About

Logistics professionals and warehouse managers operate in a world defined by spatial constraints. Accurately estimating cubic volume is critical for maximizing container load factors and determining storage fees. Inconsistencies arise when cargo dimensions arrive in mixed units, such as inches for height but meters for length. This utility standardizes these inputs into a single metric, cubic meters, ensuring that billing and space planning remain accurate. It specifically addresses the need for normalization before calculation to prevent compound rounding errors common in multi-step manual conversions.

Formulas

The core principle involves converting all source dimensions into meters before multiplication to ensure dimensional homogeneity. The formula is:

V_m3 = L_m × W_m × H_m

If inputs are not in meters, we apply the following conversion factors (k):

{

0.001 if unit is mm0.01 if unit is cm0.0254 if unit is inch0.3048 if unit is ft

Reference Data

Cargo Type	Dimensions (Approx)	Volume (m³)	Container Fit (TEU)
Standard Pallet (EU)	1.2m × 0.8m × 1.5m	1.44	~22 per 20ft
Standard Pallet (US)	48in × 40in × 60in	1.89	~18 per 20ft
Small Moving Box	16in × 12in × 12in	0.038	~800 per 20ft
Medium Moving Box	18in × 18in × 16in	0.085	~390 per 20ft
Large Moving Box	24in × 18in × 18in	0.127	~260 per 20ft
20ft Container (Internal)	5.9m × 2.35m × 2.39m	33.2	1 Unit
40ft Container (Internal)	12.0m × 2.35m × 2.39m	67.7	2 TEU
40ft HQ Container	12.0m × 2.35m × 2.69m	76.4	2 TEU + Height
Refrigerator	90cm × 80cm × 180cm	1.296	N/A
Washing Machine	60cm × 60cm × 85cm	0.306	N/A
Car (Sedan)	4.8m × 1.8m × 1.4m	12.096	Special Handling
Car (SUV)	5.0m × 2.0m × 1.8m	18.000	Special Handling
Oil Drum	58cm (dia) × 90cm	0.24 (Boxed)	Stackable

Frequently Asked Questions

No, this tool strictly calculates the physical geometric volume. Volumetric weight (used by air freight couriers) is a separate calculation that applies a divisor (typically 5000 or 6000) to the volume. You must know your carrier's specific formula to determine billable weight.

Multiplying 100cm by 100cm by 100cm gives 1,000,000 cubic centimeters. Converting this result to cubic meters requires dividing by 1,000,000, which is prone to decimal errors. Converting 100cm to 1m first results in 1m × 1m × 1m = 1m³, which is computationally simpler and less error-prone.

We use the international standard definition where 1 inch is exactly 25.4 millimeters. The tool calculates internally with high-precision floating-point numbers and rounds the final output to 4 decimal places, suitable for customs declarations and shipping manifests.

Yes. Input the total length and width of the pallet, and use the total height of the stacked goods (including the pallet base itself) to get the total cubic volume required for the slot.