A pallet is the step between a parcel and freight, and it is priced on a different basis from either. Parcel prices are weight and size bands; freight is chargeable weight or cubic metres; a pallet is priced per pallet, by footprint and height, with a weight ceiling attached. That means the cost per kilogram falls sharply as you fill it, and it is why the advice for anything approaching a pallet is to consolidate rather than to split.
When a consignment becomes a pallet
When it stops fitting the published parcel limits. Royal Mail's grid ends at a 20kg Medium Parcel inside 61cm x 46cm x 46cm, and Parcelforce's published ladder ends at £21.40 for up to 30kg. Several boxes that each fit those limits are usually cheaper sent as parcels; several that do not, or one item that does not, is a pallet. The awkward middle, three or four heavy boxes going to the same address, is exactly where getting a pallet quote beside the parcel prices pays.
How a pallet is actually priced
By footprint and height rather than by weight, within a ceiling. A quarter, half and full pallet are the usual steps, and the price gap between them is much smaller than the volume gap, which is the whole reason to fill one. Height is measured including the pallet itself, and a consignment that is a few centimetres over a band is charged at the next one, so the packing matters as much as the contents.
What international pallet shipping adds
A customs entry per consignment, and a destination network that may not be the same company that collected it. On European routes a pallet crosses on a lorry and the paperwork travels with it, so a missing or vague description holds the whole pallet rather than one box. It is also why a pallet is quoted rather than published: none of the sixteen companies in this record prints a pallet price on its own site.
Next day, and what it costs on this tier
Overnight pallet services exist on domestic routes and are priced well above the standard tier, in the way overnight parcel services are. The published parcel comparison is useful here as a sanity check: Royal Mail's whole next-day premium over a two-day service is between 95p and about a pound on its own grid, and if a pallet quote's overnight premium is out of proportion to that, it is worth asking what specifically is being expedited.
Questions people ask about international pallet shipping
How much does international pallet shipping cost?
It is quoted per consignment and no company in this record publishes a pallet price. What is published is the tier below it: Parcelforce's ladder ends at £21.40 for up to 30kg and Royal Mail's grid at a 20kg Medium Parcel.
When should I send a pallet instead of parcels?
When the goods no longer fit the published parcel limits, or when several heavy boxes are going to one address. Below those limits parcels are usually cheaper because they are sold from a price list rather than quoted.
How is pallet delivery priced?
Per pallet, by footprint and height within a weight ceiling, in quarter, half and full steps. The price gap between the steps is much smaller than the volume gap, which is why filling one pays.
Does a pallet need customs paperwork to Europe?
Yes, a customs entry per consignment. A vague description holds the whole pallet rather than a single box, which is the practical difference from sending parcels.