Most storage franchises are portable storage businesses: the owner delivers a container to a home or business, the customer fills it, and the container either stays on site or goes back to the owner’s warehouse, or across the country for a move. Revenue is monthly rent on each container plus delivery fees. Some brands add dumpsters, mobile offices or refrigerated units.
Self-storage facilities, the rows of rented units most people picture, are rarely franchised: most are owned outright by investors or run under management contracts, so the self-storage franchise here is the exception.
The storage franchises
Portable storage containers
| Brand | Cost to open | Locations | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNITS Portable StorageA portable storage and moving business delivering storage containers to homes and businesses.$518K–$1.27M | $518K–$1.27M | 69 | +6 |
| Go Mini’sA portable storage and moving business delivering containers to homes and businesses.$759K–$1.25M | $759K–$1.25M | 29 | −3 |
| DumpStorA dumpster and portable storage container rental business delivering roll-off, enclosed and open-top containers.$142K–$508K | $142K–$508K | 20 | +14 |
| Cool BinzA rental business leasing portable storage containers, mobile offices and mobile refrigeration and freezer units.$889K–$1.11M | $889K–$1.11M | 10 | +9 |
| MyWay Mobile StorageA mobile storage business that delivers portable storage containers to customers and stores them.$238K–$834K | $238K–$834K | 6 | – |
| STORsquareA STORsquare franchisee offers portable storage containers, moving services and storage for residential and commercial customers.$166K–$434K | $166K–$434K | 5 | +3 |
| MULE BOXA MULE BOX franchisee delivers, stores and transports mobile modular self-storage containers.$531K–$1.04M | $531K–$1.04M | 4 | +3 |
Self-storage facilities
| Brand | Cost to open | Locations | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Storage AuthorityA self-storage facility, which may include RV and vehicle storage, built new or converted from an existing site.$6.17M–$8.4M | $6.17M–$8.4M | 3 | 0 |
What storage franchises cost to open
The typical brand here costs $525K at the low end of its estimate and $1.07M at the high end. The lowest starting cost is DumpStor’s, from $142K. Use each brand’s full range for budgeting: the low end is a small site in a cheaper market.
| Kind | Brands | Typical cost to open |
|---|---|---|
| Portable storage containers | 7 | $518K–$1.04M |
| Self-storage facilities | 1 | $6.17M–$8.4M |
For a portable storage business the containers and the specialized truck or trailer that lifts them are most of the investment, along with a warehouse or yard to store them. The more containers you buy, the more you can rent, so brands quote a starting fleet. Self-storage needs land and a building and costs many times more.
Fees and royalties
The typical franchise fee is $58K and the typical royalty 7.5% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. One brand charges a flat, tiered or other royalty instead of one percentage. Royalties come off sales before rent, wages or loan payments. The fees and royalties guide compares industries.
What locations sell
One brand here publishes a comparable yearly sales figure per location. Sales are before costs, so they say nothing on their own about profit.
| Brand | Yearly sales | Sales ÷ cost |
|---|---|---|
| DumpStor2025, 16 locations | $410K | 1.3× |
Which storage franchises are growing
Of the 7 brands with three years of location figures, 5 grew from 2023 to 2025 and 1 shrank, a net change of +32 locations between them. The typical one lost none of its franchised locations a year to closures, terminations and non-renewals, against 3.0% across all franchises. On the SBA Franchise Directory are 4 of the 8, so SBA-backed loans are open to them.
Before you buy
Ask what share of containers are rented at a typical owner’s business, how long customers keep them, and how the brand books long-distance moves between owners. Check local rules on containers parked in driveways and streets. For self-storage, the deciding figures are the price of land and the number of competing facilities within a few miles.
Questions
How does a portable storage franchise make money?
Mostly from monthly rent on each container, plus delivery and pickup fees and, for moves, a fee for transport to another city. A container that sits rented for months earns far more than one delivered and returned in a week, so owners watch utilization: the share of the fleet out on rent.
Can I franchise a self-storage facility?
A few brands sell franchises, but most self-storage is owned by investors and either run independently or under a management company's contract. A franchise gives a brand and systems; a management contract hands the whole operation to the manager for a share of revenue. Compare both before building.