In this guide, you will find all information you’re looking for about shipping container size.
It will help you choose a suitable container size for your shipping needs.
Let’s dive right in.
20-foot General Purpose Shipping Container
It is the most popular container due to its lower weight and eases to maneuver.
You can make cabins out of it.
The 20- foot shipping container is cheaper when compared to other shipping containers.
For its external dimensions, it is 19 feet and 10 inches long.
It is 8- feet wide and 8- foot and 6 inches long.
For the internal measurements, it is 5.90 m long, 2.39 m high and 2.35 m wide.
It can carry a weight of 28,230 kilos grams maximum load.
The door opening measurements of this container is 2.99 m high and 2.34 m wide.
20-foot High Cube Shipping Container
This shipping container is similar to the 20 –foot general purpose but has an added room of an additional 12 inches of height.
You can use this shipping container to make a cabin home.
This will make it easy for you to include interior insulations as well as light fixtures while maintaining the normal ceiling height.
The higher ceilings will make your entire interior look and feel larger overall.
The external measurements of the 20-foot high cube shipping container are 6.05 meters long, its height is 2.89 meters and its width is 2.44 meters.
It can carry a maximum load of 28,180-kilograms and its tare is 2300 kilograms.
The internal measurements of this container are 2.35 meters wide, 2.70 meters high, and 5.90 meters long.
The measurements of the door opening are 2.34 meters wide and 2.59 meters high.
20-foot Refrigerated Container
Also referred to as a reefer container.
It is a regular 20-foot container with the added benefit of insulation.
This is the best option if you were planning to insulate your container.
Insulation is necessary if you are intending to use the container as a home and keep its temperature comfortable.
This container is the best deal if you work around tradeoffs as it saves money by eliminating insulation costs.
It is 6.05 meters long, 2.44 meters wide and 2.59 meters high externally.
Internal measurements for this container are 5.44 meters long, 2.66 meters high, and 2.28 meters wide.
The container has a tare of 2,905-kilograms and can carry a maximum load of 27, 575-kilo grams.
Its door opening measurements are 2.28 meters wide and 2.26 meters high.
20 ft. ISO Tank Shipping Container Dimensions
These tanks are the most effective intermodal for bulk transportation methods.
They are designed to transport liquids or gases.
Besides, the tanks can hold bulk cargo ranging from perishable goods to hazardous substances.
The exterior dimensions are 2.43 meters wide, 2.59 meters in height, and a length of 6.09 meters.
40-foot General Purpose Shipping Container
These are the most common containers you will find in the market.
These containers are big enough and you can split them up into multiple rooms.
Their low ceiling height is an issue if you want interior insulation and still have a reasonable ceiling height.
It is 2.44 meters wide, 2.59 meters high, and 12.19 meters long externally.
It also has a tare of 3,780-kilograms and can take a maximum load of 27,600-kilograms.
The internal measurements of 40- foot general-purpose shopping container are 2.39 meters high, length is 12.04 meters and width is 2.35 meters.
The door opening measurements are 2.29 meters high and 2.34 meters wide.
40-foot High Cube Shipping Container
This high cube shipping container offers an additional one foot of overhead room.
The additional overhead room will give you room for insulation, wiring, and fixtures and still give you an 8- foot interior ceiling height.
The added one foot makes the room look bigger and better hence capable of holding more of your belongings.
It has a tare of 3968-kilo grams and a maximum weight load of 26512-kilo grams.
Its door opening measurements are 2.59 meters high and width of 2.34 meters.
The internal measurements of 40 –foot are 12.04 meters long, a width of 2.35 meters, and a height of 2.70 meters.
It has an external measurement of 12.19 meters long, wideness of 2.44 meters, and height of 2.89 meters.
40-foot Refrigerated Container
This container comes within built insulation.
You will also get the benefits of a 40-foot shipping container when you use this one.
In most cases, it comes with an industrial refrigeration unit that you might want to get rid of.
Its tare weight is 4900-kilo grams while its maximum load weight is 25,645-kilograms.
The internal measurements of this container are, 2.28 meters wide, 2.26 meters high, and length of 11.58 meters.
The exterior measurements are 12.19 meters long, a width of 2.44 meters, and a height of 2.59 meters.
It has a door opening of size 2.28 meters’ width and 2.26 meters height.
40-foot Pallet Wide High Cube Container
These containers are a bit wide with around 2 inches when compared to regular containers.
But they are not as wide as the 48-foot and 53-foot containers.
If you are not planning to use the container to store pellets, then it gives you more space for insulation.
They have a tare weight of 3,917-kilograms and when with a maximum load weigh 28,583-kilograms.
The opening door size is 2.44 meters wide and 2.59 meters high.
The internal measurements of this container are; 2.70 meters high, 2.44 meters wide, and 12.04 meters high.
The container is 12.19 meters long, 2.89 meters high, and 2.49 meters wide externally.
45-Foot-High Cube Shipping Container
This container is quite different from the ones discussed above.
The container has normal corner castings of 40-foot apart but with two equal extensions of 2.5 feet on each ends.
The extensions also have corner castings on the actual corner extends of the container.
Due to multiple sets of corner castings, you can stack the 45-foot container with 40-foot containers.
With the additional 5 feet, the container allows you to have slightly bigger rooms.
The exterior measurements are 13.72 meters long, 2.44 meters wide, and 2.89 meters high.
The interior measurements are as follows; 13.56 meters in length, a width of 2.35 meters, and a height of 2.70 meters.
The container has a tare weight of 4800-kilo grams and when loaded maximally it will weigh 30,480-kilograms.
It has door measurements of 2.34 meters wide and 2.59 meters high.
48-Foot-High Cube Shipping Container
It has an additional 6 inches in width making it around 7% wider than the 40-foot and 45-foot containers.
These extra inches might not sound big but they give the container more room for insulation.
Also, it ensures that the room does not feel too narrow.
Most of these containers are high cubes, meaning they have an extra height of 12 inches.
Adding to the above information, these containers have multiple sets of corner castings.
One set is at the actual corners and another set 40-foot apart.
The tare weight of this container is 4953-kilo grams and the weight at maximum load is 25,527 kilograms.
Its external size is 2.59 meters wide, 2.89 meters high, and 14.63 meters long.
Its internal size is 14.48 meters in length, 2.49 meters wide, and 2.70 meters long.
The door opening measurements are 2.49 meters wide and 2.59 meters high.
53-Foot-High Cube Shipping Container –
This is the largest mass-produced container you will ever come across.
It has corner castings at 40-foot then followed by equal extensions that will bring the length to 53-foot.
All 53-foot containers are high cubes giving you extra foot for your interior clearance.
When let’s say you are building a house using this container, it will give you the larger possible space.
These containers were not built strong enough for ocean travel initially but this is not the case presently.
The container is 16.15 meters long, 2.9 meters high, and 2.60 meters wide externally.
It has a tare weight of 5020-kilo grams and when a loaded maximum of 25,460 kilograms.
Its door opening measurements are 2.59 meters high and 2.49 meters wide.
Its internal measurements are 16 meters long, 2.70 meters high and 2.49 meters wide.
Quad con Shipping Container
This is a mini container.
It is designed in that when four of such containers are joined they create one standard 20 feet container.
They are designed specifically for use in military forces.
Tricon Shipping Container
This is a shipping container a third the size of a 20- foot container.
The container dimensions are 8 feet long, 8 feet tall and 6 feet and 5.5 inches wide.
These containers are used widely in the transportation of military equipment.
You can transport these containers by sea, air, or ground.
Tricon shipping containers are extremely durable.
Bicon Shipping Container
This is a shipping container that is half the size of the normal 20-foot standard container.
It is used by the military forces to transport military equipment.
Its external size is 10-foot length by 8.6 feet tall by 8 feet in width.
Bonus: Why ISO Shipping Container Size Is Important
The ISO shipping container size is very important because they ensure the use of container space efficiently.
This is regardless of the method of transporting the containers.
Additional Resources:
ISO General Purpose Containers
Shipping Container Manufacturer
How To Custom Shipping Container
Shipping Container Sizes And Dimensions
If you have any questions or inquiries about shipping container sizes, feel free to contact Tj chinafreight now.
