Pooled vs white wood pallets: rent or buy?
Choose pooled pallets (rented from CHEP, PECO or iGPS) when you ship full pallets to retail and grocery DCs in the pool and want consistent pallets without managing returns. Choose white wood (pallets you buy) for one-way shipping, custom sizes, small volumes or customers outside the pools.
- Type
- Wood block
- Footprint
- 48.00 × 40.00 in
- Height
- 5.50 in
- Lumber
- 15.5 bd ft
- Est. weight
- 68 lb (31 kg)
- Fasteners
- 92
Every dimension is editable. Get the drawing free, or request a quote.
There are two ways to get a standard 48 × 40 in pallet under your product in North America. You can buy it: a white wood pallet, new or recycled, that you own and that usually leaves with the shipment. Or you can rent it from a pool: a painted, company-owned block pallet that you issue from the pool, ship to your customer and that the pool operator later recovers from the customer's site.
Side-by-side comparison
| Pooled pallet | White wood pallet | |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership | Pool operator (CHEP, PECO, iGPS) | You, until it leaves with the load |
| Typical type | 48 × 40 in block pallet (iGPS: plastic) | Stringer or block, new or recycled |
| Identification | Painted (CHEP blue, PECO red) or plastic, marked as property | Unpainted wood |
| How you pay | Issue fee plus other fees set by contract (transfers, time, handling) | Purchase price, once |
| Quality | Consistent spec, inspected and repaired by the pool | Varies with grade and supplier |
| Returns | Pool collects from receivers | Customer keeps, exchanges, sells or discards |
| Sizes | Standard footprints the pool offers | Any size |
| Admin | Report shipments to the pool; manage balances | Buy and ship; exchange if required |
| Retailer acceptance | Widely accepted, sometimes required | Accepted by many, restricted by some |
| Designer template | Block 48 × 40 | GMA 48 × 40 |
Pool fee structures are commercial terms that differ by operator and contract. Ask each pool for a quote based on your lanes.
How pooling works
You order pallets from the pool's service center, load and ship them, and declare each shipment's destination to the pool. The receiver (typically a retailer or distributor DC) accumulates empty pallets, and the pool collects them, inspects and repairs them, and re-issues them. You pay for the pallet's use rather than its purchase. Lost or unreported pallets can add charges. See pallet pooling, CHEP pallets and PECO pallets.
How white wood works
You buy pallets from a manufacturer or recycler and ship them with your product. What happens next depends on the customer: some run a pallet exchange (the carrier or shipper gets back an equal number of pallets), some sell used pallets to recyclers, and some simply keep them. For recycled white wood, see new vs recycled pallets.
Cost
White wood is a one-time purchase, roughly $10–25 for a new GMA-style 48 × 40 in (2026 US estimate) and less for recycled grades. Pooling avoids the purchase price of a block pallet, but the fees recur on every shipment and include charges beyond the issue fee. The cheaper option depends on your volume, lanes, customer mix and how well you track pallets. Compare total landed cost per shipment, including admin time and loss. See pallet cost.
Retailer requirements
Some large retailers and club stores require or strongly prefer pooled block pallets for inbound freight; Costco, for example, has required pooled pallets and accepted purpose-built pallets only by exception. Others accept white wood that meets their specification. Always check the current vendor guide. See Costco pallet requirements and Walmart pallet requirements.
Common mistakes
- Mixing pool pallets into white wood stock. Pooled pallets remain the operator's property; recyclers and shippers should return them rather than resell or repair them.
- Not declaring shipments. Pools bill based on declared movements; unreported shipments can leave you paying for pallets you no longer hold.
- Comparing issue fee to purchase price only. Include transfer and handling fees, admin time, loss, and the value of receiving consistent pallets.
When to choose each
Choose pooled when: most freight goes to pool-participating retail and grocery DCs; the customer requires it; you ship high volumes of standard 48 × 40 in loads; consistent block pallets suit your automation.
Choose white wood when: loads are one-way to customers outside the pools, export, or custom sizes; volumes are small or irregular; you want to own the pallet and avoid recurring fees and tracking.
Many shippers use both: pooled for retail lanes, white wood for everything else. You can design a white wood pallet to get quotes on a documented spec.
Frequently asked questions
What does white wood pallet mean?
An unpainted wood pallet that the shipper owns, as opposed to a painted pooled pallet (for example blue for CHEP, red for PECO) that stays the property of the pool operator.
Can I keep or sell a CHEP pallet?
No. Pooled pallets remain the property of the pool operator and are marked as such. They should be returned through the pool's collection process.
Do all retailers accept pooled pallets?
Many large US grocery and retail DCs participate in at least one pool, and some retailers require them. Check each customer's vendor guide for accepted pallet types.
Related
- GuidesPallet pooling: how CHEP, PECO and iGPS rental worksPallet pooling is renting pallets instead of buying them. A pooler such as CHEP (blue), PECO (red) or iGPS (plastic) owns standard 48 × 40 in pallets, issues them to shippers, collects them from receivers, then inspects, repairs and reissues them. You pay fees per use, not a purchase price.
- GuidesCHEP pallets: what the blue pallets are, how rental works, and what to do if you have oneCHEP pallets are the blue pallets rented through CHEP's pool. In North America they are 48 × 40 in (1219 × 1016 mm) wood block pallets CHEP rates at 2,800 lb (1,270 kg). CHEP owns every one and never sells them: if you receive some, keep them apart and request a collection.
- GuidesPECO pallets: the red rental pallets, specs, and how to return themPECO pallets are the red pallets rented through PECO Pallet's pooling network in the US, Canada and Mexico. They are 48 × 40 in (1219 × 1016 mm) wood block pallets that PECO rates at 2,800 lb (1,270 kg). PECO owns them and does not sell them: if you find red PECO pallets, report them to PECO for pickup.
- TypesWhite wood pallets: what the term means and when to use themIn North American logistics, a white wood pallet is an unpainted wooden pallet that the shipper buys and owns, as opposed to a rented pooled pallet painted blue (CHEP) or red (PECO). Most are 48 × 40 in stringer pallets, new or recycled. In Europe, "whitewood" also names the spruce and fir lumber used for pallets.
- GlossaryWhite woodWhite wood (whitewood) is the pallet trade's name for generic, unpainted wood pallets, usually 48 × 40 in GMA-style stringer pallets, that users buy, own and trade, as opposed to painted pooled pallets. In lumber, whitewood also names a group of light-colored softwoods such as spruce and fir.
- GlossaryPallet exchangePallet exchange is an arrangement where a receiver hands back an equal number of empty pallets of the same type and quality for the loaded pallets it receives, so the shipper does not lose pallets with each delivery.
- ComparisonsNew vs recycled pallets: cost, quality and when to use eachChoose recycled (used) pallets for standard 48 × 40 in sizes when price matters and your customers accept Grade A or B. Choose new pallets for custom sizes, automated systems, exports, food and pharma, retailer programs that require new, or when you need a documented, consistent spec.
- TypesBlock pallet: construction, dimensions and usesA block pallet is a wooden pallet whose deck sits on blocks, usually nine arranged 3 × 3, joined by stringerboards. The gaps between blocks give full 4-way entry for both forklifts and pallet jacks. EUR/EPAL, CP and the pooled 48 × 40 in pallets of CHEP and PECO are all block pallets.
Last reviewed 2026-09-24. 717 words.