A storage unit is sold in square feet and used in cubic feet, which is the root of nearly every sizing mistake made in this city. A 15 square foot unit with a three metre ceiling holds far more than the floor plan suggests, right up until you need the thing at the bottom.
The mistake everyone makes
The first rental is almost always too small. People measure the pile in the living room, pick the unit that matches it, and forget that a unit you cannot walk into is a unit you cannot use. The second rental, booked in mild panic after the first one failed, is usually one size too big and stays that way for a year.
The fix is boring. Work out the size for the volume, then ask one question: will I need to take anything out before I take everything out. If the answer is yes, go up one size and buy yourself an aisle. At Dubai prices the aisle costs between AED 240 and AED 300 a month, which is less than the value of the first thing you break climbing over a wardrobe.
The sizes, with prices
What size do you need, and what does it cost
Pick what you are storing. The size guidance comes from the volumes movers quote in Dubai; the price is the published rate at that size.
- Just boxes: about 15 sq ft, AED 330 a month.
- Studio: about 25 sq ft, AED 625 a month.
- 1 bedroom: about 35 sq ft, AED 865 a month.
- 2 bedrooms: about 50 sq ft, AED 1,150 a month.
- 3 bed villa: about 100 sq ft, AED 2,250 a month.
- 4 bed villa: about 200 sq ft, AED 4,000 a month.
| Unit | Per month | Per year | Typically holds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 sq ft | AED 330 | AED 3,960 | Ten to fifteen boxes plus a bicycle |
| 25 sq ft | AED 625 | AED 7,500 | A studio, flat packed |
| 35 sq ft | AED 865 | AED 10,380 | A one bedroom flat |
| 50 sq ft | AED 1,150 | AED 13,800 | Two bedrooms with white goods |
| 75 sq ft | AED 1,650 | AED 19,800 | A small villa or a business stock run |
| 100 sq ft | AED 2,250 | AED 27,000 | A three bedroom villa |
| 200 sq ft | AED 4,000 | AED 48,000 | Four bedrooms or more |
What stacking actually costs you
Storing to the ceiling is efficient and it is also how furniture gets damaged. Weight on the bottom, nothing soft under anything hard, and a mattress on its side rather than flat, are the three rules every mover repeats and every customer ignores by the fourth trip to the van.
There is a Dubai specific version of this. In a unit without climate control, the warmest air in the room is the air at the top, and that is exactly where people put the boxes they consider least important, which in practice means photographs, books and papers. If you are stacking high in a hot warehouse, invert your instincts and put the fragile things at floor level.
Operators quote unit sizes in square feet but very few publish ceiling heights. Ask before you sign, because a 25 square foot unit with a 2.4 metre ceiling and a 25 square foot unit with a 3.5 metre ceiling are different products at the same price.
The three edge cases
A car. Vehicles are not priced by the square foot anywhere in Dubai and are quoted individually, because the operator is pricing insurance and battery maintenance rather than floor area. A handful of facilities take them at all, including Vachi and Reef.
Art and instruments. The size is irrelevant, the specification is everything. A canvas needs stable humidity far more than it needs space, so the question to ask is not how big but how tightly the climate is held and whether that figure is written down anywhere.
Business stock that moves. If pallets come in and go out again, floor area is the wrong unit of measurement entirely and you want to be talking to an operator with a fulfilment arm, such as 800 Storage, rather than renting a room and doing the picking yourself.
Questions readers sent
What size storage unit do I need for a one bedroom apartment in Dubai?
About 35 square feet, which holds a double bed, a three seat sofa, a dining set and the contents of the cupboards. The only published price for that size in Dubai is AED 865 a month at Vachi Storage; other operators quote it on request.
How much storage space does a villa need?
A three bedroom villa typically needs around 100 square feet, and four bedrooms or more needs about 200. At published rates that is AED 2,250 and AED 4,000 a month respectively. Garden furniture is the item people forget, and it is bulkier than anything indoors.
Is it cheaper to get a bigger unit or two small ones?
One larger unit, almost always. Dubai price ladders are not linear: doubling from 15 to 35 square feet costs about two and a half times as much per month, but two 15 square foot units cost exactly double and give you two doors to walk between.
Tom Aldridge writes about the cost of living in the UAE. He spent six years pricing freight contracts before turning to journalism, which is why he reads a tariff sheet before he reads a brochure.