Used shipping containers for sale

What "used" means

Every container was built to carry cargo across oceans. A used one has done that for years before a shipping line retired it. It is then inspected and given a grade. Grades are an industry convention that no government sets, so the same word can mean slightly different things from one yard to the next. That is why we ask for photos of the actual unit whenever the yard can send them.

Used containers come in two grades: cargo-worthy and wind and watertight. Both keep rain out when inspected. The difference is structural confidence and how rough the box looks. Full detail is in the container grades guide.

Cargo-worthy vs wind and watertight, side by side

For plain storage in a field or on a jobsite, most buyers land on WWT and never regret it. For a container that may ride a truck to the next job, the few hundred dollars for cargo-worthy is usually well spent.

Who buys used, and who shouldn't

Used containers suit farm and ranch storage, jobsite storage, backyard overflow behind a fence, and anyone buying two or three boxes, where the saving multiplies.

Used is the wrong choice when the box sits in view beside the house, when you plan to cut in windows or a personnel door (clean steel takes modifications better), when you want double doors or an open side (those are built new anyway), or when it has to pass an HOA. In those cases a new one-trip container costs more up front and saves grief later. Our new vs used guide walks through the trade-off with numbers.

Two ways to buy a used container

Quoted for your ZIP. Tell us the size, grade and where it's going. We check stock at the yards nearest you and send one delivered price. We usually reply within 1-2 business hours. This is the route for options, a 10ft, or a long-distance delivery.

Fixed national price. For a standard used box with no back and forth, the Buy a container page lists one price per size and grade, the same anywhere in the contiguous US, plus a flat delivery fee. Tilt-bed delivery is $545 for a 20ft and $675 for a 40ft or 40ft high cube. Flatbed delivery is $450, $525 or $550 by size, and you provide a forklift or crane to lift it off. Self pickup is free. The six used products:

• 20ft used cargo-worthy: $2,495
• 20ft used wind and watertight: $2,195
• 40ft used cargo-worthy: $2,895
• 40ft used wind and watertight: $2,595
• 40ft high cube used cargo-worthy: $3,095
• 40ft high cube used wind and watertight: $2,795

Prices are for the container only, as listed on the buy pages. The delivery fee is added on top.

What to inspect when the truck arrives

Spend five minutes on this before the driver leaves. Dents and surface rust are normal on any used grade. These are not.

1. Floor. Walk the full length. Stains are fine. Soft spots, broken boards or daylight through the floor are not.
2. Doors. Open and close both and throw every lock bar. Stiff is normal and lubricant fixes it. Doors that will not latch usually mean the box is sitting twisted, so check your pad first.
3. Door seals. Run a hand around the rubber gaskets. Cracked or missing sections let water in at the bottom corners.
4. Roof. Deep dents hold standing water. A shallow dent is cosmetic; a pond is a future leak.
5. Rust depth. Surface rust scrubs off. Scaly rust that flakes away to thin or pitted steel along the bottom rails and door sills is a structural concern.
6. Smell. Step inside and close the doors. Musty or chemical smells point to a past leak or a cargo you would rather not store food or fabric next to.
7. CSC plate. The metal safety plate on the left door shows the build date and last inspection, which confirms the age you were told. It matters for shipping, not storage.

While you are inside with the doors shut, do the daylight test: no light through the roof, walls or floor means no obvious leaks. If anything does not match what you were quoted, tell us the same day and we take it from there.

A worked example

A contractor outside Nashville needs secure tool storage on a site for eight months, then wants to move it to the next job. He picks a 40ft standard in cargo-worthy, because the box will ride a truck again. Delivered estimate: $3,400 to $5,400, and his quote landed near the low end because the nearest yard was 40 miles away. He set it on railroad ties, added a welded lock box, and spent less than a year of rental fees.

How it works in three steps

1. Tell us what you need. ZIP code, size, grade and where it's going. About two minutes on the quote form.
2. We check stock near you. We match your request to stock at the yards nearest you and ask for photos where available.
3. You get one delivered price. A person texts or emails the exact number, container plus tilt-bed delivery, with a delivery window. Nothing is booked until you say yes.

More detail on how the whole process works and what delivery day looks like.

One delivered price, one person

Everyone who handles your container is vetted, insured and bonded, and every driver is a local tilt-bed or flatbed operator who drops containers for a living. You get a single delivered price in writing that says exactly what it includes, and you hear about anything that could change it before you agree. One point of contact from first text to drop-off, and no card number needed to get a price.