How much does it cost to buy a 20ft shipping container in the UK?
20ft shipping containers are very popular for secure storage use, but how much is a 20ft shipping container going to cost in the UK?
In this article, we look at the costs of buying a good quality shipping container for storage use in the UK and help you with any information you need to ensure you get a good quality shipping container and a good price.
You can also follow this link to view our ranges of 20ft shipping containers for sale in the UK today Â
How much does a 20ft shipping container cost in the UK?
Here is a table of current and historical average prices for 20ft shipping containers as well as highs and lows since 2011
| 20ft Shipping Container | Historical High | Historical Low | Historical Average | Current average*Â |
| Used 20ft Shipping Container | £2400 | £750 | £1350 | £1050 |
| Refurbished 20ft Shipping Container | £2750 | £1000 | £1750 | £1500 |
| One trip 20ft Shipping Container | £3450 | £1400 | £2100 | £2000 |
This table is intended as a guide only. These rates are based around major/large depot and port locations. Some regional hubs (Scotland, Belfast, Bristol) usually command a small premium. Prices are all + VAT. Prices do NOT include delivery, The historical high and low values are to show the extremes of a market over a circa 20 year period and will usually not be reflective of prices today. *Current average price based on sales figures Q4 2025.
These guide prices relate to standard height end opening 20ft shipping containers only and are not correct for special ranges (eg high cubes, side opening containers, tunnel containers, etc)
Prices for shipping containers vary over time. This is a commodity market so much like oil prices will go up and down depending on wider market factors. Generally, like many goods, supply and demand factors will often help drive the price of shipping containers.
On top of this, there are 2 major factors that will affect the price of a 20ft shipping container. Firstly it’s the range or type of shipping container you may want, and secondly, it is well worth us looking at delivery costs and delivery access which can impact costs significantly.
First, let’s look at the main ranges of 20ft shipping continuers available to buy in the UK.
Buying a 20ft new (one trip), used or refurbished shipping container
Generally, we will offer 3 main ranges of shipping containers for sale in the UK. Fortunately, everything we offer for sale is checked and if necessary repaired in our UK depots before they come out to you – so you are guaranteed a structurally sound, weatherproof shipping container regardless of the range you choose. This offers you peace of mind that whatever option you choose will be good to do the job. Whilst we offer a 12-month guarantee with everything sold, we often suggest expecting 10+ years of solid use with minimal maintenance from a used or refurbished shipping container, and likely over twice the lifespan for a one-trip container (assuming its sitting static on your site being used for storage, there are very few parts on a shipping container that can wear out or degrade over time)
So with the quality assured you have 3 common ranges of shipping containers available to buy in the UK. Below we show a used (left) Refurbished (Centre) and one trip (right) shipping container.
Buying 20ft Used Shipping Containers in the UK
Used shipping containers come to us directly from a shipping line or another industry source. they are checked and repaired in our yards before the sale. They are weatherproof but they can be ugly (they will have dents, and surface rust and come in whatever colour livery the previous owner used.
If you need a smart and neat shipping container, we do not recommend buying a used shipping container. A used shipping container is best for customers who need secure weatherproof storage but don’t care about the looks of the container. If a shipping container is to be hidden out of the way, buying a used shipping container may be the ideal solution for you.
Buying a 20ft refurbished shipping container in the UK
A refurbished shipping container put very simply is a used quality shipping container, with a basic external repaint in your choice of a darker shade, and we also add on a high-security lock box (padlock cover) as standard.
It is a great ‘halfway’ option between a used and a one-trip shipping container. It is neater than a basic used container, but not smart as neat as a one-trip container.
Always check the spec, much like our example photo above, some refurbished shipping containers are made by cutting down a larger container to size. they may come with their original container doors, they may come with fabricated ‘easy open’ doors. You may be able to specify the door type you want.
Buying a 20ft one-trip shipping container in the UK
One-trip shipping containers are as close to brand-new quality as you can buy in the UK. They are built in China and have done one trip into the UK with freight inside. they may have a few cosmetic defects consistent with their first trip to the UK. However, unlike everyone else, we ensure your container is checked over in our UK yards before its sold to you. This means we filter out containers that have taken a huge smash on their initial trip over.
Expect some minor imperfections consistent with its one shipping trip from china. This may be one or two small dents, some paint scrapes around the ends frames where port equipment has handled the shipping container. Perhaps also you will see some forklift tyre marks inside where cargo has been loaded and unloaded. These are things you should expect as normal with any one-trip shipping container. You should expect a shipping container that is in near immaculate condition or better. All our containers are checked over in our UK yards once they have arrived and if they take a big smash or have any structural damage, we would not sell it as a normal one trip container.
One-trip shipping containers offer unbeatable long term value. If it is sitting static on your site and only being used occasionally, a 20+ year lifespan should be easily achievable, we have seen some shipping containers still offering quality storage use up to and over 30 years old. One-trip shipping containers are also a lot smarter than used or refurbished ranges, and will usually maintain a much higher resale value should you want to sell it on in some year’s time.
How much will delivery cost for a 20ft shipping container?
Delivery prices for shipping containers will vary significantly depending on a range of factors:
- How far are you from our nearest depot? (Mileage for our truck)
- Do you need us to lift the container off the truck on-site, or do you have lifts for unloading?
- A truck that has a crane fitted to it for offloading, will normally cost a bit more than a truck that doesn’t have a crane on it.
- Additional delivery considerations.
- Do we need to spend a long time on site maneuvering this into position?
- Is the delivery very awkward, tricky, or risky for our truck? (you should always let us know well in advance of the delivery if you expect a difficult delivery, so we can help you minimise the risks of a failed delivery and minimise delivery costs)
- Do you require our driver to attend a site induction course or spend additional time on site completing site procedures before our driver can deliver?
- Do you need extra things moving on site by our truck? Please always let us know in advance. It will routinely cost more if we are not notified in advance that you need some other things lift and moving on site whilst we are there. We will be better prepared to do the work and have a higher chance of being able to undertake this additional work for you
All of these site specific details will impact your delivery costs and trucks are not cheap to run, they will usually have a time and mileage element to their cost structure so the longer we have to travel, and the longer we spend on site, then the higher the delivery cost will be.
In general, for a 20ft shipping container, delivery charges start at around £150 + VAT if you are very local to one of our depots, but can be as high as £1000 region if you are near lands end, John O’Groats, or other remote areas. Deliveries to Scottish islands, channel islands, and other remote offshore locations will often cost significantly more due to ferry costs, and ferry timetables (if our truck is stuck on the island until the next day’s ferry, we still need to pay for the truck whilst it waits to get home!)
Deliveries to some channel islands may not be possible (for example in Jersey we understand we require a special licence to run a truck capable of carrying a shipping container, and costs for this often mean a shipping container delivery will not be viable or cost-effective)
Looking to buy a 20ft shipping container in the UK?
Budgetshippingcontainers.co.uk offer the UK’s largest online range of shipping containers for sale with a nationwide network of storage and conversion yards and crane equipped delivery vehicles.
If you need a shipping container feel free to browse our online range of shipping containers for sale. You can also call us on freephone 0808 1234 215 any time 9am – 5pm weekdays and our team will be happy to discuss your requirements. Alternatively, you can use our online shipping container quote form or request a telephone callback. In both cases we aim to get back to you within 1-2 working hours (may take longer for more detailed quotes).