Self Storage Prices in the UK

If you are looking to store your belongings in a storage unit and make use of a storage provider’s services, there are many things to think about.  

One of the main considerations is finances.  

Storage Locator provides a database of over 1000+ storage facilities in the UK, and as experts we have collated some data to break this down for you.  

This blog will explore how much you can expect to pay weekly and per square foot for the typical storage unit sizes and will provide you with a comparison between different cities and time of year – for you to select the most cost-effective storage plan! 

How much does self storage cost in the UK? 

Unit Size	UK median price per week
25sqft	£23.77
50sqft	£36.02
100sqft	£60.65
160sqft	£41.86

Let’s start off by looking into how much self-storage costs in the UK.  

This graph shows the median prices of self-storage in the UK for the four most common sizes, 25, 50, 100 and 160 sqft.  

Based on our latest database of storage prices in October 2024, the median weekly price was £23.77 per week for a 25sqft unit, £36.02 per week for a 50sqft, £60.65 for a 100sqft and £41.86 for a 160sqft.  

A pattern that we can see is that the 160sqft units tend to have a cheaper weekly price in comparison to 100sqft units despite the larger size.  

This is usually because 160sqft units are outdoor units whereas 100sqft units are indoor.  

Therefore, as a whole, you are looking to pay more if you choose a larger unit size, with 160sqft being the exception.  

Distribution of price per week for 25sqft units in the UK  

Price per week	Distribution of sites
£0-10	4%
£10-20	30%
£20-30	38%
£30-40	19%
£40-50	6%
£50-60	2%
£60+	2%
Total	100%

This graph investigates the distribution of prices for a 25sqft unit in the UK. There are some facilities that offer prices lower than £10 per week, or on the other hand offer a higher price point at more than £60 per week.  

This really depends on which city in the UK you store in, and how central the facility is located in that city.  

Overall, it seems that most facilities in the UK charge between £20-30 per week for a 25sqft unit.  

Self Storage prices per square foot per week   

Unit Size	Median Price per square foot	% Difference between 25sqft
25sqft	£0.95	0%
50sqft	£0.72	-24%
100sqft	£0.61	-36%
160sqft	£0.26	-72%

The best way to judge the cost-effectiveness of storage is by calculating the price per square foot of each unit size.  

This graph shows the median prices per square foot per week for the four most common unit sizes in the UK.  

The median price per square foot for a 50sqft is 72p per week, which is 24% cheaper than that of the 25sqft.  

The median price per square foot for a 100sqft is 61p per week, and for a 160sqft is 26p per week, meaning you get a 36% cheaper price for the 100sqft and 72% cheaper price for the 160sqft, in comparison to the 25sqft on a price per square foot basis.  

In a nutshell, the more you store, the more you save, getting the most out of your money. 

How self-storage prices in the UK changed throughout 2024 

Month (2024)	Median weekly price of 25sqft
January	24.00
February	25.59
March	24.99
April	24.08
May	25.08
June	25.85
July	26.00
August	26.00
September	25.38
October	23.77

We run an analysis of self-storage prices in the UK on a monthly basis and share our findings on our site.  

This graph shows how the median weekly price of a 25sqft unit across the UK has changed this year from January to October 2024.  

The median price of a 25sqft unit across the UK has remained relatively stable, however with some fluctuations if we look closely.  

There was an increase from May and they reached the highest price in August of £26 per week.  

The summer is usually when students graduate and move out from their accommodation and is when there is the highest demand for storage.  

This is a peak season which explains why many storage providers raise their prices during the months from May to August.  

After August, we can see that the median prices have decreased and in October was at a weekly price of £23.77 per week for a 25sqft unit – the lowest it has been this year so far.  

Therefore, if you are looking to put your items in self-storage and are mindful of your finances, it is most likely that the winter months will get you a cheaper quote than in the summer. 

How Self storage prices differ across different cities in the UK 

City	Median price per week (25sqft)
Birmingham	£19.23
Bristol	£19.02
Edinburgh	£22.00
Manchester	£22.75
London	£37.80
Glasgow	£18.76
Cambridge	£26.50
Cardiff	£18.01
Sheffield	£22.20
Leicester	£20.20

Now that we have investigated prices in the UK as a whole, let’s dive into the specific areas.  

We collected data from the top 10 cities with the highest number of storage facilities in the UK, based on our October 2024 database.  

This graph shows the median weekly prices of a 25sqft unit in these 10 cities.  

As expected, London had the highest median price of £37.80 per week.  

Cambridge is also on the higher end, with £26.50 per week.  

Other cities had relatively similar prices, with Cardiff being the lowest at £18.01 per week.  

In most cases people choose a storage facility that is closest to their home, or where they are moving to.  

However, if you are looking to reduce your storage costs as much as possible, and don’t need to access your items that regularly, it may be worth storing your items in a cheaper city, if you live in the more expensive areas like London for example.  

This may mean that you will have to drive to a storage facility in a different city or rely on a shipping service provided either by the storage company you are storing with or externally. But it may still end up being cheaper overall to do that than storing it at a facility in an expensive area like London.  

The price of self-storage in London compared to the rest of the UK 

Unit size	London	UK	% Difference
25sqft	£37.80	£23.77	59%
50sqft	£58.62	£36.02	63%
100sqft	£95.24	£60.65	57%
160sqft	£111.00	£41.86	165%

London is the biggest city in the UK, meaning there will be more movers, declutterers and students looking to use storage services in comparison to other cities.  

This graph focuses on London, with the median self-storage prices for the four most common sizes, in comparison to the UK median.  

As you may have expected, the median prices of storage in London for all sizes is more expensive than the UK median.  

It costs approximately £37.80 per week for a 25sqft in London, which is 59% more expensive than the UK median.  

The median price for a 50sqft in London is £36.02, which is 63% more expensive than the national median.   

The same for a 100sqft was £95.24 per week, 57% more expensive than the UK median, and finally for 160sqft was £111 per week, 165% more expensive than the UK median. 

As you can see London does not follow the typical trend of the 160sqft unit being cheaper than the 100sqft.  

In fact, it is more expensive if you store more, regardless of whether the unit is indoor or outdoor.  

Therefore, in London it may not necessarily mean that it is cheaper to opt for an outdoor unit over an indoor unit, which is a pattern that applies for other cities.  

London is expensive, and if you need self-storage in this area, use these median prices as a reference to determine whether your storage provider is charging you more or less than the typical pricing in the area. 

We hope that this blog helps you to determine and find the ideal storage provider that will not only take care of your belongings safely but will do so with the best price, making the most out of your money.