30 answers
Common pallet questions, answered without the run-up.
Ask something not on this page
Put the question in the message field and a partner supplier follows up.
- Buy, sell, recycle or remove: tell us which way it flows
- Add the size, grade and quantity if you know them
- A partner supplier follows up
- Availability depends on partner suppliers
Loaded
Empty pallets fill a trailer's space long before they reach its weight limit.
Section 01
Buying
How much does a used pallet cost?
It depends on grade, footprint, quantity, freight distance and the lumber market, which moves with season. Pricing is by quote from partner suppliers: put the size, grade and quantity in the form and a partner supplier follows up. See buy used pallets.
Is there a minimum order?
Ask with the quantity you actually need. Freight is a large part of what a small order costs, so the answer depends on where the pallets are going.
How do I check a load matches the grade?
Agree the grade definition in writing before you order, then pull a random sample from the load and check it against that definition. The pallet grades page sets out the common definitions.
Delivered or FOB: which price should I compare?
Delivered, because that is the number that decides whether a deal works. If you have your own freight, ask for an FOB price as well and compare the two.
Section 02
Selling and collection
Can used pallets be sold?
Whole, repairable cores in a common footprint often have value. Broken, wet or odd-size loads usually move on a removal fee instead. Describe the load in the form. See sell your pallets.
Does sorting the pile first help?
Usually. Separating whole 48×40 cores from broken and odd-size units makes the valuable part of the load easy to see and price. Full method in how to sell used pallets.
What about branded or coloured pallets?
They almost always belong to a pooling company and are not yours to sell. Keep them apart from the rest of the load — see pooling vs buying.
What happens to pallets that cannot be reused?
Broken pallets are usually dismantled for repair lumber, and what is left is ground into mulch, animal bedding or fuel. The nails and banding are separated as scrap metal. See pallet recycling.
Section 03
Grades and specification
What is the difference between Grade A and Grade B?
Grade A is generally a recycled pallet with few or no visible repairs and a uniform appearance. Grade B allows more repairs, such as replaced deck boards or a companion-repaired stringer. Full comparison in Grade A vs Grade B.
Is there an official grading standard?
No. There is no certifying authority and no legal definition in North America. Grade A means what each supplier says it means, which is why you should get the definition in writing.
Are recycled pallets strong enough for racking?
Often, yes. What matters more than new-versus-recycled is deck board thickness, stringer species and repair method, so ask about all three. See load capacity.
What is the standard pallet size?
48 inches by 40 inches in North America — the GMA footprint, 1219 × 1016 mm. In Europe it is the 1200 × 800 mm Euro pallet. See the size library.
How tall is a standard pallet?
5½ inches for a GMA stringer pallet; 144 mm for a Euro block pallet.
What do static, dynamic and racked mean?
Static is what a pallet holds on a flat floor. Dynamic is what it holds while being moved. Racked is what it holds spanning unsupported between beams — typically about a third of the static figure, and the number that matters if you rack. Full explanation in load capacity.
How many pallets fit on a 53-foot trailer?
Twenty-six 48×40 units on the floor, or roughly 330 empties when stacked. The size library calculates this for any footprint.
What is a remanufactured pallet?
One rebuilt from recovered lumber, usually with a five-board deck rather than seven, often cut down from a larger orphan footprint. Sound, light, visibly rebuilt, and priced accordingly.
Section 04
Compliance and export
Do I need heat-treated pallets?
For international shipments of solid wood packaging, almost always. For domestic shipping, no — and paying for it is money wasted. See ISPM-15 explained.
What does the IPPC stamp mean?
It carries the wheat symbol, an ISO country code, a facility registration number and a treatment code — HT for heat treatment, DH for dielectric, MB for methyl bromide. It must be legible and on at least two opposing sides.
Can a repair invalidate ISPM-15 compliance?
Yes, and it is a common cause of held shipments. Any replacement component on a marked pallet must itself be heat treated and the unit re-marked.
Is kiln dried the same as heat treated?
No. They are different processes with different requirements, and a KD stamp will not clear customs.
Are plastic pallets exempt?
Yes — ISPM-15 covers solid wood only. On high-frequency export lanes that is sometimes the cheaper answer overall. See plastic pallets.
Are wooden pallets acceptable for food shipments?
That depends on your food-safety plan and your customers' receiving standards, so check current regulations with your compliance lead. See food and beverage.
Section 05
Tools & specification help
Do I have to give an email to use the tools?
No. None of the tools are gated and nothing you type into them leaves your browser.
How do I work out how many pallets fit on a trailer?
Use the load planner. It tries mixed orientations — some rows straight, some turned — and draws the arrangement that fits the most.
How do I know which grade to buy?
The grade selector walks through a few questions and suggests a grade and footprint with the reasoning attached. The short version is that it depends on whether the pallet comes back and whether it racks.
How do I read the stamp on a pallet?
The stamp decoder redraws the IPPC mark from the codes you can see and explains each element.
Section 06
Asking for a quote
How do I ask for a price?
Send the form. Say whether you are buying, selling, recycling or need removal, and add the size, grade and quantity if you know them. A partner supplier follows up.
Why is there no phone number on this website?
Because requests go through the form to partner suppliers, who do the quoting. Writing down the size, grade, quantity and location gives a supplier what it needs and gives you a record to compare against.
Can I ask about a custom size?
Yes. Give the dimensions, the load and how the pallet will be handled. See the custom sizing guide.
Can I ask about an ongoing supply?
Yes. Describe the volume and how often you need it, and we pass the request to a partner supplier. See services.