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Container knowledge
Container dimensions: All dimensions for storage, transportation and construction projects

Choosing the right shipping container is crucial for storage, transportation or modular construction projects. In this guide you will find the internal and external dimensions, loading capacities and door openings of our most popular container sizes. This overview serves as a reliable source for all common standard and special containers.

Table of contents

Small container dimensions

Small container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
4 foot container121 × 117 × 111122 × 122 × 111118 × 1101,421,57
6 foot container168 × 187 × 173183 × 196 × 192187 × 1622,923,83
8 foot container228 × 99 × 206244 × 220 × 226210 × 1954,819,92
10 foot container283 × 235 × 239299 × 244 × 259234 × 2286,6615,89
Buy small containers

Standard container dimensions

20 foot container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
20 feet standard container708 × 235 × 239726 × 244 × 259234 × 25913,8433,17
20 foot high cube container708 × 235 × 270726 × 244 × 290234 × 25913,9037,39
Buy 20 foot sea containers new and used

40 feet container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
40 feet standard container1443 × 235 × 2391463 × 244 × 259234 × 22828,3767,69
40 foot high cube container1443 × 235 × 2701463 × 244 × 290234 × 25928,3776,40
Buy 40 foot containers new and used

Large container dimensions

Large container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
45 foot high cube container1626 × 235 × 2701646 × 244 × 290234 × 26039,3286,00

Special container dimensions

Open top container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
20 foot open-top container708 × 235 × 235726 × 244 × 259234 × 22813,9032,49
40 foot open-top container1443 × 235 × 2381463 × 244 × 259234 × 22828,3066,78
40ft High Cube Open-Top Container1443 × 235 × 2681463 × 244 × 290234 × 25928,3276,40

Buy used and new open-top containers

Hard Top Container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
20 foot hard-top container708 × 233 × 239726 × 244 × 259234 × 22713,9033,00
40 foot hard-top container1443 × 235 × 2391463 × 244 × 259234 × 22828,3667,69
Buy used and new hard-top containers

Flat-rack container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
20 foot flat rack container562 × 223 × 222726 × 244 × 224–12,5227,90
40 foot flat rack container1450 × 243 × 1951463 × 244 × 259–29,2857,43
Buy used and new flat rack containers

Double-door container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
20 foot double door container708 × 235 × 239726 × 244 × 259234 × 22813,8433,09
40 foot double door container1440 × 79 × 2391463 × 244 × 259234 × 22828,1467,03
Buy used and new double-door containers

Side-opening containers Dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (L×W×H, cm)External dimensions (L×W×H, cm)Door opening (W×H, cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
20 foot open-sided container708 × 229 × 228726 × 244 × 259229 × 22813,5030,98
20 foot side-door container708 × 229 × 230726 × 244 × 259571 × 22113,9033,09
Buy Open-Side & Side-Door Containers

Pallet-wide container dimensions

TypeInternal dimensions (cm)External dimensions (cm)Door opening (cm)Indoor area (m²)Volume (m³)
20 feet pallet width container711 × 242 × 234726 × 250 × 259240 × 22614,7935,36
40 feet pallet width container1443 × 242 × 2391463 × 246 × 259240 × 22829,0070,00
40 feet pallet width High Cube Container1440 × 242 × 2351463 × 250 × 259241 × 22629,3077,90
Buy pallet width containers

Frequently asked questions

What are the dimensions of a sea container?


Standard international containers are 20 or 40 feet long, 259 cm high and 244 cm wide

How big is a 20-foot container?

  • Standard: 20 ft × 8 ft × 8’6″ ≈ 6.06 × 2.44 × 2.59 m
  • High-Cube: same footprint, 2.90 m high

How big is a 40-foot container?

  • Standard: 12.19 × 2.44 × 2.59 m
  • High-Cube: 12.19 × 2.44 × 2.90 m

What is a high cube container?

A high cube measures 9’6″ (approx. 290 cm) in height and is therefore 30 cm higher than a standard container

What is ISO 668?

ISO 668 defines the globally uniform internal and external dimensions for freight containers and enables standardized intermodal transport.

What dimensional tolerances does ISO 668 allow?

  • 20ft container: 0 / -0.6 cm
  • 40ft container: 0 / -1.0 cm

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