Box Lockers & Multi-Tier Steel Lockers
Four-, five- and six-tier steel box lockers that give every employee a lockable spot for a wallet, keys, lunch or a small bag — in a fraction of the wall space of full-height lockers. Shop Lyon and Tennsco box lockers online or send us your headcount for a free layout and quote.
4–6 Tiers
Doors stacked in each column
Up to 18
Doors in one three-wide unit
12″–18″
Common box depths listed
Free Layout
Headcount and wall planning
What Are Box Lockers?
A box locker is a steel locker column divided into several small, roughly square compartments, each with its own door and lock. Where a single-tier locker gives one person a full-height space, a box locker stacks four, five or six doors in the same footprint, so one column serves four to six people. You will also see them called multi-tier lockers, 5-tier or 6-tier lockers, or cube lockers.
They are built for the things people carry, not the clothes they wear: wallets, keys, phones, lunch, a purse, a tablet, safety glasses or a small bag. That makes them the densest way to give every person on a shift their own lockable spot, especially where floor space is tight or headcount keeps growing.
This page is part of our employee lockers and steel lockers guide. If your people need to hang coats or change into uniforms, start there to compare taller single- and double-tier lockers.
Box locker or smart locker?
Box lockers on this page use padlocks or built-in mechanical locks and are usually assigned to one person. If you need PIN or badge access, day-use assignment or an access log, compare our smart locker systems instead.
Box Locker Styles and Configurations
Every box locker shares the same idea — small doors, many users — but the tier count, door style and mounting change how a bank works day to day. These are the configurations in our online catalog from Lyon and Tennsco.
Box lockers with hanging space. Some buyers want box-locker density but still need somewhere to hang coats. Combination units solve that by placing columns of box lockers on each side of an open coat-rod bay. Tennsco’s brochure describes a 16-person locker with sixteen 12″ × 12″ × 18″ openings and an included coat rod of about 48″, and our catalog also lists 15-person Tennsco box locker units.
The trade-off: coats hang in a shared, unlocked bay, so this works best where the room itself is controlled, such as a staff-only break room.
Box Locker Sizes and Dimensions
Box lockers are listed by overall width × depth × height, and by whether the unit is one column wide or three. The compartment size follows from those numbers: most box lockers have 12″ wide doors about 12″ high, with the depth of the locker setting how much fits inside.
| Dimension | Common options in our catalog | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Width per column | 12″ (most common), 15″ in some five-tier lines | Users per foot of wall and whether a lunch bag fits flat |
| Depth | 12″, 15″ or 18″ (Lyon also lists 21″ clear-front six-tier) | Whether a purse, hard hat, laptop bag or small cooler fits |
| Overall height | 54″ four-tier, 66″ five-tier, 78″ six-tier (with 6″ legs) | Reach to the top door and sightlines across the room |
| Units | One-wide or three-wide | Three-wide units bolt into long banks with fewer seams |
| Legs | With 6″ legs or without (closed or raised base) | Cleaning underneath vs. a closed, dirt-free base |
Sizes compiled from the Lyon and Tennsco box locker listings in our online catalog and Tennsco’s locker brochure. Nominal sizes describe the outside of each compartment; the clear opening inside the door frame is smaller. If a specific item must fit — a tablet case, a respirator or a small cooler — we confirm the manufacturer’s clear opening dimensions before you order.
Depth matters more than people expect. A 12″-deep box holds a wallet, keys, a phone and a slim lunch bag. An 18″-deep box takes a purse, a small backpack or a hard hat. If you are unsure, measure the largest item a typical person brings on an ordinary day, then add a little room.
Height sets comfort. On a 78″ six-tier locker the top door sits well above shoulder height and the bottom door is near the floor. For crews where bending and reaching matter, a five-tier or four-tier unit can be the better choice even though it holds fewer people.
How Many People a Box Locker Bank Serves
The reason to choose box lockers is capacity. Using 12″-wide columns, here is how many individual lockers fit along the same wall.
| Locker type (12″ columns) | Doors per column | Doors per three-wide unit | Doors per 12 ft of wall |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-tier | 1 | 3 | 12 |
| Double-tier | 2 | 6 | 24 |
| Four-tier box | 4 | 12 | 48 |
| Five-tier box | 5 | 15 | 60 |
| Six-tier box | 6 | 18 | 72 |
Twelve feet of wall holds twelve single-tier lockers or seventy-two six-tier box lockers. That is why many facilities pair a short run of full-height lockers for staff who change clothes with a larger box locker bank for everyone else. Remember that people do not all arrive at once, but they do cluster at shift change — plan the aisle in front of the bank for the peak crowd, not the average.
- Count lockable spaces, not columns. One three-wide six-tier unit is eighteen users.
- Plan for peak shift overlap plus room for seasonal staff, contractors and new hires.
- Leave end space for end panels and so the last door does not swing into a walkway.
- Keep the aisle clear so someone can stand at an open door while another person passes.
Box Locker Construction and Security
Small doors take a lot of opening and closing, so construction details matter. These are the published specifications for the box locker lines in our online catalog.
| Feature | What to look for | Published example |
|---|---|---|
| Steel gauge | Lower gauge number = thicker steel; frames and doors take the abuse. | Lyon standard four-, five- and six-tier lockers: 16-gauge doors, 24-gauge body (Lyon product listings). Tennsco ventilated lockers: 14-gauge doors, 16-gauge frames (Tennsco spec). |
| Welded vs. unassembled | Welded units are more rigid and faster to set; unassembled units ship flat. | Lyon lists assembled and unassembled box lockers; Tennsco lists its C-Thru and ventilated box lockers as welded only. |
| Door style | Louvered steel, perforated steel or clear plastic. | Lyon ClearSight: polycarbonate doors. Tennsco C-Thru box lockers: one-piece molded clear doors with an X-shaped rib (Tennsco spec). |
| Locking | Padlock hasp as standard; built-in locks remove padlock management. | Steel pull handle with padlock hasp on Lyon box lockers; Tennsco lists padlock hasps with optional built-in locks. |
| Ventilation | Louvers for general use; perforated doors for damp items. | Lyon lists 3-1/2″-wide door louvers; Tennsco offers fully perforated ventilated box lockers. |
| Finish | Powder coat resists chipping and cleans easily. | Tennsco specifies a polyester/epoxy powder finish over a five-stage pretreatment. |
Summarized from Tennsco’s locker brochure and ventilated/C-Thru locker specification, Lyon’s ClearSight product pages and the Lyon box locker listings in our catalog. Manufacturers update specifications; we confirm the current sheet for your exact model.
Padlocks, built-in locks or electronic access?
Padlock hasps are the lowest-cost option and let each employee bring or be issued a lock. They work well where lockers are permanently assigned. The downside is managing cut locks and lost combinations when people leave.
Built-in combination or key locks keep the front of the bank flush and give the supervisor a master key or control code, which makes reassigning a locker simple.
Electronic access makes sense when lockers change hands daily, when you want an access record, or when visitors and contractors need short-term storage. That moves you out of standard box lockers and into smart locker systems.
Whatever you choose, number the doors. Number plates make assignment lists, audits and move-outs far easier on a bank of sixty or seventy small doors.
Where Box Lockers Work Best
Box lockers suit any workplace where people need a secure spot for personal items but do not need to change clothes at work. These are the settings we plan them for most often.
Planning and Installing a Box Locker Bank
Start with the wall, not the catalog. Measure each usable run, note doors, outlets, windows, fire extinguishers and anything mounted on the wall, and check the floor for level. Then decide how many people need a locker at peak and which tier count makes the top and bottom doors comfortable for them.
Box lockers are relatively light and tall, so they should be secured. Tennsco strongly recommends that all lockers be anchored to the floor or wall; three-wide units are also bolted to each other so the bank acts as one piece. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions and your facility requirements. Wall-mounted box lockers must go into structure that can carry the loaded weight.
Planning a full locker room with benches and circulation? Our locker room design guide covers layout and accessibility.
Send headcount and space
Tell us how many people, what they store and the wall runs available — a sketch or photos are enough to start.
Choose tiers and depth
We match four-, five- or six-tier units and a box depth to what people actually bring, and mix in full-height lockers where needed.
Layout and quote
You get a layout with unit counts, locks, numbering and trim, plus freight, and installation if you want it.
Deliver and install
Freight to your site and optional installation, bank assembly and anchoring coordinated to your schedule.
A catalog listing is not a stock guarantee. Some common box locker sizes are in stock at select manufacturers, subject to confirmation, and we confirm availability and lead time on every quote. In Utah, our Salt Lake City team plans and installs lockers statewide — see our Utah lockers page or call 801-328-8788. For the Tennsco range, visit our Tennsco lockers page, or browse every locker category in our lockers directory.
Shop Steel Box Lockers Online
Order five- and six-tier box lockers online, or request a quote for a full bank with numbering, freight and installation.
Box Locker FAQs
What is a box locker?
What is the difference between 5-tier and 6-tier lockers?
What size are box locker compartments?
What fits in a box locker?
Do box lockers need to be anchored?
Can box lockers have built-in locks?
Do you have box lockers in stock?
Plan Your Box Locker Bank
Send your headcount and wall space, and we will recommend tiers, sizes and a layout with a free quote.