Payload & Pallet Calculator for Vans
Which van carries your load? Pick a vehicle class to see load area, payload, and pallet slots – or enter weight and pallet count for a recommendation.
- Real-world values per vehicle class
- Free, no signup
- Book the matching vehicle directly
Check a vehicle
- Load area (L × W)
- 3.2 × 1.7 m
- Load height
- 1.8 m
- Load volume
- approx. 10 m³
- Payload
- 900–1,200 kg
- Pallet slots
- 4
Enter your load
Recommended vehicle class
Enter a weight to get a vehicle recommendation.
Payload, load capacity, kerb weight: what means what?
Payload is the weight you may actually load onto a vehicle. It is not a fixed property of the vehicle but a difference: permitted gross weight minus kerb weight. Both figures appear in the German registration document Part I (Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I).
Load capacity and payload are used interchangeably in everyday speech but are not the same. Load capacity is the manufacturer's figure for the unladen series vehicle. Payload is what remains on your specific vehicle – after the towbar, shelving, a full tank, and everything permanently fitted.
Driver and passengers count. A 3.5 t van with a nominal payload of 1,100 kg often carries only around 950 kg in practice, once two people, tools, and a half-full tank are deducted. If you are planning tight, weigh the vehicle rather than calculate it.
The formula
Payload = permitted gross weight (F.2) − kerb weight (G)
Both values are in the registration document. Never use the manufacturer's brochure: optional equipment raises the kerb weight and therefore cuts the payload, often by 100 kg or more.
Calculate payload from your registration document
Fields F.2 and G of the Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I. Optionally add the load you want to carry.
Old Fahrzeugschein (before October 2005): item 15 = gross weight, item 14 = kerb weight.
Maximum payload
Enter both values from the registration document.
Calculate payload in three steps
- 1
Open the registration document
Note field F.2 (permitted maximum mass) and field G (mass in running order). Both in kilograms.
- 2
Take the difference
Payload = F.2 − G. Example: 3,500 kg − 2,400 kg = 1,100 kg permitted payload.
- 3
Deduct passengers and equipment
Deduct every person other than the driver (field G already includes 75 kg for the driver), plus tools, shelving, load-securing equipment and add-ons. What remains is your real loading capacity.
Which registration document field means what?
Part I of the registration document numbers the weight entries uniformly across Europe. These five fields are what you need for payload.
| Field | Designation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| F.1 | Technically permissible maximum mass | What the vehicle can technically carry – may exceed the registered figure |
| F.2 | Permitted maximum mass | The legally decisive figure. Use this one to calculate payload |
| G | Mass of the vehicle in running order | Kerb weight including 90% of a full tank and a 75 kg driver |
| O.1 | Braked towing capacity | Maximum weight of a braked trailer |
| O.2 | Unbraked towing capacity | Maximum weight of an unbraked trailer |
Watch field G: the 75 kg driver allowance is already included. Deducting the driver again understates your capacity – a passenger and every further person, by contrast, count fully against the payload.
All vehicle classes at a glance
| Class | Load area (L × W) | Load height | Volume | Payload | Euro pallets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Car / estate | 1.9 × 1 m | 0.75 m | 1.5–2 m³ | 400–500 kg | – |
| Compact van (Caddy, Kangoo) | 1.8 × 1.2 m | 1.2 m | 3–4 m³ | 600–700 kg | 2 |
| Mid-size van (Vito, Transporter) | 2.6 × 1.6 m | 1.35 m | 5–8 m³ | 800–1,100 kg | 3 |
| Sprinter L2H2 | 3.2 × 1.7 m | 1.8 m | approx. 10 m³ | 900–1,200 kg | 4 |
| Sprinter L3H2 (long wheelbase) | 4.3 × 1.7 m | 1.9 m | 13–14 m³ | 800–1,100 kg | 5 |
| 3.5-tonner box truck | 4.2 × 2.1 m | 2.2 m | 17–20 m³ | 900–1,400 kg | 8 |
| 3.5-tonner flatbed (open) | 4.2 × 2.1 m | open | open bed | 1,000–1,500 kg | 8 |
Real-world values of typical models; payload varies with equipment and body. The registration document is binding: permissible gross weight (F.1/F.2) minus kerb weight (G).
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What happens when you overload
Overloading is a regulatory offence, penalised on a sliding scale by the percentage exceeded and, above a certain threshold, with penalty points. It is usually not only the driver who is fined but the vehicle keeper too, typically at the higher rate.
The three consequences that actually hurt
Fines for driver and keeper
Rates rise with the degree of excess and are considerably higher for vehicles over 3.5 t than for vans. The binding amounts are set out in the applicable national fine catalogue.
Prohibition on continuing the journey
At a roadside check the journey is stopped until the excess is unloaded. The cost of transhipment, waiting time and a second vehicle falls on the customer – routinely a multiple of the fine.
Liability in the event of a claim
After an accident with an overloaded vehicle, the insurer may reduce cover and the question of contributory fault reopens. That, not the fine, is the real exposure.
We deliberately do not quote specific amounts here: they change with every revision of the fine catalogue. The current version always governs – better to calculate with the tool above than to rely on a catalogue figure.
Pallets rarely fill the weight limit
A Sprinter L3 takes five Euro pallets on the floor but only around 1,100 kg. At an average 300 kg per pallet, the weight limit is reached after not quite four – so floor space limits you less often than weight does. Always check both: pallet slots via the loading metre calculator, weight via this one.
Frequently asked payload questions
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