Freight Class for Beverages
Palletized beverages are heavy for their size, so they ship at a low freight class — typically 55 to 70.
What is the freight class for beverages?
Liquid in cans, bottles or cartons gives beverages high density, which keeps the class (and the rate) low. Cased and shrink-wrapped on a full pallet, they pack tightly. Lighter, oversized retail multipacks with lots of air rate a little higher.
Because freight class is density-driven, there isn’t a single fixed number for beverages — class 55–70 is the common range. Run your actual dimensions and weight below to pin it down.
You're mostly shipping water — and water's density is fixed
Beverage freight has a floor no other commodity has: the product is liquid, and water weighs 62.4 pounds per cubic foot no matter how you pack it. That physical fact keeps beverages reliably in the cheap classes — even after packaging and the air between containers dilute it, a full pallet of drinks stays dense enough to rate 55–70. There's no version of a bottled-water shipment that measures light.
Because the liquid is fixed, the only real variable is how much air the packaging adds around it. Cans nest tight and waste little; standard bottles pack well; but oversized retail multipacks — the ones with handles, display cartons and molded clamshells — build air into the load and nudge the class up. The container is also where fragility enters: glass earns careful handling and sometimes a higher effective class through packaging, while cans and PET take the abuse and keep density high.
Beverages freight class: worked examples
Density is weight ÷ volume (cubic feet = L × W × H in inches ÷ 1,728). Here is how typical beverages shipments measure out:
Cased bottled water, full pallet — class 55
Cases of bottled water shrink-wrapped on a 48" × 40" pallet, 45" high, 1,700 lb.
48 × 40 × 45 = 86,400 in³ ÷ 1,728 = 50.0 ft³. Density = 1,700 lb ÷ 50.0 ft³.
34.0 lb/ft³ → class 55 — liquid keeps beverages dense and cheap.
Canned soft drinks, palletized — class 65
Cased cans on a 48" × 40" pallet, 48" high, 1,400 lb.
48 × 40 × 48 = 92,160 in³ ÷ 1,728 = 53.3 ft³. Density = 1,400 lb ÷ 53.3 ft³.
26.3 lb/ft³ → class 65.
Bulky retail multipacks with display cartons — class 85
Oversized handled multipacks stacked 50" high on a 48" × 40" pallet, 700 lb.
48 × 40 × 50 = 96,000 in³ ÷ 1,728 = 55.6 ft³. Density = 700 lb ÷ 55.6 ft³.
12.6 lb/ft³ → class 85 — the display packaging's air undoes the liquid's density advantage.
Full pallets, and the glass question
The single biggest beverage lever is the full pallet. Loose or half-built beverage pallets ship the same dense liquid with a column of air on top, throwing away the density the product hands you for free. Build to a full, uniform, shrink-wrapped pallet and the class takes care of itself — this is a category where you rarely need to fight for the rate, only avoid giving it away.
Glass is the one place to slow down. Glass bottles are dense (good for class) but fragile (bad for claims), and the packaging that protects them — dividers, heavier cases, corner protection — is worth its added cube when a broken pallet means a total loss plus a cleanup. Weigh the protection against the lane: a short regional hop tolerates lighter packing than a multi-terminal LTL journey where the pallet is handled a dozen times.
What affects beverages freight class
- Liquid volume and packaging weight
- Cans/bottles vs. bulky multipacks
- Full pallet vs. loose cases
- Glass (fragility) vs. cans
Common beverages shipments include bottled water and soft drinks, canned drinks, juice cartons, beer and cased beverages.
Class guides covering the 55–70 range:
Calculate the freight class for your beverages
Enter dimensions and weight to get the density-based class for your exact shipment.
Density-based estimate. Some commodities carry a fixed NMFC class — check our freight class by commodity pages.
Estimated Freight Class
Density
42.51
lb/ft³
Volume
53.33
ft³
Weight
2,267
lb
35–50 lb/ft³ → Class 55
Free PDF includes a watermark. Pro removes it & adds your brand.
Estimates only — verify freight class/NMFC and chargeable weight with your carrier.
How freight class is calculated (density scale)
Freight class is set by density = weight (lb) ÷ volume (ft³). Higher density → lower class → typically lower cost. Volume here is L × W × H × quantity.
| Density (lb/ft³) | Class |
|---|---|
| 50+ | 50 |
| 35 – 50 | 55 |
| 30 – 35 | 60 |
| 22.5 – 30 | 65 |
| 15 – 22.5 | 70 |
| 13.5 – 15 | 77.5 |
| 12 – 13.5 | 85 |
| 10.5 – 12 | 92.5 |
| 9 – 10.5 | 100 |
| 8 – 9 | 110 |
| 7 – 8 | 125 |
| 6 – 7 | 150 |
| 5 – 6 | 175 |
| 4 – 5 | 200 |
| 3 – 4 | 250 |
| 2 – 3 | 300 |
| 1 – 2 | 400 |
| 0 – 1 | 500 |
Frequently asked questions
What freight class is beverages?
Beverages typically ships at freight class 55–70. The exact class is set by density — weight divided by volume — so packaging and dimensions can move it within that range.
What affects the freight class of beverages?
The main factors are liquid volume and packaging weight, cans/bottles vs. bulky multipacks, full pallet vs. loose cases, glass (fragility) vs. cans. Denser, tightly packed loads rate a lower class and cost less to ship.
How do I find the exact freight class for beverages?
Measure your shipment and divide weight by volume to get density, then match it to the NMFC scale — the calculator above does this. Confirm the final class and NMFC item number with your carrier before booking.
What freight class are beverages?
Full palletized cases of canned or bottled drinks typically measure 25–35 lb/ft³ → class 55–65. Bulky retail multipacks and half-built pallets rate higher (85+). Because the product is liquid, a properly loaded beverage pallet is almost always dense.
Why are beverages a cheap freight class?
They're mostly water, and water is dense — 62.4 lb/ft³ before any packaging. Even diluted by containers and air, a full beverage pallet stays heavy for its size, which the tariff rewards with a low class.
Does glass vs. can change beverage freight class?
Both are dense, so the density-based class is similar — but glass adds fragility, and the protective packaging (dividers, heavier cases) adds cube and sometimes a higher effective class. Cans and PET keep density high with less protection overhead.