Quick summary (October 2026): The size of storage unit you need depends on how much you’re storing and whether you need to get to it while it’s in there. The Van Man Co’s storage unit size calculator puts a student room or the boxes from a 1 bed flat in a 25 sq ft unit, a furnished studio or 1 bed in 50 sq ft, a furnished 2 bed in 100 sq ft and a furnished 3 bed in 150 sq ft. The units in the calculator are about 2.4m high and it stacks to 2.2m, so the height counts as well as the floor. The Van Man Co doesn’t sell storage, but its drivers move things into and out of it. To see drivers and prices, start with the Bristol man and van page.
Working out what size storage unit you need is awkward, because units are sold by floor area and most of us don’t think about our furniture in square feet.
Go too small and it won’t all go in. Go too big and you’re paying every month for space you’re not using.
We don’t sell storage, but our drivers do storage runs, so we built a calculator that packs your list into a unit at real size.
Storage unit sizes at a glance
Self storage is sold by the square foot of floor. These are the sizes our calculator uses, and roughly what each one takes:
| Unit size | Floor, approx. | Roughly holds |
|---|---|---|
| 15 sq ft | 1.5 x 0.9m (5 x 3ft) | About a dozen medium boxes |
| 25 sq ft | 1.5 x 1.5m (5 x 5ft) | A student room, or the boxes and bags from a 1 bed |
| 35 sq ft | 1.5 x 2.1m (5 x 7ft) | A step up when 25 sq ft is tight |
| 50 sq ft | 1.5 x 3.0m (5 x 10ft) | A furnished studio or 1 bed flat |
| 75 sq ft | 2.3 x 3.0m (7.5 x 10ft) | The smallest size with room for a walkway |
| 100 sq ft | 3.0 x 3.0m (10 x 10ft) | A furnished 2 bed |
| 150 sq ft | 3.0 x 4.6m (10 x 15ft) | A furnished 3 bed |
Sizes and shapes vary between storage firms, and even between stores run by the same firm. Which? makes the same point in its guide to self storage: the descriptions of what fits in a unit aren’t standardised across companies. So treat any size guide, ours included, as a starting point, and check the floor size and height with the store.
What size storage unit do I need for my home?
It depends on the furniture more than the number of bedrooms. These are the typical loads from our storage unit size calculator, and the unit each one lands in:
| What you’re storing | Volume, approx. | Unit size |
|---|---|---|
| Student room | 3.3m³ | 25 sq ft |
| Boxes and bags from a 1 bed | 2.6m³ | 25 sq ft |
| Studio, with furniture | 5.7m³ | 50 sq ft |
| 1 bed, with furniture | 7.0m³ | 50 sq ft |
| 2 bed, with furniture | 12.4m³ | 100 sq ft |
| 3 bed, with furniture | 16.6m³ | 150 sq ft |
That lines up with what Which? suggests for a typical three bedroom house, which is around 150 sq ft.
These are typical homes, and yours might not be. A sparsely furnished 2 bed can need less than a packed 1 bed, which is why it’s better to add your own things than to go on bedrooms alone. The calculator is a guide, so if you’re close to the line between two sizes, ask the store what they’d suggest.
Where does your driver need to go?
How long do you need the driver at each end?
A rough guide to the total time for loading and unloading.
- Few items: 30 mins to 1 hour
- Studio flat: 1 to 1.5 hours
- 1-bed flat: 1.5 to 2.5 hours
- 2-bed house: 2.5 to 4 hours
Every move is different. Stairs, parking and big or awkward items all add time. If unsure, round up.
Extra loading and unloading time is charged by the hour.
Estimate
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How your booking & deposit works
Why the floor size isn’t the whole story
A storage unit is a room you can stack in, so the height matters as much as the floor. The units in our calculator are about 2.4m high, and it stacks to 2.2m.
You won’t use all of it, though. Sofas leave dead space around them, some things can’t have anything put on top, and nobody stacks neatly to the ceiling. Our calculator picks the smallest unit your things fill no more than about 80% of, and then checks they actually pack in at real size.
Which? also warns against piling things so high they’re at risk of toppling over. Heavy boxes at the bottom, light ones on top, same as loading a van.
Do you need to get to your things?
This is the question that changes the answer most. If everything goes in and stays in until you move out, it can be packed tight. If you’ll be popping in for the winter coats or the Christmas decorations, you need a way through.
With a walkway on, our calculator keeps a 60cm lane down one side of the bigger units, 75 sq ft and up, from the door to the back wall. In the narrower units there isn’t room for one, so the simplest thing is to keep whatever you’ll need nearest the door. Which? gives the same advice: leave a path through the boxes so you can reach everything without hauling it all out.
How to fit into a smaller unit
- Take furniture apart. Beds, wardrobes and tables take up roughly half the space when they’re taken apart.
- Use boxes of the same size. They stack evenly and waste less space than a mix of bags and odd boxes.
- Clear out first. There’s no point paying to store things you’d throw away later. Our guide on what to throw away before moving is a good place to start.
- Ask to move down a size. If the unit turns out half empty, Which? suggests asking the store to move you to a smaller one so you’re not paying for space you don’t use.
If you’re choosing a store, the Self Storage Association UK is the industry’s trade body, which is a sensible place to start.
Getting it all to the unit
The same list that sizes the unit also tells you the van. A furnished studio or 1 bed usually goes in a large van, a furnished 2 bed in a Luton, and a furnished 3 bed means two Luton trips or a 7.5 tonne lorry. The calculator works out the van and the number of trips alongside the unit size.
With The Van Man Co, the price is an estimate based on time and distance, and it includes the driver’s travel to your pickup and back from the drop-off. Drivers bring blankets, straps and a trolley. Boxes and packing materials aren’t included, so have everything packed before the van arrives.
There’s more on our storage moves and transfers service, and you can see local drivers on the man and van page for Bristol or anywhere else in the UK.
Need a van to the unit?
FAQs
What size storage unit do I need for a 2 bed house?
Our calculator puts a typical furnished 2 bed at about 12.4m³, which goes in a 100 sq ft unit. With boxes and bags only it’s far less. It’s a guide, so check the size with the store.
What size storage unit do I need for a 3 bed house?
A typical furnished 3 bed comes to about 16.6m³, which our calculator puts in a 150 sq ft unit. Which? also suggests around 150 sq ft for a typical three bedroom house.
What fits in a 50 sq ft storage unit?
A 50 sq ft unit is about 1.5m by 3.0m. Our calculator puts a typical furnished studio or 1 bed flat in one, at about 5.7m³ to 7.0m³.
How many boxes fit in the smallest storage unit?
A 15 sq ft unit, about 1.5m by 0.9m, holds about a dozen medium boxes. A 25 sq ft unit takes a student room, or the boxes and bags from a 1 bed.
Does The Van Man Co offer storage?
No. We don’t sell or run storage. Our drivers move things into and out of storage units, and the calculator works out both the unit size and the van to get it there.
