Self storage cost in 2026: what the index actually shows
No free primary source publishes a national self-storage price by unit size, so this page does not print one. What it sets out is the one national price series anyone can check for free, running back to December 2003, and the rent figures the largest operators disclose in their own annual reports. Neither is a price for a unit. Between them they answer the question this page exists for, which is not what storage costs but which way it is going: roughly flat year on year, and still below the December 2023 peak.
BLS index, September 2026
186.8
Year on year
-0.3%
Below December 2023 peak
6.9%
Public Storage rent, annual per occupied sq ft
$22.54
Why there is no national average here
No free primary source publishes US self-storage rates by unit size. Operators set street rates site by site, and those move week to week with occupancy and promotions; nobody publishes a checked national average of them. A national figure on a page whose title is a year would age badly and quietly, so this page sticks to the series and filings below.
What can be checked is the direction, and on that the picture is the opposite of what most 2026 price pages imply. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics producer price index for self-storage operators stood at 186.8 in September 2026, 0.3 percent below a year earlier and 6.9 percent below its December 2023 peak of 200.6. Through 2026 it has moved between about 185 and 190: roughly flat year on year, and still under the top of the cycle. It remains 25.4 percent above January 2020 on the same measure, so the pandemic-era step up has not reversed either.
The filings tell the same story from the other end. Public Storage's Form 10-K, FY2025 reports realized annual rent of $22.54 per occupied square foot across its Same Store Facilities, against $22.43 the year before, a rise of 0.5%, at 92.0% average occupancy from 92.4%. That is a large operator putting through a sub-1-percent increase on a slightly emptier portfolio. Extra Space Storage's Form 10-K, FY2025 moved slightly the other way: $19.91 annual rent per occupied square foot across its 1,804 same-store stores, against $19.99 the year before. CubeSmart's Form 10-K, FY2025 reports $22.73 against $22.71 across 606 same-store stores. It is not a price for any unit, and it must not be multiplied out into one, because it blends every size and market the company operates.
The most useful structural point on this page: a national figure would mislead you even if it were accurate. In Public Storage's own filing, annual realized rent per occupied square foot runs from $55.26 in Honolulu to $15.79 in Charlotte, about 3.5 times as much, and the spread between two facilities in one city is wider than most people expect. The state page covers the geography, and the way to get your own number is three sites near you in the same week, compared on the month-two rate.
Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, series PCU531130531130, base December 2003 = 100, not seasonally adjusted, read 2026-10-16 via St. Louis Fed (FRED). SEC EDGAR, Public Storage Form 10-K, FY2025, filed 12 February 2026, read at source 6 September 2026. SEC EDGAR, Extra Space Storage Form 10-K, FY2025, filed 20 February 2026. SEC EDGAR, CubeSmart Form 10-K, FY2025, filed 27 February 2026. All rent figures are annual, per occupied square foot, same-store, every size blended, one operator each, and not a quote.
The trend, on the one series that is actually published
Calendar-year averages of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly index for miniwarehouse and self-storage operators, series PCU531130531130. The year-on-year column is computed from the column beside it rather than typed.
BLS index, annual average / 2019-2025
| Year | Index (Dec 2003 = 100) | Change on year | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 149.8 | n/a | Pre-pandemic reference |
| 2020 | 146.9 | -1.9% | The pandemic year opened below 2019 on this measure |
| 2021 | 159.0 | +8.2% | The surge begins |
| 2022 | 184.6 | +16.1% | The steepest single year in the series |
| 2023 | 197.0 | +6.7% | Peak year. The index topped out in December |
| 2024 | 191.1 | -3.0% | First annual fall since 2020 |
| 2025 | 185.4 | -3.0% | Second consecutive annual fall |
| September 2026 | 186.8 | -0.3% | Latest monthly reading against September 2025, not a year average. Roughly flat |
Two things this table is not. It is not a dollar figure, and we do not convert it into one, because that needs a per-square-foot assumption we would be inventing. And it is size-blind and national: a 5x5 and a 10x30 sit inside the same series, and the gap between two metros is far wider than anything the index shows.
Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, series PCU531130531130, via St. Louis Fed (FRED). Last updated by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics on 2026-10-15.
Why the smallest units cost most per square foot
You can test this against your own quotes in one phone call: the fixed costs of a unit, its door, lock, light, aisle frontage and share of security and administration, land once per unit and do not scale with the floor. So the smallest sizes are usually the dearest per square foot, a 5x10 is rarely twice a 5x5, and the per-foot rate keeps easing as units get larger. The size guide works through that in full, ranked rather than priced.
Three industry shifts in 2026
Consolidation at the top. Public Storage completed its acquisition of National Storage Affiliates on 22 July 2026, taking it to over 4,500 stores and back past Extra Space on store count. Extra Space, which merged with Life Storage in 2023, reported 4,410 stores at 30 June 2026. CubeSmart reported 1,524 owned and managed stores at 31 December 2025 (662 owned, 862 managed for third parties). For renters, that means fewer national brands, and a local independent is worth a call alongside the names you recognise.
Peer-to-peer listings are an option in some cities. Neighbor.com and similar platforms let people rent out spare garages, basements and driveways. No primary source publishes their share of the market, so this page does not give one. They suit lower-value items; check access hours, security and what recourse the platform offers before you book.
Occupancy has eased and rents are flat. Public Storage's Form 10-K, FY2025 reports 92.0% average same-store square-foot occupancy for 2025, down from 92.4%. Extra Space Storage reports 92.6% same-store occupancy at year end, and CubeSmart 89.7% average same-store occupancy. Same-store annual rent per occupied square foot moved +0.5% at Public Storage, -0.4% at Extra Space and +0.1% at CubeSmart in 2025, and the BLS index tells the same flat story nationally. A slightly emptier building has more reason to deal, which is why the month-two rate and a waived admin charge are worth asking for.