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01 / Compare · cost

Self storage software cost (UK): what you'll actually pay.

Most vendors won't give you a number until you've booked a call. Here's what is public — dated and sourced — plus the cost drivers that decide the real total.

The short answer

As captured 17 July 2026, few UK-relevant vendors publish prices. Of those that do: Stora's Essentials tier starts at £126/mo at up to 50 units (£105/mo billed annually), Storeganise publishes a calculator starting from £80/mo in GBP, and StoreBay — our product — is £63/mo +VAT including the first 50 units, everything included on one plan. Most other vendors — Storman, Kinnovis and 6Storage among them — price by quote. And whoever you pick, the software fee is only part of the total.

Comparison based on each vendor's publicly available information as of 2026-07-17. Stora, Storman, Kinnovis, Storeganise, 6Storage, SiteLink and Storable are trademarks of their respective owners; StoreBay is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them. StoreBay wrote this page — the disclosure is deliberate.

02 / The pricing models

Three ways this market charges

Every vendor on the market prices one of three ways. Knowing which you're looking at tells you what to ask next.

Per-unit ladders

A base fee that includes a block of units, plus a per-unit rate above it. The bill tracks units under management, so you can compute it yourself for any portfolio. This is how StoreBay prices — and Stora's published entry price is likewise anchored to a unit count ("at up to 50 units").

Tiered feature-gating

One platform, several tiers, with features unlocking as you go up. The from-price is real, but it may not include the features you came for — price the tier that has your API, reporting or collections, not the cheapest one.

Quote-based bands

No public numbers; pricing is set per operator after a demo, often banded by sites and units. It's a normal sales-led model, not a red flag in itself — but you can't budget, or compare, before the call.

03 / What drives the total

Five lines on the real bill

The subscription is the visible line — and only the first of five. Pay particular attention to the second.

The software fee

The headline number — at your unit count, not the from-price. On per-unit ladders, recompute it at the portfolio you'll have in two years, not just the one you have today.

Payment processing — the line outside the subscription

Some vendors add a margin to the payment rail. Stora publishes its rates: cards from 1.5% + 30p, and Direct Debit at 1% (min 30p, max £5) — as captured 17 July 2026. StoreBay passes Stripe and GoCardless rates through at cost, with no StoreBay margin on top. A percentage of every licence fee, every month, across every unit — model it at your own revenue before comparing headline fees.

Onboarding and setup fees

Some vendors charge a one-off onboarding fee on top of the subscription. Ask what it is and what it includes — data migration, site configuration, training — before you compare totals.

Tier upgrades forced by gated features

If a capability you need sits a tier up, that tier's price is your price. Stora, for example, reserves the public API and advanced reporting for its Advanced and Premium tiers, as captured 17 July 2026. Whichever vendor you're pricing: list the features you actually need, then price the cheapest tier that contains all of them.

Seat limits

Some plans cap staff seats by tier, so a growing team can trigger an upgrade on its own. Ask where the limits sit. (StoreBay has unlimited seats on its one plan.)

04 / The worked numbers

Published prices at 50, 250 and 1,000 units

Only figures each vendor actually publishes. Where we hold no published figure at a unit count, the cell stays blank — we never interpolate someone else's bill.

Platform50 units250 units1,000 units
StoreBay — one plan, everything includedours£63 +VAT£159 +VAT£519 +VAT
Stora — Essentials tier (published)£126/mo (at up to 50 units)
Storeganise — calculator (from £80/mo)
Storman · Kinnovis · 6Storage · SiteLinkNo public pricingNo public pricingNo public pricing

StoreBay: monthly billing, computed as £63 base (first 50 units) + £0.48/unit above, +VAT — the same function that generates our invoices. Competitor figures as captured 17 July 2026.

Why the blanks: Stora's published anchor is £126/mo at up to 50 units (£105/mo billed annually) — we hold no published Stora figure at 250 or 1,000 units, so those cells stay empty rather than guessed. Storeganise publishes a calculator (from £80/mo in GBP) but no unit-count price list, so run its calculator for your own portfolio. Storman, Kinnovis, 6Storage and SiteLink publish no prices at all, as captured 17 July 2026 — for them, the only honest cell is "no public pricing".

StoreBay's price is a formula you can compute
Computed from StoreBay's published pricing (lib/pricing.ts) — base £63 incl. 50 units + £0.48/unit above, +VAT.
The hidden line: payment-processing markup
Payment railStoreBayStora (published)
CardsPassed through at cost — no StoreBay surchargeFrom 1.5% + 30p
Bacs Direct DebitPassed through at cost — no StoreBay surcharge1% (min 30p, max £5)
StoreBay: ADR 0017 (rails passed through at cost). Stora: published rates, as captured 17 July 2026 (claims-evidence #21).

05 / Ask every vendor

Six questions that surface the real total

Ask these of every vendor on your shortlist — StoreBay included. A transparent vendor will answer all six in writing.

  1. 01What will I pay at my unit count — and at double it?

    Get the number in writing for your portfolio today and the one you plan to reach. From-prices and tier steps hide the growth curve.

  2. 02Do you mark up card or Direct Debit rates?

    Ask whether payment processing passes through at the rail cost or carries a vendor margin — and get the exact percentages and per-transaction fees.

  3. 03Which features are gated to higher tiers?

    Where do the API, reporting, collections and integrations actually sit? The tier that contains them is your real price.

  4. 04Is there an onboarding or setup fee?

    And what does it include — data migration, site configuration, training?

  5. 05Are staff seats limited?

    Per-seat caps by tier mean hiring can raise your software bill. Ask where the caps sit.

  6. 06What does leaving look like?

    Can you export all of your data in a usable format, and is there an exit fee? The answer tells you how confident the vendor is in being kept.

Comparing vendors as well as costs? See the best self storage software UK shortlist, the dated StoreBay vs Stora head-to-head, and what to look for in self storage software. StoreBay's own numbers — with a calculator — live on the pricing page.

06 / FAQ

Common questions

Two honest reasons: portfolio-dependent pricing (site and unit bands make a single number awkward to publish) and a sales-led motion that prefers to qualify you before naming a figure. Neither makes a vendor bad — but it moves the budgeting work onto you and makes like-for-like comparison harder. As captured 17 July 2026, Stora, Storeganise and StoreBay are the exceptions we track that publish numbers.

Published pricing · everything included · no rail markup

Know your number before the demo, not after.

Published pricing · unlimited sites and seats · guided migration with concierge support.