Shipping Container Grades and Types: One-Trip, Cargo Worthy, Wind-and-Watertight, As-Is Explained

By Paul LeBlanc, owner, Van Blanc Ent. Inc., and Christian LeBlanc, second-generation operator. Brantford, Ontario.

Last updated: May 25, 2026

How many real container grades exist in Canada?

The Canadian container market has exactly four real grades. Every unit on every legitimate yard belongs to one of them. The grade determines the price (typically a 2x spread from As-Is to One-Trip for the same size), the condition, and the right use case. Buyers who do not learn the grade vocabulary end up paying One-Trip prices for Cargo Worthy units or buying As-Is by accident.

This guide covers each grade in order from highest to lowest, what it actually means physically, when it is the right answer, and the deep-dive articles on our site that go further into each one. The terminology is industry-standard – any legitimate Canadian container yard uses the same four grade names. Sellers who use marketing terms instead (“refurbished,” “premium used,” “like new”) are usually obscuring which actual grade their unit is.

What are the four container grades, from premium to budget?

1. One-Trip (sometimes called New)

Single voyage from the manufacturer in China, Korea, or Vietnam to North America. The container was loaded with cargo to offset the shipping cost of bringing it across the Pacific, then unloaded at a Canadian or US port and entered the resale inventory. Functionally essentially new: original factory paint, no rust, doors operate cleanly, intact gaskets and weatherseals, minor cosmetic wear from the single ocean crossing. 25+ year functional life. The premium tier – typically delivered for a 20ft for a 40ft.

Right answer for: any container that will be visible (residential placement, commercial frontage, customer-facing retail), any conversion build where appearance matters, presentation-conscious commercial use, and any application where the box’s first-year cosmetic state is part of the value.

2. Cargo Worthy (CW)

Used containers that have been re-inspected for international ocean shipping certification. Multiple voyages completed, CSC plate intact and valid for further use, structural frame and floor inspected for heavy-duty load capacity. Cosmetic state: surface rust spots, paint variance, occasional minor dents, but no holes or daylight. The mid-grade and the sweet spot for most Canadian buyers – typically delivered for a 20ft for a 40ft.

Right answer for: most Canadian buyers most of the time. Working storage, farm use, commercial backlot, hobby-farm equipment lockup, contractor parts storage, industrial yard work. The grade that does the actual work in 60-70% of our deliveries.

3. Wind-and-Watertight (WWT)

Used containers guaranteed weather-resistant and rodent-proof but NOT re-certified for further international ocean shipping (the CSC plate may have expired). Sound structure with no leaks and no daylight, but visible cosmetic wear – surface rust on panels, occasional dents, faded paint, possibly some marker or stencil residue from prior cargo. Doors close and seal. The budget grade for buyers who do not need cosmetic appeal – typically delivered for a 20ft for a 40ft.

Right answer for: hidden placements (behind buildings, at the back of yards, inside enclosed industrial sites), farm storage, household renovation overflow, equipment shelter, any working application where the container is doing pure storage and appearance does not matter to the use.

4. As-Is

The bottom tier. Sold as it stands, no warranty, no guarantee of weathertight integrity. May have holes in the roof or sides, may have floor damage, may have door operation issues, structural integrity not guaranteed. Pricing is roughly 30-50% below WWT – typically for a 20ft for a 40ft.

Right answer for: buyers planning major modifications who will be cutting new openings or doing structural work anyway, art and conversion projects where the box’s defects can be repaired or designed around, DIY buyers with welding capability who can fix issues themselves, container-stacking structural reuse for multi-container builds. NOT the right answer for anyone who needs the container to actually keep weather out on day one without further work.

The honest As-Is conversation: we sell As-Is units when we have them, with photos documenting the specific defects on each unit. We rarely recommend them unless the buyer explicitly knows what they need it for and has the capability to deal with the issues. The cost savings versus WWT are real, but for most buyers most of the time, those savings get consumed in repair work or end up creating a container that does not meet the actual storage need.

What other container grade terms will you encounter, and what do they mean?

The four grades above are the real ones. Other terms you may see in the Canadian container market:

“New.” Functionally One-Trip in 99% of cases. True factory-new units that never went on a ship exist but are rare and expensive. When a seller says “new container” they almost always mean One-Trip.

“Refurbished.” Not a real grade. Usually means a Cargo Worthy or WWT unit that has been repainted and had basic touch-up work done. Ask which of the four real grades the unit actually is before the refurb.

“Premium Used.” Marketing language. Usually a Cargo Worthy unit with extra cosmetic work. Same question – which of the four real grades.

“Like New.” Marketing language. Almost always One-Trip if honest, sometimes Cargo Worthy if dishonest.

“Reefer.” Refers to refrigerated container, not a grade. Reefers can be One-Trip, Cargo Worthy, or WWT in their refrigeration condition – the grade applies separately to the box itself and to the refrigeration unit.

How do you verify the grade of the container you are buying?

Every real container has a CSC plate (Container Safety Convention) riveted to the cargo door interior. The plate carries the original manufacture date, the rated payload, the serial number, and the original CSC certification expiry date. A real Cargo Worthy unit has a valid (re-)inspected CSC plate. A WWT unit may have an expired CSC plate. A One-Trip unit is too new to have any CSC issues.

The buyer-side verification: ask for the CSC plate serial number on the invoice. Walk the actual unit at the yard if possible. Read the plate. Match the serial number on the plate to the serial number on the invoice. Any seller refusing to provide the serial number on the invoice is not someone to buy from.

Featured deep-dives in the grades and types family

The full grades and types spoke index

Individual grade deep-dives

• One-Trip Shipping Container Canada
• One-Trip Shipping Container Cost Ontario
• Cargo Worthy Shipping Container Canada
• Wind & Watertight (WWT) Grade Explained
• Container Condition Grading System Canada

New vs used comparisons

• New vs Used Ontario
• New vs Used Canada
• Refurbished vs New Ontario
• One-Trip vs Cargo Worthy

CSC and certification

• CSC Recertification Cost Ontario
• Inspection Checklist Ontario
• Used Container Buying Guide
• Used Buying Guide Ontario (Inspection + Scam)

Types and configurations

• Container Types in Canada
• Refrigerated Container (Reefer)
• Reefer Container Ontario
• Insulated Container

What customers actually say

“We could actually go and look at the containers and pick whichever one we wanted and there was a sheet that gave the serial number and told us the price. I have to say anytime I called didn’t matter when, weekends, Paul always answers the phone and is absolutely polite.”

– Verna H., May 2024, Google review

The “go and look at the containers and pick whichever one we wanted” pattern is what real grade-verification looks like in practice. The buyer reads the CSC plate, confirms the grade against the invoice, and commits to a specific unit by serial number. Any container yard that refuses to let you do this is not a yard you should buy from.

Frequently asked questions about shipping container grades

Pick the right grade for your use case

The grade decision is downstream of the use case decision. Visible placement = One-Trip. Working storage = Cargo Worthy. Hidden storage = Wind-and-Watertight. Heavy-modification project with welding capability = As-Is. Browse current inventory and pricing across all grades, or jump to the specific size + grade combination you need on our 20ft, 40ft, 40ft HC, 45ft HC, 53ft HC, 20ft Reefer, or 40ft HC Reefer pages.

Or call to walk through the grade decision before committing: 519-754-6844 or 1-888-509-6658.