How Much Does Storage Cost in London?

Storage in London is rarely the plan. It is what happens when a completion date slips, a tenancy ends before the new one starts, or a flat is too small for everything you own. The price you pay depends on the type of storage, the space you need and the extras that sit on top of the headline rate.

Most London storage falls into one of three types. They are priced differently, so compare like with like.

• Self-storage. You rent a unit in a building, bring your things yourself and hold the key. Access is usually free during opening hours
• Container storage. A removal firm loads your goods into a sealed container at its store. You do not visit, and access is by request
• Per-box or valet storage. A company collects boxes or small items, stores them and returns them one by one for a fee

Self-storage suits people who want to visit often. Container storage suits a whole home that will sit untouched until the next move. Per-box storage suits a few boxes, such as a student's things over the summer.

These ranges come from provider and market pages read on 3 November 2026. Headline prices are often promotional, such as half price for the first eight weeks, so check what the price is after the offer ends.

The medians are from Storage Locator data published by LOVESPACE (May 2024). The ranges by size are from Fantastic Services' 2026 cost guide. The container figure is from Wow Storage. Per-box prices are from LOVESPACE and Seven Seas Worldwide.

Price per square foot

Small spaces cost more per square foot. London medians work out at about £1.39 per sq ft a week for 25 sq ft, £1.13 for 50 sq ft and £0.89 for 100 sq ft. Across the pages read, that is roughly £3.25 to £6.00 per sq ft a month. If you need 30 sq ft, a 50 sq ft unit can cost little more, so ask for both.

We arrange storage through a storage partner, wherever you need it, as part of your move. It is not our own facility, and we do not name the partner on the site. Storage for a 1-bedroom flat's contents is £250–£350 a month, VAT included. One past quote was £300 a month for 80 sq ft, which is £3.75 per sq ft a month. That sits at or below the London medians for the same space.

Small loads, such as a few boxes or a student's room, start from about £100 a month. We do not price storage per box. The first month is paid upfront, then it is billed monthly. Short stays of a night or a few days are priced in your quote. Larger homes are priced on volume.

The moves into and out of storage are priced from the same hourly rate card as any other move. Your quote shows three lines: the move into storage, the storage by the month, and the move back out. See removals and storage in London for how it works.

Almost every London provider makes cover compulsory and charges it on top of the storage price. Cover is usually priced on the value you declare. The one published rate we found was Big Yellow's: £4,000 of cover from £6.25 a week. Some providers accept your own home contents policy if it covers goods in storage.

With us, cover while your goods are stored is a separate line in your quote, priced on the value you declare. We do not publish a rate. That keeps the monthly storage price like-for-like with other storage-only prices. Check whether your own home contents policy already covers goods in storage before you buy cover twice.

This is where storage types differ most. Self-storage gives free access in opening hours, sometimes with extra charges for late hours. Container storage from removal firms is by request, with notice. Some say goods cannot be reached at all during the stay. Per-box services charge a delivery fee for each item returned.

With storage we arrange, access is by appointment with at least 2 working days' notice. You can have the whole load or only some items brought back. A redelivery is priced as a small move at our normal van and crew rates, and any handling fee the partner charges is passed on at cost and shown in the quote. We can give you an itemised inventory list or photos, so you know what went in and can pick what comes out.

• Billing. Many self-storage firms bill every four weeks in advance, which is 13 bills a year. Others bill monthly or weekly
• Minimum stay. It ranges from none to 14 days at the providers read
• Notice to leave. Commonly 14 to 15 days
• Deposits. Rare, but at least one large self-storage firm takes a refundable deposit

With us, storage is billed monthly. The first month is paid upfront, then it is billed monthly. Short stays are priced in your quote, so a gap of a few days is not charged as a full month.

Storage arranged with a removal saves one job. If you rent self-storage, you still need a van to fill the unit and a van to empty it, and you do the carrying at the unit.

Common London cases:

• Completion slips on moving day. Goods can go into partner storage the same day, subject to availability
• A gap between tenancies. The old flat ends before the new one starts. Moving out of a rented home in London covers the timing
• Downsizing to a smaller flat. Part of the load goes to the new home and the rest into storage on the same job
• Students over the summer. A room's worth of boxes, from the small-load price. See student removals in London

If the new home is a flat, plan the second move as carefully as the first. Moving a flat in London covers stairs, lifts and parking.

• Sort and clear out before the move, so you store less
• Measure what you have. A room-by-room list beats a guess
• Ask what the price is after any introductory offer ends
• Compare monthly with four-weekly billing over a full year
• Check whether your home contents policy covers goods in storage
• Group what you will need back, so one redelivery does the job

Tell us what is going into storage, for roughly how long, and both addresses. You will get a written quote within 24 hours, with the moves and the storage as separate lines. The team confirms the final price. Start from our house removals in London page, or see removals and storage in London. For the cost of the move itself, read London house removal costs. Moving a whole house rather than a flat? Our house removals in London team quotes both together.

Most storage is sold by floor area, in square feet. Removal vans are measured by volume, in cubic feet. The two are linked by one number: how high you can safely stack. A rough rule is to multiply a unit's floor area by the height you can stack to, then compare that with the load.

Our vehicle guide gives a feel for volume. A Luton van holds about 700 cu ft, which is roughly a one-bedroom home, and a 5.5 tonne lorry about 1,000 cu ft, roughly two bedrooms. Few people stack sofas and wardrobes to the ceiling, so allow for gaps and a walkway if you will need to reach things.

Three habits make the estimate better:

• List by room, not by bedroom count. A spare room full of boxes can hold more than a bedroom
• Measure the large items. Sofas, wardrobes and beds decide the shape of the space
• Decide what you will need back early. Anything you will want in the first month should go in last, near the front

Every storage provider has a list of goods it will not accept. The details differ, so ask for the list before you pack. As one example, Safestore's FAQs list, among others:

• Food or perishables, unless securely packed in hard plastic or glass
• Plants and animals
• Flammable items such as fuel, paint and cleaning solvents, and compressed gases
• Firearms, explosives and ammunition
• Chemicals, and items that give off fumes or odours
• Valuables such as jewellery, currency, art and antiques
• Large lithium-ion batteries, power banks and portable chargers, and e-scooters or e-bikes with batteries in them

Clear out paint tins, gas bottles and garden chemicals before moving day. We do not take rubbish or dispose of anything, so book a council collection or use your local tip for anything you are not keeping.

Keep passports, documents, jewellery and anything you could not replace with you, not in storage. That is good sense even where a store allows them.

A move lasts a day. Storage can last months, and what is fine in a van for a few hours can suffer in a box for a season.

• Pack dry. Damp is the main enemy. Do not store anything wet, and let a washed fridge or freezer dry with the door open before it goes in
• Empty and defrost appliances well before moving day, and wedge the door slightly open in storage
• Use strong boxes of a few sizes. Same-size boxes stack well and are easier to count
• Heavy at the bottom, light on top. Books in small boxes, bedding in large ones
• Cover mattresses and soft furniture so dust cannot settle
• Label every box on two sides with the room and a short list of what is inside
• Number the boxes and keep the list, so you can ask for box 14 rather than "the kitchen things"

If you would rather not pack yourself, our packing service is booked with the removal into storage, and the crew bring the materials. It is not sold on its own.

Storage contracts are short, but a few lines decide what you really pay. Taking Safestore's FAQs again as an example of what to look for:

• Insurance level. Goods must be insured for their full replacement value, new for old. If you use your own policy, it must show the sum insured, the cover dates and the store address
• Your own policy. Safestore notes that many household policies exclude self-storage, so check yours before you rely on it
• Billing cycle. Invoices every four weeks, with the first in advance
• Notice. On a flexible contract, 14 days' written notice before the current invoice period ends. Late notice runs your storage on to the end of the next period
• Leaving. The unit must be emptied and cleaned by the end date. Belongings left behind may be charged for

Other providers set different terms. Ask the same questions of each, and get the answers in writing. With storage we arrange, your quote lists the move in, the monthly storage, cover on the value you declare and the move back out as separate lines.

• Ask for the provider's list of goods it will not store
• Decide what stays with you: documents, valuables, medicines and chargers
• Check whether your home contents policy covers goods in storage
• Write down what you will need back first, and pack it last
• Keep your box list and photographs together, with the storage paperwork
• Put a reminder in your calendar for the notice date, so you do not pay for a period you did not need

If your storage is bridging a gap between two London homes, moving out of a rented home in London helps you time the first move against your tenancy end date.