Container load calculator — 20 ft, 40 ft and high cube
Enter one carton size. See how many fit, how many boxes you need, and whether cube or weight is the constraint. 85% utilisation by default — the number stuffing plans actually use.
Carton
85% is realistic for mixed cartons. Theoretical cube is never what you load.
| Container | Max cartons | Boxes needed | Cube used | Weight used |
|---|---|---|---|---|
20 ft dry 33.2 CBM · 21,700 kg | 16 | 3 | 100% | 4% |
40 ft dry 67.7 CBM · 26,500 kg | 40 | 2 | 68% | 3% |
40 ft high cube 76.3 CBM · 26,500 kg | 60 | 1 | 60% | 3% |
Max cartons is the lowest of axis-aligned packing, 85% of internal cube, and payload. Measure your own cartons including pallet height.
Container questions, answered
Cube, payload and why theoretical capacity is a lie.
A standard 20 ft dry container has about 33 CBM of internal cube and roughly 21.7 tonnes of payload. You will not load all 33 CBM — mixed cartons typically fill 80–90% of the cube.
One carton is a calculator. A fleet is a load plan.
FleetERP holds carton masters, applies the right body or container per lane, and tells you which of your own vehicles already heading that way has cube to spare. The CBM calculator covers Indian truck bodies; this page is the ISO box.