Bulletin 188 · footprints
A retired 36 x 36 in plastic pallet is sorted by resin, colour and condition, then reused or ground into regrind. Plastic availability is not sourced here.
Five questions and a photo. We say what we think happens next once the pallets have been seen.
The ninth most produced pallet size in the US across all materials, per Wikipedia. Plastic availability is not sourced here.
Beverage and specialty handlers whose lines run small square pallets. Retired when a line is closed or consolidated.
Small pallets mean a high count per trailer and low resin per pallet. Count carefully, because a small error is a big number.
Give the count by the stack and say how tall the stacks are. Then the count, the resin, the colour, any marks and the ZIP.
Size matters for the trailer. Deck area here is 9.0 sq ft, and Euro 48 x 32 is next closest at 10.3 sq ft, so check you have not got the two mixed together.
The deck is 36 inches by 36 inches, which is 914 by 914 millimetres, 1,296 square inches or 0.835 square metres. The diagonal is 50.9 inches. In shape it is square, with a long side 1.00 times the short one.
If a pallet in the pile measures within an inch of 36 by 36 but not exactly, it may be a metric cousin. The table of every footprint shows which ones are close.
A 36 x 36 in deck has 144 inches of edge, and forks, beams and straps all land on it. When the corners are intact on a deck of 1,296 square inches the pallet may still sell. When they are broken the pallet is feedstock, and the photograph that shows it is the one of the damaged corner.
When you ask about 36 x 36 in pallets, give the count, the resin if known, the colour and the condition of the decks and runners. Say how the pallets are stored, loose or banded, because that decides how a truck is loaded. A photograph of the underside of one pallet shows the maker marks and any steel.
Beverage and specialty handlers whose lines run small square pallets. The size is the ninth most produced in the US across all materials, and sources do not give a plastic share here either.
A 36 x 36 is the smallest of the full-size squares, so stacks run taller and counts run higher. Give the count by stack and say how tall each stack is, then the total.
A square deck has no long side, so a fork can enter from any face. That makes square pallets easy to turn on a dock.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Deck, inches | 36 x 36 |
| Deck, millimetres | 914 x 914 |
| Deck area | 9.0 sq ft |
| Against a 48 x 40 | -32.5% deck area |
| Rank | Ninth most produced pallet size in the US (all materials) |
| Footprint | Deck, in | Deck area, sq ft | Area against this | Width difference | Depth difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48 x 40 | 48 x 40 | 13.3 | 48.1% | +12 in | +4 in |
| 48 x 48 | 48 x 48 | 16.0 | 77.8% | +12 in | +12 in |
| 48 x 45 | 48 x 45 | 15.0 | 66.7% | +12 in | +9 in |
| 45 x 45 | 45 x 45 | 14.1 | 56.3% | +9 in | +9 in |
| 43 x 43 | 43 x 43 | 12.8 | 42.7% | +7 in | +7 in |
| 42 x 42 | 42 x 42 | 12.3 | 36.1% | +6 in | +6 in |
| 40 x 40 | 40 x 40 | 11.1 | 23.5% | +4 in | +4 in |
| Euro 48 x 32 | 47.2 x 31.5 | 10.3 | 14.7% | +11.2 in | -4.5 in |
| 56 x 44 beverage | 56 x 44 | 17.1 | 90.1% | +20 in | +8 in |
| 1200 x 1000 mm | 47.2 x 39.4 | 12.9 | 43.5% | +11.2 in | +3.4 in |
| 1100 x 1100 mm | 43.3 x 43.3 | 13.0 | 44.7% | +7.3 in | +7.3 in |
| Measure | Inches | Millimetres | Centimetres | Feet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Width | 36 | 914 | 91.4 | 3.00 |
| Depth | 36 | 914 | 91.4 | 3.00 |
| Diagonal | 50.9 | 1293 | 129.3 | 4.24 |
| Pallets | Square feet | Square metres |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9.0 | 0.8 |
| 10 | 90.0 | 8.4 |
| 25 | 225.0 | 20.9 |
| 50 | 450.0 | 41.8 |
| 100 | 900.0 | 83.6 |
| 250 | 2250.0 | 209.0 |
| 500 | 4500.0 | 418.1 |
Rank: Ninth most produced pallet size in the US (all materials).
Yes. Describe the count, the resin and the condition, and say how the pallets are stacked. We say what we think happens next.
Measure the deck. This one is 36 x 36 in, 914 x 914 mm. Euro 48 x 32 is 10.3 sq ft, against 9.0 here.
No. Half pallets are 48 x 20 and 40 x 24. A 36 x 36 is a full-size small square.
Yes, a closed or consolidated line often leaves a whole size with no use.
Sources, reviewed Nov 12, 2026: en.wikipedia.org.