Industries · Distribution centers
Selling plastic pallets from distribution centers
Distribution centers sell plastic pallets when stacks build up faster than they move: mixed makers, mixed colours, some broken, some marked. The first job is the sort.
Last reviewed November 12, 2026
What distribution center sellers have
A distribution center takes in pallets from every supplier and sends back what it must. What stays is surplus: excess lots, mixed makers and colours, and broken pallets. It is the commonest seller on this desk.
Footprints and styles in distribution center lots
| Reads | Which | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 48 x 40 | the default footprint for general shipping |
| Size | 42 x 42 | common across the US |
| Size | 40 x 40 | a frequent square |
| Style | nestable | counted in stacks, so storage-friendly |
| Style | rackable | where racks are in use |
| Style | fire rated | where sprinkler design matters |
The distribution centers market in numbers
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Private jobs | 1,901,976 |
| Establishments | 23,345 |
| Top states by jobs | California 236,923; Texas 175,579; Pennsylvania 123,481; Florida 105,401; Ohio 98,354 |
| Top counties | San Bernardino CA 67,058; Riverside CA 51,310; Dallas TX 44,657; Maricopa AZ 42,291 |
Fastmarkets estimates 3.7 billion pallets were in circulation in the US in 2025, with production up from about 800 million a year before the pandemic to nearly one billion after it. A dock sits in the middle of that flow.
How a distribution center lot is read
Distribution center lots are mixed by nature. The desk reads them in three piles: whole and unmarked, marked, and broken. Each pile gets its own ruling.
The question buyers ask a center first is how much of the lot is uniform. A center with a pile of one footprint and one style sells faster than one with six.
What to say when you send a distribution center lot
- The count, in pallets or stacks, and which
- That the lot is mixed, if it is
- A split by footprint, even a rough one
- Any pool marks you have seen
SOLD
Distribution centers pallets that are whole, unmarked and described.
RETURN
Distribution centers pallets with a pool name, a customer code or an RFID tag.
SCRAP
Distribution centers pallets with cracked, burnt or crushed decks.
We have mixed makers and colours. Is that a problem?
No. Mixed makers and colours are fine to send. Say so and give a rough split by size.
How often do centers sell pallets?
Some once, some on a schedule. The form asks whether it is one lot or a repeat supply.
Words you will meet
- Closed loop
- Pallets that travel between known sites and come back, so they are never lost to a downstream user.
- One-way pallet
- A cheaper pallet shipped with the load and not expected back.
- Euro pallet
- 800 x 1200 mm footprint.
- HDPE
- High-density polyethylene, resin code 2. The most common resin in plastic pallets; tough and moisture resistant.
- Dynamic load
- Weight a pallet carries while moving on a forklift, pallet jack or conveyor.
- Edge rack
- Resting on the rack beams by the pallet's edges only, with no support in the middle.
- Nest ratio
- How many empty pallets fit in the height of one.
- Fork pocket
- Opening in the pallet where the forks go.
- Heat treated (HT)
- ISPM 15 treatment for wood: core at 56 C for 30 minutes. Not needed for plastic.
- Multi-trip pallet
- A pallet designed to be returned and reused many times.
- Commodity classification
- Sprinkler design class of stored goods; an unlisted plastic pallet can raise it.
- Creep
- Slow bending of plastic under a heavy load held for a long time.
- Injection moulding
- Pallet made by forcing molten resin into a mould at high pressure.
- CP9
- A chemical-industry pallet standard, 1140 x 1140 mm.
- Regrind
- Plastic ground from used or scrap parts into flakes for moulding again.
- Virgin resin
- New, unblended resin that has not been through a product before.
Who asks, and what they need
- Distribution centres with surplus pallets
- Sell or recycle excess lots, mixed makers and colours, broken pallets.
- Retailers that collect pooled or one-way pallets
- Stacks of marked and unmarked pallets left by suppliers; need to know which can be sold and which belong to a pool.
- Plants changing packaging or pallet size
- Retire a whole stock of one footprint at once; want it sold or ground up, not landfilled.
What the sources say
- Fastmarkets estimates 3.7 billion pallets were in circulation in the US in 2025, and that annual pallet production rose from about 800 million before the pandemic to nearly one billion afterward. (fastmarkets.com)
- Counties with the most private warehousing and storage jobs (NAICS 493) in 2025, BLS QCEW: San Bernardino County, California (67,058), Riverside County, California (51,310), Dallas County, Texas (44,657), Maricopa County, Arizona (42,291), San Joaquin County, California (28,518), Clark County, Nevada (28,250), Middlesex County, New Jersey (26,309), Will County, Illinois (25,357). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 288,633 jobs across 934 establishments in motor vehicle manufacturing (NAICS 3361) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: Michigan (44,870), Texas (28,069), California (27,690), Kentucky (23,308), Alabama (22,311). (data.bls.gov)
- Warehousing and storage (NAICS 493) was 1.4% of the 133,160,274 private-sector jobs QCEW counted in the US in 2025. (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 1,901,976 jobs across 23,345 establishments in warehousing and storage (NAICS 493) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: California (236,923), Texas (175,579), Pennsylvania (123,481), Florida (105,401), Ohio (98,354). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 316,938 jobs across 16,316 establishments in beverage manufacturing (NAICS 3121) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: California (63,604), Texas (24,154), New York (13,802), Pennsylvania (13,207), Florida (12,661). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 521,212 jobs across 6,414 establishments in motor vehicle parts manufacturing (NAICS 3363) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: Michigan (111,465), Ohio (62,025), Indiana (52,146), Tennessee (38,791), Kentucky (32,261). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 575,006 jobs across 12,344 establishments in plastics product manufacturing (NAICS 3261) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: Ohio (42,286), Texas (40,945), California (35,933), Pennsylvania (34,094), Indiana (33,122). (data.bls.gov)
- Private warehousing and storage (NAICS 493) paid an average of $56,706 a year across 1,901,976 jobs in 2025 (BLS QCEW). (data.bls.gov)
- The International Fire Code permits pallets listed and labeled under FM 4996 or UL 2335 to be treated as wood pallets for sprinkler design. (iccsafe.org)
- Private employers in the US averaged 1,775,008 jobs across 42,763 establishments in food manufacturing (NAICS 311) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: California (166,660), Texas (112,088), Illinois (98,300), Pennsylvania (82,538), Wisconsin (81,993). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 168,222 jobs across 2,809 establishments in dairy product manufacturing (NAICS 3115) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: Wisconsin (28,840), California (18,374), New York (11,603), Ohio (8,963), Texas (7,529). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 173,844 jobs across 2,936 establishments in fruit and vegetable preserving (NAICS 3114) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: California (27,518), Wisconsin (11,014), Washington (10,988), Ohio (10,327), Texas (9,194). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 892,426 jobs across 25,801 establishments in chemical manufacturing (NAICS 325) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: Texas (90,310), California (75,499), Ohio (49,328), Illinois (48,745), New Jersey (47,966). (data.bls.gov)
- Private employers in the US averaged 829,364 jobs across 49,933 establishments in grocery and related product wholesale (NAICS 4244) in 2025 (BLS QCEW). States with the most jobs: California (109,827), Texas (75,474), Florida (63,967), New York (50,594), Illinois (48,629). (data.bls.gov)
- Refrigerated warehouse facility counts on October 1, 2025 (USDA NASS): California 106, Wisconsin 94, Georgia 62, Texas 56, Washington 52, Florida 50, Pennsylvania 38. (esmis.nal.usda.gov)
Keep reading
Receiving desk
Send the lot
Size, count, grade, branding and ZIP. Photos help, and you can reply to the first answer with them. This site states no price or pickup date.