To get a grasp of the latest self storage trends, who most uses storage away from home, and what drives both homeowners and renters to use self storage, our analysts at StorageCafe asked almost 18,000 Americans about their storage preferences.

Here are the key findings from our survey:

• Across America, 21% of people declared themselves to be self storage users in 2022 and an additional 15% said they intend to take advantage of the service in the future.

• Top self storage users by generations: Gen-Xers make up the biggest share of storage users in the U.S (23%). They are followed closely by millennials, who have started feeling the need for extra storage space, perhaps because of growing families and increased spending power. Roughly 21% of millennials declared they are using the service.

• Main reason for using self storage: Shrinking apartments created a strong need for extra space. Roughly 40% of current storage users reported lack of space at home as their primary reason for renting self storage, overtaking relocating, which was reported by 34%.

• The item most common kept away from home is furniture, followed by clothing. Additionally, people also store home appliances, sporting items and hobby gear, as well as business items. Yet, tales of the strange things found in storage units are abundant.

• The most interested cities: Atlanta was 14th in average monthly searches and had one of the largest spikes in searches from 2019 to 2022, jumping an astounding 314%.

• Currently, the average cost of a 10'x10' storage unit in Atlanta is $141/month, down 9% compared to last year.

Please find all the survey results, here: https://www.storagecafe.com/blog/a-fifth-of-americans-rent-self-storage-gen-xers-lead/