warehouse insider
PACK EXPO International is the largest packaging and processing trade show in North America. PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, organizes it every two years. The show pulls together equipment manufacturers, materials and container suppliers, automation and robotics providers, and packaging and processing professionals from over 40 vertical industries in one place. If you are planning to attend, here is everything you need to know about PACK EXPO International 2026.
| Detail | Info |
| Dates | October 18-21, 2026 |
| Location | McCormick Place, Chicago, IL |
| Organizer | PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies |
| Expected Attendees | ~48,000 |
| Number of Exhibitors | 2,600+ |
| Exhibition Space | 1.3 million net sq ft |
| Frequency | Biennial (even years) |
| Official Website | https://www.packexpointernational.com/ |
PACK EXPO International brings together packaging and processing professionals across food and beverage, pharmaceuticals and life sciences, logistics and supply chain, pet food, personal care, and dozens of other verticals, all evaluating live machinery, materials, and automation technology in one place. For attendees, it offers the chance to see full-scale equipment running, attend free educational sessions led by industry experts, and compare solutions across categories before making purchasing decisions. This makes PACK EXPO International the most comprehensive packaging and processing event in North America, and the biggest opportunity on the calendar for the professionals who plan around it.
PACK EXPO International 2026 runs for four days:
| Day | Date | Show Floor Hours (CDT) |
| Day 1 | Sunday, October 18, 2026 | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Day 2 | Monday, October 19, 2026 | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Day 3 | Tuesday, October 20, 2026 | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Day 4 | Wednesday, October 21, 2026 | 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM |
Educational sessions run on the show floor throughout each day. Hours are subject to change as the show approaches. We’ll keep this page updated; you can bookmark it and check back closer to October 2026.
PACK EXPO International 2026 is at McCormick Place, 2301 S. King Drive, Chicago, IL 60616, the largest convention center in North America. Exhibits span all four of the venue’s buildings (North, South, West, and Lakeside Center), reflecting the show’s 1.3 million net square feet of floor space. That’s a larger footprint than most shows at this venue use, so plan extra time to move between buildings if your interests span multiple pavilions.
McCormick Place is well connected by air, rail, and road. Here is how to get there:
By Air: Chicago is served by two major airports, O’Hare International (ORD) and Midway (MDW).
● From O’Hare, take the CTA Blue Line to Clark/Lake, then transfer to the Green Line (towards Ashland/63rd) and exit at Cermak-McCormick Place.
● From Midway, take the CTA Orange Line to Roosevelt, then transfer to the Green Line (towards Ashland/63rd) and exit at Cermak-McCormick Place.
● Rideshares from either airport typically take 45-60 minutes depending on traffic.
By Train: The Metra Electric Line runs directly from Millennium Station downtown to the McCormick Place station, located on campus underneath the South Building. Amtrak riders can connect through Chicago Union Station with a short rideshare or taxi to the venue.
By Car: McCormick Place has three main on-campus parking lots (A, B, and C), all ADA accessible and within walking distance of the halls. Parking fills quickly during major shows, so booking a prepaid permit in advance or using public transit is worth considering.
By CTA Bus: The #3 King Drive bus runs along Michigan Avenue, serving downtown hotels, and the #21 Cermak bus connects to the Green Line station.
Accommodations
On-Campus: The Hyatt Regency McCormick Place and Marriott Marquis Chicago connect directly to the convention center.
Nearby: Hotels in the South Loop, the Loop, and River North are within a 15-25 minute commute by rideshare or transit.
PACK EXPO International includes more than 150 free educational sessions across five stages located directly on the show floor. Topics span the State of the Industry for packaging and processing, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), GS1 Sunrise 2027, recycling, material handling, logistics, and supply chain. The show also runs an SMB FastTrack program highlighting exhibitors and sessions built specifically for small and medium-sized businesses, along with PACK EXPO Discovery Tours, curated expert-led walkthroughs designed to help attendees navigate the show floor efficiently. Planning tools like My Show Planner and a Visual Category search help attendees map out exhibitors and sessions ahead of time. A Young Professionals Networking Reception rounds out the week for emerging leaders in the industry.
The show floor organizes into themed pavilions, each drawing a different part of the packaging and processing crowd:
Food & Beverage Processing: Processing equipment, packaging lines, and materials built for food and beverage manufacturers, one of the show’s largest categories.
Healthcare Packaging: Equipment and compliance-focused solutions for pharmaceutical and life sciences packaging, an increasingly regulated corner of the industry.
Containers & Materials: Suppliers of packaging materials, containers, and sustainable packaging alternatives.
Logistics & Automation: Outbound shipping, palletizing, and warehouse automation technology sit here, the pavilion most directly relevant to what happens after a product leaves the packaging line. Vimaan’s ParcelSCAN and PalletSCAN both map to this pavilion, covering parcel and pallet-level scanning for outbound accuracy.
End-of-Line & Fulfillment: Sessions and exhibits focused on the final stretch before a package ships, including order packing accuracy and fulfillment quality control. Vimaan’s PackVIEW is built for exactly this stage, validating packed orders against the manifest in real time and archiving a photo of every completed order for dispute resolution.
You don’t have to wait until October to put better packing and shipping accuracy in place: Vimaan already automates this. Its platform and associated products cover the workflows most relevant to packaging and fulfillment teams:PackVIEW validates order packing against the manifest in real time, ParcelSCAN handles parcel receiving and shipping, and PalletSCAN handles pallet receiving and shipping. Together, they enable 100% order quality and inventory accuracy across packing, receiving, and outbound shipping, the same end-of-line workflows this show’s Logistics and Fulfillment pavilions are built around.
If you want to see how this applies to your operation ahead of October, you can book a conversation with our experts now and we will walk you through the workflows most relevant to you.
Registration is available at https://www.packexpointernational.com/. Attendee registration typically opens well ahead of the show, with priority registration periods offering earlier access. Exhibitor space is managed separately through PMMI’s exhibit space application process.
Q. When is PACK EXPO International 2026?
PACK EXPO International 2026 runs October 18-21, 2026, at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois.
Q. Where is PACK EXPO International 2026?
PACK EXPO International 2026 is at McCormick Place, 2301 S. King Drive, Chicago, IL 60616.
Q. How often does PACK EXPO International happen?
PACK EXPO International runs every two years, in even years. PMMI also runs regional editions, PACK EXPO East and PACK EXPO Southeast, in the years between.
Q. Who organizes PACK EXPO International?
PACK EXPO International is organized by PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies.
Q. How many people attend PACK EXPO International?
PACK EXPO International draws around 48,000 attendees and 2,600+ exhibitors across 1.3 million net square feet, making it the largest packaging and processing show in North America.
Q. How do I register for PACK EXPO International 2026?
Registration is available at https://www.packexpointernational.com/. Priority registration periods typically offer earlier access ahead of general registration.
Q. How do I get to McCormick Place?
McCormick Place is accessible by CTA bus, Metra Electric Line, Amtrak with a connecting rideshare, and on-site parking. See the section “How to Get to PACK EXPO International 2026” above for more details.