Container loading: volume, weight and cost

Why cargo volume is not enough to plan a container load

By Tidy Cents · Published Oct 23, 2026 · 2 min read

Dividing container volume by carton volume is a useful first check. It is not a loading plan. Boxes can have enough total cubic space and still fail to fit through the door or form a permitted arrangement.

Check dimensions and orientations

Use internal loading dimensions, not the outside dimensions of the vehicle. Record whether each box can turn onto another face. A box that fits only when tilted is outside a simple axis-aligned rectangular model. Door size can impose another restriction even when the final position has enough room.

Check weight and support

Eight boxes measuring 500 by 500 by 500 mm fill a 1000 mm cube geometrically. If each weighs 10 kg, the load weighs 80 kg. A 79 kg payload limit rules it out. Stacking also needs a permitted supporting surface and the entered limit on weight above each box. Space utilisation does not establish packaging strength.

Check the sequence

The final picture must be reachable by the loading method you assume. A box at the front can block another box that needs to pass through the same path. Deliveries to several stops add another condition: cargo for the next stop must be accessible without moving cargo that stays aboard, unless your plan explicitly allows that work.

Compare the whole shipment

Suppose one valid plan costs $1000 for transport and $60 for two pallets: $1060. Two smaller transports at $600 each, with one $30 pallet in each, cost $1260. The first saves $200 in the entered model. If the cheaper plan violates the payload or access rule, that saving is not available.

Read the search status

A valid layout and a proven cheapest layout are different results. Large placement problems may produce a useful feasible plan before the search proves optimality. Keep that distinction in the report.

Pallet & Container Load Cost Optimizer combines the layout checks with the shipment-cost comparison. Explore the fictional demo and inspect the numbered layers before building your own plan.

Explore the fictional demo · See the full tool