Storage unit packing planner

This planner turns a list of belongings into a loading order for a storage unit. It assigns every item to a zone — back wall, middle tiers, front for access, or fragile on top — and produces a printable plan, so the things you will need again do not end up sealed behind the things you will not.

4 loading zones
Printable plan
No sign-up, nothing stored

1. What is going in?

Unit size

I will need to get back in during the rental (keeps a centre aisle, costs about 15% of capacity)

Search items

2. Adjust the list

Living room

Sofa, 3-cushion 50 cu ft
Loveseat / 2-cushion sofa 35 cu ft
Sectional piece 30 cu ft
Sofa bed / sleeper sofa 60 cu ft
Armchair 15 cu ft
Recliner 20 cu ft
Ottoman / footstool 5 cu ft
Coffee table 10 cu ft
End table 5 cu ft
TV, up to 49" 6 cu ft
TV, 50" and larger 10 cu ft
TV stand / media console 15 cu ft
Bookcase, up to 3 shelves 10 cu ft
Bookcase, 4+ shelves 20 cu ft
Floor lamp 3 cu ft
Table lamp 2 cu ft
Area rug, rolled 10 cu ft
Upright piano 70 cu ft
Framed art / large mirror 4 cu ft
Fireplace tools / electric fireplace 8 cu ft

Bedroom

Twin bed set (mattress, box, frame) 30 cu ft
Full bed set 45 cu ft
Queen bed set 60 cu ft
King bed set 75 cu ft
Bunk bed set 60 cu ft
Crib / toddler bed 15 cu ft
Nightstand 6 cu ft
Dresser, single (up to 4 drawers) 25 cu ft
Dresser, double / triple 40 cu ft
Chest of drawers, tall 28 cu ft
Armoire / wardrobe 45 cu ft
Vanity / dressing table 20 cu ft
Dresser mirror 5 cu ft
Cedar chest / trunk 15 cu ft
Bedroom chair 12 cu ft

Dining room

Dining table 30 cu ft
Dining chair 5 cu ft
China cabinet / hutch 40 cu ft
Buffet / sideboard 30 cu ft
Bar stool 6 cu ft
Serving cart 10 cu ft

Kitchen & laundry

Refrigerator, standard 50 cu ft
Refrigerator, French door / side-by-side 65 cu ft
Mini fridge 10 cu ft
Chest freezer 35 cu ft
Range / oven 30 cu ft
Dishwasher 20 cu ft
Washing machine 25 cu ft
Clothes dryer 25 cu ft
Microwave 4 cu ft
Kitchen table 20 cu ft
Kitchen island / cart 20 cu ft
Small appliance bundle (mixer, air fryer…) 6 cu ft
Utility shelving unit 15 cu ft
Laundry basket / hamper 4 cu ft
Ironing board 3 cu ft

Home office

Desk, small / writing 20 cu ft
Desk, executive / L-shaped 35 cu ft
Office chair 10 cu ft
Filing cabinet, 2-drawer 8 cu ft
Filing cabinet, 4-drawer 15 cu ft
Desktop computer + monitor 6 cu ft
Printer / scanner 5 cu ft
Safe, small 5 cu ft
Office shelving unit 15 cu ft

Garage & outdoor

Bicycle 10 cu ft
Push lawn mower 15 cu ft
Riding mower 60 cu ft
Snowblower 20 cu ft
BBQ grill 15 cu ft
Workbench 25 cu ft
Tool chest 15 cu ft
Ladder 8 cu ft
Garden tool bundle 8 cu ft
Patio table 20 cu ft
Patio chair 6 cu ft
Patio umbrella 5 cu ft
Treadmill 30 cu ft
Exercise bike / elliptical 20 cu ft
Weight set / rack 15 cu ft
Kayak / paddleboard 25 cu ft
Plastic storage tote 4 cu ft
Trash / recycling can 10 cu ft
Shop vac / vacuum 5 cu ft
Window A/C unit 8 cu ft

Boxes & cartons

Small box (1.5 cu ft, "book box") 1.5 cu ft
Medium box (3.0 cu ft) 3 cu ft
Large box (4.5 cu ft) 4.5 cu ft
Extra-large box (6.0 cu ft) 6 cu ft
Wardrobe box (11 cu ft) 11 cu ft
Dish barrel (5.2 cu ft) 5.2 cu ft
Mirror / picture box 3 cu ft
TV box 8 cu ft
Suitcase, large 5 cu ft
Loose mattress (no frame) 25 cu ft

The four zones

How a storage unit should be divided before anything goes in
Zone	What goes there	Why
Back of the unit	Heaviest items and anything you will not need until the day you empty it.	Whatever goes here is sealed in behind everything else. Put the mistakes you cannot afford to repeat — appliances, workbenches, gym equipment — where they only get moved once.
Middle	Large furniture and the bulk of your boxes, built up in tiers.	This is where the unit earns its capacity. Heavy boxes form the base of each tier at waist height or below; lighter ones stack above them to the ceiling.
Front, nearest the door	Seasonal items, tools, documents — anything you may come back for.	If you will open this unit more than once, the front third is the only part you can realistically reach. Label these boxes facing outward.
On top, loaded last	Fragile and light items, never underneath anything.	Dish barrels, artwork, mirrors, screens and lamps carry no weight. They go on last and come off first.

Loading order

Protect the floor. Pallets or plastic sheeting across the whole floor. Concrete sweats, and anything resting directly on it wicks moisture.
Decide the aisle before you start. If you will need access, mark a walkway down the centre now. Trying to carve one out later means unloading half the unit.
Base layer against the back wall. Heaviest appliances and equipment first, on the floor, standing where they will not need to move again.
Build the structure. Large furniture next. Sofas on end where the shape allows, mattresses upright against a wall, tables with the legs removed.
Tier the boxes. Heavy boxes at the bottom of each tier, lighter ones above, stacking to the ceiling. Uniform box sizes stack far better than mixed ones.
Fill the hollows. Drawers, appliance interiors, the inside of a wardrobe box. Empty space you paid for is space you can use.
Front third last. Seasonal gear, tools and anything you may retrieve, labelled facing the door.
Fragile on top. Dish barrels, artwork, screens and lamps go on last, with nothing above them.

The order matters more than the effort. A unit loaded in this sequence holds roughly 30% more than one loaded in the order things came off the truck — often the difference between a 10x10 and a 10x15, which is $35–$60 a month.

The aisle decision

This is the choice that decides whether a storage unit is usable or merely full. A centre aisle costs about 15% of your capacity — in a 10x10 that is 102 cubic feet, roughly a bedroom set.

Take the aisle if the rental will run more than a couple of months, if anything seasonal is going in, or if you are storing during a renovation rather than between homes. Skip it only when you will open the door twice: once to fill it, once to empty it.

If the aisle pushes you over capacity, that is the answer, not a problem — check the size calculator with the access option ticked.

What this planner cannot decide for you

It assigns zones from what an item is, not from what it means to you. A box of tax records and a box of childhood photographs have identical dimensions and completely different retrieval odds — override the plan where you know better.

It also assumes a rectangular unit with a single door, which covers almost every US self-storage unit but not drive-up units with a roll door at each end, and not units with a supporting column.

Zone rules are judgement, not measurement. They are documented in full on the methodology page, separately from the item dataset, which is purely factual.

Before you load

What should go in the back of a storage unit?

The heaviest items and anything you will not need until you empty the unit: appliances, workbenches, gym equipment, off-season furniture. Whatever goes against the back wall is sealed in behind everything else.

How do I keep things reachable in a storage unit?

Leave a centre aisle and reserve the front third for anything you may retrieve. It costs about 15% of the capacity, which is why the size calculator treats access as a separate input rather than an afterthought.

Should heavy boxes go on the bottom?

Yes — at the bottom of each tier, not just at the bottom of the unit. A large box of books weighs around 130 lb and will crush whatever is beneath it. Keep the heaviest boxes at waist height or below.

Can I stack boxes on furniture in storage?

On a sturdy flat surface like a dresser top or a chest, with a blanket between, yes. Never on upholstery, glass or a finished tabletop — and never on anything you would be upset to find marked.

How much more fits if I pack in the right order?

Roughly 30% between careless and careful loading. That is usually a whole unit size, which is worth more than any packing material you could buy.