…And how much can you fit in one?
Shipping containers come in a variety of sizes and there are a lot of options available to you. However, abundance of choices can make it difficult to know what is best for you and your needs.
It is also quite difficult to visualise how much ‘stuff’ you can fit inside your shipping container, which is why we have put together this guide.
Rather than simply telling you the interior dimensions and expecting you to instantly know if that size will fit your things or not, we have gone a step further and worked out the volume based on the contents of a typical house. For example, the contents of a 2-3 bedroom home should fit comfortably inside a 20ft shipping container.
Shipping Container sizes relative to the contents of houses
| House size* | Recommended Shipping Container Size | Shipping Container Internal Dimensions | Find one for Sale | Find one to Hire |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 & 3 bedroom | 20ft | Width: 7′ 8″ | Height: 7′ 10″ | Length: 19′ 4″ | 20ft Shipping Containers | Shipping Containers for hire |
| 4 & 5 bedroom | 40ft | Width: 7′ 8″ | Height: 7′ 10″ | Length: 39′ 5″ | 40ft Shipping Containers | Shipping Containers for hire |
If you are moving home and need temporary storage for the contents of your home, you will now know the size of the shipping container you will need. This information may also be helpful for those planning on moving abroad and shipping their personal items to their new country.
How many boxes can I fit in a shipping container?
Of course, you may not be wanting to store the contents of a house in your storage or shipping container – you may have boxes of – well anything – that you wish to store in there. How many boxes can you fit inside your shipping container?
Boxes can come in all sorts of shapes and sizes so this is just a ‘rule of thumb’ exercise, and does rely on all the boxes being the same size, but hopefully it will give you a clearer idea of how much ‘stuff’ you can store in a shipping container, and consequently choose the right size for the purpose.
| How many boxes will fit inside a shipping container** | |||||
| Box size | 8ft container | 10ft container | 20ft container | 30ft container | 40ft container |
| 8” x 8” x 8” | 847 | 1179 | 3626 | 5514 | 7383 |
| 12″ × 3″ × 17 | 689 | 1446 | 2947 | 4481 | 6000 |
| 12″ × 12″ × 18″ | 167 | 351 | 716 | 1089 | 1458 |
| 13″ × 9″ × 11″ | 337 | 708 | 1443 | 2194 | 2937 |
| 16″ × 16″ × 16″ | 106 | 222 | 453 | 689 | 923 |
| 14″ × 14″ × 14″ | 158 | 332 | 677 | 1029 | 1378 |
| 20″ × 20″ × 20″ | 54 | 114 | 232 | 353 | 473 |
| 27″ × 17″ × 12″ | 79 | 165 | 337 | 513 | 686 |
| 12″ × 9″ × 6″ | 670 | 1406 | 2865 | 4357 | 5833 |
| 11″ × 11″ × 11″ | 326 | 685 | 1395 | 2121 | 2840 |
| 17″ × 17″ × 7″ | 214 | 450 | 918 | 1395 | 1869 |
| 20″ × 20″ × 12″ | 90 | 190 | 387 | 588 | 788 |
| 22″ × 22″ × 22″ | 41 | 86 | 174 | 265 | 355 |
| 24″ × 24″ × 24″ | 31 | 66 | 134 | 204 | 273 |
| 28″ × 28″ × 28″ | 20 | 42 | 85 | 129 | 172 |
| 24″ × 24″ × 18″ | 42 | 88 | 179 | 272 | 365 |
| 18″ × 13″ × 11” | 169 | 354 | 721 | 1097 | 1469 |
| 15″ × 15″ × 48″ | 40 | 84 | 172 | 261 | 350 |
| 50″ × 9″ × 9″ | 107 | 225 | 458 | 697 | 933 |
| 54″ × 8″ × 28″ | 36 | 75 | 153 | 233 | 313 |
| 20″ × 8″ × 50″ | 54 | 114 | 232 | 353 | 473 |
| 38″ × 8″ × 26″ | 55 | 115 | 235 | 357 | 478 |
| 46″ × 8″ × 30″ | 39 | 83 | 168 | 256 | 342 |
| 56″ × 8″ × 36″ | 27 | 56 | 115 | 175 | 234 |
If you would like to discuss your shipping container needs with us, we would be more than happy to talk you through the various options available, to help you choose the right shipping container for the purpose you need it for. Simply give us a call on 01708 558999 and one of our knowledgeable and friendly team members will guide you through the options.
*This is to put the contents of a house inside a shipping container, not the entire house!
**We have calculated this based on standard box sizes, although boxes can be any size and shape, this is just to give you an idea of how much you will get inside your container and should be treated as a guide.
