How to grade a used pallet: new, A, B, C and R.

Every argument about a pallet order is a grade argument, and most of them happen because nobody wrote the grade down. This is the scale we quote on, what each grade is for, and the thirty second check that puts a pallet in the right stack.

Get a price by grade What are my pallets worth?

Or call Jayden on 0494 820 639, 7am to 5pm weekdays.

Quick answer

How is a used pallet graded?

New has never been loaded. A, premium used, is square and rigid with every board original, no protruding nails and no contamination, the grade for racking and customer facing loads. B, standard used, is sound with a mark or one repaired board. C, economy, is good for one more trip and never goes in racking. R, repairable core, has broken boards on a sound frame and is credited, not sold. A cracked bearer makes a pallet scrap whatever the deck looks like. The grade is written on every quote and docket.

The scale

What do the pallet grades mean?

Grade	What it is	What it is for
New	Never loaded. Fresh timber, every board and bearer to specification, no repairs.	Racking, customer facing loads, export where the stamp is required, anywhere the pallet is part of the product.
A, premium used	Square and rigid, every board present and original, no protruding nails, no stains or contamination, no repaired boards.	Racking and customer facing loads. The grade a food site or a retail DC expects.
B, standard used	Sound and square, with a mark, a weathered board or one repaired board. Bearers uncracked, bottom boards present.	Everyday warehouse to warehouse freight, floor stock, racking after a check of the bearers and bottom boards.
C, economy	Good for one more trip. Weathered, more than one repair, or a light build. Carries a load on a truck floor.	One way outbound to customers who do not return pallets. Never in racking.
R, repairable core	Broken or missing boards on a sound frame: the bearers are good, the deck is not.	Repaired and returned to service. Credited against a clearance when we collect, never sold as is.
Scrap	A cracked or missing bearer, contaminated or chemically affected timber, or more broken than sound.	Broken down for timber, chipped or disposed of. A clearance line, never a sale.

The same scale applies to Euro, export and plastic pallets, with the pallet type written beside the grade. A quote from 360 carries the type, the size, the grade and the count, and the docket carries the same four, so the check at your dock is a comparison, not a negotiation.

The thirty second check

How do I grade a pallet in thirty seconds?

01BearersSight along all three. A crack across the grain, a missing chunk at a fork notch or a split through a nail line is scrap, whatever the deck looks like. Sound bearers with a bad deck is an R.
02Bottom boardsAll present and fixed. A missing bottom board drops the pallet to R; a loose one is a repair.
03Top deckCount the boards against the pattern. All original and clean is A. One repaired or marked board is B. Several repairs, or a thin build, is C. Broken or missing boards is R.
04Nails and surfaceProtruding nails, stains, oil, chemical smell or mould take the pallet out of A and, for anything near food, out of the order altogether.
05Square and flatDrop it on the floor. If it rocks, it is not A and it is not going in racking. Twisted frames are C or R depending on the bearers.

Photos of the top, the bottom and one side of a typical pallet are enough for us to grade a stack remotely and put a figure on it, which is how what are my pallets worth works. Real photographs of each grade from the Prestons yard are being added to this page.

Why it matters

Why does the grade decide the price, both ways?

Buying: a grade A pallet costs more than a grade B because it took more sound timber to make it and it is the one that can go into racking without a second look. Published from-prices by grade are on the prices page. Selling: a stack of sound standard 1165s earns the most, repairable cores earn a credit, and broken timber costs money to move. The split in the written offer is a grade split. The 60 pallet rule shows the arithmetic on five real stacks.

Type, size, grade and count on every quote and every docket
Racking takes new, A, heavy duty and rackable plastic; B after a check; never C or one way
Sort by grade before you count a stack to sell, and the offer comes back higher and faster
Pooled pallets (CHEP and Loscam) are graded by the pool and stay out of our scale

Getting a number

Say the grade, or send a photo and we will.

Buying: name the grade and the count and the quote comes back with both in writing, priced the same business day when you ask before 2pm. Selling: send a photo of the top, bottom and side of a typical pallet with a count, and the grade split and the figure are on the screen.

Get a price by grade What are my pallets worth?

Questions about pallet grades

What is a grade A pallet?

A premium used pallet: square and rigid, every board present and original, no protruding nails, no stains or contamination, no repaired boards. It is the used grade for racking and customer facing loads.

What is the difference between grade B and grade C?

Grade B is sound and square with a mark or one repaired board, and can go into racking after a check of the bearers and bottom boards. Grade C is good for one more trip: weathered, more than one repair or a light build, for a truck floor and never for racking.

What is a repairable core?

A pallet with broken or missing boards on a sound frame: the bearers are good, the deck is not. It is repaired and returned to service, and credited against a clearance when we collect it, never sold as is.

Is there an Australian standard for pallet grades?

No single published grading standard covers used pallets in Australia; each supplier grades on its own scale. Ours is new, A, B, C and R as set out on this page, written on every quote and docket so the scale is fixed for the order.

Can I rack a grade B pallet?

Usually, after a check. If every bearer is uncracked and every bottom board is present it can go up. If either is in doubt it goes to floor stock. The racking page covers the receipt check.

How do you grade a stack you have not seen?

From three photos of a typical pallet, the top, the bottom and one side, plus the stacks from a distance. That is enough for a band on the screen and, with the photos, a firm written offer. The count is confirmed at the truck.

Prefer to talk? Call Jayden on 0494 820 639. Every pallet type has its own page in the pallet guide; which pallets are safe in racking covers the beam check.

Call 0494 820 639 Get a price