Euro vs Standard vs US Pallet: What's the Difference?

Pick the wrong pallet and you lose 10–25% of your container space before you've loaded a single carton. Pick a non-compliant pallet for an export shipment and customs may quarantine the entire container at destination. Pallets are unglamorous but they decide a lot. Here's what every importer and warehouse operator needs to know.

The four pallet standards you'll actually see

• EUR1 / EUR-pallet — 1200 × 800 mm. The European standard.
• GMA (US Standard) — 1219 × 1016 mm (48 × 40 in). The North American grocery standard.
• ISO 6780 (1200 × 1000 mm) — used in Asia, Australia, parts of Europe.
• Asian pallet (1100 × 1100 mm) — common in Japan, Korea and South-East Asia.

EUR1 (Euro pallet) in detail

Dimensions: 1200 × 800 × 144 mm. Weight: about 25 kg. Static load capacity: 4,000 kg. Dynamic load (moving on a forklift): 1,500 kg. Made of pine wood with 78 nails. Stamped "EUR" in an oval and "EPAL" on the other side — only genuine EPAL pallets are repairable and exchangeable in the European pallet pool.

In a 20ft container you fit 11 EUR pallets on the floor in one layer. In a 40ft / 40HC you fit 24 EUR pallets.

GMA (US Standard) in detail

Dimensions: 1219 × 1016 × 152 mm (48 × 40 × 6 in). Weight: 15–22 kg depending on wood. Load: typically 1,360 kg dynamic. Most common in US grocery and CPG supply chains. Not exchangeable like EUR pallets — usually bought one-way or rented from CHEP / PECO.

In a 20ft container you fit 10 GMA pallets. In a 40ft / 40HC you fit 20 GMA pallets.

ISO 1200 × 1000 mm

The international "industrial pallet" — the closest thing to a global standard outside Europe and North America. Slightly larger footprint than EUR, slightly smaller than GMA. Used heavily in Asia for export. Fits 10 per 20ft, 21 per 40ft.

Plastic vs wooden pallets

• Wooden: cheap (€8–15), strong, repairable, but heavy and need ISPM-15 fumigation for export.
• Plastic: hygienic, no fumigation needed, last 5–10x longer, but 3–5x more expensive (€25–80).
• Pressed wood (Inka): light, nestable, export-ready without ISPM-15 because they're heat-treated.
• Cardboard: single-use, ultra light, only for light loads under 500 kg.

ISPM-15: the fumigation rule

If your pallet is solid wood and you're exporting, it must comply with ISPM-15: heat treated (HT) or methyl bromide fumigated (MB) and stamped with the IPPC mark. Customs in 180+ countries will quarantine or return non-compliant pallets at the importer's expense. Plastic, metal, and pressed-wood pallets are exempt.

Which pallet should you use?

• Shipping inside the EU: EUR1, no question.
• Shipping to/from the US: GMA.
• Shipping from China to anywhere: ISO 1200 × 1000 fumigated wood, or pressed wood.
• Sea-air or air freight where weight matters: plastic or pressed wood.
• One-way export to a market that doesn't return pallets: cheapest fumigated wood.