Storage industry statistics span several related but distinct measures. In the United States, general warehousing revenue reached $47.9 billion in 2024, while the broader warehousing and storage sector had estimated output of $58.8 billion; self-storage company data adds a separate view of facilities, occupancy, acquisitions, and development.
Key Storage Industry Statistics
The most useful storage industry figures cover national scale, labor, company portfolios, and investment activity:
- U.S. general warehousing revenue was $47,909,696 thousand in 2024, covering all establishments.
- U.S. general warehousing revenue was $44,395,141 thousand in 2023, measured in current dollars.
- U.S. general warehousing revenue was $42,227,297 thousand in 2022, covering all establishments.
- U.S. warehousing and storage sectoral output was $58,838.434 million in 2024, according to a BLS estimate for NAICS 493.
- General warehousing and storage had 15,416 establishments in 2022, with 1,168,516 employees in the United States.
- General warehousing and storage annual payroll was $13,523,722 thousand in 2022, for U.S. employer establishments.
- The broader transportation and warehousing industry had 237,360 firms and 294,246 establishments in 2022, across U.S. NAICS sectors 48–49.
- Transportation and warehousing generated $1,316,303,546 thousand in 2022 sales, shipments, or revenue, depending on the industry measure.
- Transportation and warehousing establishments increased 24.2% from 2017 to 2022, a gain of 57,000 establishments.
- Public Storage operated 3,044 facilities at December 31, 2023, in its consolidated self-storage portfolio.
- Public Storage reported 218.071 million net rentable square feet at December 31, 2023, for that portfolio.
- Public Storage same-store facilities generated $3.427867 billion in 2023 revenue, across 2,339 facilities.
- Public Storage same-store facilities generated $2.625598 billion in 2023 net operating income, using the company’s non-GAAP measure.
- The Public Storage same-store gross margin before indirect costs was 79.7% in 2023, for its defined same-store pool.
- The Simply Storage portfolio averaged 87.7% square-foot occupancy in 2023, after its September 13 acquisition.
- Public Storage acquired 470 facilities totaling 38.8 million net rentable square feet from the beginning of 2021 through 2023, for $8.5 billion.
- Public Storage built 6.8 million net rentable square feet of new storage space in 2023, while demolishing 1.3 million square feet.
- Public Storage had 23 facilities totaling 2.3 million net rentable square feet in development at December 31, 2023, a company-specific pipeline snapshot.
Contents
- U.S. warehousing revenue and storage industry trends
- General warehousing establishments, employment, and payroll
- Storage industry statistics by establishment size
- Transportation and warehousing industry scale
- Self-storage portfolio scale, occupancy, and results
- Storage development, acquisitions, and ancillary revenue
U.S. Warehousing Revenue and Storage Industry Trends
Census-republished FRED data show current-dollar revenue for U.S. general warehousing and storage establishments. The series is annual and not seasonally adjusted, and the Census AIES/FRED observations are subject to revision.
| Year | General warehousing revenue | Geography and measure |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $29,452,178 thousand | United States, all establishments |
| 2021 | $35,688,912 thousand | United States, all establishments |
| 2022 | $42,227,297 thousand | United States, all establishments |
| 2023 | $44,395,141 thousand | United States, all establishments |
| 2024 | $47,909,696 thousand | United States, all establishments |
Source: General Warehousing and Storage, All Establishments: Revenue, a FRED republication of Census data.
A separate BLS sectoral-output series covers NAICS 493 warehousing and storage. It is also a current-dollar measure, but it is defined as sectoral output adjusted for inventory changes and intra-sector shipments, so it should not be treated as interchangeable with establishment revenue.
| Year | BLS warehousing and storage sectoral output | Measure |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $42,907.997 million | U.S. NAICS 493 estimate |
| 2021 | $49,586.481 million | U.S. NAICS 493 estimate |
| 2022 | $55,887.216 million | U.S. NAICS 493 estimate |
| 2023 | $56,362.230 million | U.S. NAICS 493 estimate |
| 2024 | $58,838.434 million | U.S. NAICS 493 estimate |
Source: Table Data – Sectoral Output for Transportation and Warehousing: Warehousing and Storage. The BLS series is not seasonally adjusted.
General Warehousing Establishments, Employment, and Payroll
The 2022 County Business Patterns profile for U.S. general warehousing and storage, NAICS 493110, counted 15,416 employer establishments and 1,168,516 employees. Annual payroll was $13,523,722 thousand, while first-quarter payroll was $57,121,709 thousand as reported in the Census table.
These measures describe employer establishments, not every storage activity. They do not capture all informal, nonemployer, or household storage activity.
Source: CB2200CBP: All Sectors: County Business Patterns, General warehousing and storage, 2022.
Storage Industry Statistics by Establishment Size
Employment-size data show how the 2022 general warehousing workforce was distributed across employer establishments. The figures below retain the Census categories rather than combining them into unsupported totals.
| Establishment employment size | Establishments | Employees | Annual payroll |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fewer than 5 | 5,092 | 9,194 | $138,794 thousand |
| 5 to 9 | 2,238 | 14,999 | $208,424 thousand |
| 10 to 19 | 2,279 | 31,453 | $425,717 thousand |
| 20 to 49 | 2,409 | 75,522 | $1,008,439 thousand |
| 50 to 99 | 1,250 | 87,323 | $1,193,911 thousand |
| 100 to 249 | 1,014 | 158,705 | $2,006,442 thousand |
| 250 to 499 | 547 | 192,434 | $2,313,357 thousand |
| 500 to 999 | 351 | 242,485 | $2,673,621 thousand |
| 1,000 or more | 236 | 356,401 | $3,555,017 thousand |
Source: County Business Patterns, General warehousing and storage, 2022. These are employer-establishment categories for the United States and should not be read as a complete census of nonemployer storage businesses.
Transportation and Warehousing Industry Scale and Growth
Storage operates within the much larger U.S. transportation and warehousing economy. The 2022 Economic Census counted 237,360 firms and 294,246 establishments in NAICS sectors 48–49, which generated $1,316,303,546 thousand in sales, shipments, or revenue and paid $342,199,125 thousand in annual payroll.
The output measure varies by industry, and the figures are current dollars. They provide sector context rather than a storage-only total.
- Transportation and warehousing establishments increased 24.2% from 2017 to 2022, a gain of 57,000 establishments.
- The 2022 Economic Census counted just over 8.0 million U.S. employer establishments across all covered sectors.
- Those covered sectors included 140.0 million employees in 2022.
Source: 2022 Economic Census First Look. The all-sector figures are context benchmarks, not storage-industry totals.
Self-Storage Portfolio Scale, Occupancy, and Operating Results
Public Storage provides a company-level view of self-storage scale. At December 31, 2023, its consolidated portfolio included 3,044 facilities and 218.071 million net rentable square feet.
For 2,339 same-store facilities, Public Storage reported $3.427867 billion in total revenue and $2.625598 billion in net operating income for 2023. The same-store pool represented approximately 71% of the company’s U.S. consolidated net rentable square feet, and its reported gross margin before indirect costs was 79.7%.
| Public Storage portfolio | 2023 square-foot occupancy | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Simply Storage | 87.7% | Post-acquisition period after September 13 acquisition |
| ezStorage | 86.3% | Company portfolio |
| All Storage | 77.9% | Company portfolio |
These occupancy figures are company-defined and apply to specific Public Storage portfolios, not to the entire self-storage market. The Simply Storage figure is a partial-year post-acquisition measure, while NOI is non-GAAP and is not a substitute for net income or operating cash flow.
Source: Q4’23 PSA Financial Supplement.
Storage Development, Acquisitions, and Ancillary Revenue
Public Storage reported substantial acquisition and development activity through 2023. Since the beginning of 2021, it acquired 470 facilities totaling 38.8 million net rentable square feet for $8.5 billion.
The company disclosed that its 2023 Simply Storage acquisition cost $2.2 billion in cash and included 127 owned facilities totaling 9.4 million square feet, along with 25 third-party-managed facilities.
- Developed and expanded facilities totaled 145 facilities and 17.1 million net rentable square feet at December 31, 2023.
- Those developed and expanded facilities contributed $183.9 million in net operating income during 2023.
- Public Storage built 6.8 million net rentable square feet of new storage space and demolished 1.3 million square feet during 2023.
- The company had 23 additional facilities in development totaling 2.3 million net rentable square feet at December 31, 2023.
- Same-store facilities produced $149.8 million of tenant reinsurance premium revenue in 2023.
The development pipeline is a snapshot for one company, not a forecast of completed U.S. supply. Acquisition costs, development activity, occupancy, NOI, margins, and ancillary revenue are company-specific measures and should not be summed with national warehousing revenue or BLS sectoral output.
Source: Q4’23 PSA Financial Supplement.