Stretch wrap gauge chart
Match the gauge to the weight on the pallet: 63 gauge up to about 2,200 pounds, 70 to 80 gauge for 2,200 to 2,400, 90 gauge up to 2,600, and 100 to 115 gauge for 3,000 pounds and up.1 Then adjust for sharp corners, pre-stretch and how the load is wrapped.
| Gauge | Thickness | Load weight |
|---|---|---|
| 63 ga | 0.63 mil | Up to 2,200 lb |
| 70 ga | 0.7 mil | 2,200 to 2,400 lb |
| 80 ga | 0.8 mil | |
| 90 ga | 0.9 mil | Up to 2,600 lb |
| 100–115 ga | 1.0–1.15 mil | 3,000 lb and up |
How to read it
Gauge is film thickness in hundredths of a mil, so 80 gauge is 0.8 mil.2 The chart pairs a thickness with the heaviest load it should be asked to hold. Weigh a typical pallet, not the lightest, and read across. If you sit on a boundary, take the heavier step for loads that travel far or get handled roughly.
Two gauges sit off the ends of this chart. 60 gauge is below its lightest step and belongs on machines that pre-stretch hard. 120 gauge is above its heaviest and is bought for loads that cut film rather than for sheer weight.
Three things that move the answer
Pre-stretch
The chart is about the film on the roll. On a wrapper with a powered carriage, film stretches 150 to 350 percent before it touches the load; by hand it is 25 to 100.3 One wrapper maker says 65 gauge pre-stretched 250 percent is about 26 gauge on the load, and that the industry average has fallen from 80 gauge to about 65 over fifteen years for that reason.2 Pre-stretched hand film is sold by equivalent gauge: compare it on that.1
The shape of the load
Sharp corners, protruding parts and loose tops tear film long before weight is a problem. Take a step up, choose blown film, or put corner boards on before you wrap.
How many layers go on
Thin film wrapped many times can hold what thicker film wrapped fewer times holds. What matters is containment force, the squeeze of all the layers together, checked at the top, middle and bottom of the load.6
The two rolls most people buy
At 80 gauge, the common hand roll is 18 inches by 1,500 feet on a 3 inch core, four to a case,4 and the common machine roll is 20 inches by 5,000 feet, about 32 pounds, rated in one listing for loads up to 2,500 pounds.5 Both land in the chart's 70 to 80 band. Start there, then move up or down by what you see on your own loads.
Signs the gauge is wrong
The pallet tells you before any chart does. Film that splits at the corners, or tears where an operator snags it, is too light for the load or the wrong type for it. Film that narrows into a rope as it goes on is being pulled harder than its thickness can take. A top tier that slides off in the trailer, or cases that bulge out between wraps, means the containment is too low, which can be fixed with more turns as often as with thicker film. And film that is still slack after the wrap is finished is usually too heavy: the operator, or the carriage, cannot stretch it enough to put any squeeze on the load.
Trying a lighter step
Most docks that change gauge go lighter, because thicker film was bought years ago "to be safe". Do it as a trial, not a switch. Wrap a week of ordinary loads with the lighter roll, keep the pattern the same, and measure containment force on a sample from each shift. Ask the receiving end to report damage. If the numbers hold, buy the lighter roll; if the top of the load drops, add a top turn before going back up a gauge.
Some charts online run from 47 to 150 gauge. We have only printed the steps the named guide gives, so every figure here can be checked.
Where the chart comes from
The steps above are from one supplier's published buying guide, named in the sources. Other suppliers publish similar tables with slightly different bands.
Pre-stretched rolls on the chart
Read pre-stretched film against the chart by its equivalent gauge, as the buying guide advises.
Heavier isn't safer by default
Thick film that operators can't stretch holds less than thinner film stretched properly.
Questions readers ask
- Our pallets vary from 800 to 2,800 pounds. One gauge or two?
- Two is often cheaper than one. Run a lighter film for the bulk of ordinary loads and keep a heavier roll, or a blown one, at a second wrapper or a marked dispenser for the heavy exceptions. If only a handful of loads are heavy, extra base and top turns on the regular film may be enough.
- Does the chart apply to hand wrapping?
- Yes, as a starting point, and arguably more so: by hand the film is stretched less, so the thickness on the roll is closer to what reaches the load. Machines thin the film more, which is why sites with powered carriages often run a step lighter than the chart suggests.
- Why does my supplier recommend a higher gauge than the chart?
- Sometimes for good reasons, such as sharp corners, long hauls or a load that has failed before. Sometimes from habit. Ask what the recommendation is based on, and test the lighter step on a sample of loads.
- Does pallet type matter?
- Yes: plastic pallets are slicker, so base turns matter more.
Sources
- AAA Polymer, "A guide to buying stretch wrap film" (reviewed 2026-11-13)
- Lantech, "Blown vs. cast: how is stretch film made?" (reviewed 2026-11-13)
- Colony Packaging, "4 differences between stretch film and shrink film" (reviewed 2026-11-13)
- Interplas, 18 in x 1,500 ft x 80 ga blown hand stretch wrap (product listing) (reviewed 2026-11-13)
- Uline, machine-length cast stretch film, 80 gauge, 20 in x 5,000 ft (product listing) (reviewed 2026-11-13)
- Lantech, "Use the force: containment force is the key to safe pallet loads" (reviewed 2026-11-13)
Facts on this page last reviewed 2026-11-13.