Short answer: a used 20ft storage container for a Seattle address is about $1,700 to $2,400 for the container, before delivery. A 40ft is $3,600 to $5,000. A one-trip 20ft that looks new is $3,300 to $4,600. Delivery is quoted per address and sales tax is extra.
A storage container is the cheapest secure storage you can put on your own ground in Seattle, and it is the only one you can sell when you are done with it. It goes on the ground in one trip, needs no foundation, and does not care about the weather once the doors seal.
What people usually want to know first is the price, so the table below is the container price itself. Delivery to Seattle is a separate number and it depends far more on your street than on the container, which is why it is quoted by address rather than published as a flat rate.
| Size and type | Condition | Typical price | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20ft standard | Wind & water tight | $1,700 - $2,400 | The default storage container. Keeps rain out, no certification needed. |
| 20ft standard | Cargo worthy | $2,100 - $2,900 | Straighter panels and a sounder frame if appearance matters |
| 20ft standard | One-trip | $3,300 - $4,600 | A container that looks new, or one you plan to modify later |
| 20ft high cube | Wind & water tight | $2,000 - $2,600 | Extra foot of headroom for shelving or a mezzanine |
| 40ft standard | Used | $3,600 - $5,000 | Whole-house storage, about double the floor space of a 20ft |
| 40ft high cube | One-trip | $6,200 - $7,800 | Long term storage with full headroom |
10ft and 45ft units, refrigerated containers and anything with a man door or extra openings are priced per unit because local supply changes week to week. Ask what is in stock for the size you want.
If you want the full breakdown of what drives the number, including the condition grades and the delivery variables, the shipping container prices in Tacoma page covers it in more depth. The container costs the same either side of the water; the delivery leg is what changes.
People almost always overestimate what they need, because a container is a box, not a room. There is no corridor and no wasted wall space, so the cubic feet go further than the square footage suggests.
| Size | Outside dimensions | Floor / volume | Holds roughly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10ft | 10 ft x 8 ft x 8 ft 6 in | 80 sq ft | Tools, bikes, patio furniture, a small renovation |
| 20ft | 20 ft x 8 ft x 8 ft 6 in | 148 sq ft / 1,172 cu ft | A one car garage or a one bedroom apartment |
| 40ft | 40 ft x 8 ft x 8 ft 6 in | 320 sq ft / 2,390 cu ft | A three or four bedroom house |
| 40ft high cube | 40 ft x 8 ft x 9 ft 6 in | 320 sq ft / 2,694 cu ft | The same house, with room for racking and a walking aisle |
A high cube is a foot taller than a standard container, which matters more than people expect once you add shelving. The extra height costs $200 to $500 depending on the grade. See the high cube containers page for the detail.
This is the part that decides whether a container delivery works, and Seattle is a harder city for it than most. The truck is a tilt-bed: the bed tips, the container slides off and the driver drags it into place. All of that needs a straight run of open ground and clearance above it.
Before you order, walk the route the truck will take and measure it. Two minutes with a tape now saves a wasted delivery.
Seattle self storage is expensive, and the cost is permanent. A 10 by 20 unit runs a few hundred dollars a month, so over two years at $300 a month you have spent $7,200 and you own nothing at the end of it. A used 20ft container costs about $2,000, it sits on your own property, and when you are finished you can sell it.
Renting a container instead of buying one only makes sense for a short job. Past about a year the rent usually passes the purchase price, and you still do not own the box.
If you have no legal place to put a container, no driveway, and no yard, self storage is the honest answer. A container needs ground you control. We would rather tell you that than sell you a container the city will ask you to move.
A used container is a steel box that has been at sea and then sat in a yard. That is normal, and it is why a used 20ft is $1,700 rather than $6,000. What you are checking for is anything that will let water in or anything that has compromised the structure.
For a storage container on a Seattle lot, wind and water tight is the sensible floor. If you want a straighter container that looks better from the street, cargo worthy is worth the extra $400 or so. Read more on the cargo worthy containers page, or see the storage shipping containers page for the rental side.
A used 20ft wind and water tight container is about $1,700 to $2,400 before delivery. A 40ft runs $3,600 to $5,000, and a one-trip 20ft is $3,300 to $4,600. Delivery is quoted by address and usually costs more than a Tacoma drop because of distance, traffic and street access.
On private property, a storage container usually does not need a building permit, but it does have to meet zoning setback and height rules. Anything in the street or planting strip needs a street use permit from SDOT. Seattle also protects certain trees. Confirm with the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections before you order.
A 20ft is about 148 square feet and 1,172 cubic feet, roughly a one car garage or a one bedroom apartment. A 40ft is about 320 square feet and 2,390 cubic feet, roughly a three or four bedroom house. A 10ft is enough for tools, bikes and patio furniture.
For a year or more, usually yes. A comparable 10 by 20 self storage unit runs a few hundred dollars a month, so two years is easily $7,000 with nothing to show for it. A used 20ft costs about $2,000 and you can sell it later.
Usually yes, but the site decides it. A tilt-bed needs roughly 60 to 75 feet of straight run for a 20ft container. Steep hills, narrow streets, parked cars, power lines and low tree canopy are the usual blockers in Seattle.
Surface rust on a used container is normal and cosmetic. Leaking roof seams, worn door gaskets and standing water inside are what actually matter. Buy wind and water tight or better, set it on gravel rather than bare soil, and leave a little ventilation.
Yes, across Puget Sound: Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Renton, Kent, Auburn, Federal Way, Everett and the Kitsap Peninsula. Delivery is quoted per address because distance and site access change the number more than the container does.
If you want the container modified rather than plain, that is what we do most of. Doors, windows, insulation, vents, roll up doors and lighting are all built at our Tacoma yard before delivery, so the container arrives finished. Browse container modifications or read about tool storage containers if the box is for a job site rather than a household.
Not sure which size or grade you need? Tell us what you are storing, where it is going and what the ground is like, and we will tell you the smallest container that will do the job rather than the largest one we can sell.
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