Why are some twenty four pack sodas in a flat box and others are square?

It is about cost, and marketing.
Having boxes printed with artwork and logo costs more, but is considered advertising when they will be stored in view of shoppers/public. Also, the built in handles make carrying easier.
The flat boxes stack easier, and are cheaper, but less attractive, and there are no handles. Mostly those are intended to be broke open for stocking vending machines or display refrigeration for individual sale.

Packaging is about shipping, shelf appeal, shelf space, shelf requirements, and cost.

Sometimes things are packaged a certain way because they have been packaged that way for years, and changing the packaging is deemed not worth the money by whomever is in charge.

When a great packaging innovation happens, many of the competitors follow suit. There might be a patent on the innovation, but with small changes it often can be legally copied.

I remember there was a time when you could buy cans in “square” 24 packs. 3 cans x 4 cans per layer and 2 layers tall. The cartons had handles built in to the top so it was easy to carry in one hand. Unfortunately I had one handle rip out of the box causing cans to drop to the ground None broke open but I can imagine how they could. I have not seen that packaging in a while.

I think that ease of carrying is a factor. A flat box is perhaps more difficult for someone whose arms are shorter. A square box is smaller and easier to take.

The other reason has to do with storage at home on a shelf or a table. A flat 24 needs more room. A square 24 needs about half the square footage.

Design patent and existing packaging, storage and delivery equipment.

Even on 12 packs of pop where they appear identical, they’re not.
IMO Pepsi has the most efficient ‘tear out’ to make the carton a dispenser.
7-Up’s is horrible almost always tearing the whole end off the carton.
Coke has only subtle difference from Pepsi and (here anyway) is almost as good.

I hate Pepsi “cubes”!
Coke 24 packs you can easily slice into 2 12 packs, each open at the top.

Soda packaging differs from region to region and sometimes among different outlets within regions of the U S. For instance the Costco stores here in Northern California feature 36 count “cubes” that amount to a tough lift for kids, the elderly and folks of dainty dispositions. Coke is the exception, and until recently their version of bulky and difficult to handle was a 32 count version of the cardboard shell wrapped completely in red polyethylene. This has recently been replaced by the more awkward and difficult to handle 35 pack. I can’t prove it, but I’m pretty sure the bottlers moved away from the traditional 4 6 packs in a cardboard shell because of the really bad rep of the plastic yoke linking the cans in the 6 packs. The yokes are notorious for strangling and maiming wildlife, and the public was well on its way to banning them. The most common form of packaging out here in supermarkets and most retail outlets is the 12 pack in cardboard packs. Within the last couple of years the bottlers have been pushing the 20 packs In flat cardboard cartons packaged 4×5.

And the 24 count “cubes” are still with us here as well. All of this crap is about bottlers desperate for remedies to plummeting soda sales ( at least in Northern California, and I suspect nation wide). The discrepancy in price from store to store here is unbelievable. The same 12 pack of Coke will cost you 6.99 plus 60 cents in recycling fees or 7.59 before tax (and yes, the recycling fee is taxed as well). This is the standard price now at Safeway, while its pretend competition markets the stuff for a full 2 bucks less.

Also bear in mind that plenty of home refrigerators lack the square footage of a warehouse fridge, though many fridges have a shelf that can handle tall objects. That means a 3*4*2 block will take up half the space of a 6*4 slab.

@LuckyGuy Yeah, you have to be a lot more careful about impact. I routinely carry a 36-pack in each hand, but I usually have my elbows bent and slightly loose to dampen the shocks associated with walking and keep the impact of my footsteps from tearing that cardboard. I’ve never had a problem, but I’ve seen plenty of people carry one straight-armed and wind up ripping the handle off.

Interesting information. Thanks.