How much storage do I need for a one-bedroom flat?
Short answer
9.5 m²
Medium unit · 8.5 m² packed tight, 11 m² packed loosely
About 9.5 m²: a typical one-bedroom flat holds about 13 m³ of furniture and boxes, which packs into 9.5 m² of floor space stacked to 2 m. That is a medium unit. Packed tight, 8.5 m²; packed loosely, 11 m².
Operators answer this question differently: for a one-bedroom flat their size guides range from about 6 m² to 11 m². Read in November 2026: Wilson's size guide, Storage King's size table and StoreLocal's size page; National Storage and Kennards from search summaries of their guides. Removalists' whole-home volume tables come out higher still, because they count everything in the house. Our number comes from adding up a typical list, below, with the same rule we use for every size on this site. Change the list in the size calculator if your home is fuller or emptier.
Right now the lowest 6-month total for a unit of 9.5 m² to 14.25 m² (big enough, without paying for much more) is $864 at Troon Self Storage Altona North (12 m²), offer and the rate after it included.
The typical list
| Item | Count | m³ |
|---|---|---|
| Moving boxes | 15 | 2.25 |
| Queen bed and mattress | 1 | 1.4 |
| Wardrobe | 1 | 1 |
| Three-seater sofa | 1 | 2.2 |
| Dining table | 1 | 2 |
| Dining chair | 4 | 0.6 |
| Fridge | 1 | 1.2 |
| Washing machine (our estimate) | 1 | 0.75 |
| Television | 1 | 0.5 |
| TV unit | 1 | 0.8 |
| Coffee table | 1 | 0.28 |
| Total | 13 |
Floor area = volume ÷ (2.0 m stacking height × 0.7 packing), rounded up to the next half square metre. Both are working assumptions, stated on every page that uses them.
Cheapest 9.5 m² to 14.25 m², 6 months
- Troon Self Storage Altona North12 m²$864
- Public Self Storage Epping10.35 m²$873
- National Storage Campbellfield13.5 m²$888
- StoreLocal Mordialloc13.5 m²$950
- Fort Knox Self Storage Braybrook10.5 m²$963
- StoreLocal Epping12 m²$980
Totals for 6 months, offers and published one-off fees included. By suburb: Aberfeldie, Airport West, Albanvale, Albert Park, Albion, Alphington, Altona, Armadale, Ascot Vale, Ashburton, Ashwood, Aspendale Gardens, Avondale Heights, Balaclava, Balwyn, Balwyn North, Bangholme, Bayswater, Beaconsfield, Beaumaris, Bellfield, Bentleigh East, Berwick, Black Rock, Blackburn, Blackburn North, Blackburn South, Bonbeach, Box Hill, Box Hill North, Box Hill South, Braeside, Braybrook, Briar Hill, Brighton, Brighton East, Broadmeadows, Brooklyn, Brunswick, Brunswick East, Brunswick West, Bulleen, Bundoora, Burnside Heights, Burwood, Burwood East, Camberwell, Cardinia, Carlton, Carnegie, Caroline Springs, Carrum, Carrum Downs, Caulfield, Caulfield North, Caulfield South, Chelsea Heights, Cheltenham, Clayton, Clayton South, Coburg, Coburg North, Collingwood, Coolaroo, Craigieburn, Cranbourne, Cranbourne South, Cranbourne West, Croydon, Croydon South, Dandenong, Dandenong North, Dandenong South, Deepdene, Deer Park, Delahey, Dingley Village, Docklands, Doncaster, Doncaster East, Donvale, Doveton, Eaglemont, Edithvale, Elsternwick, Eltham North, Elwood, Epping, Essendon, Essendon Fields, Essendon North, Essendon West, Eumemmerring, Fawkner, Ferny Creek, Fitzroy, Fitzroy North, Flemington, Footscray, Forest Hill, Frankston North, Frankston South, Gardenvale, Glen Huntly, Glen Iris, Glen Waverley, Glenroy, Gowanbrae, Greenvale, Hadfield, Hallam, Hampton, Hampton East, Harkaway, Hawthorn, Hawthorn East, Heatherton, Heathmont, Heidelberg, Heidelberg Heights, Heidelberg West, Highett, Hughesdale, Huntingdale, Ivanhoe, Ivanhoe East, Jacana, Kealba, Keilor, Keilor Downs, Keilor East, Keilor Lodge, Keilor Park, Kensington, Kew East, Keysborough, Kings Park, Knoxfield, Kooyong, Laverton, Laverton North, Lilydale, Lower Plenty, Lynbrook, Lyndhurst, Lysterfield, Lysterfield South, Macleod, Maidstone, Malvern, Malvern East, Maribyrnong, McKinnon, Melbourne Airport, Mernda, Middle Park, Mill Park, Mitcham, Mont Albert North, Moonee Ponds, Moorabbin, Moorooduc, Mordialloc, Mount Waverley, Mulgrave, Narre Warren, Narre Warren North, Newport, Niddrie, Noble Park, Noble Park North, North Melbourne, North Warrandyte, Northcote, Notting Hill, Nunawading, Oak Park, Oakleigh, Park Orchards, Pascoe Vale, Pascoe Vale South, Patterson Lakes, Plenty, Point Cook, Port Melbourne, Preston, Reservoir, Richmond, Ringwood, Ringwood North, Ripponlea, Rosanna, Rowville, Roxburgh Park, Sandhurst, Sassafras, Scoresby, Seaford, Seaholme, Seddon, Somerton, South Kingsville, South Melbourne, South Wharf, Spotswood, Springvale, Springvale South, St Albans, St Kilda, St Kilda East, St Kilda West, Strathmore, Strathmore Heights, Sunshine, Sunshine North, Sunshine West, Surrey Hills, Sydenham, Templestowe, Templestowe Lower, The Basin, Thomastown, Thornbury, Toorak, Tottenham, Travancore, Tremont, Truganina, Tuerong, Tullamarine, Upper Ferntree Gully, Upwey, Vermont, Viewbank, Wantirna, Wantirna South, Warrandyte, Warrandyte South, Waterways, Watsonia, West Footscray, West Melbourne, Westmeadows, Wheelers Hill, Williamstown, Williamstown North, Windsor, Wonga Park, Yallambie, Yarraville .
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