Buy desk: Grade A
Grade A pallets: no repairs, none needed
ORLANDO — A Grade A pallet has had no repairs and needs none. It is the used grade food and outbound retail loads usually ask for, and the one a May stack loses first when August rain comes.
The definition
Grade A is also called grade 1. In practice it is the best of the used pallets: every deck board is whole, every stringer or block is sound, and nothing has been nailed on to fix it. The test is not whether the pallet is new, because it is not. The test is whether it has ever needed repair.
What it allows
- No replaced deck boards, plates or plugs.
- No broken or cracked parts of any kind.
- Wear that does not change how the pallet performs, such as stains and surface scuffs.
The loads it suits
| Load | Why Grade A |
|---|---|
| Outbound retail and grocery | A receiving dock inspects the pallet; a repair is a reason to reject it |
| Food distribution | Cleanliness and sound boards matter; see the food page |
| Automated lines | Even height and board spacing keep a conveyor moving |
| Heavy or tall stacks | a pallet that has never been repaired has not already split once |
How a Grade A stack looks
In a sorted stack, Grade A pallets sit square, with straight edges and matching board spacing. If you can run a hand along the side and feel no mismatched board or plug, that stack is probably Grade A. A pallet with a lighter, newer board among darker ones has been repaired, and is Grade B.
Dry first
Grade A says nothing about moisture. A Grade A pallet that sat in an Orlando August storm is not a food-grade pallet until it has dried below 20 percent moisture. Ask how the stack was stored, and read the moisture guide when it matters.
How rare a repair-free pallet is
In the Virginia Tech and Forest Service survey, the stack that recyclers had sorted as Grade A still averaged 0.15 stringer repairs per pallet, about one repair for every seven pallets, even in the best group. The grade is a judgement made by eye at speed, so it pays to look at the stack and not only the label.
A quick test at the dock is to sight along the pallet from the end. Deck boards should sit level, the three stringers should show no companion timber beside them, and the bottom boards should match the top in thickness. Any board of a visibly different colour was fitted later.
Questions to put to the seller
- How was the stack stored between May and October?
- Is every pallet in it the same size and the same build, stringer or block?
- Are any boards replaced, even if the pallet is otherwise clean?
- Does the receiving dock inspect pallets, or only weigh the load?
Marks that do not lower the grade
A Grade A pallet is judged on repairs and soundness, not on looks. Blue stain, the grey-blue streaks that a fungus leaves in southern pine sapwood, is cosmetic and does not weaken the board. Tight knots, a little bark left on an edge, nail heads rusted brown and surface weathering to grey are all acceptable. Printed marks from a previous shipper, or a company stencil, do not change the grade either.
What does lower it is anything that changes how the pallet carries a load: a split running through a deck board, a chipped lead board, a nail standing proud of the surface, or a splinter that can catch a carton or a glove. The buyer who looks at a Grade A stack should look for those, not for colour.
Sources
Last reviewed 12 November 2026.