You've worked out you need a storage unit — a gap between leases, a renovation, or a garage that has finally won. Then you start ringing around Townsville and every answer comes back in a different shape: a weekly rate here, a monthly rate there, a "first month half price" that's never mentioned again, and unit sizes quoted in feet, metres or "about a single garage". Compare them badly and you can easily pay a few hundred dollars more over a six-month term than you needed to.
So we checked. This guide sets out what self storage actually costs in Townsville by unit size, based on published prices we looked up in October 2026, and walks through how to turn any quote into a real, comparable monthly cost.
The short answer: in October 2026, advertised self storage rates in Townsville ran from about $95–$180 a month for a small locker-style unit, $175–$280 for a mid-size unit of 9–15 m², and mostly $280–$360 for a garage-sized unit of 18–24 m². Large units of around 30 m² reached $500 a month or more. Size, location, unit type and the fine print explain most of the difference between quotes.
Why Townsville Storage Quotes Are So Hard to Compare
Storage pricing isn't complicated, but it is inconsistent, and the inconsistency is where people lose money. The first trap is weekly versus monthly pricing. A month is not four weeks — it averages 4.33. An $85-a-week unit sounds cheaper than a $360-a-month one, but $85 × 52 ÷ 12 is about $368 a month. Multiply by four instead and you'd think it was $340, which is $28 a month out, or $168 over a typical six-month storage term.
The second trap is size. One facility lists a 3 × 6 m unit, another says "18 square metres", a national operator says "10 × 20 feet", and a listing marketplace just says "medium". They can all be roughly the same space — or not. Until you convert everything to square metres, you're comparing labels, not storage.
The third is everything that isn't the headline rate: admin fees, bonds, compulsory padlocks or insurance, minimum terms and notice periods. None of these are unreasonable on their own, but a cheap rate with three add-ons can cost more than a slightly higher rate with none. This matters in Townsville because a lot of storage here is driven by deadlines — a defence posting, a settlement gap, a FIFO roster change, the run-up to cyclone season — and people under time pressure tend to book the first quote that sounds right.
What Self Storage Costs in Townsville Right Now
These are advertised monthly rates from Townsville facilities and listings that publish prices online, checked on 16 October 2026. They're grouped by floor area so you can compare like with like.
| Unit size | Roughly holds | Advertised monthly rate |
|---|---|---|
| Small / locker (3–7 m²) | Boxes, a few pieces of furniture, seasonal gear | $95–$180 |
| Medium (9–15 m²) | A one-bedroom unit, or a room being renovated | $175–$280 |
| Garage-size (18–24 m²) | A two- to three-bedroom home | $280–$360 (some listings well above) |
| Large (25–30 m²) | A four-bedroom home or business stock | $340–$500+ |
The most useful number hiding in that table is the price per square metre. Small units are the most expensive space you can rent: across the published small-unit rates we found, they work out at roughly $19 to $33 per square metre per month. Garage-sized units came in at about $13.50 to $20. In other words, if you're genuinely between two sizes, the bigger unit usually costs less per square metre than you'd expect — and two small units almost always cost more than one medium one.
How we checked these prices: on 16 October 2026 we looked at the published price lists of Townsville facilities that show rates online — Townsville City Storage in the CBD, Store Secure in South Townsville and Railway Estate, and Yeatman Storage in Hyde Park (advertised from $225 a month) — plus current Townsville listings on the Spacer storage marketplace. Several larger operators only quote on enquiry, so they aren't included. Prices and specials change often, so treat the table as a guide, not a quote.
What Drives the Price of a Storage Unit
Size is the obvious one, but it isn't linear. A unit twice the size rarely costs twice as much, which is why getting the size right matters more than shaving a few dollars off the rate. Our storage size guide covers what fits in each size.
Location is the next biggest factor. Facilities in the CBD and inner suburbs such as Hyde Park and Pimlico generally sit at a different price point to those in industrial areas like Garbutt and Bohle, where land is cheaper. The trade-off is travel: if you'll visit the unit regularly, a cheaper unit twenty minutes the wrong way can cost you more in time and fuel than it saves.
Unit type matters too. Drive-up, garage-style units — where you back the car or trailer straight up to a roller door — save a lot of effort on moving day and tend to be priced accordingly. Internal units off a corridor are often cheaper per square metre, but you're wheeling everything in on a trolley.
Access and security add cost: extended access hours, gated entry and better lighting all have to be paid for somewhere. And demand moves prices. Townsville has predictable busy periods — the summer posting cycle for defence families, school holidays, end-of-lease periods and the weeks before cyclone season — and specials tend to appear when facilities have empty units, not when everyone is looking.
How to Work Out Your Real Monthly Cost
Before you commit to any facility, run each quote through the same seven steps. It takes ten minutes and turns a pile of different-looking prices into numbers you can actually compare.
- Get the size right first. Work out what you're storing and pick the size before you compare prices, so you're comparing the same thing.
- Convert everything to monthly. Weekly rate × 52 ÷ 12. Not × 4.
- Convert everything to square metres. Length × width in metres. A 10 × 20 ft unit is about 18.6 m².
- Ask about one-off costs. Admin or setup fee, bond, and whether you must buy the facility's padlock or can bring your own.
- Check insurance. Is it compulsory? Is it included? Does your home and contents policy already cover goods in storage?
- Read the minimum term and notice period. A three-month minimum is common. Also check how much notice you need to give, so you don't pay for an extra month you didn't use.
- Cost the whole term, not month one. Multiply the monthly rate by how long you'll realistically need the unit, then subtract any genuine discount and add the one-off fees.
Step seven is where "specials" often fall apart. Take two garage-sized units for six months. Unit A is $360 a month with no offer: $2,160. Unit B is $390 a month with the first month half price and a $30 admin fee: $195 + (5 × $390) + $30 = $2,175. The deal costs slightly more. That's not always the case, but you only know once you've done the sum.
Is Self Storage Worth the Money?
It depends what you're comparing it with. For a family moving between houses with a settlement gap, a few months of storage is usually far cheaper than the alternatives — paying for a bigger rental, or selling furniture and buying it again later. If you're in that situation, our guide to handling the overflow when you move covers how long most people actually need a unit.
For FIFO workers and defence families heading away for months, the comparison is usually storage versus paying rent on a home you're barely living in, and storage tends to win comfortably. We cover that in more detail in our guide to long-term storage in Townsville.
Where storage stops being good value is the open-ended "just in case" unit. If you're paying $300 a month to keep furniture you haven't used in two years, after a couple of years you've spent more than most of it would cost to replace. A simple rule: if you can't name when you'll next need what's in the unit, it's time to sell or donate some of it.
About French Street Self Storage
Our units are drive-up, garage-style sheds in 18 m², 24 m² and 30 m² sizes behind French Street Centre in Pimlico, with a key-operated gate and free parking. A minimum three-month term applies, and customers supply their own padlock. If you're comparing us against other Townsville facilities, run our quote through the same seven steps above — that's exactly what they're for.
All of our units are currently leased. If you'd like to know when one comes up, and what it will cost at the time, get in touch. Before you move anything in anywhere, it's also worth checking what you can and can't store, since rules on items like fuel and gas bottles are similar across most facilities.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a storage unit cost per month in Townsville?
Based on advertised rates checked in October 2026, small locker-style units in Townsville start at around $95 to $180 a month, mid-size units of 9 to 15 square metres run about $175 to $280, and garage-sized units of 18 to 24 square metres are mostly $280 to $360. Large units of around 30 square metres can reach $500 a month or more.
Is it cheaper to pay for storage weekly or monthly?
Neither is automatically cheaper, but weekly prices often look lower than they are. A month averages 4.33 weeks, so multiply a weekly rate by 52 and divide by 12 to compare it with a monthly rate. An $85 weekly rate works out to about $368 a month, not $340.
What extra fees should I ask about when renting a storage unit?
Ask about any admin or setup fee, a bond or deposit, whether you have to buy the facility's padlock, and whether insurance is required or included. Also check the minimum term and how much notice you need to give before moving out, because both affect what you really pay.
Do I need insurance for a self storage unit in Townsville?
Many facilities require your goods to be insured, and your home and contents policy may or may not cover items held off-site. Check your policy wording before you move in and ask the facility what cover it requires. Given Townsville's cyclone and wet season risk, it is worth confirming storm and flood cover specifically.
Planning a Move or a Clear-Out?
All units at French Street Self Storage in Pimlico are currently leased. Get in touch to ask about future availability and current rates.
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