Used or new
20 feet open top container
6.06 × 2.44 × 2.59 m outside · 32.5 m³ inside · about 2,245 kg empty
The 20 ft open top is a 20 ft ISO box (22U1) with walls and doors like any other, but its roof is a tarpaulin stretched over steel bows that lift out, and the beam above the doors swings aside: heavy or tall cargo goes in from above, by crane. Inside it measures 5,898 × 2,351 × 2,348 mm (32.5 m³) and typically carries 28,260 kg, as much as a dry 20 ft box. Partner sellers quote it with its bows and tarpaulin, delivered to your PIN code.
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Asking prices differ widely: for a 20 feet open top container, half of the 13 sellers we read on 20 October 2026 ask between ₹1,25,000 and ₹2,50,000, ₹1,25,000 apart. Several quotes show you where the low end is.
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What a 20 ft open top container is used for
Dense cargo reaches the weight limit of a 20 ft box long before it fills the space, and the short open top is often all it needs: granite and marble blocks, castings, machine parts, transformers, tall machines that will not pass under a door frame, glass standing on its racks. The crane sets the load on the floor from above, where a forklift could not reach.
- When the crane is part of every loading, this is the box; with the tarpaulin back on and tied down, it travels closed.
- When the cargo is long rather than heavy, the 40 ft open top gives twice the length, typically for ₹3,50,000 (12 sellers).
- When it is wider than the box, only a 20 ft flat rack takes it.
- For plain storage, a used 20 ft box has a steel roof that needs no tarpaulin.
On marketplaces, the typical asking price is ₹2,00,000 (13 sellers), against ₹1,20,000 for a used dry 20 ft box (20 October 2026). Few of these sellers say what state their open top is in, so ask.
Before you buy a used 20 ft open top
Before paying, ask for a video or a visit where the seller:
- lifts one roof bow out and drops it back into its sockets, since bows bend and go missing on used boxes;
- spreads the tarpaulin, so you can see tears, missing eyelets and the cable that ties it down along the top rails;
- swings the door header open and shut: on a box that has stood unused, its pins rust solid;
- shows the CSC plate (the safety approval of the International Convention for Safe Containers): if the box will go to sea with your cargo, its last examination must still be valid.
Then look at the floor, which takes each load as the crane sets it down, at the lashing rings inside, which hold the load at sea, and at the four corner castings. How to inspect a used container lists the checks that apply to any box.
Dimensions and capacity of the 20 ft open top
| Measure | Size |
|---|---|
| ISO size-type code | 22U1 |
| External size (L × W × H) | 6,058 × 2,438 × 2,591 mm19′ 10½″ × 8′ × 8′ 6″ |
| Internal size (L × W × H) | 5,898 × 2,351 × 2,348 mm19′ 4″ × 7′ 8½″ × 7′ 8½″ |
| Door opening (W × H) | 2,340 × 2,280 mm7′ 8″ × 7′ 6″ |
| Floor area inside | 13.9 m²149 sq ft |
| Inside volume | 32.5 m³1,148 cu ft |
| Tare weight (empty), range 2,170–2,450 kg | 2,245 kg |
| Payload (typical) | 28,260 kg |
| Maximum gross weight | 30,480 or 32,500 kg, depending on the box |
Typical values (median of 6 data sheets published by CMA CGM, Evergreen, Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, ONE and ZIM, 20 October 2026); feet and inches rounded to the nearest half inch. The markings on the doors give the tare and maximum gross weight of each box, the maximum gross also being on its CSC plate: a box rated higher carries more, its maximum gross weight minus its tare. Every size in feet, cm and mm: open top container dimensions.
Weight, lifting and GST
Empty, a 20 ft open top weighs about 2,245 kg (2,170 to 2,450 kg on the data sheets), about as much as a dry box, and its door opening is 2,340 × 2,280 mm, so forklifts can still load through the doors. It is delivered and set down like any 20 ft box (site preparation and unloading); if your crane will load it, the same crane can lift it off the truck. For a box coming from another city, the delivered price estimate gives an order of magnitude. GST is 18% under HSN 8609: ask whether the quote includes it, and see GST on shipping containers for the invoice.
Questions about the 20 ft open top
What does a 20 ft open top container cost in India?
Typically ₹2,00,000: half of the 13 sellers on IndiaMART and TradeIndia ask this or less, and the middle half ask ₹1,25,000 to ₹2,50,000 (20 October 2026). Prices are spread wide and few listings say what state the box is in: ask each seller whether the bows and the tarpaulin are complete, and for photos of the floor, before you compare.
How much weight can a 20 ft open top carry?
Typically 28,260 kg of cargo on the data sheets we read, as much as a dry 20 ft box; a box rated 32,500 kg gross carries more. The markings on the doors give the tare and the maximum gross weight of each box, the CSC plate repeating the maximum gross: the difference is what it can carry. A heavy block on a small footprint needs timber bearers under it to spread the weight on the floor: ask the shipping line or a surveyor how to place it.
Can cargo stand above the walls of a 20 ft open top?
Only as out-of-gauge cargo. Within the walls, a load can stand 2,348 mm high with the tarpaulin on, a little lower than in a standard 20 ft box (2,393 mm); anything taller is accepted by shipping lines and transporters case by case. The open top container guide gives the roof opening and the in-gauge limits.