elcome to the 2025 Self-Storage Almanac. For 33 years, the Almanac has been the leading source of data for the self-storage industry. As the most sought-after publication in our industry, we take pride in delivering the best industry data in each and every edition. It is an essential tool for both developers and operators, regardless of whether they are industry newcomers or self-storage veterans.

Developers turn to the Almanac because it gives the demand per person in the United States and then drills down to individual markets. Calculated by taking the total supply of rentable square feet of self-storage in the U.S. or market, multiplied by the average occupancy and divided by the population, the demand figures presented in the Almanac are used nationwide in feasibility studies and reporting on the health of the industry. They are widely seen as the most accurate figures available to the industry. The information is gathered from our data partner, Radius+.

Developers use the figures from the Almanac to determine if the market they are interested in has unmet demand. By taking the population of a market and multiplying by the demand figure of the area, developers can determine the demand for self-storage in the market. Subtract out the rentable square footage of existing and/or planned development in the market and you are left with its unmet demand. But the Almanac isn’t solely for developers. Thousands of operators use the Almanac and other available industry data collection to assess key metrics regarding the performance of their facilities in a given market.

In keeping with our goal to provide the most accurate information available, this year we have presented comparative data on national facility counts in Section 1. Thank you to StorTrack, TractIQ, and Yardi Matrix for providing their facility counts and methodology for the comparison included in this year’s Industry Ownership section. It is important to note that this differing methodology impacts national facility counts. We believe it is our responsibility to provide this data. As such, we will continue to monitor new data sources over the coming months in order to continue to provide accurate industry-wide data.

We would like to extend a special thank you to Radius+, our data partner since 2014. In addition, thank you to the Self Storage Association for allowing us to use data from their 2023 Self Storage Demand Study. And last but certainly not least, thank you Chris Sonne of Newmark Valuation & Advisory for providing his expertise on so many levels.

Remember: The need for comprehensive, market-specific research and ample due diligence is vital to the success of any investment in our industry. Hence, it is essential to retain an unbiased, third-party consultant to conduct extensive feasibility and market studies.

As always, should you have any questions about the Almanac, please feel free to reach out to me directly at poppy@modernstoragemedia.com. Above all, we wish you the best in your self-storage endeavors.