Guide

6 Numbers to Check Before You Buy a Dog Crate

By Erman Burak Satana, CEO of WLO · Published Oct 23, 2026 · Updated Oct 23, 2026

Oak WLO Pueblo beside a sofa in a sunlit living room — Photo: customer review. WLO Gabled Size 2.

Short answer: the outside size on a crate listing tells you whether it fits your room. It does not tell you how much room your dog gets, what the walls are made of or what is in the box. Check these six numbers on any crate, and if a listing does not show one, ask the seller before you buy. We build crates in our own shop in Lexington, North Carolina, and the WLO numbers below come from the production drawings we cut our panels from.

Key takeaways

Compare crates by inside floor in square inches, not by outside size.
Inside height minus the cushion is the headroom your dog actually gets.
Ask for the panel material by name and its thickness in millimeters.
Check whether a cushion is in the box and how thick it is.
Check whether a listed weight is the product or the shipping box, and what the latch is made of.

1. Inside floor, not outside size

Walls take space. A crate's inside floor can be several inches smaller than its outside size in each direction, and floor space shrinks by length and width together. Look for "inside" or "interior" length and width.

Your dog should be able to stand up and turn around, and lie flat on its side.
Multiply inside length by inside width to compare crates in square inches.

WLO lists it: 27 × 19.4, 36 × 25.8 and 43 × 30.9 in, which is 524, 929 and 1,329 sq in.

Oak WLO Gabled in Sizes 1, 2 and 3 side by side, each with a dog inside — WLO Gabled in Sizes 1, 2 and 3.

2. Inside height

Measure your dog from the floor to the top of the head while standing, and add a few inches. A bed or pad on the floor takes some of that height. Diggs, for example, sells a pad 2 to 2.75 in thick for the Revol (diggs.com, read October 20, 2026).

WLO lists it: on the Gabled, 23.8, 32.1 and 38.6 in at the peak of the roof.

3. Panel material and thickness

"Wood" on a listing can mean solid wood, plywood, MDF or particleboard. Look for the material by name and its thickness in millimeters. When we read 12 crate listings on October 18, 2026, only three listed a thickness. Our guide to MDF, plywood and particleboard explains what each one means.

WLO lists it: 16 mm EcoComposite panels. Not MDF, not particle board.

Open oak WLO door showing the panel edge and the clear acrylic window — Photo: customer review.

4. The cushion, and how thick it is

Some crates include a cushion, some sell one separately, and few list how thick it is. A thin pad on a hard floor is not the same as a bed.

WLO lists it: a cushion about 5.5 in (14 cm) thick, cut to the inside floor, with a washable cover. It is in the box.

Four WLO cushions stacked in pink, cream, grey and black covers — Photo: WLO studio.

5. Weight

Weight tells you how much material is in a crate. Compare the listed weight of any crate you are considering, and check whether it is the product weight or the boxed shipping weight.

WLO lists it: each house ships in one box at about 48, 79 and 110 lb, Size 1 to 3.

6. The latch and the door

Look for what the latch is made of and how it closes. A dog who leans on the door tests it every day.

WLO lists it: clear acrylic windows, metal hinges and a metal drop latch that falls into its metal keeper.

Black metal drop latch and hinge on a WLO door beside the acrylic window — The metal drop latch.

Two more questions to ask

Can I return it if the size is wrong? Big crates are heavy to send back. Some sellers do not take size returns at all. We don't exchange a wrong size for free, but an unopened box can come back within 14 days of delivery, less the round-trip shipping ($50, $75 or $100 for Size 1, 2 or 3, or the carrier's quote if higher). Once it is opened or assembled, it can't be returned. See our returns policy, and get the size right first.
Find your dog's size: the 3D view on each product page shows your dog inside each size, drawn to scale.
Where is it made, and how long until it ships?
WLO: made to order in Lexington, North Carolina. Orders leave in 2 to 4 weekdays.

All six numbers for every crate we compare, each as listed by its seller, are on our compare page.

Questions

What size crate does my dog need?

Choose by your dog's adult weight and standing height, using inside measurements. For a WLO Gabled or Pueblo: Size 1 for 5 to 24 lb, Size 2 for 25 to 49 lb, Size 3 for 50 to 89 lb; the Lakota runs smaller.

Is a bigger crate always better?

Your dog needs room to stand, turn and stretch out. One size up is fine if you have the space.

What is the difference between MDF and particleboard?

Both are engineered wood made from wood fibers or chips pressed with glue. Neither is solid wood. If a listing says "wood", look for the exact material.

How do I measure my dog for a crate?

Measure length from nose to the base of the tail, and height from the floor to the top of the head while standing. Add a few inches to both.

Sources

The Humane Society of the United States, Crate training 101 (a crate should let your dog stand up and turn around).
Seller product pages, read October 18, 2026 (the Diggs pad height and the 12-listing count).