How the calculation works
Container loading runs the EB-AFIT packing heuristic — a published container-loading algorithm — right in your browser. It builds the load layer by layer, mixing cartons of different sizes and trying every allowed rotation of each item, then keeps the best arrangement it finds. Per-item rules are respected: keep-upright cartons never lie on their side, fragile ("no top") cargo gets nothing stacked on it, and floor-only cargo stays on the container floor. You can also cap how many units stack in a column (max stack) and how much weight a carton may bear on top (load-bearing) — heavier items are packed toward the floor, and the load-balance bar shows the fore-aft centre of gravity. Weight is checked against the container's payload limit (the absolute maximum you can legally load).
Does the calculator account for the container door opening?
Not yet — the calculator assumes cargo can be positioned freely inside. Door clearance (234 cm wide, 228 cm high on standard boxes) matters only for single oversized pieces, not for cartons. Door-clearance checks are on our roadmap.
Why does my forwarder quote fewer cartons than this?
Real stuffing loses space to pallets, dunnage, uneven cartons and loading practicality. Treat the grid result as the theoretical maximum; a practical plan usually reaches 85–95% of it.
Why is my tier count lower than a simple grid calculator, even though this loads more cartons?
Because free rotation mixes layer heights. Simple grid tools (like Korea's LDSP) stack every carton the same way up, so they report one uniform tier number — but they also leave more space empty. This calculator rotates cartons to fill gaps, so different columns can be different heights: "Max tiers" shows the tallest single column, not a uniform figure, while total cartons loaded is higher. If you need a uniform-tier plan to match a grid calculator, set Rotation to Fixed on each item.
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<iframe src="https://cargosum.com/embed/container-loading-calculator/" width="100%" height="760" style="border:1px solid #ddd;border-radius:4px" title="Container Loading Calculator — CargoSum" loading="lazy"></iframe> <p>Calculator by <a href="https://cargosum.com/container-loading-calculator/">CargoSum Container Loading Calculator</a></p>