For a stay of a few months, renting is usually cheaper: at the October 2026 rate, 16 weeks in our 20ft container at Shipston-on-Stour costs less than a used 20ft box costs to buy, before you add delivery. Over a year or more, buying can come out cheaper, as long as you have your own land with a solid base and you’re storing kit that can cope with temperature swings and a little condensation.
What renting costs
On our October 2026 price list, our 160 sq ft (20ft x 8ft) storage container at Shipston-on-Stour is £64 a week, or £256 every four weeks. At that rate:
- 16 weeks is £1,024;
- 26 weeks is £1,664;
- 52 weeks is £3,328.
Prices differ by site and change from time to time, and we sometimes run offers on containers, so your quote will show today’s figure. The price in your quote is the price you pay: VAT isn’t added on top. Alongside the rent, you’ll need contents cover, through our contents protection or your own policy, and a padlock for the container.
What you don’t pay for is just as useful: no delivery, no base, nothing to sell at the end. You drive up and load, with access from 6am to 10pm every day. The minimum term is two weeks, and when you’re done you give notice, normally 14 days.
What buying costs
In September 2026, UK sellers were advertising used 20ft containers at roughly £1,050 to £1,295 plus VAT, with delivery extra; one seller’s delivery starts at around £150 plus VAT close to its depots and rises steeply for remote addresses. Then add a level, solid base, insurance for the box and its contents, a lock, and the cost of moving or selling it when you’re finished.
Doing the sum for your stay
Add up the delivered price of the box, its base, a lock and insurance, take off what you’d expect to get back when you sell, and compare that with our rent for the weeks you need. Remember that sellers usually quote plus VAT, while nothing is added on top of the price in our quote.
As our comparison guide puts it, for a builder with a yard, hardstanding and weatherproof kit, “a container bought outright often works out cheaper over a year or more than paying monthly rent”. If you’re storing furniture, fabric or boxes, or the need is seasonal or uncertain, renting is usually the better fit: the same guide warns that an unheated steel box can sweat on cold nights. If your container will go on your own land, check with your local council about planning before you pay for delivery.
Already renting from us?
Compare only the weeks still ahead with the cost of buying. If buying wins, give us notice and we’ll refund any unused days once the unit is empty.
We have containers at Chipping Norton, Shipston-on-Stour and Warminster. Get a price online for your nearest one, or call us on 0800 2545585 and we’ll help you run the numbers.
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