Sources & Citations

Every figure on this site rests on a named, verifiable source. Dimensions and tolerances come from ISO standards; internal measurements are cross-checked against the specification sheets carriers publish for their own fleets; owner prefixes are verified against the official BIC register, each with a second independent source.

What we deliberately do not use: Wikipedia, Reddit, marketplaces or content farms. Where a figure varies in the real world — tare weights by manufacturer, prices by season — the page says so and carries a date instead of pretending precision.

Tables across the site link to the entries below. Found a figure that contradicts a primary source? See our correction policy.

ISO 668:2020International Organization for Standardization
Used for: External dimensions, ratings and tolerances for series 1 freight containers — the basis of every size table on this site.
ISO 6346:2022International Organization for Standardization
Used for: Container identification: owner codes, serials, the check-digit algorithm and size/type codes used by our number checker.
ISO 1496-1International Organization for Standardization
Used for: Specification and testing of general-cargo containers: internal dimension minimums and door-opening requirements.
BIC Container Prefix RegisterBureau International des Containers
Used for: The official owner-prefix register. All 85 prefixes shown on this site were verified against it, each with a second independent source.
CSC (International Convention for Safe Containers)International Maritime Organization
Used for: Safety approval plates, stacking and racking test values referenced in our standards and inspection guides.
Hapag-Lloyd Container SpecificationsHapag-Lloyd AG
Used for: Carrier-published internal dimensions, tare and payload figures used to cross-check ISO nominal values.
Maersk Container SpecificationsA.P. Moller–Maersk
Used for: Fleet specification sheets for dry, high-cube and reefer equipment; tracking behaviour verified in-browser on maersk.com.
CMA CGM Equipment GuideCMA CGM Group
Used for: Container equipment reference for the CMA CGM group fleet, including APL-heritage units.
ONE Container SpecificationsOcean Network Express
Used for: Equipment specs for the ONE fleet including NYK / K Line legacy prefixes; tracker deep-link behaviour verified in-browser.
Evergreen Container SpecificationsEvergreen Marine
Used for: Equipment specification tables on the ShipmentLink platform, Evergreen’s official e-commerce domain.
Alphaliner Top 100Alphaliner
Used for: Fleet capacity ranking behind the “#N worldwide” figures on carrier pages, as-of 2026.
EPAL / EUR-pallet specificationEuropean Pallet Association
Used for: 1200 × 800 mm EUR-pallet dimensions and load ratings used in all pallet-fit tables and the pallet calculator.
IATA ULD RegulationsInternational Air Transport Association
Used for: Unit load device types and dimensions referenced on the air-cargo ULD page.
DCSA Track & Trace standardDigital Container Shipping Association
Used for: The event-naming standard behind the container status chain described on tracking pages.