Cases Per Pallet Calculator (Palletization, TI x HI)

How the calculator works

The tool breaks palletization into the numbers that decide it: the cases per layer, the number of layers, and the two limits that cap the stack. You describe the pallet, the load height you are allowed, and the case, then let it search for the best fit. Pick a standard footprint from the presets, GMA at 48 x 40 in, EUR at 120 x 80 cm, or PBR at 120 x 100 cm, or type a custom deck. Set the maximum load height, which includes the pallet itself, and enter the case length, width, and height. Add the case weight and the maximum load weight if a floor rating or a truck limit applies, and an overhang per side if the cases are allowed to sit slightly proud of the deck. The panel returns the cases per layer, the layers, the total cases, the deck area you cover, the cube utilization, the finished load height, and the load weight, and it draws the winning layer from above.

The first thing it settles is the cases per layer, the number the shipping world writes as TI. This is a floor-packing problem on the pallet deck, and the plain grid you sketch by hand is often not the best answer. The tool lays the case down one way and counts how many fit as a grid, floor(pallet length divided by case length) times floor(pallet width divided by case width). Then it rotates the case ninety degrees and counts the grid again. Then it tries mixed patterns, where part of the deck runs one way and the rest runs the other, a two-block or guillotine layout that often squeezes in a case or two that neither pure grid could reach. It keeps the largest of all the patterns it finds, and that count is your TI.

The layers come next, and they are the height side of the problem. The number of layers, written as HI, is floor((max load height minus pallet height) divided by case height). You subtract the pallet deck height first, because the pallet eats into the height you are given, then divide the space that remains by the case height and round down, since a partial layer does not ship. On the default, a 60 in limit with a 5 in pallet leaves 55 in for cases, and an 8 in case fits 6 layers with a little air to spare, because 6 times 8 is 48 and a seventh layer would need 56.

The weight is the second ceiling, and it can bite before the height does. If you enter a case weight and a maximum load weight, the tool works out how many cases the weight allows, floor(max load weight divided by case weight), then divides that by the cases per layer to get the layers by weight, and rounds down. The real number of layers is the smaller of the height ceiling and the weight ceiling. A light product runs into the height first; a dense product runs into the weight first, sometimes long before the stack looks tall. The tool always sizes to the binding limit, so the layer count it reports is the one you can actually ship.

The rest of the panel measures how well the load fills the space. Total cases is simply TI times HI. Deck area used is the case footprint times the cases per layer over the deck area, and you want it at 0.90 or higher, because the air around the cases is freight you pay to move. Cube utilization compares the total case volume against the box the load occupies, the deck area times the load height, and load height is the layers times the case height. Load weight is the total cases times the case weight, and the total shipping weight adds the pallet. Every one of these figures feeds the wider work in the Packaging Engineering silo and the Supply Chain hub, where the pallet count turns into a truck plan and a freight cost.

Cases per layer and the packing patterns

The cases per layer is where most of the load is won or lost, so it is worth understanding what the tool is doing when it searches. The naive approach is to lay every case the same way and count the grid, and for a case that divides the deck evenly that is the right answer. A 12 x 10 in case on a 48 x 40 in deck fits four along the 48 in length and four across the 40 in width, sixteen cases, with no gap anywhere, because 12 divides 48 exactly and 10 divides 40 exactly. When the numbers line up like that, the plain grid is unbeatable and the deck is full.

Most cases do not divide the deck so kindly, and that is where rotation and mixing earn their place. Turn a case ninety degrees and the grid changes: a case that fit four one way and two the other may fit three and three the other way, a different count from the same footprint. The tool always tries both orientations and keeps the better one. But the real gains come from mixing, where the deck is split into two blocks, one running lengthwise and one crosswise, so the leftover strip that a single orientation would waste gets filled by cases turned to suit it. This two-block or guillotine pattern is how a pallet often carries a case or two more per layer than any uniform grid, and over six layers those few cases per layer add up to a meaningful count.

The fourth worked example below shows the mixed win clearly. An 11 x 14 in case on the 48 x 40 in deck fits only nine per layer as a pure grid, whether you run it four by two or three by three, because neither orientation tiles the deck well. Split the deck into two blocks, some cases one way and some the other, and eleven fit, two more per layer. Over five layers that is ten extra cases on the pallet from the same footprint and the same case, purely by arranging them better. The diagram shows one layer from above, with the blue cases laid long-side along the pallet length and the green cases rotated, so you can see exactly how the winning pattern uses the deck.

TI and HI and the shipping notation

TI and HI are the two numbers the shipping and warehousing world uses to describe a palletized load, and they are worth keeping straight because they turn up on spec sheets, in warehouse systems, and in freight conversations. TI, sometimes written Ti, is the number of cases in one layer, the tie count, the count you get looking down at a single tier from above. HI, sometimes written Hi, is the number of layers in the stack, the high count. Multiply them, TI x HI, and you have the total cases on the pallet, which is why a load is often summarized in one line as a TI x HI figure.

Keeping the notation exact matters when you hand a load off. A case supplier, a co-packer, and a distribution center may each store the palletization as TI x HI, and if everyone means the same thing by the two numbers the load ships the same way at every step. The tool reports the cases per layer as TI and the layers as HI so the result drops straight into that language. On the default it reads TI 16 and HI 6, which any warehouse would recognize as sixteen cases to a tier, six tiers high, ninety-six to the pallet.

The two numbers also tell you where to look when a load is inefficient. A low TI means the footprint is the problem, the case does not tile the deck well, and the fix is a better case size or a smarter pattern. A low HI means the height or the weight is the problem, the stack cannot go taller, and the fix is a shorter case, a lighter product, or a taller allowance if the trailer permits it. Because the tool separates the two, you can see at a glance which ceiling you are hitting and aim the fix at the right one instead of guessing.

Cube and deck-area utilization

Two utilization figures tell you how much of the space you are paying for actually holds product. The first is deck area used, the share of the pallet floor the cases cover. It is the case footprint times the cases per layer, divided by the deck area, and it answers a simple question: of the flat surface of the pallet, how much is under a case and how much is bare wood. A value of 100% means the cases tile the deck with no gap, as the default does, while 88% means an eighth of the deck is air that still costs you floor space in a trailer and a warehouse.

The second is cube utilization, which extends the same idea into three dimensions. It compares the total volume of the cases against the volume of the box the load occupies, the deck area times the load height. A load can cover the deck perfectly and still waste cube if the top layer leaves a band of empty height under the maximum, or if the cases themselves are not full. The tool reports cube from the case volume and the load box, so a load that tiles the deck and stacks to the full height, like the default, reads 100%, while a load that stops short of the height limit reads lower even when the deck is full.

Chasing these two numbers is how you cut freight cost without shipping anything less. Freight is priced by the pallet position and the trailer, not by the air inside a loose load, so every point of utilization you gain is product moving on the same truck for the same money. Aim for at least 90% deck coverage before you worry about the height, because the footprint is the larger lever, then close the height gap by choosing a case that stacks to near the limit. The Supply Chain hub carries the tools that turn a well-built pallet into a trailer and container plan, where the utilization you win here shows up as fewer trucks.

The two ceilings, height and weight

Every palletized load is capped by two limits at once, and the load stops at whichever it reaches first. The height ceiling is the plainer of the two. You are given a maximum load height, set by the trailer door, the warehouse racking, or a double-stacking rule, and the pallet itself uses part of it. Subtract the pallet height, divide what remains by the case height, and round down, and you have the layers the height allows. On the default, 60 in of allowance minus a 5 in pallet leaves 55 in, an 8 in case fits 6 whole layers, and the load stands 48 in of cases on a 5 in pallet.

The weight ceiling is the one people forget, and it can bind long before the stack looks tall. A maximum load weight comes from a floor rating, a truck axle limit, or a rule about how much a worker or a forklift should lift, and a dense product can reach it in just a couple of layers. The tool works out the layers by weight from the case weight and the load limit, and takes the smaller of the two ceilings as the real answer. The third worked example makes the point: the same footprint that fits six layers by height fits only two by weight once the case weighs 45 lb, because sixteen 45 lb cases weigh 720 lb a layer and three layers would blow past 2,000 lb.

Sizing to the binding limit is the whole discipline here. If height binds, a shorter case or a taller allowance buys you layers; if weight binds, a lighter case or a higher weight rating does, and adding height does nothing at all. Enter both the case weight and the maximum load weight every time you have them, because a load sized on height alone can turn out impossible to ship the moment it is weighed. Once the layer count is set by the binding ceiling, there is a further check the tool points at but does not run, whether the bottom case can carry the weight of everything stacked on it, which is the box compression question and the natural next tool in this silo.

Overhang, underhang, and box strength

How the cases sit relative to the pallet edge matters as much as how many of them fit. Overhang is when the cases hang out past the deck, and it is tempting because it lets a slightly oversized load fit a standard pallet, but it comes at a real cost. A case that overhangs loses support along the edge that hangs in the air, and a box unsupported at its corners and edges can shed a large share of its stacking strength, up to roughly a third with even a small overhang. That lost strength is exactly the strength the bottom layer needs to carry the stack, so overhang and stack safety pull against each other.

Underhang is the opposite problem and it wastes money rather than strength. When the load sits well inside the deck edge, the pallet carries air around its rim, and that air is freight and warehouse space you pay for and do not use. A load that underuses the deck also stacks less stably, because the cases do not reach the pallet edge that would help locate and support them. The goal is a load that reaches the deck edge closely without spilling over it, square and flush, which is why the deck-area figure and the overhang input sit together in the tool.

The way to avoid both is to start from a standard footprint and a case that divides it well, rather than forcing an awkward case onto whatever pallet is to hand. A case sized to tile a GMA, EUR, or PBR deck lands flush, keeps its full compression strength, and stacks square, and the tool’s deck-area figure tells you at a glance whether you have found such a case. When you must overhang, keep it small and confirm the bottom case still carries the stack, because the compression strength you lose to the overhang is subtracted from the margin the box compression calculation relies on. That bottom-case check is the box compression strength question, a separate calculation planned for this silo.

Standard pallet footprints: GMA, EUR, and PBR

Most of the world ships on a handful of standard pallet footprints, and starting from one of them is the single easiest way to build an efficient load. The GMA pallet, 48 x 40 in, is the North American grocery standard and the default in the tool, chosen by the Grocery Manufacturers Association and used across retail and distribution in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Its 48 x 40 in deck divides neatly by many common case sizes, which is why a 12 x 10 in case tiles it perfectly, and it is the footprint most trailers and racking in the region are built around.

The EUR pallet, also called the EPAL or Euro pallet, is 1200 x 800 mm, which the tool shows as 120 x 80 cm. It is the European standard, sized to pass through the standard doorways and to fit two abreast in a standard European truck, and it is managed as a pooled, exchangeable asset across the continent. Its 120 x 80 cm deck tiles cleanly with metric case sizes such as 40 x 30 cm, which is why the second worked example fills it with no waste. A shop that ships into Europe almost always designs its cases around this footprint.

The PBR pallet, 1200 x 1000 mm or 120 x 100 cm, is the Brazilian standard, named for the Padrao Brasil de Paletizacao and widely used across South America. Its slightly wider deck than the EUR suits the case sizes common in the region, and the fifth worked example shows a 60 x 40 cm case giving a clean five per layer on it. Keep the names GMA, EUR, and PBR exact when you specify a load, because each names a specific footprint that trailers, racking, and pooling systems are built around, and a load designed for one does not simply drop onto another. The tool’s presets set the deck for each so you can compare the same case across footprints in a few clicks.

From pallet to trailer and container

A pallet is rarely the end of the plan; it is the unit that fills a trailer or a sea container, and the cases-per-pallet figure is the first link in that chain. Once you know the total cases per pallet, the number of pallets you need falls out of the order quantity, and the number of trailers or containers falls out of how many pallets fit the floor. A standard dry van holds a fixed number of pallet positions depending on whether the pallets load straight or turned, and a sea container holds its own count, so a better cases-per-pallet figure means fewer pallets, which often means fewer trucks for the same order.

The height you allow the load is where the pallet plan and the trailer plan meet. If the trailer permits double stacking, two pallets sharing a position doubles the cases per position, but only if the load height leaves room for a second pallet under the trailer roof, and only if the bottom load can carry the top one. That last condition loops back to the box compression question, because a double-stacked position asks the bottom pallet’s cases to carry a whole second pallet. Setting the maximum load height correctly in the tool, to half the usable trailer height when you intend to double stack, is what keeps the pallet plan and the trailer plan consistent.

This is where the pallet calculation hands off to the wider supply chain. The cases per pallet, the load height, and the load weight are the three numbers a freight or logistics tool needs to turn a pallet into a truck plan and a cost, and the Supply Chain hub carries the tools that do that next step. Build the pallet well here, with a high deck coverage and a load sized to the binding ceiling, and the savings carry straight through to the trailer count and the freight bill, because every truck is priced by the space it fills, not the product it carries.

Measuring your cases correctly

The result is only as good as the case dimensions you feed it, so it pays to measure the case the way the pallet sees it. Measure the outside of the case, not the inside, because it is the outer footprint that competes for deck space, and include any bulge a full case develops, since a box packed tight can measure a little larger than its flat blank suggests. Measure the case as it will actually sit on the pallet, upright the way the product ships, because a case laid on its side has a different footprint and a different height, and the tool packs whatever footprint you give it.

Length, width, and height each play a distinct role, so it is worth being deliberate about which is which. The length and the width are the footprint that tiles the deck and set the TI, and the tool tries both orientations, so it does not matter which of the two you call length as long as the height is the vertical dimension. The height is what the layers divide into, so an error there changes the HI directly, a half-inch of extra case height can cost you a whole layer when the stack is near the limit. Round to the real measured size rather than the nominal one, because the difference between a 7.5 in case and an 8 in case is the difference between seven layers and six.

The case weight deserves the same care, because it drives the weight ceiling. Weigh a full case, the product plus the packaging, not an empty box, and use the real shipped weight rather than a target, because the weight ceiling is unforgiving: a case a pound heavier than you assumed can drop a layer off a dense load. When you have measured the case honestly, the tool’s numbers match the pallet you build, and the TI x HI it reports is the one the warehouse and the trailer will see.

Five worked examples

Example 1: GMA perfect fit (the default)

This is the case the tool opens on, and it is the one every palletizer hopes for. A GMA 48 x 40 in pallet, 5 in tall, has a 60 in load-height allowance, and the case is 12 x 10 x 8 in at 20 lb with a 2,000 lb load limit. The 12 x 10 case tiles the deck exactly, four along the 48 in length and four across the 40 in width, so TI is 16. The 55 in above the pallet holds 6 layers of the 8 in case, so HI is 6, giving 96 cases in total. Deck area used is 100%, cube utilization is 100%, the load stands 48 in of cases, and the load weighs 1,920.0 lb, just under the limit. The lesson: when the case evenly divides the deck, TI x HI is exact and the utilization is perfect, which is what you aim every case design toward.

Example 2: EUR metric load

Here the tool works in metric on the European footprint. An EUR 120 x 80 cm pallet, 14.4 cm tall, has a 150 cm load-height allowance, and the case is 40 x 30 x 25 cm at 12 kg with a 1,000 kg load limit. The 40 x 30 case tiles the 120 x 80 deck cleanly, giving a TI of 8 per layer. The height allows 5 layers of the 25 cm case, so HI is 5 and the total is 40 cases, at 100% deck area. The load stands 125 cm of cases and weighs 480 kg. The lesson: the EUR 1200 x 800 footprint and a 40 x 30 case tile perfectly, and here the height governs at 5 layers, since the weight alone would allow 10 layers before reaching 1,000 kg.

Example 3: weight-limited GMA

This is the default footprint with a heavy product, and it shows the weight ceiling biting first. The pallet, case footprint, and height allowance match example 1, but the case now weighs 45 lb, with the same 2,000 lb load limit. The 12 x 10 case still tiles the deck, so TI stays 16. But sixteen 45 lb cases weigh 720 lb per layer, and while 6 layers fit by height, only 2 fit by weight, because a third layer would reach 2,160 lb and break the 2,000 lb limit. HI is capped at 2, the total is 32 cases, and the load weighs 1,440 lb. The lesson: a dense product hits the pallet weight limit long before the height limit, so always enter the case weight and the load limit and size to the binding ceiling.

Example 4: mixed-pattern win

This case does not tile the deck, and it shows why the mixed pattern matters. A GMA 48 x 40 in pallet, 5 in tall, has a 50 in load-height allowance, and the case is 11 x 14 x 9 in at 15 lb. Neither pure grid does well: laid one way it fits four by two, and rotated it fits three by three, so a uniform grid tops out at nine per layer. The mixed two-block pattern fits 11, two extra per layer, so TI is 11. The height allows 5 layers of the 9 in case, so HI is 5, giving 55 cases at 88.2% deck area, a 45 in load height, and an 825 lb load weight. The lesson: the mixed pattern adds two cases per layer over the best grid, ten extra per pallet, from nothing but a smarter arrangement.

Example 5: PBR Brazil metric

This one shows the Brazilian footprint and a clean metric fit. A PBR 120 x 100 cm pallet, 14 cm tall, has a 180 cm load-height allowance, and the case is 60 x 40 x 30 cm at 18 kg with a 1,200 kg load limit. The 60 x 40 case gives a clean 5 per layer on the 120 x 100 deck, so TI is 5. The height allows 5 layers of the 30 cm case, so HI is 5, giving 25 cases at 100% deck area, a 150 cm load height, and a 450 kg load weight. The lesson: the Brazilian PBR 1200 x 1000 pallet and a 60 x 40 case give a tidy five per layer with no wasted deck, and here the height governs, since the weight would allow far more.

Three expert tips

Win the footprint before you stack higher

The cases per layer is where most of the cube is won or lost, so spend your effort there before you think about height. The plain grid you would sketch by hand is often not the best layout, so let the tool try the rotated orientation and the mixed two-block patterns, which frequently fit more. In the examples above the mixed pattern fits 11 per layer where the best grid manages only 9, and those two extra cases repeat on every layer. Aim for at least 90% deck coverage before you add a single layer, because the footprint is the larger lever and a full deck carries through the whole stack.

Respect two ceilings at once

A load is capped by the lower of the height limit and the weight limit, and the two do not warn each other. A dense product can hit the pallet or floor weight limit at two layers even when six fit by height, so a load sized on height alone can turn out impossible the moment it is weighed. Enter both the case weight and the maximum load weight every time you have them, and size to whichever ceiling binds first. Then confirm the bottom case can carry the weight of the stack above it, which is the box compression question and the one check this tool points at but leaves to a dedicated calculation.

Mind overhang and underhang

How the load sits on the deck matters as much as how many cases fit. Cases that hang past the pallet edge lose support and can shed up to a third of their box compression strength, and they snag in racking, while a load that underuses the deck wastes freight on air and stacks less stably. Start from a standard footprint, GMA 48 x 40 in, EUR 1200 x 800 mm, or PBR 1200 x 1000 mm, and choose a case size that divides it well, so the load lands square and flush at the deck edge. A flush load keeps its full strength and its full utilization, which is exactly what the deck-area figure is telling you.

Limits of the method

This calculator gives a sound first pass at a palletized load, not a finished packaging engineering study. It searches the floor patterns for the best cases per layer, checks the height and weight ceilings, and reports the total cases, the utilization, the load height, and the load weight, which is most of what you need to plan a shipment and design a case. It treats the cases as rigid rectangular boxes that pack in orthogonal patterns, applies the deck footprint and the height and weight limits you give it, and assumes the pallet itself is a standard flat deck.

What it does not do is the detail a full packaging design carries. It does not calculate whether the bottom case can carry the stack above it, which is the box compression strength question and depends on the board grade, the case size, the stacking pattern, humidity, and time under load, so a load that fits geometrically may still crush if the case is too weak. It does not model interlocked or column-stacked patterns and their different strength and stability, it does not account for slip sheets, tier sheets, or stretch wrap, and it does not check the trailer or container loading plan. Use the result to fix the cases per layer, the layers, and the utilization, then confirm the bottom-case strength, the stack stability, and the load plan against your board specification, a packaging engineer, and the relevant standards before you commit to a design.

Common mistakes to avoid

The first mistake is accepting the plain grid as the answer. A uniform grid is only best when the case divides the deck evenly, and for most cases a rotated or mixed pattern fits more, sometimes two cases a layer more, so read the tool’s TI rather than the count you sketched. The second is ignoring the weight ceiling. A load sized on height alone can be impossible to ship once a dense case reaches the load weight limit, so enter the case weight and the maximum load weight every time and size to the binding ceiling, not the taller one.

A third mistake is forgetting the pallet in the height. The maximum load height includes the pallet deck, so subtract the pallet height before you divide by the case height, or you will count a layer that does not fit under the trailer roof. A fourth is measuring the case nominal rather than real, since a half-inch of extra case height can cost a whole layer and a bulging case can lose you deck coverage. A fifth is overhanging the deck to force a fit, which quietly strips the bottom case of the compression strength the stack relies on. Read the mixed-pattern TI, respect both ceilings, subtract the pallet, measure the real case, and keep the load flush, and the numbers the tool gives will match the pallet you build.

Where this calculator fits

It suits anyone building or specifying a palletized load without opening a full packaging study. A packaging engineer designing a new case can test how the cases per layer and the total change as the case dimensions move, and find the size that tiles a standard deck. A logistics planner can work out the cases per pallet for an order and hand the figure straight to a trailer or container plan. A warehouse or co-packer can confirm the TI x HI a customer specified and see the pattern the tool draws before building the first pallet.

Because it separates the footprint, the layers, and the two ceilings, it also builds intuition for the trade a pallet makes. You can watch the cases per layer jump when a mixed pattern beats the grid, see the layers fall when a dense case hits the weight limit, and compare the same case across the GMA, EUR, and PBR footprints in a few clicks. The next natural step is the bottom-case strength, the box compression strength question that decides whether a load that fits can actually be stacked and shipped, and a box compression strength calculator is planned for this silo to answer it. For the steps beyond the pallet, the Supply Chain hub carries the tools that turn a pallet into a trailer and container plan, and the Packaging Engineering hub gathers the case and cushioning tools around this one as they go live.

Frequently asked questions

Sources, disclaimer, and editorial transparency

The palletization relationships used here follow standard packaging and logistics practice. The cases per layer (TI) is the best of the plain grid, the rotated grid, and mixed two-block patterns on the pallet deck; the layers (HI) are floor((max load height minus pallet height) divided by case height), capped by the weight ceiling floor(floor(max load weight divided by case weight) divided by cases per layer); and the total cases are TI x HI. Deck area used is the case footprint times the cases per layer over the deck area, cube utilization is the total case volume over the deck area times the load height, and load weight is the total cases times the case weight. Standard footprints are GMA 48 x 40 in, EUR 1200 x 800 mm, and PBR 1200 x 1000 mm. The overhang strength caution, that an overhanging case can lose a large share of its compression strength, reflects recognized corrugated packaging guidance. This calculator and guide are built and reviewed by the OpsCalculators team; see our Editorial Policy for how each tool is researched, built, and tested.

Results are accurate estimates for planning and education, not a substitute for a full packaging engineering study or an engineering review. The method treats the cases as rigid rectangular boxes packed in orthogonal patterns, applies the deck footprint and the height and weight limits you enter, and does not calculate the box compression strength, so a load that fits geometrically may still crush if the case is too weak, overhangs the deck, or sits under a stack too long. It does not model interlocked or column stacking and their different strength, and it does not check slip sheets, stretch wrap, or the trailer and container loading plan. Confirm the bottom-case compression strength, the stack stability, and the load plan against your board specification, a packaging engineer, and the relevant standards before you commit to a design. See our full Disclaimer. OpsCalculators.com is operated by MAFHH INTERNATIONAL LTD. Your inputs are processed in your browser and are never stored; see our Privacy Policy.