Storage Options In London: Which Type Is Right For You?
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The main storage options in London are storage by the box, self-storage units, collected storage, container storage and warehouse storage.
Which one makes sense depends on how much you're storing, whether you need regular access and how you plan to get everything there. A cheaper unit on the other side of London may not feel like such a bargain once you've hired a van and driven everything across the city.
Here's how the options compare.
What Storage Options Are Available In London?
There are five main ways to store items in London: storage by the box, self-storage, collected storage, container storage and warehouse storage.
| Type Of Storage | Best For | How You Pay | Access | Do You Need To Transport It? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Storage by the box | Boxes, suitcases and smaller amounts | Per box | Items returned when needed | No, with a collection service |
| Self-storage | Furniture, larger amounts and frequent access | By unit size | Visit the unit yourself | Usually |
| Collected storage | Furniture, house moves and renovations | Depends on provider and volume | Items returned when needed | No |
| Container storage | Larger amounts of furniture or household items | By container or space used | Usually more limited | Depends on provider |
| Warehouse storage | Business stock, equipment and larger volumes | Usually by volume or space | Managed rather than walk-in | Depends on provider |
There isn't one option that works for everyone. If you've got six boxes you won't need for the next few months, paying for an entire storage unit could leave you paying for empty space.
If you're storing stock you need to pick up multiple times a week, being able to walk into your own unit may matter much more.
How Does Storage By The Box Work?
Storage by the box means you pay for the individual boxes you put into storage rather than renting a storage unit based on square footage.
With The Box Co., storage starts from £3.56 per box per month. Your items are collected from your address, taken into storage and returned when you need them.
It can make sense if you're storing clothes, books, kitchenware or boxes between moves. It's also useful for students heading home between tenancies or anyone trying to clear a spare room without filling a car and driving across London.
The trade-off is access. You can't walk into a unit and pick something up whenever you fancy. Your items need to be returned to you, so this type of storage works better for things you don't expect to need every few days.
How Does Self-Storage Work?
Self-storage gives you a physical unit that you rent and can visit yourself when you need access to your items.
That's its main advantage. If you need something from storage, you can go to the facility and get it during the provider's access hours. This can work well for businesses that regularly need stock or households storing things they'll want to get at fairly often.
The downside is that you're paying for a fixed amount of space, even if you don't fill all of it.
Current London pricing varies considerably. Based on advertised rates and industry data, a 25 sq ft unit comes out at around £74 a month on average, rising to roughly £140 for 50 sq ft and £210 for 75 sq ft.
You'll also need to think about getting everything there. Unless transport is included by the provider, that could mean using your own car, hiring a van or paying a removals company.
We've broken the figures down in more detail in our guide to monthly storage costs in London.
How Does Collected Storage Work?
Collected storage means the storage company picks up your items, stores them and returns them to you when you need them back.
That removes one of the bigger jobs involved in using storage in London: getting everything from your home to the storage facility.
For anyone clearing rooms during building work, furniture storage with collection means the larger items can be taken away without you having to organise the transport yourself.
Collected storage avoids that trip because transport is part of the service rather than another job to organise separately.
It won't suit everyone. If you want regular, immediate access to what you've stored, a unit you can visit yourself may work better.
When Does Container Storage Make Sense?
Container storage tends to make sense when you have a large amount to store at once and don't expect to need regular access to it.
Rather than paying for a unit designed for you to walk in and out of, your furniture and other items are stored together in a container. That can work well if you're moving house, renovating several rooms or need most of a property's contents out of the way for a while.
Check the access arrangements before booking. If there's a chance you'll suddenly need one box from the back of the container next Tuesday, this probably isn't the type of storage for you.
When Does Warehouse Storage Make Sense?
Warehouse storage is mainly worth considering if you're a business with more stock, equipment or furniture than you have room for on site.
It can make sense if boxes of stock are starting to eat into office or shop space, or you've got furniture and equipment you need to keep but don't use every day. Rather than paying for commercial space just to store things, they can be kept elsewhere until they're needed.
If staff need to pick up stock regularly, direct-access self-storage may be more practical. If most of it just needs somewhere to stay until it's required, managed warehouse storage may be enough.
Does It Matter Where In London You Store?
Yes, the location of a traditional storage unit can make a noticeable difference to both its monthly price and how far you need to travel to reach it.
Current advertised rates put storage in central London areas including Bloomsbury, Camden and Kensington at around £80 to £100 a month. That falls to around £60 to £80 in inner London and £45 to £65 in parts of outer London.
Moving further out can cut the monthly cost, but there's another side to the calculation. If your storage facility is an hour away, you'll be making that journey whenever you want something back.
Collection-based storage in London works differently because you aren't choosing a unit based on how close it is to your home. With The Box Co., storage by the box starts from £3.56 per box per month wherever you are in the UK.
How Much Does Storage Cost In London?
Storage in London can cost from around £40 a month for a small self-storage unit to £250 or more for larger units, while The Box Co.'s storage by the box starts from £3.56 per box per month.
Our latest London pricing research gives the following rough averages:
| Unit Size | Approximate Monthly Cost |
|---|---|
| 25 sq ft | £74 |
| 50 sq ft | £140 |
| 75 sq ft | £210 |
| Storage by the box with The Box Co. | From £3.56 per box |
Those figures aren't a like-for-like comparison. Someone storing most of the contents of a house may need a large amount of space, while someone storing eight boxes doesn't necessarily need a 25 sq ft unit at all.
Transport also needs to go into the calculation. A storage unit's advertised monthly rate usually covers the unit itself. If you need to hire a van or book a man with a van to get everything there, that becomes part of the real cost of storing your things.
Our full London storage price guide goes further into the numbers.
What Should You Check Before Booking Storage In London?
Before booking storage in London, check the total cost, how much space you're paying for, how you'll get your items there and how access works once they're stored.
Price is an obvious place to start, but the cheapest advertised monthly rate doesn't tell you everything.
Think about how much you're actually storing. Paying for a 50 sq ft unit makes little sense if you're only going to fill a corner of it, while paying item by item may not suit someone trying to store the contents of an entire property.
Then think about access. Do you need to get things yourself at short notice, or would you be happy arranging for them to be returned?
It's also worth checking:
- how long you can store for
- whether there's a minimum storage period
- what collection and return charges apply
- what insurance is included or available
- when and how you can access your items
- whether introductory prices rise after a set period
- what security the facility has
Transport can make a big difference in London too. If collection isn't included or available, work out how you're going to get everything to and from the facility before comparing the final cost.
Which Storage Option Is Right For Me?
The right storage option depends mainly on how much you need to store, how often you need it back and whether you want to transport everything yourself.
A few boxes or suitcases: Storage by the box can make sense because you're paying for individual boxes rather than renting an entire unit.
Furniture during a renovation: Collected storage means larger items can be taken out of the house while the work is happening and returned afterwards.
Things you need to access regularly: A traditional self-storage unit gives you the option of visiting and retrieving things yourself.
Most of the contents of a home: Compare collected storage, container storage and larger self-storage units based on the amount you have and how often you'll need access.
Student items between tenancies: Storage by the box can avoid taking everything home for the summer and bringing it all back again a few months later.
Business stock or equipment: Think first about how often you need access. A self-storage unit may work better for stock you're collecting regularly, while managed or collected storage can suit items that mostly need somewhere to sit.
The question isn't which type of storage is best overall. It's which one fits the amount you're storing and how you need to use it.
How Does Storage With The Box Co. Work?
The Box Co. collects your items from you, takes them into storage and returns them when you need them back.
Storage by the box starts from £3.56 per box per month, so if you're storing a smaller amount, you don't have to rent an entire unit or organise a van to get everything there.
Tell us what you need to store and we'll help you work out which option makes sense.
