Discovering the Giants of Global Distribution
The global logistics market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2% from 2024 and 2030. This growth is driven by increasing e-commerce sales and consumer expectations for rapid delivery. In response, many brands are leaning toward a decentralized distribution model that leverages leased storage space or small warehouse facilities.
However, this doesn’t mean that businesses have given up on large warehouses. In fact, quite the opposite is true. Some of the biggest warehouses and largest distribution centers in the U.S. have sprung up in just the last decade, with massive new facilities emerging worldwide every single year. So, which is the world’s biggest warehouse?
Here’s a look at some of the largest and most sophisticated warehouses and distribution facilities from around the globe
The 10 Largest Warehouses in the U.S.
These facilities are the ten largest warehouses in the United States.
Tesla Gigafactories
Location: Texas
Size: 10 million ft2 / 929,030 m2
With over 10 million square feet of operational space, Giga Texas, Tesla’s Austin facility, is the larger of its two factories, the world’s largest solar-powered facility and the largest warehouse in the U.S.
Location: Nevada
Size: 5.3 million ft2 / 492,000 m2
With 5.3 million square feet, Gigafactory Nevada is the second largest warehouse in the U.S. It houses the electric car company’s energy solutions, including batteries and motors, for its electric vehicles.
In line with the company’s aggressive expansion plans and desire to scale production, Tesla plans to expand Gigafactory Nevada to over 10 million square feet of space, using nothing but renewable energy to power the entire facility.
Boeing Everett Factory
Location: Everett, Washington
Size: 4.3 million ft2 / 398,000 m2
If you are looking for another of the largest warehouses in the world, look no further than the Boeing Everett Factory, located in Everett, Washington. It’s a combination airplane assembly factory and storage warehouse. Built in 1967 for the Boeing 747 airplane, the aerospace company has since expanded the facility several times to accommodate its new airplane programs.
In total, the Boeing Everett Factory covers 98.7 acres, spanning both sides of State Route 526, and is often named the largest building in the world in terms of volume alone. The facility also has a unique internal infrastructure, which includes transportation systems and a network of underground tunnels. Boeing even provides bicycles to help employees quickly get around the enormous facility.
Amazon Fulfillment Centers
Location: Mount Juliet, Tennessee
Size: 3.6 million ft2 / 334,000 m2
Some of the largest distribution centers in the U.S. are located in Tennessee. Amazon, the world’s largest online distributor, built a 3.6 million square foot warehouse and fulfillment center in Mount Juliet. In total, the structure stands five stories tall, is highly automated, and houses over 80,000 square feet of office space for logistics purposes.
Unsurprisingly, the abundance of storage capacity that Amazon has in The Volunteer State is just the tip of the iceberg. Globally, Amazon has a combined 100 million square feet of warehouse capacity.
What sets these facilities apart are their size and technology. Amazon is known for using automated systems that optimize picking, packing, and shipping. These capabilities support the company’s rapid delivery goals and set a new standard for logistics competitors.
Target Import Warehouse
Location: Rialto, California and Lacey, Washington
Size: 3.4 million ft2 / 316,000 m2 (California) 2 million ft2 / 186,000 m2 (Washington)
Target’s import warehouses, such as its most recently built ones in California and Washington, are critical to its distribution network. These facilities handle many of the products that Target is known for, including trendy clothing, electronics, and household goods.
Target uses automated systems and data analytics to optimize inventory management and ensure that its stores remain stocked up on customer favorites. With consumer expectations at an all-time high, these warehouses play a vital role in maintaining Target’s reputation for reliability and speed.
Michelin Woodruff U70
Location: South Carolina
Size: 3 million ft2 / 279,000 m2
Michelin Woodruff U70, located in South Carolina, is over three million square feet in size, features five interconnected structures, and utilizes an automated system to pack and ship over 200,000 car tires per day. The warehouse ships to locations and customers across the United States daily.
Its buildings have nearly identical exterior dimensions and take up the equivalent of nine football fields each. Altogether, the warehouse’s square footage is as large as 45 football fields! Michelin has equally impressive, albeit smaller, facilities throughout the United States, specifically in Covington, Georgia, and Asheboro, North Carolina.
Michelin has integrated advanced robotic systems to handle the warehouse’s inventory and shipping. These technologies drastically reduce processing times and allow the global tire brand to handle huge order volumes for its supply chain partners. Additionally, the facility’s design incorporates eco-friendly features, such as energy-efficient lighting and waste reduction policies.
Nike North America Logistics Campus
Location: Memphis, Tennessee
Size: 2.8 million ft2 / 260,000 m2
Returning to Tennessee, we have Nike, one of the world’s largest sportswear brands, with its 2.8 million square foot distribution and warehouse center, which first opened back in 2015. From this location, the company ships footwear, clothing, and sports equipment to its own brick-and-mortar locations and wholesale retailers, like Walmart, across the country. The facility features an intricate conveyor system that spans several miles. While complicated, the setup is also critical to the efficiency of the logistics campus. Additionally, Nike has applied its knack for innovation to its sustainability efforts. The campus uses renewable energy and water-saving technology to make the operations more eco-conscious.
John Deere Warehouse
The John Deere Warehouse in Milan, Illinois, clocks in at a staggering 2.6 million square feet. This massive compound houses the tractor company’s parts and products, including millions of tools and farm equipment, and distributes such items to over 30 countries worldwide.The best estimates list the total number of unique components shipped by the facility at over 600,000. In order to keep up with all of these items, the company uses highly advanced picking and inventory management technology, which not only supports its operations but also those of farmers and contractors all over the world.
Ikea Distribution Center
Location: Perryville, MD
Size: 1.7 million ft2 / 1577,935 m2
Ikea’s 1.7 million square foot distribution center in Perryville, Maryland, is the 10th largest warehouse in the U.S. It has been in operation since 2002, and it provides goods to 39 IKEA locations across the U.S. and Canada.
Walmart Distribution Centers
Location: Arizona
Size: 1.5 million ft2 / 139,000 m2
U.S. retail giant Walmart is thought to be the world’s largest private employer, with 2.2 million members of staff, many of whom work in the company’s supply and distribution channels. Walmart operates over 150 large scale distribution facilities across the U.S., with its total capacity coming in at 143 million square feet.
Currently, the brand’s largest facility is its 1.5 million square foot distribution center in Arizona. However Walmart is planning an even larger 2.2 million square foot facility scheduled to open in Indiana, primarily to handle an increase in demand from online shopping.
While each facility varies in terms of scale and purpose, all of them feature modern inventory management and delivery technologies, which promote the smooth flow of goods into and out of each location. The approach underscores Walmart’s dominance in both domestic and international retail markets.
The World’s Biggest Warehouses
Beyond U.S. shores, what are some of the world’s biggest warehouses?
Volkswagen Automotive Plant
Location: Wolfsburg, Germany
Size: 70 million ft2/6,503,213 m2
A giant hub of manufacturing, the Volkswagen plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, is the largest warehouse in the world, spanning 70 million square feet, as well as the top automotive-producing plant. In 2023, the facility produced approximately 490,000 vehicles.
Hyundai Automotive Plant
Location: Ulsan, Korea
Size: 54 million ft2 / 5,016,764 m2
The Hyundai Ulsan plant comes in at a close second, depending on who you ask and which definition you use. Hyundai’s website lists Ulsan as the world’s “single largest automobile plant.” However, it lags beyond the VW Wolfsburg plant in terms of square footage.
Nevertheless, Ulsan is nothing to scoff at. It consists of five independent manufacturing plants and 54 million square feet of factory space. The facility also includes a quality control center and shipment dock.
ATL Logistics Center (Hong Kong)
Location: Hong Kong
Size: 6 million ft2 / 557,418 m2
While the ATL Logistics Center in Hong Kong may not be the largest, it is certainly one of the most sophisticated and unique. It boasts approximately six million square feet of factory space and is a multi-story drive-on logistics facility. Designers dubbed it the “world’s first and largest intelligent drive-in cargo logistics center.”
The facility consists of two sections. Center A is six stories tall, and Center B is 12 stories. The facility was designed with speed and precision in mind, which saves time during cargo intake and loading processes.
Inex Sipoo Distribution Center (Finland)
Location: Sipoo, Finland
Size: 2 million ft2 / 185,800 m2
The Sipoo logistics complex is fully automated and represents a major European distribution hub. It is a little over two million square feet, which is especially notable considering that the entire facility was designed to accommodate automation technologies.
ASOS Distribution Center (Barnsley, England)
Location: Barnsley, England
Size: 1.1 million ft2 / 92,900 m2
The online fashion retailer ASOS relies on its Barnsley, England facility to serve customers throughout the United Kingdom. The large center manages the brand’s vast array of products for global distribution. It also handles orders to the United States.
Tesco Donabate Distribution Center (Ireland)
Location: Donabate, Ireland
Size: 742,000 ft2 / 68,934 m2
The Tesco Donabate distribution center in Ireland is approximately 742,000 square feet. The national retail distribution center handles hundreds of thousands of cases every single week, routing grocery and non-food products to Tescos’ 177 Ireland locations.
The center recently underwent major renovations, which took about eight months to complete. Contractors refurbished colleague areas and offices to support the evolving needs of the logistics facility.
Other Significant Global Retail Warehouses
Retail giants like Walmart, Target, and IKEA operate some of the largest and most complex warehouses in the world. All of them have adopted slightly different approaches to logistics management to address the unique challenges each faces as they move goods to their respective customer bases.
Walmart has a massive international footprint, operating warehouses in both Mexico and China. These facilities are strategically located to optimize the supply chain and keep costs down.
Target focuses heavily on the U.S. market and relies primarily on large import warehouses throughout the country. U.S.-based warehouses are some of the largest and most technologically advanced, though. That’s because they must handle a huge volume of unique products, whereas some international locations focus on distributing niche product categories to target markets.
In addition to their previously mentioned U.S facility, Swedish furniture retailer IKEA operates a global network of distribution centers in more than a dozen countries throughout Europe and North America.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Company Has the Most Warehouses?
Amazon has several hundred warehouses around the world and also partners with various warehousing firms for additional storage capacity. However, these partnerships make it tough to determine exactly how many warehouses Amazon has. The DHL supply chain may rank number one in terms of total warehouses, as it manages approximately 430 different warehouse locations.
What City in the U.S. Has the Most Warehouses?
The Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) area has approximately 613.4 million square feet of warehouse space. An additional 12.3 million square feet of space is currently under construction.
What Is the Distribution Capital of the World?
Memphis, Tennessee, is widely considered the top distribution hub in the United States and is arguably the busiest in the world. There are more than 3600 supply chain and logistics companies in the greater Memphis area, which employ a combined 119,000.
Ready to Apply Lessons Learned From the Largest Warehouse Companies?
There you have it: a list of some of the largest warehouses in the world. There’s no doubt it will change, though, as companies like Tesla and Amazon continue to grow and expand their global influence. With Tesla’s planned expansion of Gigafactory Nevada and Amazon opening new facilities annually, the distribution industry is always being shaken up!
If you have questions about overhauling your warehouses to incorporate design features and strategies used by the biggest warehouse in the world (and its contemporaries), schedule a consultation with Precision Warehouse Design (PWD). We’ll be happy to discuss how we can help you retool your warehouse space for optimal performance.
At PWD, we specialize in helping businesses adapt to the changing demands of the logistics and distribution industry. We look forward to giving your business the resources it needs to thrive.
