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Selling firewood in Minnesota: cords, delivery tickets and package labels

What the Minnesota Department of Commerce and Minnesota Statutes 239.33, 239.092 and 239.093 say about legal firewood units, delivery tickets for bulk sales and labels on packaged firewood, including the harvest county.

Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 8, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It follows the Minnesota Department of Commerce Weights and Measures Division and the statute sections it cites.

Legal units

The Commerce Department firewood page says firewood may be measured by the cubic foot, the cubic meter or the cord. If measured by the foot or meter, the wood is first stacked with all pieces parallel, which it calls ranked. It says ranking minimizes the space between pieces and that cross-stacked wood should not be measured.

It gives a legal definition of a cord, citing section 239.33 of the Minnesota Statutes.

  • One cord is 128 cubic feet in four foot lengths.
  • If the wood is sawed, a cord is 110 cubic feet when ranked, or 160 cubic feet when thrown loosely into a truck.
  • If the wood is sawed and split, a cord is 120 cubic feet when ranked, or 175 cubic feet when thrown loosely into a truck.

The page says a buyer and seller may agree on any terms, but that words like truckload, face cord, rick, fireplace cord or pile have no legal definition. It says the Weights and Measures Division cannot help with a dispute if the wood was not sold by the cubic foot, the cubic meter or the cord. It also gives a formula for counting cords in a ranked pile: height times length times piece length in feet, divided by 110 for sawed wood, 120 for sawed and split wood, and 128 in all other cases. For loose loads it divides the truck bed volume by 160 for sawed wood and 175 for sawed and split wood.

Bulk sales and the delivery ticket

Under Minnesota section 239.092, bulk sales where the buyer and seller are not both present to witness the measurement must come with a delivery ticket. The Commerce page lists what it carries.

  • The name and address of the person who weighed or measured the commodity.
  • The date delivered.
  • The quantity delivered.
  • The count of individually wrapped packages, if more than one is included.
  • The quantity on which the price is based, if different from the quantity delivered.
  • The identity of the commodity in the most descriptive terms commercially practicable, including representations of quality made in the sale.

The page adds that firewood sold or distributed in Minnesota must include on the delivery ticket the harvest locations by county or counties and state. Where this section conflicts with Department of Agriculture bulk sale rules, the Agriculture rules govern.

Packaged firewood labels

Under Minnesota section 239.093, a package of firewood offered for sale must bear a clear and conspicuous declaration of four things.

  • The identity of the commodity, unless the wrapper makes it easy to see.
  • The net quantity by weight, measure or count.
  • The name and address of the manufacturer, packer or distributor, if the packages were not produced on the premises where they are held for sale.
  • The unit price, if the packages are part of a lot of random weight packages.

The page says firewood sold or distributed in Minnesota must also carry the harvest county or counties and state on each label or wrapper. Again, Department of Agriculture packaging rules govern in a conflict.

Other points on the page

The Commerce page links the Department of Natural Resources on labeling and invasive species control and the Department of Agriculture on its certified firewood program and pest regulations. Movement rules from those two agencies are on the Minnesota moving firewood page. For buyers it advises getting the seller's name, business information and phone number before delivery, and a receipt with the price, amount and type of wood. If a seller refuses a receipt, it says to record the delivery vehicle's license plate number.

For cords, legal units and other places, see the firewood sale rules overview.

Sources