Add each carton size and quantity to get total volume in cubic meters and cubic feet, gross weight, chargeable weight for sea, air and courier, and how full a container would be.
Total volume
2.4m³
20 cartons
Cubic feet
84.76ft³
Gross weight
360kg
Air volumetric weight
400kg
6000 cm³/kg
Courier volumetric weight
480kg
5000 cm³/kg
Sea LCL chargeable
2.4W/M
1 m³ = 1000 kg
Share of container volume
20 ft standard7.2%
40 ft standard3.5%
40 ft high cube3.1%
Nominal inside volume. Real loads fit less because of carton shapes, pallets and gaps.
CBM means cubic meter (m³), the unit of volume used to price sea freight and to plan container loads. To calculate the CBM of a carton, multiply its length, width and height in meters. Multiply that by the number of cartons for the shipment total.
CBM formula: CBM = length (m) × width (m) × height (m) × number of cartons
If you measure in centimeters, divide the result of length × width × height by 1,000,000. In inches, divide by 61,023.74.
You ship 20 cartons of 60 × 40 × 50 cm, each weighing 18 kg.
For a shared container (LCL), forwarders charge per "weight or measure" (W/M): one CBM is treated as one tonne, and you pay for whichever is greater. Light, bulky goods pay by volume; dense goods such as tiles or metal parts pay by weight. Most LCL rates also have a minimum charge, often 1 CBM. For a full container (FCL) you pay per box, so CBM tells you how many containers you need; see shipping container dimensions for the usable space.
A 20 ft container has about 33 CBM of inside space, a 40 ft about 67 CBM, and a 40 ft high cube about 76 CBM. You will rarely fill all of it: carton sizes leave gaps, pallets take room, and cartons must be stacked safely. As a rough planning guide, many shippers expect 25 to 28 CBM in a 20 ft and 55 to 58 CBM in a 40 ft. The calculator shows your volume as a share of each container so you can see when a shipment moves from LCL to a full container.
| Container | Inside volume | Typical loaded volume |
|---|---|---|
| 20 ft standard | 33.2 CBM | 25 to 28 CBM |
| 40 ft standard | 67.7 CBM | 55 to 58 CBM |
| 40 ft high cube | 76.3 CBM | 65 to 68 CBM |
1 CBM = 35.3147 cubic feet = 1,000 liters = 1,000,000 cubic centimeters. Use the CBM to CFT converter when a US supplier or forwarder works in cubic feet.
Multiply length × width × height in meters, then multiply by the number of cartons. A 60 × 40 × 50 cm carton is 0.6 × 0.4 × 0.5 = 0.12 CBM, so 20 cartons are 2.4 CBM.
CBM stands for cubic meter, a volume of 1 m × 1 m × 1 m. Freight forwarders use it to price sea freight and to work out how much container space a shipment needs.
Multiply length × width × height in centimeters and divide by 1,000,000. For example 50 × 40 × 30 cm = 60,000 cm³ = 0.06 CBM.
For LCL sea freight, 1 CBM is treated as 1,000 kg. You pay on whichever is greater: the volume in CBM or the weight in tonnes.
A standard 20 ft container has about 33 CBM of inside volume. In practice most loads fit about 25 to 28 CBM, depending on carton sizes and stacking.
Multiply by 35.3147. For example 2.4 CBM × 35.3147 = 84.76 cubic feet.