What is the most common food trailer size?

Dealers sell concession trailers from 6x12 up to 8.5x26 and longer, so there's no single standard. Width is the first number and box length the second. An 8.5-wide trailer gives the most working room inside because it uses the full 102-inch federal width limit outside.

What can fit in a 6x12 concession trailer?

A 6x12 suits a short menu with one cooking station: a hand sink, a compact three-compartment sink, an undercounter refrigerator and one cooking appliance such as a 36-inch griddle, plus the tanks below. Check the tongue weight and your tow vehicle, and confirm the sink setup with your health department.

How tall is the inside of a food trailer?

It depends on the build. Standard enclosed cargo trailers often run about 6 to 7 feet inside; the Renown 8.5x20 cargo model is 78 inches. Concession builds are often ordered with extra height, and California requires 74 inches of headroom over the aisle in occupied units.

Food Trailer Sizes | 6x12, 7x14, 8.5x16, 8.5x20 and 8.5x24

Food trailer sizes are named width by length in feet: a 6x12 is 6 feet wide with a 12-foot box, and an 8.5x20 is 8.5 feet wide with a 20-foot box. Concession dealers commonly sell 6x12, 7x14, 7x16, 8.5x16, 8.5x20, 8.5x24 and 8.5x26. The length doesn’t include the tongue, and the inside is smaller than the name.

Pick the size from the equipment list, not the other way around. Below is what each size measures and what fits inside, using spec-sheet equipment sizes.

What size food trailer do I need?

Start with the equipment you need on one wall. Add up the widths from the spec sheets, add the sinks, and compare that to the box length. Then check the width: two rows of 30-inch-deep equipment plus a 30-inch aisle need about 90 inches inside, which only an 8.5-wide trailer gives you.

Then check towing. A loaded kitchen trailer is heavy, and the tow vehicle has to handle the weight and the tongue load. North Carolina Trailer Sales puts single-axle 6x12 enclosed trailers under 3,000 lb GVWR, tandem-axle versions at 7,000 lb, and 8.5x24 trailers at typically 7,000 to 10,000 lb.

How big is a food trailer inside?

Inside dimensions depend on the builder, so use these as reference points and measure the actual unit. These figures come from cargo trailer shells, which many concession trailers start from:

Size	Inside width	Inside height	Overall length with tongue
7x16 (Renown)	80 in	75 in	19 ft 6 in
8.5x20 (Renown)	96 in wall to wall, 84 in between wheel wells	78 in	23 ft 6 in
6x12 (NC Trailer Sales range)	not listed	6 to 7 ft	not listed
8.5x24 (NC Trailer Sales range)	not listed	6 ft 6 in to 7 ft	not listed

The Renown figures come from its 7x16 vs 8.5x20 comparison, which also lists the 8.5x20 at 102 inches wide outside and 3,200 lb empty. North Carolina Trailer Sales notes the rear door opening is about 6 inches lower than the inside height.

Concession builds are often ordered taller than cargo trailers. Concession Nation says trailers are about a foot wider than step vans and have taller ceilings. If you’ll have staff standing inside, remember that California requires at least 74 inches of clear height over the aisle in occupied mobile food facilities.

What fits in a 6x12 concession trailer?

A 6x12 is a one-station kitchen. With about 144 inches of box length on one wall, a realistic single-line plan looks like this:

A hand-washing sink.
A three-compartment sink. The Advance Tabco K7-CS-21, with 10 by 14 inch bowls and two drainboards, is 58 inches long.
A True TUC-27 undercounter refrigerator, 27-5/8 inches wide, under the prep counter.
One cooking appliance, such as a 36-inch griddle.

That’s about 122 inches before the hand sink and water heater. The width is the real limit: a 6-foot trailer won’t hold a second row of 30-inch-deep equipment with an aisle. It suits coffee, lemonade, hot dogs, shaved ice or a single griddle item.

What fits in a 7x14 concession trailer layout?

A 7x14 adds length and a little width. You can run a full cooking line on one wall (griddle, fryer and a steam table under one hood) with the service window and a narrow counter on the other. Undercounter refrigeration still beats a tall reach-in here, because the True T-23 one-door reach-in alone is 27 inches wide and nearly 30 inches deep.

The food truck layout ideas page shows single-line plans that suit 6x12 and 7x14 boxes.

What fits in an 8.5x16 or 8.5x20 trailer?

At 8.5 feet wide you can run a galley: cooking on one wall, prep and refrigeration on the other, with an aisle between. On the Renown 8.5x20, 96 inches of inside width minus two 30-inch rows leaves 36 inches of aisle, before wall panels and with the wheel wells taking space at floor level.

These sizes handle a full burger or taco menu with a 36-inch griddle, a fryer, a 48-inch sandwich prep table, a reach-in and a three-compartment sink at the back. A 20-foot box also leaves room for dry storage and a second hand sink near the line.

What fits in an 8.5x24 trailer?

An 8.5x24 is a full kitchen on wheels. You can add a second cooking station, an oven, a bigger hood, more refrigeration or a separate prep area. The trade-off is weight and towing: North Carolina Trailer Sales says tongue weight on a loaded 8.5x24 can reach 700 to 1,000 lb, which counts against the tow vehicle’s payload.

Trailer or step van?

A trailer gives you more width and height for the money, and you can unhitch the tow vehicle. A step van is one vehicle, easier to park and quicker to set up. Compare both on paper: the food truck dimensions guide lists step van interiors next to these trailer sizes.

The food trailer layout maker has presets for 6x12, 7x14, 8.5x16, 8.5x20 and 8.5x24 trailers. Pick one, type your trailer’s real inside dimensions, and drag the equipment in to see what fits before you buy.