Highlighted: the bands where the class changed on July 19, 2025. Each band runs from its density up to the next one. Find your class with the calculator.
Reading the chart
Find the density of each handling unit (weight in pounds ÷ cubic feet) and read across. The lower the class, the cheaper the freight per pound: a pallet of 18 lb/ft³ is class 70, while the same pallet loaded half as densely, at 9 lb/ft³, is class 100.
The scale applies to commodities whose NMFC item points to it. Docket 2025-1 and 2026-1 moved many commodities onto it, but some items still carry a fixed class or their own density breaks. Check your NMFC item.
Every class on the density scale
What each class means, with the weight range that puts a standard 48 × 40 in pallet stacked 48 in high (53.3 ft³, pallet included) in that class.
50 Class 50 freight
Density: 50 lb/ft³ or more. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 2,666.7 lb or more. The densest band and the lowest class: new with Docket 2025-1.
55 Class 55 freight
Density: 35 to less than 50 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 1,866.7 to under 2,666.6 lb. New with Docket 2025-1; this freight was class 60 before.
60 Class 60 freight
Density: 30 to less than 35 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 1,600 to under 1,866.6 lb. Since Docket 2025-1 only 30 to under 35 lb/ft³; before, everything from 30 up.
65 Class 65 freight
Density: 22.5 to less than 30 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 1,200 to under 1,600 lb.
70 Class 70 freight
Density: 15 to less than 22.5 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 800 to under 1,200 lb.
85 Class 85 freight
Density: 12 to less than 15 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 640 to under 800 lb.
92.5 Class 92.5 freight
Density: 10 to less than 12 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 533.4 to under 640 lb.
100 Class 100 freight
Density: 8 to less than 10 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 426.7 to under 533.3 lb.
125 Class 125 freight
Density: 6 to less than 8 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 320 to under 426.6 lb.
175 Class 175 freight
Density: 4 to less than 6 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 213.4 to under 320 lb.
250 Class 250 freight
Density: 2 to less than 4 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 106.7 to under 213.3 lb.
300 Class 300 freight
Density: 1 to less than 2 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: 53.4 to under 106.6 lb.
400 Class 400 freight
Density: less than 1 lb/ft³. 48 × 40 × 48 in pallet: under 53.3 lb. The lightest freight for its size and the most expensive per pound.
What changed in 2025
Up to and including 22.5 to under 30 lb/ft³ (class 65), nothing changed. Above that, the old scale put everything at class 60; the new one splits it in three: 30 to under 35 lb/ft³ stays class 60, 35 to under 50 is class 55, and 50 or more is class 50. Freight of 35 lb/ft³ or more can therefore ship one or two classes lower than before. The background is in NMFC density changes 2025–2026.
Questions
How many freight classes are there?
The density scale has 13: 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 85, 92.5, 100, 125, 175, 250, 300 and 400. Commodities that keep a fixed class in the NMFC can carry other class numbers; your item in the NMFC, or your carrier, tells you which.
What is the cheapest freight class?
Class 50: freight of 50 lb/ft³ or more on the density scale since July 19, 2025. Before that date the density scale stopped at class 60.
What is class 70 freight?
On the density scale, class 70 is freight from 15 to under 22.5 lb/ft³, for example a 48 × 40 × 40 in pallet weighing 800 lb (18 lb/ft³).
What about classes 77.5, 110, 150, 200 and 500?
They are not steps of the density scale. If your NMFC item or a quote shows one of them, it is a fixed class for that commodity, not one that comes from density.