Freight Class for Electrical Supplies
Wire and cable are dense, so reels and barrels usually rate freight class 50 or 55: Encore's barrel of 16,000 feet of 12 AWG wire holds about 368 lb in a 23 × 30½ inch barrel, about 39 lb/ft³. Large 4/0 reels hold over 2,000 lb of wire. Conduit is where shipping costs jump: 10- and 20-foot lengths bring carrier length charges of $375 to $5,240.
Wire by the pound
Encore Wire publishes the weight of its THHN copper wire per 1,000 feet: 23 lb for 12 AWG and 712 lb for 4/0. Its 2,000-foot carton of 12 AWG, four 500-foot coils, weighs about 46 lb of wire, and a 3,000-foot 4/0 reel holds about 2,136 lb of wire before the reel itself.
Encore's small barrel pack holds 16,000 feet of 12 AWG in a 55-gallon barrel 23 inches across and 30½ inches tall, about 368 lb of wire. Measured as a box, that is about 39 lb/ft³, class 55, before the barrel's own weight.
Worked examples
Wire weights per 1,000 feet and barrel sizes come from Encore Wire; conduit bundle weights from Wheatland Tube.
Barrel of 12 AWG THHN — class 55
Encore small barrel pack: 16,000 ft of 12 AWG (23 lb per 1,000 ft) in a 23-inch-wide, 30½-inch-tall barrel.
Wire weight = 16 × 23 = 368 lb. 23 × 23 × 30.5 = 16,134 in³ ÷ 1,728 = 9.3 ft³. Density = 368 ÷ 9.3.
39.4 lb/ft³ → class 55, before the barrel's weight, which lowers the class further.
Bundle of ½-inch EMT, 10 ft — weight and length check
Wheatland master bundle: 700 pieces, 7,000 ft, 2,100 lb.
10-foot pieces fall in XPO's 8 to under 11 foot band and FedEx Freight's 8 to under 12 foot band.
Add $460 at XPO or $375 at FedEx Freight to the freight charge.
Conduit and length charges
Wheatland Tube makes steel EMT conduit in 10- and 20-foot lengths. A master bundle of 700 pieces of ½-inch EMT in 10-foot lengths weighs 2,100 lb; a bundle of 153 pieces of 1-inch EMT in 20-foot lengths weighs 2,050 lb.
Length sets the extra cost. A 10-foot bundle falls in XPO's 8 to under 11 foot band ($460) and FedEx Freight's 8 to under 12 foot band ($375). A 20-foot bundle pays XPO's top charge of $5,240 or FedEx Freight's $1,514, which is why long conduit usually ships by flatbed.
Handling reels
Encore sells pre-loaded reels on 32, 36, 42 and 48 inch reels. A reel rolls, so it must be chocked and strapped upright on a pallet or skid, with the flanges protected, and it should be lifted from the center or with a forklift under the pallet.
Mark the reel's weight on the bill of lading. A carrier's dock crew needs to know whether a 2,000 lb reel is coming, and a reel that tips can crush other freight.
Check your electrical shipment
Enter the reel, barrel or bundle size and weight. For conduit, check the length against the carrier's length bands.
Density-based estimate. Some commodities carry a fixed NMFC class — check our freight class by commodity pages.
Estimated Freight Class
Density
54.99
lb/ft³
Volume
53.33
ft³
Weight
2,933
lb
50+ lb/ft³ → Class 50
NMFC density scale (Docket 2025-1, effective July 19, 2025)
Free PDF includes a watermark. Pro removes it & adds your brand.
Estimates only — verify freight class/NMFC and chargeable weight with your carrier.
Uses the 13-tier NMFC density scale (Docket 2025-1). See the full freight class chart.
Frequently asked questions
What freight class is wire and cable?
Usually class 50 or 55. A barrel of 12 AWG THHN measures about 39 lb/ft³, and heavy copper reels measure even denser.
How much does 1,000 feet of wire weigh?
Encore lists 23 lb per 1,000 ft for 12 AWG THHN copper and 712 lb per 1,000 ft for 4/0.
How much does a bundle of EMT conduit weigh?
Wheatland lists 2,100 lb for 700 pieces of ½-inch EMT in 10-foot lengths, and 2,050 lb for 153 pieces of 1-inch EMT in 20-foot lengths.
Is there an extra charge to ship conduit?
Usually, for length. 10-foot conduit pays $460 at XPO or $375 at FedEx Freight; 20-foot conduit pays $5,240 at XPO or $1,514 at FedEx Freight.