A College Student’s Guide to Summer Storage

With summer quickly approaching, college students are preparing to pack up their dorm rooms. The problem: driving a car’s worth of household items to their parent’s home just isn’t feasible. So what’s a college student to do? Thankfully, summer storage for college students is easy to find and affordable. In fact, renting a self-storage unit for the summer is an especially cost-efficient way for college students to store all of their dorm room and apartment belongings. Below, we’ve included a guide to summer storage for college students, as well as a list of self-storage facilities to check out this summer. Best of luck and happy moving!

Why do college students need summer storage?

For starters, storage units typically provide the perfect amount of storage space for dorm room and apartment-size belongings. In addition, students will be able to store their belongings near campus, making it easy to move in and out whenever they wish. Instead of hauling their belongings home every summer, they can simply drop them off at a self-storage unit for safe-keeping during the summer months. Not only will this prevent students from temporarily junking up their parent’s garage, but it will also make their move off campus an overall smooth experience.

What size storage unit is ideal for students?

Most storage units are capable of holding at least one room of furniture. Students living in a two or three-bedroom apartment can also find storage units large enough to accommodate more furnishings. The majority of college students can get away with renting a storage unit the size of 5×5 or 5×10. The 5×5 storage unit is capable of holding a love seat, boxes and home decor. A 5×10 storage unit is capable of holding a sofa or twin bed, as well as décor and smaller furnishings.

Who will benefit most from renting a storage unit?

Students who benefit the most from renting a storage unit during the summer are those that live far from home and/or are studying abroad during the summer or fall months. If this sounds like your situation, we highly recommend renting a self-storage unit while you are gone. Not only will renting a summer storage unit near campus make moving back home easier, but it will also save you from wasting countless hours packing and shipping your belongings across the country.

How much does summer storage for college students cost?

The cost of summer storage is typically based on the size of the storage unit needed, as well as the length of time rented. Most self-storage facilities offer contracts on a month-to-month basis. The price of renting a storage unit ranges anywhere from $12 a month to $100 a month or more. However, many storage facilities offer special student discounts to college students.

Where can I find affordable self-storage units for college students?

There are a number of storage companies that specialize in summer storage for college students. Here are a few storage units to consider:

U-Haul Collegeboxes– In addition to truck rentals, U-Haul offers storage facilities nationwide. According to their website, the company provides summer shipping and storage, ship-to-school services and study abroad shipping. The company will deliver your storage boxes right to your doorstep and pick them up once you’ve finished packing. From there, U-Haul will store your belongings in one of their secure storage facilities. Once you return to school, the company will deliver your belongings to your dorm.
Two Men and a Truck Student Storage– The labor-only movers provide both moving and storage services specifically designed for college students. Those looking for storage can choose between several student storage plans including the All Inclusive Plan, the You Ship, We Deliver Plan, and the You Ship, You Pickup Plan. The easiest Two Men and a Truck Student Storage plan is the All Inclusive Plan, where the company will pick up your items, store them and the deliver them back to you in the fall.
Dorm2Dorm– Dorm2Dorm ships students all supplies needed for storage. Once students have packed and prepared their boxes, the storage company will pick them up and store them over the summer or study abroad period. Once school starts back, Dorm2Dorm will deliver all items to your new dorm or apartment. The storage company services various schools in New York City, California, Washington, DC, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
Dorm Room Movers– Similar to Dorm2Dorm, Dorm Room Movers only services certain areas of the country. The storage service sends students all packing supplies necessary for boxing up their dorms. After the students have finished packing, Dorm Room Movers will pick up the items and deliver them to a secure and climate controlled storage facility. Pickup and delivery are free.
SMARTBOX College Student Storage– The portable storage and moving company will deliver a SMARTBOX storage unit to a student’s campus dorm room. All students have to do is load the unit themselves, and SMARTBOX will pick up the storage unit and deliver it to a storage center. To make it easy, the storage service allows college students to pay a one-time bundled fee for everything at the very beginning. Each unit is 8x7x5 and can hold up to 3,000 pounds of belongings.

Other Affordable Self-Storage Options

CubeSmart– The self-storage company has 800 facilities nationwide, making it easy to find and readily available throughout the country. In addition, CubeSmart offers self storage discounts to college students during the summer. There is no minimum stay and storage contracts are on a month-to-month basis.
Public Storage– With thousands of location throughout the country, Public Storage is one of the most convenient and easy-to-find storage centers available to students. The storage facility offers climate controlled units, as well as month-to-month storage plans and multiple size units.
Extra Space Storage– The storage facility offers student storage at more than 800 locations nationwide. Extra Space Storage units come in eight different sizes. The company offers month-to-month rental contracts and climate controlled storage facilities as well.

Ready to store your belongings this summer?

Fortunately, it’s easy to locate nearby storage units with Moving.com’s storage finder. All you have to do is type in the zip code or your city and state, and click the ‘find storage’ button. Moving.com will pull quotes from nearby storage unit facilities to compare. You can even sort them by star ratings from other people, their price, distance from your home, and filter by features such as climate control, drive-up access, and 24-hour access.