Why do imperial lockers cost more than metric lockers?

They are priced at a flat 1.20 uplift on the carcass. Across 38 matched pairs, holding door count, width, compartment size and colour constant, the flat-top ratio is 1.2000 without exception. Sloping-top pairs read 1.185 to 1.193 only because the sloping top is a flat fee of 24.77 pounds per column added after the uplift, at the same price on both ranges.

Standard Imperial Lockers | 1780mm Sizes & Cost Per Door

Q: How tall is a standard imperial locker?

1780 mm. Every one of the 19 configurations in this range is 1780 mm full height. It is the only Probe range that is not 1800 mm, so a run mixing imperial and metric lockers will be 20 mm out at the top.

Q: How many compartments does a double or triple width locker have?

Door counts are quoted per column. A double-width locker has two columns and a triple-width has three, so an 8-door double is 16 compartments and a 10-door triple is 30. Check whether a competing quote counts doors per column or per bank before comparing prices.

Standard Imperial is the only Probe locker range that is not 1800 mm tall. It is 1780 mm, and the compartment sizes are 305, 381 and 457 mm rather than the metric range's 300, 380 and 450. Those differences — 20 mm on height, 5, 1 and 7 mm on depth — sound like rounding. They are not. They are the whole reason the range exists, and they are the reason it costs exactly 20% more.

This page covers 19 configurations: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 10 compartments per column, in double and triple width, with flat or sloping tops. Every one is cold-rolled mild steel, powder-coated, with a Type A cam lock on every compartment. If you are specifying lockers for a new installation and nothing is already in the room, you almost certainly want the standard metric lockers instead — they are the same product, 20% cheaper, in a range with more configurations. Read on for why, and for the three cases where imperial is genuinely the right answer.

When to specify imperial — and when not to

There is one good reason to buy an imperial locker: you are extending or replacing part of an existing 1780 mm installation and the new units have to line up with the old ones. A mixed run does not line up. It is out by 20 mm at the top and by 5, 1 or 7 mm at the face depending on depth, which reads as a visible step along a corridor and an uneven shadow line above. Nobody notices a locker bank until it is wrong.

The second reason is dimensional: the imperial compartments are marginally larger in every axis. A 457 mm deep compartment takes a little more than a 450 mm one. In practice this matters only where a specific item has to fit and the metric depth has already been tried and failed — a helmet, a toolcase, a piece of equipment with a fixed footprint. Measure the item, not the locker.

The third is availability, and it is the one buyers discover late. Eight of the 19 configurations on this page do not exist in the metric range at all — the 2, 3, 4 and 5-door triple-width nests in both tops, and the 6-door double-width in both tops. Those are the large-compartment configurations, for coats, bulky PPE and sports kit. If you want a 3-door triple-width bank, imperial is the only way to buy one from this range and the 20% premium is unavoidable because there is nothing to compare it against.

Everything else points the other way. For a new room, on a bare wall, with nothing to match, imperial costs 20% more for 1 to 7 mm. Specify metric.

The imperial premium is exactly 20.00% on every flat-top locker, and it is not a range

We compared every configuration that exists in both ranges, holding door count, width, compartment width, depth and colour constant. That gives 38 like-for-like pairs. The result splits cleanly by top style:

All 18 flat-top pairs: ×1.2000 exactly, to the penny. 6-door triple at 300/305 mm, £990.64 → £1,188.77. 8-door triple, £1,322.62 → £1,587.14. 10-door triple, £1,621.61 → £1,945.93. 10-door double, £1,057.87 → £1,269.44. At 380/381 mm and 450/457 mm the same ×1.20 holds. Eighteen pairs, one number.
All 20 sloping-top pairs: between ×1.1850 and ×1.1928. Never 1.20, never below 1.185, and the ratio creeps upward as the locker gets bigger.

That second band looks like noise. It is not — it is arithmetic, and it tells you something useful about how the range is priced.

Why the sloping-top ratio is lower: the top is priced outside the uplift

The sloping top on a Probe locker is a flat fee of £24.77 per column — £49.55 on a double-width nest, £74.31 on a triple. That figure is identical on the metric range, the imperial range and the PowerBox charging range, and it is confirmed here on all nine matched flat-versus-sloping pairs on this page:

Configuration	Flat top	Sloping top	Premium	Per column
3-door triple width	£889.15	£963.46	+£74.31 (8.4%)	£24.77
4-door triple width	£954.26	£1,028.58	+£74.32 (7.8%)	£24.77
5-door triple width	£1,025.45	£1,099.76	+£74.31 (7.2%)	£24.77
6-door double width	£801.18	£850.72	+£49.54 (6.2%)	£24.77
6-door triple width	£1,188.77	£1,263.08	+£74.31 (6.3%)	£24.77
8-door double width	£1,005.19	£1,054.74	+£49.55 (4.9%)	£24.77
8-door triple width	£1,587.14	£1,661.46	+£74.32 (4.7%)	£24.77
10-door double width	£1,269.44	£1,318.99	+£49.55 (3.9%)	£24.77
10-door triple width	£1,945.93	£2,020.25	+£74.32 (3.8%)	£24.77

The imperial uplift applies to the carcass. The sloping top is then added at the same £24.77 per column on both ranges. So an imperial sloping-top locker is 1.2 × (metric price − top fee) + top fee, which is always slightly less than 1.2 × metric price. We tested that formula against all 11 depth-matched sloping pairs and it predicts every one to within a penny.

The practical consequence: the sloping top is the only part of an imperial locker you do not pay 20% more for. If a corridor needs sloping tops to stop people sitting on them or leaving litter, that decision costs the same whichever range you buy — and because the fee is per column and not per compartment, it gets cheaper the taller the nest. £2.48 per compartment on a 10-door column, £8.26 on a 3-door.

⚠️ Do not compare the two "from" prices — on one configuration they give the opposite answer

This is the trap on this page, and it is worth the two minutes it takes to understand.

Every double-width listing in the imperial range offers six compartment size combinations — 305 × 305, 305 × 381, 305 × 457, 381 × 381, 381 × 457 and 457 × 457 mm. The metric equivalents offer three or four, and are split across two separate listings with near-identical names.

On the 8-door double-width flat-top, the metric listing has no narrow option at all: it starts at 380 × 380 mm and runs to 450 × 450. The imperial listing starts at 305 × 305 mm. So the headline prices read:

Metric 8-door double flat, from £1,035.41
Imperial 8-door double flat, from £1,005.19

The imperial locker appears to be £30.22 cheaper. It is not. At 380/381 mm — the narrowest compartment both ranges offer in that configuration — it is £1,035.41 against £1,242.48, which is the usual ×1.2000. Comparing "from" prices on this one configuration gets you the answer wrong by 23 percentage points, and in the wrong direction. Compare compartment size to compartment size, not headline to headline.

The related point is a genuine specification advantage: a 305 mm-wide compartment is available on every double-width imperial locker and on only some metric ones. If you are fitting the maximum number of narrow compartments into a fixed wall length, the imperial range gives you that option across the board.

Cost per compartment: the "from" price is nearly the dearest locker here

The collection's "from" price is £889.15. That is the 3-door triple-width flat-top — nine compartments, so £98.79 per compartment. The cheapest storage on this page is the 8-door double-width flat-top at £1,005.19 for 16 compartments, or £62.82 each. A larger total price, a smaller unit cost, and a 2.4× spread across the range.

Configuration	Compartments	From	Per compartment
8-door double, flat	16	£1,005.19	£62.82
10-door double, flat	20	£1,269.44	£63.47
10-door triple, flat	30	£1,945.93	£64.86
8-door double, sloping	16	£1,054.74	£65.92
10-door double, sloping	20	£1,318.99	£65.95
6-door triple, flat	18	£1,188.77	£66.04
8-door triple, flat	24	£1,587.14	£66.13
6-door double, flat	12	£801.18	£66.77
10-door triple, sloping	30	£2,020.25	£67.34
5-door triple, flat	15	£1,025.45	£68.36
8-door triple, sloping	24	£1,661.46	£69.23
6-door triple, sloping	18	£1,263.08	£70.17
6-door double, sloping	12	£850.72	£70.89
5-door triple, sloping	15	£1,099.76	£73.32
4-door triple, flat	12	£954.26	£79.52
4-door triple, sloping	12	£1,028.58	£85.71
3-door triple, flat	9	£889.15	£98.79
3-door triple, sloping	9	£963.46	£107.05
2-door triple, sloping	6	£889.85	£148.31

Read that table before you fix a door count. If you need 30 places for staff bags, the 10-door triple at £64.86 each is less than half the unit cost of the 4-door triple at £79.52 — and if what you actually need is coat space rather than more places, a wider compartment on a taller nest usually beats a shorter nest with bigger boxes.

Depth costs between 0.5% and 10%, and it is not consistent

Going from the 305 mm compartment to the 457 mm compartment gives you roughly half as much usable volume again. The price of that varies far more than you would expect — from £5.01 to £162.81 depending on configuration:

Cheapest depth upgrades: 8-door double, 305 → 381 mm, +£5.01 (0.5%). 6-door double, +£6.94 (0.9%). 6-door triple, +£7.68 (0.6%). At those numbers the deeper compartment is close to free.
Dearest: 8-door triple, 305 → 457 mm, +£162.81 (10.3%). 4-door triple to 457 mm, +£96.00 (10.1%).
The step is rarely linear. On the 8-door double the first step up is £5.01 and the second is £98.10.

Check the price of the depth you want against the price of the one below it before you settle. On several configurations the middle depth is a rounding error and on others it is a tenth of the order.

Colour is free

Every locker on this page is offered in three carcass colours (silver/grey, black, white) and seven door colours (red, yellow, blue, green, black, white, silver) — 21 combinations. We checked the price of all 21 at a fixed compartment size on every listing: one price. Colour is a free decision, so make it for the room and for zoning — year groups, departments, shifts, clean and dirty sides — rather than for the budget. The large variant counts on these listings (63 on the triple-width nests, 126 on the double-width ones) are the 21 colour combinations multiplied by the 3 or 6 size options, not a price ladder.

What you are actually buying

Height — 1780 mm, on all 19. This is the only Probe range that is not 1800 mm.
Compartment sizes — 305, 381 and 457 mm. Triple-width nests are fixed at 305 mm wide with a choice of three depths; double-width nests offer six width × depth combinations.
Construction — cold-rolled mild steel, powder-coated. Formed, not welded. The word "welded" does not appear anywhere in the product data for any of the 67 Probe lockers we list; it does appear on the Probe cloakroom benches, which are a different product.
Locking — a Type A cam lock on every compartment, fitted as standard. No hasp, padlock, coin-return, combination or electronic locking option appears in the product data for any Probe locker. If your specification requires one of those, this range will not meet it, and you should say so at tender stage rather than at delivery. Our guide to locker lock types covers the alternatives honestly.
Doors — solid steel, reinforcing ribs, ventilation slots, coat hook in every compartment.
Widths — double and triple only. There is no single-width imperial locker. If you need a single column, it has to come from the single-width range, which is metric.
Manufacture — UK-manufactured by Probe, stated in the product data on all 19.

What the product data does not state

Across all 19 configurations on this page — and across all 67 Probe lockers we list — the data contains no warranty period, no lead time, no stock status, no master-key or key-suiting option and no steel gauge. Those are all zero occurrences, not omissions from this page. On a school, gym or local-authority order at least one of them is usually a tender condition, so get it in writing from us at quotation rather than inferring it from a website. We would rather tell you that than invent a figure.

Nesting: the cheapest structural decision on this page

A "nest", "bank" or "tier" of lockers is several columns joined into one unit sharing internal carcass walls. It is cheaper per compartment than the same number of separate columns and it is invisible once installed. Every locker on this page is nested — double width means two columns, triple width means three — so when you compare a quote from another supplier, check whether their door count is per column or for the whole bank. A "10-door locker" here is 10 doors per column: 20 compartments in double width, 30 in triple.

Fixing is a design-stage decision, not a delivery-day one. Full-height lockers must be fixed back to the wall, and floor and wall fixings are not supplied — the right fixing depends on your wall and floor construction, so establish it before the lorry arrives. Allow for door swing separately when checking fire routes and corridor widths.

Browse by configuration

By door count: 2-door · 3-door · 4-door · 5-door · 6-door · 8-door · 10-door.

By format: double width · triple width · wide format · flat top · sloping top.

By type: standard metric · perforated · vision panel · charging lockers · the full metal lockers range and the Probe collection.

Buying guides: choosing metal lockers for the workplace · school lockers · gym and leisure lockers · staff and workplace lockers · steel cupboards versus lockers · changing room benches.

Frequently asked questions

How tall is a standard imperial locker?

1780 mm. Every one of the 19 configurations on this page is 1780 mm full height. This is the only Probe range that is not 1800 mm — the metric, perforated, vision panel and PowerBox ranges are all 1800 mm, so a mixed run will be 20 mm out at the top.

What is the difference between imperial and metric lockers?

Compartment sizes and overall height. Imperial compartments are 305, 381 and 457 mm; metric are 300, 380 and 450 mm. Imperial lockers are 1780 mm tall, metric are 1800 mm. The construction, doors, locks, colours and finish are identical. The imperial range costs exactly 20% more like-for-like on flat-top configurations.

Why do imperial lockers cost more?

They are priced at a flat ×1.20 uplift on the carcass. Across 38 matched pairs the flat-top ratio is 1.2000 without exception; the sloping-top ratio reads 1.185–1.193 only because the £24.77-per-column sloping top is added after the uplift, at the same price on both ranges.

Should I specify imperial or metric lockers?

Metric, unless you are matching an existing 1780 mm installation, you need a compartment size only the imperial range offers, or you want one of the eight configurations that does not exist in metric — the 2, 3, 4 and 5-door triple-width nests and the 6-door double-width, in either top.

Can I mix imperial and metric lockers in the same run?

Not if you want a flush installation. The two standards differ by 20 mm in height and by 5, 1 or 7 mm in depth depending on size, which shows as a step at the top of the run and an uneven face. Match the standard already in the room.

What lock is fitted to these lockers?

A Type A cam lock on every compartment, fitted as standard. The product data lists no hasp, padlock, coin-return, combination or electronic option on any Probe locker, so do not assume one is available.

How many compartments do I get?

Door counts on this page are per column. A double-width locker has two columns and a triple has three, so an 8-door double is 16 compartments and a 10-door triple is 30. Check whether a competing quote counts doors per column or per bank before comparing prices.