Using plywood in your upcoming woodworking project?
Alternatively, would you like to act as a broker between manufacturers and stores? When placing an order for a shipment or making a contract with bundles of plywood, it is essential to have a firm grasp on what to anticipate. If I buy a bundle of plywood, approximately how many individual sheets will I receive?
If you buy your plywood from a hardware store, you may expect to get between 38 and 49 sheets in a bundle. It’s possible to get double-sized bunks at a fraction of the price if you go back in the supply chain and make direct contact with a manufacturer.
Get the skinny on plywood bundles, from typical bundle height and weight to average plywood prices, in this in-depth guide. You’ll also learn why trucks that only haul a few sheets typically charge extra.
How Many Pieces Come in a Plywood Bundle?
Plywood bundles typically consist of 49 individual sheets, though this number might differ depending on the sheet thickness. Plywood is transported conveniently in bundles on trucks because of this. Therefore, the amount of plywood in a bundle is determined by transportation norms.
Use my one-of-a-kind tables to measure how much plywood weighs.
A package of fifty sheets would not be too large to be transported by car. While this may not seem like a big deal, it will cause the vehicle to be unevenly loaded, making it impossible to fit a 50-piece bundle. However, the bundles can easily fill the truck’s container because there are 49 of them.
Use the following table to determine how many 8′ x 4′ plywood sheets are included in a package.
Number of Sheets in a Bundle Thickness of Plywood
5/32″ (4mm) 100 lb. spool weight
1,904 pounds (864kg) (864kg)
15/64″ (6mm) (6mm)
60 1,858 pounds (843kg) (843kg)
23/64″ (9mm) (9mm)
44 1,884 pounds (855kg) (855kg)
15/32″ (12mm) 33 1,884 pounds (855kg)
19/32″ (15mm) 26 1,858 pounds (843kg)
45/64″ (18mm) (18mm)
22 1,884 pounds (855kg) (855kg)
25/32″ (21mm) (21mm)
19 1,900 pounds (862kg) (862kg)
1″ (24mm) (24mm)
16 1,829 pounds (830kg) (830kg)
1 5/32″ (27mm) (27mm)
14 1,803 pounds (818kg) (818kg)
1 3/16″ (30mm) 13 1,856 pounds (842kg)
Check read my article for more information on the subject of plywood weights.
The intermodal chassis can handle any amount of wood as long as the truck container can accommodate it, hence the plywood bundle’s dimensions are the primary limiting issue. Contrary to popular belief, this is not the case with denser materials such as mahogany or even reinforced lumber.
Woodwork benches made of plywood are a viable option.
The vast majority of plywood distributors aren’t sizable enough to force shipping firms to modify their policies. Because of this, finding a bundle of plywood that contains twice as many sheets as a 49-sheet bundle while taking up just half as much space is quite unusual. Although technically viable, this would not be produced despite satisfying the volume and collective size requirements of truck norms.
PlyTerra Group is one such company that has a firm grip on the shipping industry and the market as a whole. Because of this, they are able to adjust the number of birch plywood sheets in each bundle to meet their needs. Birch plywood bundles from PlyTerra Group come with sheets of varying thicknesses. As a result, there are packages containing 13 sheets and packages including 100 sheets, despite the fact that the total volume of both is the same.
Investigate the company’s reputation before placing an order for a large quantity of plywood. Standard sheet thickness often results in 49 pieces being shipped each bundle if the provider is based in the United States but does not handle the transport himself.
Plywood shipment requires extra caution. Look what happens when you soak plywood!
You should get in touch with the provider and discuss the precise number of items per bundle if the manufacturer is located outside of the United States and the supplier has the clout to alter shipping sizes.
How Many Sheets Are in a Bundle?
Plywood and MDF bundles have 48 sheets, steel bundles have 15, and paper bundles have 1,000. As can be seen, the amount depends critically on the specifics. What constitutes a “typical” bundle depends on the material’s weight and thickness.
It’s important to consider weight when making comparisons between different material packages. Paper is significantly lighter than steel in terms of weight. This explains why a lot of paper can fit into one package.
However, thickness is an important factor to consider when comparing bundles made from the same material, such as plywood. This is because, in most cases, multiple batches of plywood will have the same density. And if the material’s density can’t change, what else might account for the variety in packaging? Because of its size.
We discussed plywood bundling and how it is affected by container size constraints before. When the total size of the bundle is constrained, what variables are open to change? How big a sheet it is. Here we reach the last factor that fixes the length along which the sheet grows or shrinks.
Generally speaking, bundles are based on
Typical thickness of plywood
In the past, plywood sheets came in a variety of sizes based on the manufacturer’s whim. Following the do-it-yourself (DIY) craze of the ’90s, the plywood industry had to adjust to satisfy the needs of woodworkers working from plans and templates. Due to a small number of publishers printing most plywood project guides, virtually all of the templates utilised in usage would have followed the same set of instructions.
The end result? Plywood sheets of 4×8 feet are now the de facto industry standard for shipping purposes. While this is helpful for shoppers, it might have unexpected consequences for retailers. Given that the density of plywood and the size of the bundle are both fixed, and that the width and length of the sheets are basically fixed at 4 by 8 feet, what dimension can be adjusted to accommodate variations in bundling quantity? Having to do with the thickness.
Because of this, unless you specifically request thinner or stronger plywood, you may expect to receive 49 sheets each bundle.
How Much Does a Stack of Plywood Cost?
The price of a sheet of plywood ranges from $293 to $1,652 depending on its type and thickness. The priciest plywood sheets, if always bundled with 49 other sheets, would cost $2,203.
There are fewer sheets in the bundle of thicker (more expensive) plywood, which helps keep the per-stack price down while still being greater than that of thinner plywood. As the number of plywood sheets remains constant regardless of thickness, the price of a given plywood type remains generally consistent.
Because of this, you may be wondering if woodworking is a costly pastime. Learn more in my essay detailing the unexpected findings.
Here are the different types of plywood sheets you can get
The lowest price I could find for OSB plywood for construction was $5.97 a sheet.
Prices for sheets of Construction Grade RTD plywood begin at $9.97.
Price per sheet begins at $28.97 for Construction Grade CDX plywood.
Cabinet-quality Sanded Pine BC Plywood, $13.27/sheet and above
Price per sheet for cabinet-quality oak plywood starts at $25.97
Plywood suitable for cabinets, priced from $41.97 per bundle in the cheapest option
Plywood bundle pricing can’t be standardised because there are so many different kinds of sheets available at varying prices and in varying thicknesses. A package of thin plywood sheets will still set you back $300.
Best Practices For Getting the Right Bundle Price
Get a ballpark figure by comparing prices from a few different vendors.
Browse Home Depot and other stores to get a feel for the going rate. If you can’t receive a discount of at least 25% off the retail price when purchasing in large quantities, then you shouldn’t buy from a wholesaler. Suppliers can afford to offer you a bundle at a 50% discount because hardware stores typically charge a minimum of 100% markup.
Before you actually need some plywood, start looking for a source. This lessens the urgency to make a purchase and compels the vendor to lower their asking price as a means of enticing your business.
Inquire about pricing for various plywood qualities. You may show that you know your stuff and won’t be pushed into paying more by simply asking about the price difference between construction grade and cabinet grade.
Leave out the specifics of your plywood needs. Last but not least, if you need plywood for personal use, you should never tell a supplier that because they will automatically treat you as the end client and charge you retail. If you pose as a possible reseller, the seller will likely begin with a lower first ask, giving you more leeway to bargain.
How Many Sheets of Plywood Are on a Truck?
Normal pickup trucks or utes can carry up to 33 sheets of plywood, whereas a truck may carry up to 49.
There is very little chance of blending in now. Nonetheless, transporting plywood on industry trucks is a another story.
Over twelve hundred and sixty sheets of half-inch plywood can be transported on a single vehicle. Each box of plywood can be up to 900 millimetres in height, meaning that 18 packages can fit in the shipping container on the intermodal chassis. This is true independent of the sheet thickness or amount of plywood.
Plywood can be shortened if it is excessively long. Determine whether a circular saw or jigsaw is more appropriate for cutting plywood.
Variation exists in retail and supply bundling. A bundle of 70 sheets can be halved, or a bundle of 49 sheets can be topped up to 50, depending on the situation. Plywood should be valued by volume, and the sort of plywood being purchased should be kept in mind. Plywood in one truckload may be significantly less expensive than plywood in another.
Read my article to learn how much plywood an F150 can carry.
Focusing too much on numbers can be misleading. Plywood shipments are subject to the following quantity fluctuations:
The equivalent of up to 1 369 full sheets of CDX plywood, used in building.
A maximum of 1852 sheets of RTD plywood suitable for construction.
We can get you up to 2520 sheets of exterior grade OSB plywood.
A maximum of 2520 sanded pine plywood cabinet sheets.
Birch plywood of cabinet quality, up to 2520 sheets.
Despite this, the pricing disparities are not reflected in the differences in sheet quantity. Quite the opposite, shipments with a lower number of plywood sheets will likely cost more. This is so due to a combination of factors, including the fact that you are paying for shipping and the fact that thicker sheets carry a price premium.
You pay for a business to transport plywood from the manufacturer to the retail location, whether or whether shipping expenses are included on the invoice. If there are fewer sheets in a shipment, the price per sheet decreases.
Let’s keep things simple and imagine that two trucks arrive, each with a different amount of plywood. In one case, there are 100 sheets, whereas in the other, there are just 50. To keep things simple, let’s say it costs $100 to transport each vehicle.
The plywood’s price needs to be increased to account for the company’s travel expenses if it is to turn a profit. Each item has a $1 premium because it cost $10 to transport 100 of them on a truck. On the other hand, the truck that delivered 50 sheets will need to charge $2 more for each sheet in order to break even.
This concept is applicable to the transportation of smaller loads, such as those carried by pick-ups and local delivery trucks. Therefore, as a business owner or do-it-yourself woodworker, you should be wary of buying consignments that are too little or that are split up.
How Tall is a Bunk of Plywood?
Once you’ve determined that your truck’s bed can accommodate the plywood and you’ve resolved the issue of the plywood’s weight, you’ll need to consider if the plywood’s height will prevent you from loading it.
Plywood bundles can range in size from 15 inches to 36 feet, with the latter being challenging to haul even if the sheet length and width are suitable for the truck. Too-high stacking limits may be illegal under state law.
Plywood can be shipped in sections if the source is located close enough to the construction site.
What is a Bunk of Plywood?
Plywood that has been stacked in a bunk and then subdivided into smaller bundles. It’s common practise to refer to a group of items as a “bundle” or “bunk,” and vice versa.
How Heavy is a Bundle of Plywood?
Plywood bundles typically weigh between 1800 and 1900 pounds, though this might vary by plywood species and packaging method. The ultimate weight of the plywood is also affected by whether or not the supplier adheres to trucking norms.
Check out my article, “How much does plywood weigh?” for additional details.
Please refer to the table I’ve provided at the top of this post for information on the typical weight of a bundle of plywood in relation to its thickness.
Conclusion – How Many Sheets of Plywood in a Bundle?
Packaging and transport methods for plywood might vary greatly between suppliers. By the time the planks make it to stores, however, they conform to a set size and number of sheets per bundle (typically between 38 and 49). Consider the overall volume and the price per unit of volume rather than the sheet count.
