Short answer: Nitrile exam gloves ship in cases of 10 boxes of 100, so 1,000 gloves per case, and Ontario clinics should buy on landed cost per 1,000 gloves rather than on case price. Size mix, not headcount, drives consumption: the size that runs out first is almost always the one nobody forecast.
How many gloves does an Ontario clinic use in a month?
Count patient encounters and multiply by gloves per encounter. A hygiene appointment with operatory setup and cleanup commonly consumes 6 to 10 pairs, a restorative appointment more, and the front desk almost none. That last point matters: clinics that forecast by staff headcount over-order, because the clinical team carries nearly all the consumption.
Bedside and operatory boxes are separate lines in practice. If the same glove is used for both, you cannot see where the volume goes, and the par level never converges.
Stock the clinical line here: 4 mil standard blue nitrile exam gloves for operatory boxes and the 1,000-glove 3.5 mil case for the main par level. ASTM Level 2 face masks travel on the same order, and the biological indicator 5-pack trial at $14.99 covers spore monitoring if you are setting both up together.
What is in a case, and how do case counts differ between brands?
| Format | Gloves per case | Where it fits | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 boxes x 100 | 1,000 | Standard clinical par level | Box count printed on carton |
| 10 boxes x 90 | 900 | Import lines | Case price looks lower per box |
| Bulk 2,000 case | 2,000 | High-volume LTC and clinics | Storage temperature and shelf life |
Thickness is the other variable that changes the order. A 3.5 mil glove tears earlier in long procedures, so the cheaper case can raise consumption. A 4.5 to 5 mil glove is the usual compromise for mixed clinical work.
What price band should an Ontario buyer expect per 1,000 gloves?
Nitrile case pricing moves with resin and ocean freight, so a quote is only meaningful with a validity date. What a buyer can control is where the line sits: discount import tier, mid-market exam tier, or branded hospital tier. Mid-market exam gloves are the band most Canadian clinics settle in, because the discount tier fails the stretch test in longer appointments and the hospital tier carries a brand premium that does not change clinical outcomes.
Ask for landed cost per 1,000 gloves including freight to your door, then compare that single number. A per-box price hides freight, and freight on gloves is material because cases are bulky.
What lead times and documentation should the purchase order require?
- Standard on the carton: ASTM D6319 for exam gloves, plus ASTM D6978 if chemotherapy handling is in scope.
- Lot number and expiry on the case, recorded against the delivery date.
- Stated lead time in business days, with the shipping point named.
- Size mix confirmed per case, not averaged across sizes.
A 2 to 3 week lead time is normal for stocked Canadian lines; import lines quote longer and slip more. If your clinic runs a single par level across four sizes, split the reorder so the fast size lands first.
For the planning side, work out monthly volumes with the clinic supply planner and print the monthly order checklist so the par level matches the room count. Clinics ordering for more than one site can order for a facility rather than buying retail boxes. If spore testing or the sterilization side of an audit lands on the same desk, Ask a Sterilization Compliance Specialist instead of guessing at a frequency. Reselling? become a distributor.
Ordering for a clinic, lab or care home? Wholesale and multi-site ordering covers case pricing and account setup, and the B2B wholesale collection lists the lines stocked for institutional buyers.
Related reading
- Nitrile exam gloves wholesale in British Columbia
- Medical glove procurement: Canada vs US
- Glove sizing: why fit matters clinically
Frequently Asked Questions
What is actually inside a case of nitrile exam gloves?
The Canadian standard case is 10 boxes of 100 gloves, so 1,000 gloves per case. Some import lines pack 90 per box, which quietly turns a 1,000-glove case into 900 gloves, so check the box count and the gloves per box on the carton rather than the case label alone.
How do I compare two glove quotes fairly?
Compare landed cost per 1,000 gloves in the size mix you actually use. Add freight to the case price, divide by the true glove count, and then adjust for the size distribution, because a case of smalls and a case of extra-large do not solve the same problem.
Which standard should a nitrile exam glove reference?
Nitrile examination gloves are specified against ASTM D6319. If the gloves are sold for chemotherapy handling, ask for the ASTM D6978 test result as well, because a glove that passes the exam glove standard is not automatically rated for cytotoxic drugs.
How much buffer stock should an Ontario clinic hold?
Two to three weeks of normal consumption, plus one extra case in the size that runs out first. Glove demand is spiky around flu season and audits, and a clinic that holds a month of stock usually ends up with expired cartons in a storage room.
CliniEco Medical is a licensed medical device establishment (MDEL #35334).