Stretch Film per Pallet Calculator

Stretch wrap is cheap per metre but adds up fast across thousands of pallets. This calculator works out how many times the film goes round a load, how much film comes off the roll once stretch is taken into account, what it weighs and what it costs per pallet. Use it to price shipments, order the right number of rolls or see how much a pre-stretch wrapper would save.

How to use this tool

1. Enter the load footprint and the height to wrap.
2. Enter the film width, the overlap between wraps and the extra wraps at the base and top.
3. Choose one spiral pass or up-and-down, and how much the film is stretched.
4. Enter the film thickness, roll length and price, and how many pallets you need to wrap.

Formula

Wraps = passes × max(0, H − w) ÷ (w × (1 − overlap)) + base + top; film off roll = wraps × 2(L + W) ÷ (1 + stretch)

H is the height to wrap and w the film width. Each spiral wrap climbs w × (1 − overlap), so a 20 in film at 50% overlap rises 10 in per turn. The film on the load is wraps × perimeter; stretching it 100% doubles its length, so only half that comes off the roll. Weight = length × width × thickness × 0.92 g/cm³, and 1 gauge = 0.01 mil = 0.254 µm.

Example

A 48 × 40 in pallet wrapped to 60 in with 20 in film at 50% overlap needs (60 − 20) ÷ 10 = 4 spiral wraps plus 3 at the base and 2 at the top: 9 wraps. The perimeter is 176 in, so 132 ft of film goes on the load. At 100% stretch only 66 ft comes off the roll, weighing about 6.74 oz at 80 gauge. A 5,000 ft roll at $50 wraps 75.8 pallets, or $0.66 a pallet.