Tools

CBM calculator: cubic meters of a shipment

Independent site, not a government agency or a customs broker. General information, not legal advice or customs advice.

Enter the size of one carton and how many you have: the volume of the shipment and what share of a container it fills.

Cubic meters of a shipment

Total volume

9.6 m³

In cubic feet339 ft³
One carton0.096 m³

Outer carton size, without pallets or gaps.

Check it against your container →

A cubic meter, or CBM, is a measure of a shipment’s volume. To find it, multiply length by width by height in meters for one carton, then multiply by the number of cartons. In centimeters, divide the product by one million. So a carton of 60 by 40 by 40 cm is 0.096 CBM, and 100 of them are 9.6 CBM. We print no container capacity, because we could not verify one at a source we may reuse on November 2, 2026: your carrier’s sheet gives it. Use the figure for planning, then ask your forwarder for a load plan. The second tool checks both volume and weight against the figures you enter, and tells you which of the two runs out first with those numbers.

Does your cargo fit this container?

Example value: replace it.

Example value: replace it.

With these figures

fits on paper

Volume used83%
Weight used75%

The first two fields hold examples, not measures of any container. Ask your trucker for the road limit too.

What to ask your carrier →

Rates read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources

The formula, by hand

In centimeters: length × width × height ÷ 1,000,000 × cartons. In inches: length × width × height ÷ 1,728 gives cubic feet, and dividing by 35.31 gives CBM. Measure the outside of the carton after packing. One centimeter more on each side of a thousand 60 by 40 by 40 cm cartons adds about 2.9 cubic meters.

Volume fits, but does the load?

A volume says nothing about how cartons stack or go through the door. The pallet calculator handles a palletized load, and the container page lists the figures to get from your carrier.

From volume to weight

If your carrier bills by a volume weight, use the chargeable weight calculator.

Questions importers ask

How many CBM fit in a 40-foot container?

We state no figure, because we could not verify one at a source we may reuse. Your carrier’s sheet gives the capacity of the empty box, and you can enter it in the second tool, with your own volume and weight. How much of it your cartons can use depends on their size and your stacking limits, so ask your forwarder for a load plan, which will give you a figure for your own goods.

What is the difference between CBM and cubic feet?

They measure the same thing in different units. One cubic meter equals about 35.31 cubic feet, so 10 cubic meters are about 353 cubic feet. The calculator gives both, so you can compare quotes in either unit without converting by hand. Check which unit each quote uses, because the same number means very different volumes in the two units.

Does this calculator tell me the freight price?

No. We publish no freight rates, as we read no official source for them, and they are private prices. The tool gives you the volume, which you can put to a forwarder for a quote. Ask the quote to state its unit and any minimum. Then enter the amount under your costs in the landed cost calculator to see it next to your duties and fees.

Check next

Container dimensions

Why we print no inside sizes, what to ask for, and a check for your cargo.

Chargeable weight calculator

Volume weight against actual weight, with your carrier’s divisor.

Pallet calculator

How many pallets on a container floor or in your trailer.

Official sources behind this page

Written by

Independent publisher of a reference to US import duties: the tariff schedule, additional duties by origin, customs fees and freight measures, with free calculators

Tariff and notices read on · Editorial policy · Contact

US tariff schedule 2026, read in the USITC files and the Federal Register, last checked on