Texas self storage cost: below the biggest operator's average
No free source publishes an average self-storage price for Texas, by state or by unit size, so this page does not invent one. What can be checked is what the largest US operator reports to the SEC. Public Storage's Form 10-K, FY2025 gives annual realized rent per occupied square foot for its same-store facilities in Dallas-Ft. Worth ($17.41) and Houston ($16.97), against $22.54 across its whole US same-store portfolio, with occupancy in both below its portfolio figure. For a renter that means negotiating room, not a price for your unit.
By Oliver Wakefield-Smith. Reviewed 16 October 2026.
Public Storage's Texas metros, as filed
Public Storage Form 10-K, FY2025 / same-store / Texas
| Market | PSA same-store facilities | 2025 rent per occupied sq ft per year | Change vs 2024 | Occupancy 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Ft. Worth | 136 | $17.41 | -4.5% | 89.5% |
| Houston | 128 | $16.97 | +1.3% | 90.2% |
| For comparison: All 2,565 US same-store facilities | 2,565 | $22.54 | +0.5% | 92.0% |
| For comparison: All other markets (outside the 25 named metros) | 673 | $16.28 | +0.4% | 91.5% |
Dallas-Ft. Worth
$17.41
per occupied sq ft a year · -4.5% vs 2024 · 89.5% occupied · 136 facilities
Houston
$16.97
per occupied sq ft a year · +1.3% vs 2024 · 90.2% occupied · 128 facilities
For comparison: All 2,565 US same-store facilities
$22.54
per occupied sq ft a year · +0.5% vs 2024 · 92.0% occupied · 2,565 facilities
For comparison: All other markets (outside the 25 named metros)
$16.28
per occupied sq ft a year · +0.4% vs 2024 · 91.5% occupied · 673 facilities
Source: Public Storage, Form 10-K, FY2025, filed 12 February 2026, table "Same Store Facilities Operating Trends by Market" (page 35), read on SEC EDGAR 16 October 2026. Realized rent per occupied square foot is ANNUAL dollars, all unit sizes and climate types blended, net of discounts, across Public Storage's same-store facilities in each metro. It is one operator's figure, not a state or market average, not a monthly rent and not a quote for any unit. Other operators and independents in the same metro can price higher or lower.
Both Texas metros sit near the bottom of Public Storage's 25 named markets and close to its all other markets figure ($16.28). Dallas-Ft. Worth is the more striking: realized rent per occupied square foot fell 4.5% in 2025 while the portfolio as a whole edged up, and occupancy was 89.5%. The filing reports the numbers, not the reasons; heavy new building in Texas metros over recent years is the explanation usually given, and lower occupancy is what spare capacity looks like.
Do not multiply these figures into a monthly price for a 10x10 or any other size. The filed number blends every size and climate type, and small units rent for more per square foot than large ones, so the conversion needs a size-mix assumption nobody publishes. Austin, San Antonio, El Paso and the rest of the state get no number here, because the filing gives none.
Texas-specific cost drivers and renter advice
Spare capacity is your leverage. Where units sit empty, the move-in offer is a floor rather than a favour and the first rate review is negotiable. Public Storage's 10-K is explicit about the second part: "We typically increase rental rates to our long-term tenants (generally, those who have been with us for at least five months) every six to twelve months." Ask when the first increase is due and whether a longer commitment buys a price lock.
Climate control is closer to mandatory than optional. Inland summer heat and Gulf Coast humidity both attack stored goods. Skip climate only for plastic bins, tools, sports gear and items genuinely insensitive to heat and damp, and quote both unit types at the same facility so you see that facility's actual premium.
Hurricane season matters on the coast. Houston, Galveston, Corpus Christi and the Gulf Coast can see storage demand rise during and after major storms (Harvey in 2017, Beryl in 2024). If you can choose when to sign, outside June to November is the safer window, and read the facility's terms on flood and wind damage either way.
Distance is the other lever. Land is cheaper away from the urban core, so quote one facility in town and one 15 to 25 minutes out for the same size and climate type. For storage you visit rarely, the cheaper site usually wins.
What to ask before you sign
- The standard monthly rate and the promotional rate, separately, and how long the promotion lasts.
- When the first rate increase is typically applied, and whether it can be fixed for a term.
- Any administration fee, lock requirement and protection plan or insurance requirement, with the monthly cost of each.
- Whether the unit is climate-controlled (heated and cooled) or only enclosed, and which floor it is on.
- A competitor's written quote for the same size, to put on the table.