What Does a Pallet of Empty Water Bottles Cost in Canada?
Short answer. A full skid of new, blank 5 gallon (18 L) PET bottles is $640 for 64 bottles or $800 for 80 at our Mississauga plant. Canadian dollars, before HST, and before freight. That is $10.00 a bottle either way.
But the number most people ask about first is not the one that decides their order. Two things matter more: how tall a skid your loading area can physically take, and how many you are buying. Here is the whole picture.
Two skid heights, and it is not really a price decision
Bottles stack in layers, and the layer count sets both the total and, more importantly, how tall the finished skid stands.
| Skid | Bottles | Price | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 layer | 64 | $640.00 | Straight truck height |
| 5 layer | 80 | $800.00 | Tractor trailer height |
| 2 skids | Prices better than $10.00 | ||
| 3 skids | Better again | ||
| 4 or more | Ask for a quote |
Order the 80 when your dock takes trailer height. Order the 64 when it does not. Getting this wrong means a skid that cannot come off the truck.
The per bottle price is the same either way, so you are not paying for the taller skid. You are choosing the one your receiving door, your ceiling and your truck can handle. A refill shop taking delivery in a lane needs the 64. A distributor with a proper dock takes the 80 and halves the number of skids for the same bottle count.
A loaded skid is roughly 48 by 40 inches on the base. Empty of water, the whole thing weighs around 220 lb, which surprises people who expect a pallet to be heavy.
Why this one
This is where most quotes go wrong, and it is worth understanding before you ask anyone for a number.
Freight carriers do not price a skid on weight alone. They price it on density, which is weight divided by the space it takes up. A pallet of empty bottles is mostly air, so it takes up a lot of space for very little weight.
| Same skid | Weight | Density | Freight cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty bottles | about 220 lb | 3.3 lb per cubic foot | Expensive band |
| Filled with water | about 3,200 lb | 48 lb per cubic foot | Cheapest band |
The identical skid is roughly fifteen times denser once it is full. Empty bottles are one of the more expensive things per pound that a carrier will put on a truck.
What that means in practice: if a supplier quotes you freight that looks suspiciously cheap for a pallet of empties, it has likely been rated on weight. The carrier will re measure it on delivery and the difference lands on somebody’s invoice.
So what will it actually cost you
Add three things together:
- The bottles. $640 for 64, or $800 for 80. Two or three skids price better than $10.00 a bottle. Four or more, ask.
- Freight, if you need it. Priced on your postal code and how many skids are going. Pickup at our Verbena Road plant is free, and for anyone inside the GTA it is often worth the drive.
- HST.
Buying fewer than a skid is fine too. Bottles are $10.00 each on their own, the same as they are on a skid, so there is no penalty for starting small.
Going past one skid
The prices above are what a single skid costs, self serve, no conversation required. Two skids and three skids price better than $10.00. Four or more we quote to your volume.
A standing order prices better again, because a forecast lets us plan a production run around you instead of pulling stock off the shelf. So when you ask, tell us the year rather than the week. Someone taking a skid a month is a different conversation from someone taking one skid once.
Wholesale is prepaid. Payment is required before we ship, on every order and every account. We do not offer credit terms, which is part of why the price is what it is.
Does distance change the answer
Yes, more than for almost anything else you buy. Because empty bottles freight badly, the further you are from the plant the larger a share of your landed cost the trucking becomes. Inside the Greater Toronto Area we are very competitive. Across southern Ontario we are still worth quoting. Past that, we will give you a straight answer rather than a hopeful one.
It is also why buying from a supplier in the United States rarely works out the way the sticker price suggests. Cross border freight on a low density load, plus brokerage, plus the exchange rate, tends to erase the difference.
Caps are the opposite. A case of 660 caps is small and heavy for its size, so we ship those anywhere in Canada without the freight swallowing the saving.
A note on what you are buying
Ours are new bottles, blow moulded at our own plant from virgin food grade PET. They are BPA free, blank and unlabelled, with the standard 55 mm neck that fits ordinary caps and dispensers. Reconditioned returnable bottles are a different product with a different price, so it is worth being clear which one you are comparing when you shop around.
Blank bottles carry no deposit. They are sold outright and cannot be redeemed for a bottle deposit refund. Our $10 deposit applies only to labelled Puretap bottles supplied filled through our water service.
Frequently asked questions
How many empty water bottles fit on a pallet?
Either 64 or 80 for a 5 gallon bottle, depending on whether the skid is stacked 4 layers for a straight truck or 5 layers for a tractor trailer. A 3 gallon bottle stacks tighter, so a skid holds 100 or 124.
What does a pallet of empty water bottles cost in Canada?
$640 for 64 bottles or $800 for 80 at our Mississauga plant, before HST and freight. That is $10.00 a bottle either way.
Why is freight so expensive on empty bottles?
Carriers price on density, not weight. A skid of empties runs about 3.3 lb per cubic foot against 48 for the same skid filled, which puts it in an expensive freight class.
Is it cheaper to pick up?
Yes, and often by a lot. Pickup at 950 Verbena Road in Mississauga is free, Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 15:30.
Get a price on your skid
Tell us how many skids and your postal code, and mention your yearly volume if you have one. Larger and repeating orders price better than the published rate. We quote the bottles and the freight together, same business day.
Ask for wholesale pricing, or call 905 670 7400.
Puretap Water Distillers Ltd., 950 Verbena Road, Mississauga, Ontario. Serving the GTA since 1986.
