Pallet types
Custom pallet: how to design and specify one
Reviewed
A custom pallet is a wood pallet designed for a specific load, footprint and handling system instead of a stock size such as the 48 x 40 GMA. To quote one, a manufacturer needs the size, load weight and type, support conditions (floor, rack, stacking), handling equipment, lumber, fasteners, treatment and annual volume.
On this page
What counts as a custom pallet?
Any pallet not bought as a stock design is custom: an odd footprint, a heavier deck, extra stringers, special notches, wings, solid decks, strap slots or a machinery skid. ANSI MH1 summaries note that about 100 pallet sizes are in use, and only about a dozen exceed 1% of production each. Everything outside that short list is effectively custom. Custom pallets are usually stringer pallets or skids, because continuous stringers are easy to cut to any length; block designs are used where four-way handling matters.
What drives a custom design
The Uniform Standard asks that the conditions of use be stated before a pallet is designed. Those conditions decide the construction:
| Requirement | What it changes |
|---|---|
| Unit load footprint and height | Pallet size, load overhang |
| Load weight (maximum and average) | Deck thickness, stringer count and section |
| Load type: uniform, boxes, bags, drums, point or line loads | Deck gaps, stringer placement |
| Support: floor, stacked N high, racked across length or width, beam span | Stringer depth, bottom deck |
| Handling: forklift end or side, pallet jack, conveyor, sling | Entry style, notches, chamfers, wings |
| Deflection limit | Stiffness; racking typically about 2% of span, automated systems 0.5 in or less |
| Environment: dry or wet, export | Species, moisture, ISPM 15 |
| Trips: one-way or reusable | Lumber grade, nail quality |
How a custom pallet is built
The same components as any wood pallet, sized to the requirement: deckboards (thickness, widths, count), stringers or blocks (count and section), notches, fasteners and lumber. The Uniform Standard's Table 5 sets the minimum nails per joint by board width: 2 up to 5-1/4 in, 3 up to 7 in, 4 up to 8 in.
When to go custom
- The product footprint doesn't fit a standard pallet without harmful overhang or wasted space.
- The load is heavy, concentrated or racked beyond what a stock pallet is rated for.
- The customer's handling system needs particular openings, chamfers or flatness.
- Freight or material costs justify trimming lumber out of an oversized stock pallet.
When not to
- The customer requires a standard: pooled block pallets, GMA, EPAL or a CP type.
- Volume is too low to justify the engineering, and a stock pallet works.
Custom vs stock pallet
| Custom | Stock (e.g. GMA 48 x 40) | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | Any | Fixed |
| Design effort | Drawing, cut list, often an analysis | None |
| Lumber use | Matched to the load | Standard |
| Lead time | Longer for the first order | Short |
| Buyer requirements | Stated in the spec | Implied by the standard |
How to specify a custom pallet
A complete request covers:
- Size (length first), overall height limit, and a drawing or sketch.
- Construction: stringer, block or skid; deck boards; entry.
- Load: weight, type, footprint, variability.
- Support and handling, including rack beam span and stacking height.
- Lumber species, grade and moisture; fasteners.
- Treatment and marking: ISPM 15, branding, color.
- Quantity, annual volume, release cadence and delivery.
- Documents: drawing, PDS report or test data if the customer requires them.
The pallet RFQ guide expands this list. palletdesign.ai turns a plain-language request into a to-scale drawing, bill of materials, cut list, nail count, weight and indicative cost, which gives the manufacturer an unambiguous starting point. Capacity figures in the app are an indicative beam check; certified ratings come from a PDS analysis or ASTM D1185 / ISO 8611 testing.
Questions
- What information do I need for a custom pallet quote?
- Size, load weight and type, how the pallet is supported (floor, rack, stacking), handling equipment, lumber, fasteners, treatment, quantity and annual volume.
- Are custom pallets more expensive?
- Not necessarily. A custom design matched to the load can use less lumber than an oversized stock pallet; the extra cost is mainly design time and setup on the first order.
- Can a custom pallet be 4-way?
- Yes, with notched stringers (partial 4-way) or as a block pallet (full 4-way).