Container dimensions do affect shipping cost, but for bulk PET food packaging, you don’t need to work that out yourself. At StlPak, we already calculate the carton size, Qty/Ctn, and estimated 40HQ loading quantity for every standard model, so when you’re choosing between products, you already know roughly how many pieces one container will hold — no separate estimate needed.
Explore StlPak’s broader Disposable Plastic Food Containers range when comparing formats and applications.
Related guidance: supplier comparison guide; container structure guide.
Why a Taller Container Doesn’t Always Mean Fewer Pieces per 40HQ
I will use a few of my tamper-evident food container models to provide practical examples.
Thermoformed PET food containers nest inside each other for transport, so the height of a single container tells you very little about how much space it takes up once hundreds of them are stacked together. STL-150A and STL-280A make this obvious: one is 45 mm high and the other 60 mm, yet both pack 400 pieces into the same carton and load roughly 353,200 pieces per 40HQ. STL-001-55 and STL-001-70 show the same pattern — 15 mm of extra depth, identical carton and identical loading quantity.
| Model | Product Size | Carton Size | Qty/Ctn | Estimated 40HQ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| STL-150A | 140 × 115 × 45 mm | 550 × 295 × 475 mm | 400 pcs | 353,200 pcs |
| STL-280A | 140 × 115 × 60 mm | 550 × 295 × 475 mm | 400 pcs | 353,200 pcs |
| STL-001-55 | 190 × 155 × 55 mm | 620 × 390 × 460 mm | 300 pcs | 183,900 pcs |
| STL-001-70 | 190 × 155 × 70 mm | 620 × 390 × 460 mm | 300 pcs | 183,900 pcs |
This is why we don’t recommend comparing food containers by product size alone. Qty/Ctn, carton size, and estimated 40HQ quantity give a much more accurate picture — and for StlPak’s standard range, those numbers are already sitting next to the product spec, ready to compare.
Mixing Models? Keep It to Three Specifications or Fewer
Loading several container models into one 40HQ is completely normal — plenty of our distributors and buyers order multiple capacities or styles at once. But we generally recommend capping a single 40HQ at around three different specifications, and the reason has nothing to do with weight. It comes down to carton size. StlPak products ship in several different carton dimensions — 550 × 295 × 475 mm, 640 × 385 × 235 mm, 580 × 320 × 505 mm, 620 × 390 × 460 mm, and so on — and cartons of similar size stack against each other cleanly. Mix four or five different carton sizes into the same container, though, and gaps start opening up between them.
There can be empty space in a container without there being enough usable space for another carton.
That distinction matters more than it sounds. In our loading experience, once too many carton specifications are combined in one shipment, the container’s actual usable volume can drop to around 64–66 CBM. You’re still paying for the full 40HQ — you’re just not shipping a full 40HQ’s worth of product.
If you’re ordering several models together, send us the quantities before production. We’ll check the carton dimensions against your order and, where it helps, adjust the split between SKUs so the final mix fills the container properly rather than leaving it half-wasted. That’s a small step that matters a lot at scale — the difference between loading 180,000 pieces and 350,000 pieces into one 40HQ adds up fast when you’re buying plastic food containers in bulk.