Buy or Lease 20ft & 40ft Containers Worldwide
Buy new and used shipping containers with certified quality and global sourcing support. MG-Atlantic delivers 20ft and 40HC units worldwide to all major ports and inland locations.
Global supplier of new & used 20ft, 40ft and 40ft High Cube containers. Available from major ports worldwide with fast quotation and transparent pricing.
MG-Atlantic supplies 20ft and 40ft shipping containers through a global depot network across 80+ countries. We provide fast quotation, transparent pricing, and flexible purchase or leasing programmes.
Container Types
- 20ft Standard Container (20DC), The industry standard for global freight, storage and intermodal transport. Volume: 33.2 m³, Payload: 28,280 kg.
- 20ft High Cube Container (20HC), Same 20ft footprint with 9'6" height and ≈ 37 m³ — about 12% more volume than a 20DC. Niche unit with patchy depot availability.
- 40ft Standard Container (40DC), Doubles the loading length for high-volume shipments. Volume: 67.7 m³, Payload: 26,700 kg.
- 40ft High Cube Container (40HC), The preferred unit for voluminous cargo with 76.3 m³ capacity. Most popular for SOC one-way leasing.
In addition to container sales, MG-Atlantic provides flexible leasing solutions including one-way SOC programmes and long-term fleet deployment.
- What container types are available and which are standard?
- The container catalog focuses on the three standard dry types that carry over 85% of world container traffic: 20DC (20 ft dry, industry workhorse for dense heavy cargo, 33 m³ interior, MGW 24 t), 40DC (40 ft standard-height dry, 67 m³ interior, MGW 30-32 t), and 40HC (40 ft high-cube dry, with one extra foot of interior height, 76 m³ interior, MGW 30-32 t, now dominant in new-build production). All three follow the ISO 668 standard for interchangeable dimensions and lifting points. Niche and specialized types (10DC, 45HC, refrigerated, tank, flat-rack, open-top) exist but are quoted case-by-case rather than catalogued here, see the container-types-explained resource for the full taxonomy.
- What are the key physical differences between 20DC, 40DC and 40HC?
- Three metrics matter for most decisions. Footprint: 20DC is 6.06 m long, 40DC and 40HC are both 12.19 m long. Height: 20DC and 40DC share the same 2.59 m exterior height; 40HC adds a foot on top for 2.90 m exterior (2.70 m interior). Volume: 20DC = 33 m³, 40DC = 67 m³, 40HC = 76 m³. Road-legal payload: 20DC handles about 21-22 t, 40DC and 40HC both handle 26-27 t (same chassis limits, the extra volume of 40HC does not come with extra weight allowance). See the container-size-guide resource for the full dimensions matrix and the 20dc-vs-40hc-container-size guide for the size-vs-cost decision framework.
- Which container type should I pick for my use case?
- Dense heavy cargo (machinery, tiles, canned goods, bottled liquids): 20DC, you'll hit the road-legal weight limit before filling the box, so paying for extra volume adds no value. Light voluminous cargo (textiles, furniture, packaged consumer goods): 40HC, the extra 30 cm of interior height and larger volume lower your cost per cubic meter shipped. Standard mixed freight, height-restricted routes: 40DC still fits some corridors (double-stack rail with 2.59 m clearance) where 40HC cannot pass. For modification projects (site cabin, workshop, container home), 40HC dominates because the interior height changes the ergonomics dramatically. Full decision framework in the 20dc-vs-40hc-container-size and buying-vs-leasing guides.
- Why aren't refrigerated, tank, or specialized containers in the standard catalog?
- The catalog focuses on standard dry types because they represent the bulk of demand and follow uniform pricing, availability and delivery patterns. Specialized types have distinct economics: refrigerated (reefer) containers require power and monitoring during transit and are quoted per route and cargo profile. Tank containers require type-specific inspection cycles depending on cargo class (food-grade, chemical, gas). Flat-rack, open-top, half-height and side-door units serve project cargo with unique lashing, coverage and access constraints. These are quoted case-by-case, the underlying decision logic (size vs density, grade vs load path) from the standard guides still applies as a starting point.
- How do I get a quote or check live availability?
- The live inventory is browsable on the container-stock section by region and city, active depot units are surfaced there in real time with location and grade. For a formal quote, share your target city or port, the size and grade you need, and whether you want purchase or lease (one-way (SOC, one-way) or long-term). A depot-level response usually returns within 24 hours with landed cost including inland transport, taxes and any modification. If you don't yet know the right size and grade, work through the 20dc-vs-40hc-container-size guide first, then container-grades-explained, then container-buying-guide, the answers converge quickly on the right specification.