How to Correctly Measure The Dimensions of a Box

Measuring box size is relatively straightforward! However, for custom packaging, these measurements are crucial to your product’s safety. 

So even though box measurement is not rocket science, accurately measuring a box for a custom package requires a little more attention to detail.

Box dimensions are a critical part of any package as they significantly impact what materials are needed, the cost of production, and shipping and warehousing costs.

Think of it this way; minimal room for movement in a box means minimal room for damage and a reduction of your overall costs, so it is essential to get the measurements right!

To help you do that, we have laid out a clear step-by-step guide for finding and measuring dimensions, calculating the volume of a box, and one essential consideration to keep in mind to provide you with the most accurate measurements.

The Three Dimensions of a Box

The first step to creating perfect packaging is to measure the three dimensions inside your box, not outside — more on why you need to do this later — by using a ruler or tape measure and rounding each result to the nearest whole inch. But to do that, one must know the three dimensions: length, width, and depth.

Keep in mind that different companies use depth and height interchangeably. However, the industry standard order of dimensions when recording or reading measurements remains the same: Length x Width x Depth (LxWxD) or Length x Width x Height (LxWxH).

• Length: The longest side when looking at the top of the box.

• Width: The shorter side when looking at the top of the box.

• Depth (Height): The side perpendicular to the length and width.

1. In the case of a tall or upward-facing box, the depth will be the most prominent dimension, while the length and width will be smaller.

   
   

2. 

1. As seen below, the depth and width will be much smaller than the length of long boxes.

2.