Artwork Shipping Cost Calculator
The packed size, volumetric weight and shipping tier for a framed or unframed artwork, with the packing allowance.
Couriers charge for the space a parcel takes up as well as its weight, and a large framed painting runs out of volume long before it runs out of weight. Packing a boxed canvas adds about 50 to 80 millimetres to each dimension, and the volumetric weight is length times width times height in centimetres divided by 5000. This calculator gives the packed size, both weights, the billable weight and the shipping tier to compare against a courier price list.
At a glance
- What you enter
- Artwork length (the long side), Artwork width (the short side), Artwork thickness or frame depth, How it is packed, Packing added to each dimension, Weight of the artwork, Weight of the packing, Volumetric divisor, Maximum length the service allows, Maximum length plus girth, Price per kilogram in your band
- What you get
- Packed length, Packed width, Packed depth, Volume of the packed parcel, Actual weight of the packed parcel, Volumetric weight, Billable weight, Shipping tier, Top of the weight band, Room left in the weight band, Weight that would take it to the next band, Girth, Length plus girth, Rough cost at your rate per kilogram, Shipping cost per square metre of artwork, Packed volume per unit of artwork face
- Formula shown
- Yes, every step, right below your results.
- Cost and privacy
- Free, no account needed, and nothing you type is stored.
See worked examples ↓ Read the FAQ ↓ Share this calculator ↓
Results are estimates for general information only, always verify with a professional or official source before acting on them.
How to use the Artwork Shipping Cost Calculator
- 1 Enter Artwork length (the long side) (mm), The size of the piece as it will be packed, which for a framed painting is the outer frame size.
- 2 Enter Artwork width (the short side) (mm)
- 3 Enter Artwork thickness or frame depth (mm), The depth of the piece: a stretcher profile, a frame depth or the thickness of a mounted board.
- 4 Enter How it is packed, The value is the packing allowance in millimetres added to each dimension.
- 5 Enter Packing added to each dimension (mm), Fifty to eighty millimetres for a boxed canvas, about a hundred for a glazed frame.
- 6 Enter Weight of the artwork (kg), The piece itself. A 500 by 400 millimetre canvas on a stretcher is roughly 1.5 to 2.5 kilograms.
- 7 Enter Weight of the packing (kg), Box, foam, corner protectors, tape. Four hundred grams to over a kilogram for a medium framed piece.
- 8 Enter Volumetric divisor, Five thousand is the standard for centimetres. Some express services use 6000.
- 9 Enter Maximum length the service allows (mm), Used to flag a parcel that is over the length limit for the service you priced.
- 10 Enter Maximum length plus girth (mm), Girth is twice the width plus twice the height. Many services cap the longest side plus the girth.
- 11 Enter Price per kilogram in your band, Optional. Used for a rough cost estimate in the band the parcel falls in.
- 12 Press Calculate. You get Packed length, Packed width, Packed depth, Volume of the packed parcel, Actual weight of the packed parcel, Volumetric weight, Billable weight, Shipping tier, Top of the weight band, Room left in the weight band, Weight that would take it to the next band, Girth, Length plus girth, Rough cost at your rate per kilogram, Shipping cost per square metre of artwork, Packed volume per unit of artwork face, and every intermediate step stays visible under "How is this calculated?"
- 13 Change one number at a time to see what moves the result, that is usually the most useful thing a calculator can tell you.
Worked examples
Real numbers run through this calculator. Open any example to load it into the form above and change it.
A boxed 400 by 500 mm canvas
An unframed canvas on a stretcher, boxed flat with 50 millimetres of packing on every side.
You enter
- Artwork length (the long side)
- 500 mm
- Artwork width (the short side)
- 400 mm
- Artwork thickness or frame depth
- 35 mm
- How it is packed
- 1
- Packing added to each dimension
- 50 mm
- Weight of the artwork
- 2.20 kg
- Weight of the packing
- 0.90 kg
- Volumetric divisor
- 5,000
- Maximum length the service allows
- 1,500 mm
- Maximum length plus girth
- 3,000 mm
- Price per kilogram in your band
- $4.50
You get
- Packed length
- 600.00 mm
- Packed width
- 500.00 mm
- Packed depth
- 135.00 mm
- Volume of the packed parcel
- 40.50 L
- Actual weight of the packed parcel
- 3.10 kg
- Volumetric weight
- 8.10 kg
- Billable weight
- 8.10 kg
- Shipping tier
- 4
- Top of the weight band
- 10.00 kg
- Room left in the weight band
- 1.90 kg
- Weight that would take it to the next band
- 2.90 kg
- Girth
- 1,270.00 mm
- Length plus girth
- 1,870.00 mm
- Rough cost at your rate per kilogram
- $36.45
- Shipping cost per square metre of artwork
- $182.25
- Packed volume per unit of artwork face
- 20.25
The packed box is 600 by 500 by 135 millimetres, which is 40.5 litres and 8.1 kilograms volumetric against 3.1 actual. It is billed at 8.1 kilograms, so 36.45 at 4.5 a kilogram.
A glazed frame shipped boxed
A 500 by 400 millimetre frame with 100 millimetres of packing and a heavier box.
You enter
- Artwork length (the long side)
- 500 mm
- Artwork width (the short side)
- 400 mm
- Artwork thickness or frame depth
- 45 mm
- How it is packed
- 3
- Packing added to each dimension
- 100 mm
- Weight of the artwork
- 4.50 kg
- Weight of the packing
- 1.60 kg
- Volumetric divisor
- 5,000
- Maximum length the service allows
- 1,500 mm
- Maximum length plus girth
- 3,000 mm
- Price per kilogram in your band
- $4.50
You get
- Packed length
- 700.00 mm
- Packed width
- 600.00 mm
- Packed depth
- 245.00 mm
- Volume of the packed parcel
- 102.90 L
- Actual weight of the packed parcel
- 6.10 kg
- Volumetric weight
- 20.58 kg
- Billable weight
- 20.58 kg
- Shipping tier
- 6
- Top of the weight band
- 30.00 kg
- Room left in the weight band
- 9.42 kg
- Weight that would take it to the next band
- 10.42 kg
- Girth
- 1,690.00 mm
- Length plus girth
- 2,390.00 mm
- Rough cost at your rate per kilogram
- $92.61
- Shipping cost per square metre of artwork
- $463.05
- Packed volume per unit of artwork face
- 51.45
The box is 700 by 600 by 245 millimetres, which is 102.9 litres and 20.6 kilograms volumetric against 6.1 actual, so the volume triples and the tier jumps to the 20 kilogram band.
Guides that go with it
How to Calculate the Amount of Yarn You Need
You are about to start a project and the pattern says "6 skeins of worsted weight." Or worse, you are designing something yourself and there is no pattern at all. You want to buy once, not make three...
Standard Paper Sizes for Crafts and Handmade Projects
If you are pricing a paper project, the honest headline is this: most small handmade paper projects cost somewhere between a few dollars and about $30 in materials, and a bigger run of cards, journals...
Inches vs Centimeters: The Ultimate Handcraft Conversion Guide
You found a pattern you love. The measurements are in inches. Your ruler is in centimeters. Or the reverse: a European yarn chart in centimeters, a US hook set labeled in millimeters and inches. Sudde...
Frequently asked questions
How much packing does a framed painting need?
About 80 millimetres per dimension for a boxed framed piece: corner protection, a wrap of bubble or foam, and a rigid box with space between the artwork and the wall of the box. A glazed frame needs about 100 millimetres, because the frame has to be held clear of the glazing and the box has to take a knock without cracking the glass. An unframed canvas boxed flat needs about 50 millimetres, and a canvas rolled into a tube adds almost nothing to its length but a great deal to its girth.
What is volumetric weight and why does it matter?
It is a courier convention that converts the space a parcel occupies into a chargeable weight. For centimetres the standard divisor is 5000, so a 60 by 50 by 12 centimetre parcel has a volumetric weight of 36000 divided by 5000, which is 7.2 kilograms. If the parcel actually weighs 3.1 kilograms, the courier charges for 7.2. A large canvas is nearly always charged on volume rather than weight, which is why the box size matters more than the paint on the canvas.
How do I reduce the shipping cost of a large canvas?
Reduce the volume, not the weight. Sending a canvas rolled in a tube rather than boxed flat can cut the volumetric weight dramatically, because the length is the only large dimension, though it means the buyer has to have it restretched and some buyers will not accept that. For a framed piece the savings come from a tighter box with less void fill, which still has to protect the frame. Compare two couriers on the same measurements, because the divisor, the band boundaries and the surcharges differ.
What is the length plus girth limit?
Many parcel services cap the longest side plus the girth rather than the weight, where girth is twice the width plus twice the height measured around the thickest part. A long thin parcel can be well inside the weight band and still be refused, which is why this calculator reports both the length and the length plus girth against the limits you enter. Check those two limits on the courier price list before promising a delivery date, because an over size parcel may have to go as freight.
Should I insure an original painting when shipping?
Cover is worth having for an original, and it should be set against the retail price rather than the material cost. Check the exclusions carefully: many policies exclude glass, exclude damage where the packing is judged inadequate, and require photographs of the packed parcel and the materials used. Photograph the artwork before packing and the packed parcel before sealing, keep the receipts for the packing materials, and read the terms before you rely on them rather than after something arrives damaged.