Pallet shipping: the complete guide
Good pallet shipping is the cornerstone of a smooth supply chain, whether you are a growing small business or a manufacturer with a wealth of products to move.
Pallets are more than a shipping tool. They streamline your logistics, protect your cargo, and, handled well, lower what you spend to move it.
Doing it well comes down to knowledge and a few good habits. In this guide, the team at RS Group walks through the terms you will hear, the six steps to a well-prepared pallet, the mistakes to avoid, and what actually drives the cost.
Pallet terms, decoded
Knowing the vocabulary helps you choose the right pallet and talk to carriers with confidence. For more, see our freight glossary.
- Skid
- Often used as a synonym for a pallet, but not the same thing: a skid has no bottom deck boards, which makes it a space-efficient choice when stacking.
- Deck boards
- The planks, usually 2 x 4s, that form the flat top and bottom surfaces of a pallet where your cargo rests. They can be evenly spaced or set close together.
- 2-way entry
- A pallet design that a forklift or pallet jack can enter from two sides.
- 4-way entry
- A pallet with openings on all four sides: either true 4-way, fully open on every side, or two open sides plus two notched sides for forklift and pallet jack access. This design is the industry favorite.
- Stringer pallet
- A pallet named for the 2 x 4 or 3 x 4 wooden “stringers” that support its top and bottom deck boards. Most have three or more.
- Block pallet
- The classic 4-way design: four to twelve solid wood blocks sit between the top and bottom deck boards, with stringers running between the boards and the blocks. Not every block pallet has bottom deck boards.
How to ship a pallet in six steps
The most important part of shipping a pallet is securing it properly. A poorly bundled load can be badly damaged in transit, and can damage the freight around it.
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Package your products thoroughly
Choose a sturdy, undamaged box with the right Edge Crush Test (ECT) rating for how high it will be stacked. For heavy items, a double-wall corrugated box may be best. Cushion the products generously and fill every empty space with padding.
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Seal each box
Use a strong polypropylene tape of a thickness that suits the weight of the box. For boxes over 50 pounds, a tape at least 2.9 mil thick is recommended; a thicker, stronger PVC-based tape also works.
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Choose the right pallet
Use a pallet with no damaged, missing, or loose boards. A standard 40 x 48 inch, 4-way entry pallet is the easiest for forklifts and pallet jacks to handle. Wood is economical, repairable, and easy to work with; plastic is light, durable, and resists moisture and pests; metal is the strongest of all.
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Load and secure the pallet
Stack boxes with their corners aligned, heaviest on the bottom so the load is not top-heavy. Steel or polyester strapping secures a bundled load best: keep the bands close together, use band cleats or strap protectors, and never run strapping under the bottom deck, where it can catch on the warehouse floor.
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Add load protectors and edge boards
Protector pads and edge boards guard the top and bottom layers, spread the weight evenly, stabilize the load, and keep straps and bands from cutting into your cartons.
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Label it for transport
Put an address label on every box and number them (1 of 6, 2 of 6, and so on). Place labels where a forklift driver can see them, and attach copies of the bill of lading to more than one side of the shipment.
Pitfalls to avoid
Most damaged pallets and billing surprises come down to the same short list of mistakes:
- Packaging that is too light for what is inside
- Loading the pallet past its rated capacity
- Boxes that overhang the edge of the pallet
- Interlocking or pyramid stacking, which weakens the load
- Missing labels or an incomplete bill of lading
- Ignoring the carrier’s packaging requirements
- A load that is not strapped or wrapped securely
Smart pallet shipping tips
Avoid damaged freight and billing adjustments with a few habits:
Keep it inside the edges
Freight that overhangs the pallet can be damaged and can damage the shipments around it. Choose a pallet size that fits your cargo.
Respect the capacity
Know your pallet’s weight capacity and stay under it.
Consolidate when you can
Several items stacked on one pallet ship as a single shipment, and combining freight onto one pallet can save money.
Choose 4-way entry
Four-way entry pallets are the easiest for a forklift to pick up from any side.
Stack in columns
Avoid interlocking or pyramid stacking: it weakens the pallet and makes the load unstable.
Shipping a pallet soon?
Tell us the origin, destination, weight, and dimensions, and our team will quote it.
What does it cost to ship a pallet?
There is no flat rate for shipping a pallet. Some factors are outside anyone’s control, but these are within yours, and preparing them carefully keeps the cost in check:
- Location
- The origin and destination ZIP codes and the type of each location: commercial, residential, home-based business, or limited access. Check them with our ZIP code lookup.
- Accessorials
- Extra services such as a liftgate, white-glove handling, or a call before delivery.
- Packaging
- How your freight is packed, inside and out.
- Weight and dimensions
- The total packaged weight and dimensions of the shipment, including the pallet.
- Specialty vehicles
- Some loads need special equipment, which affects a truckload price.
- Freight class and NMFC code
- Your shipment’s National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC) code and the freight class that goes with it.
Accuracy pays
Always give the shipment’s total packaged weight and dimensions, including the pallet. Those numbers drive the NMFC code, and even a small difference can change your quote. Carriers weigh, measure, and inspect freight with precise equipment: if their numbers differ from yours enough to change the freight class, expect a billing adjustment after delivery.
Be accurate and honest on the quote request and on the bill of lading (BOL). Our freight density calculator helps you check the numbers first.
LTL, partial, or full truckload?
The mode you ship in changes the price of a pallet as much as anything else.
Less than truckload
LTL suits smaller shipments: 150 to 15,000 pounds on up to 10 pallets. You pay only for the trailer space your freight uses.
Partial truckload
Partial truckload fits shipments too large for LTL that do not need a whole truck: 5,000 to 40,000 pounds, or 5 to 14 pallets. It can bypass distribution centers, shortening transit and reducing the risk of damage.
Full truckload
Full truckload is best for large shipments that fill a trailer, or freight that has to arrive fast. It stays on one truck from pickup to delivery.
Compare rates and carriers
Carriers are not all alike. Each has its own specialties, strengths, and weak spots, and knowing them leads to better decisions when you ship a pallet. Freight rates also move with the time of year, market demand, fuel costs, and even world events.
At RS Group we find the carrier and the rate that fit your shipment. Contact us and let us get your pallet where it is going.