Overview
This article illustrates how ShipperHQ’s Best-fit packing algorithm works when you have products (with dimensions) and Boxes configured in ShipperHQ, and each of the boxes has “Apply to all products” ticked for Yes.
![Dimensional Packing with ShipperHQ](https://docs.shipperhq.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Best-Fit-Scenario.png)
Scenario
Let’s say you have 3 SKUs with varying dimensions that need to pack together into pre-defined boxes:
- BIKE – 30x10x16
- T-shirt – 4x1x4
- Book – 8x4x2
These can pack together into one of several boxes:
- Small – 6x6x4
- Medium – 12x10x8
- Large – 35x12x18
Packing Calculations
![Small box Packing Calculations](https://docs.shipperhq.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Best-Fit-example-1.png)
Small box has a volume of 144 (6x6x4)
- T-shirt has a volume of 16 (4x1x4) so up to 9 can fit into this box
- The lengths of the “Book” and “BIKE” products are larger than the dimensions of this box so it cannot pack
![Medium Box packing calculations](https://docs.shipperhq.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Best-Fit-example-2.png)
Medium box has a volume of 960 (12x10x8)
- T-shirt has a volume of 16 (4x1x4) so up to 60 can fit into this box
- Book has a volume of 64 (8x4x2) so up to 15 can fit into this box
- The length of the “Bike” is larger than the dimensions of this box so it cannot pack
![Large Box packing calculations](https://docs.shipperhq.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Best-Fit-example-3.png)
Large box has a volume of 7,560 (35x12x18)
- T-shirt has a volume of 16 (4x1x4) so up to 472 can fit into this box
- Book has a volume of 64 (8x4x2) so up to 118 can fit into this box
- Bike has a volume of 4,800 so 1 can fit into this box
Special considerations
![Box packing calculations continued](https://docs.shipperhq.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Best-Fit-example-4.png)
The T-shirt is malleable so we want to retain the use of volume-based packing for this product.
Although the bike is not malleable multiple T-shirts could be packed inside the frame and items placed underneath the frame so the volume is preferred here too.
You may need to fine-tune how you pack different quantities of items into boxes, such as setting limits on weight or quantity or adjusting the dimensions of the products being packed.
Related Articles
- How to Set Up Dimensional Packing
- How to Define Box Sizes
- How to Set up Packing Rules
- Using Master Packing Boxes
- Dimensional Packing Examples
- Dimensional Packing Strategies