Setting Strategic, Data-Driven Street Rates in Today’s Competitive Self-Storage Landscap

By Melissa Huff, originally published by Inside Self-Storage on November 10, 2025

Gone are the days when gut feelings and casual market glances could guide your self-storage pricing decisions. Smart facility operators use a data-driven approach to set street rates! Learn to shift your focus from reactive guesswork to proactive precision, ensuring every unit you rent contributes maximum value to your bottom line.

Over the past year, self-storage operators have faced a whirlwind of economic shifts, from inflation and rising costs to changing consumer behavior and increased competition. The days of setting street rates based on gut instinct or simply matching the guy down the block are over. Success in 2025 and beyond requires a smarter, more strategic approach, one that blends data, demand and a clear understanding of your facility’s unique value. Let’s explore how to navigate this new pricing landscape with confidence and precision.

Navigating the New Landscape

Self-storage operating costs have continued to increase, making higher rates necessary for financial stability. However, our tenants are also experiencing steeper expenses, making them more price-sensitive.

As consumers today, we’re smarter in our search for products and services. We love a good deal! We read reviews, troll social media feeds and ask for recommendations from friends. We’ll pay for the perks we want, but we don’t like to be surprised by hidden charges. All of these factors create friction that can be confusing or downright paralyzing for the self-storage operator who’s trying to set street rates and keep up with competition.

Good data is more important to this process than ever. You have to know more than rates at nearby self-storage facilities. You need to know about each competitor’s product, their management style, how their website works and what their customers are saying about them.

Once you’ve collected all of this information, how does that play into your own street rates? Every market is different. It’s trial and error, and then making adjustments. The outcome changes by the month, week or day. But while there may not be a magic formula, there is a smart method to follow, and it doesn’t have to be complicated.

Let Supply and Demand Be Your Compass

Your self-storage street rates should reflect your market, product and supply. The price for a 10-by-10 unit in Dallas isn’t the same as in a small town in North Carolina. In fact, the cost of that unit can vary drastically at facilities that are only 10 miles apart.

So, what’s your market? It’s the area around your self-storage facility containing both your customers and your competitors. For some operators, that’s a tight 3-mile radius containing 15 facilities. For others, it’s a 20-mile area that only contains five others. Once you’ve determined this market, narrow the list of competitors to those that offer a product similar to yours in quality and value...(read more at Inside Self-Storage)

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