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The Euro pallet, and how to tell a real one

1200 x 800 mm, eleven boards, nine blocks and seventy-eight nails driven to a defined pattern. The most tightly specified pallet in the world — and the most counterfeited.

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The Euro pallet (EPAL / EUR 1) measures 1200 x 800 mm (47.24" x 31.5"), weighs about 25 kg, and carries a safe working load of 1,500 kg dynamic and up to 4,000 kg static. It is a block pallet with full four-way entry.

A genuine exchangeable Euro pallet carries the EPAL oval branded into the corner blocks, plus a control nail. Without those marks it is a 1200 x 800 pallet, not a Euro pallet, and it cannot be exchanged.

Specification

Neatly stacked EPAL-stamped Euro pallets and GMA pallets inside a loading bay with the roller door open
Genuine EPAL Euro pallets on the right — the branded corner blocks are the only proof of exchangeable status — beside standard GMA stock.
EPAL / EUR 1 specification per UIC 435-2.
AttributeValue
Footprint1200 x 800 mm (47.24" x 31.5")
Height144 mm
Weight22 – 25 kg (49 – 55 lb)
ConstructionBlock pallet, 9 blocks
Top deck5 boards (3 × 145 mm, 2 × 100 mm)
Bottom deck3 boards plus 2 edge runners
Fasteners78 nails, specified pattern and length
Fork entryFull 4-way
Safe working load1,500 kg dynamic
Maximum static load4,000 kg
Racking load1,000 kg unsupported span
MarkingEPAL oval on both outer block faces, control nail

Verifying a Euro pallet

Counterfeit Euro pallets are common enough that checking is worth the thirty seconds. Four marks, all on the corner blocks.

  1. EPAL oval branded (not printed) into the left corner block, on both sides.
  2. Country and licence code on the right corner block — country code, licence number and production year.
  3. IPPC / ISPM 15 mark on the centre block: the wheat symbol, country code, registration and HT.
  4. The control nail driven into the centre block on the diagonal, stamped on its head. This is the hardest mark to fake and the one a professional buyer checks first.
Repairs affect status. Only EPAL-licensed repairers may restore a pallet to exchangeable condition, and a repaired pallet carries a repair nail. We repair Euro pallets structurally and state in writing whether exchangeable status is retained — it usually is not, and quietly implying otherwise would be dishonest.

Euro pallets in North America

Euro pallets arrive in Denver on imported freight and then create a small problem: they do not fit North American racking, they do not palletise efficiently in a 96" trailer, and there is no exchange pool to return them to. Most end up stacked behind a warehouse.

  • Two Euro pallets are 1600 mm across — roughly 63", wasting 33" of a 96" trailer width.
  • Racking designed for 48" depth leaves a 1200 mm (47.2") Euro pallet slightly under-supported at the beams.
  • There is no exchange in the US. The European exchange system does not operate here.
  • They are worth good money as cores — we pay $9 to $16 for sound, stamped units.
  • They are excellent pallets. If you run an internal loop, a Euro pallet will outlast two GMA pallets.

If Euro pallets are accumulating on your site, that is a buyback conversation, not a waste conversation. See sell us your pallets.

The wider EPAL family

EUR 1 — the 1200 x 800 mm pallet everybody means by “Euro pallet” — is one of several standardised EPAL footprints. The others turn up on imports and in specialist supply chains.

EPAL footprints and where each is used.
DesignationSize (mm)Size (in)Typical use
EUR / EUR 11200 x 80047.24" x 31.50"The European standard
EUR 21200 x 100047.24" x 39.37"Industrial, chemical, machinery
EUR 31000 x 120039.37" x 47.24"Rotated EUR 2; some beverage
EUR 6 (half)800 x 60031.50" x 23.62"Retail display and merchandising
Quarter600 x 40023.62" x 15.75"Promotional display
EPAL CP seriesVariousVariousChemical industry, one-way

CP pallets are not exchangeable

The CP series — CP1 to CP9 — are chemical-industry pallets built to agreed specifications but not part of the exchange pool. They arrive on chemical imports and are frequently mistaken for exchangeable Euro pallets. They are good pallets and they are worth buying; they are not worth Euro-pallet money.

Why Euro pallets outlast GMA pallets

A genuine EPAL pallet will comfortably outlast two GMA pallets in the same loop. The reasons are specific and worth understanding even if you never buy one.

  1. Block construction. Nine solid blocks distribute load far better than three notched stringers, and there is no notch to blow out — the single most common structural failure on a GMA pallet.
  2. Seventy-eight nails to a defined pattern. Fastening is specified rather than left to the builder, and the pattern is designed for the loads the pallet actually sees.
  3. Specified timber. Board thicknesses and block dimensions are fixed by UIC 435-2 rather than by whatever a mill had.
  4. Moisture specification. Genuine EPAL production controls moisture content, which reduces the splitting that shortens a pallet's life.
  5. Licensed repair. Repairs are performed by licensed shops to a standard, and a repaired pallet carries a repair nail so its history is visible.
Life comparison in a controlled closed loop.
GMA 48x40 hardwoodEPAL Euro pallet
Typical lives with repair6 – 810 – 15
Weight33 – 40 lb49 – 55 lb
Unit cost, used$8.50 – $13.50$16.00 – $26.00
Cost per trip (used, 5 trips vs 12)≈ $2.75≈ $1.90
Dominant failureNotch blow-outBlock or bottom-board damage
RepairabilityExcellent and cheapGood but slower
Cost per trip only matters if it comes back. In the US there is no exchange pool, so a Euro pallet you send out is a Euro pallet you have given away. Use them internally or on lanes you control.

If Euro pallets are piling up at your site

This is the most common Euro-pallet conversation we have, and the answer is almost never what the customer expected.

  1. 1

    Do not skip them

    They are the most valuable core in our yard. A skip converts $9 to $16 a unit into a disposal cost.

  2. 2

    Photograph the corner blocks

    Verification takes us ten seconds and changes the offer substantially.

  3. 3

    Separate CP pallets

    Good pallets, different price. Mixing them in depresses the blended rate.

  4. 4

    Ask whether you should keep them

    If you run an internal loop, a Euro pallet will outlast two GMA pallets. Sometimes the right answer is to use them.

  5. 5

    Sell the rest

    We buy, and the dismantled lumber is unusually good — consistent European softwood, kiln dried, heat treated.

One genuinely useful trick: if you import on Euro pallets regularly and also export, ask your forwarder whether you can send goods out on them. Sending a Euro pallet back toward Europe solves a problem at both ends and costs nothing extra.

Questions people actually ask

Can I exchange Euro pallets in the United States?
No. The EPAL exchange system is European. In North America a Euro pallet is simply a very well-built 1200 x 800 pallet, and its value is in use or resale rather than exchange.
Why do Euro pallets cost so much more?
More timber, far more nails, tighter tolerances and licensed production. They also last considerably longer, so in a closed loop the cost per trip can be lower than a cheaper pallet.
What is EUR 2, EUR 3 and EUR 6?
Other standardised EPAL footprints: EUR 2 is 1200 x 1000 mm, EUR 3 is 1000 x 1200 mm and EUR 6 is 800 x 600 mm — a half pallet. All follow the same marking conventions.
Do you stock Euro pallets?
Intermittently. Supply depends entirely on what arrives as import freight, so if you need them for a project, reserve rather than assume.
How can I tell a repaired EPAL pallet?
Licensed repairs carry a repair nail in the centre block alongside the original marks. A structurally repaired pallet without one is not exchangeable, and any honest supplier will state that in writing.
What is the difference between EPAL and EUR marks?
Both exist on genuine pallets. The EPAL oval is the current licensing mark; older pallets may carry an EUR mark in an oval. Both, with the correct country and licence codes, indicate a licensed production.
Do Euro pallets fit US racking?
Not well. At 1200 mm (47.24") deep they are slightly under a 48" beam spacing, which leaves them under-supported at the edges — exactly the wrong direction to be slightly wrong in.
Why do Euro pallets weigh so much?
More timber, nine solid blocks and 78 nails. It is the reason they last, and the reason 500 of them reaches 27,500 lb in a trailer that still looks half empty.
Can I get Euro pallets built new in the US?
Only a licensed EPAL producer may build and mark genuine EPAL pallets. We build 1200 x 800 block pallets to the same dimensions and construction, marked as our own — a very good pallet that is explicitly not an exchangeable Euro pallet.

Keep reading

01

ISO standard sizes

The six international footprints.

Open02

Stringer vs block

Why Euro pallets are block-built.

Open03

Sell us your pallets

Turn accumulated Euro pallets into money.

Open

Let's keep your pallets in the loop

Whether you have 40 broken cores behind the dock or need 4,000 Grade A pallets a month, the conversation starts the same way.

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