2,350

2,390

Door end

1200×1000 pallets in the same container: the slightly smaller pallet gains two positions. Drawn to scale from the planning floor size, doors on the right.

Small rounding is usually harmless

Not every conversion slip matters. Rounding the Australian pallet up to an even 46 in (1,168 mm) changes no count in any of the 20 units, and neither does rounding the 48×40 up to 1,220 × 1,020 mm. A few millimetres only matter when a layout is already tight, and the load planner shows those cases by giving a lower count at 20 mm of play.

Doing the sums in inches

If you think in inches, the useful numbers are the inside widths. The table gives the width of the main floors in inches and what is left after two 40 in sides, two 48 in sides or three EUR1 short sides of 31.5 in. A negative figure means the pattern does not fit.

Unit	Width, in	2 × 40 in	2 × 48 in	3 × 31.5 in
20ft / 40ft container2,350 mm	92.5	+12.5	-3.5	-2.0
40ft high cube reefer2,280 mm	89.8	+9.8	-6.2	-4.7
45ft pallet-wide2,440 mm	96.1	+16.1	+0.1	+1.6
13.6 m trailer2,480 mm	97.6	+17.6	+1.6	+3.1
53 ft van2,540 mm	100.0	+20.0	+4.0	+5.5
48 ft van2,565 mm	101.0	+21.0	+5.0	+6.5
Flatbed2,591 mm	102.0	+22.0	+6.0	+7.5

Inches left across the floor, using the smallest published inside width. A negative figure means the pattern does not fit.

Two lessons stand out. A standard container is 92.5 in wide inside, so two 48×40 pallets can only stand side by side with their 40 in edges across, and three EUR1 pallets never fit abreast. A 53 ft van, at 100.0 in, takes the 48×40 two across either way round, which is why turning them works there. Among the containers only the 45ft pallet-wide is wide enough for two 48 in sides.

Height and weight in imperial

Published pallet heights run from 5.0 in for the 48×20 half pallet to 6.4 in for the EUR2, a spread of 1.3 in before any goods go on. Weights vary more. The EUR1 is 55 lb in the EPAL specification, while the 48×40 is published at anything from 37 to 64 lb, because the name covers many builds and timber grades.

For a metric view of the same pallets, see pallet sizes by region. To test a size the list does not cover, enter it in millimetres as a custom pallet in the load planner.

Sources

European Pallet Association (EPAL) – load carrier specification pages. European Pallet Association e.V.
CHEP – Standard pallet sizes & product pages. CHEP (Brambles).
Loscam – Wooden pallet Australia 1165 x 1165 mm product sheet (PDF). Loscam.
Wikipedia – Pallet (ISO 6780:2003 six standard footprints; North American sizes). Wikipedia contributors.
Ocean Network Express (ONE) – Container Information. Ocean Network Express Pte. Ltd.
SeaCube Containers – product spec sheets (PDF). SeaCube Containers LLC (container lessor).
DSV – Shipping container dimensions / Trailer sizes pages. DSV A/S (freight forwarder).
DP World – 45 ft high cube pallet wide container (Europe equipment). DP World.
Wabash – DuraPlate dry van (Cell Core) and DuraPlate HD product sheets (PDF). Wabash National, L.P.
Utility Trailer – Dry van and flatbed specifications pages. Utility Trailer Manufacturing Company, LLC.
Hale Trailer – Dry van dimensions & capacities guide. Hale Trailer Brake & Wheel, Inc. (dealer).
Load calculations: PalletSpec, exact guillotine packing over the smallest published floor sizes (see sources and method).

More guides: EUR1 vs 48×40 pallets: which fits more? · Pallet sizes by region · Half and quarter pallets: how many fit, and why they beat full pallets · UK pallet vs Euro pallet: 1200×1000 against 1200×800 · Square pallets in containers and trailers · How to use the pallet load planner · How many pallets fit in a 20ft container? · All guides