---
title: "Aircraft carrier vs container ship — size, weight and speed co"
description: "Container ship is 2× aircraft carrier on weight. Compared on 4 measured properties, with the full range and a source for each."
url: https://atoneplace.net/vs/aircraft-carrier-vs-container-ship/
site: "At One Place"
---

# Aircraft carrier vs Container ship

**Aircraft carrier vs container ship: Container ship is larger on weight**

Container ship is 2× aircraft carrier on weight.

An aircraft carrier and a container ship can be compared on 4 measures. The figures below are typical adult or full-size values, with the larger of the two in bold.

## Side by side

*Larger value in bold. Ranges reflect genuine variation, not uncertainty.*

|  | Aircraft carrier | Container ship |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weight | 101,600–106,300 t | 199,600 t |
| Height | 74 m | 33 m |
| Length | 332.8 m | 300–400 m |
| Width | 76.8 m | 61.5 m |

## What the numbers say

- Container ship is 2× aircraft carrier on weight.
- Aircraft carrier is 2.2× container ship on height.
- Container ship is somewhat greater than aircraft carrier on length — about 1.2×.
- Aircraft carrier is somewhat greater than container ship on width — about 1.2×.

*Weight compared.*

- Container ship: 199,600 t
- Aircraft carrier: 101,600–106,300 t

## Aircraft carrier

A US Navy Nimitz-class supercarrier, the standard against which "the size of an aircraft carrier" is measured.

## Container ship

An ultra-large container vessel in the class of Ever Given, carrying over 20,000 twenty-foot containers.

> This is a comparison of published measurements, nothing more. It describes how two things differ on measures that have been recorded; it does not predict how they would fare against each other in any situation.

## Common questions

### Which is bigger, aircraft carrier or container ship?

Container ship is 2× aircraft carrier on weight. Both figures are typical values; the full range for each is in the table above.

### How do aircraft carriers and container ships compare on height?

Aircraft carrier: 74 m. Container ship: 33 m. Aircraft carrier is 2.2× container ship on height.

### How do aircraft carriers and container ships compare on length?

Aircraft carrier: 332.8 m. Container ship: 300–400 m. Container ship is somewhat greater than aircraft carrier on length — about 1.2×.

## Related pages

- [Aircraft carrier vs cruise ship](https://atoneplace.net/vs/aircraft-carrier-vs-cruise-ship/)
- [Aircraft carrier vs RMS Titanic](https://atoneplace.net/vs/aircraft-carrier-vs-titanic/)
- [Container ship vs cruise ship](https://atoneplace.net/vs/container-ship-vs-cruise-ship/)
- [Container ship vs RMS Titanic](https://atoneplace.net/vs/container-ship-vs-titanic/)
- [Aircraft carrier vs nuclear submarine](https://atoneplace.net/vs/aircraft-carrier-vs-nuclear-submarine/)

## Sources

- Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (https://www.wikidata.org/) [CC0 1.0]