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Military PCS Storage Planner
Get a personalised storage plan for your PCS move — recommended unit size, key milestones, and a checklist built around your branch and move date.
- Weight2026 JTR allowances
- TimelineDated to your orders
- HonestFree storage first
One thing most storage companies won't tell you: on a PCS, the government often stores your household goods for free. This planner starts there, and only recommends a storage unit where it fills a gap the government doesn't cover.
Build Your PCS Storage Plan
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Free Government Storage Comes First
There are three places your belongings can wait during a PCS, and two of them are paid for by the government. If the government will store something for free, let it. A storage unit makes sense for what falls outside those two programs.
| Storage in transit (SIT) | Non-temporary storage (NTS) | Self-storage unit | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who pays | Government, when authorized | Government, when authorized | You, unless your transportation office approves it in advance on a PPM |
| How long | Up to 90 days, with up to 90 more for reasons outside your control | Typically the length of the assignment | Month to month, as long as you need |
| Can you get to it? | No, it's sealed in a warehouse until delivery | No, it stays in storage until your next move | Yes, whenever the gate is open |
| Best for | Short gaps between pack-out and delivery | Goods that aren't going overseas with you | Overflow, vehicles, access, and gaps the government doesn't cover |
SIT and NTS are separate entitlements with their own rules, and your transportation office decides what's authorized on your orders. In general, the weight you ship plus the weight you place in NTS can't exceed your total allowance, so storage doesn't create extra room for an overweight household.
PCS Weight Allowances by Pay Grade
Your household goods allowance is set by pay grade and whether you have dependents. It doesn't change with distance, and one dependent qualifies you for the same with-dependents figure as five. These are the Joint Travel Regulations figures effective January 1, 2026 (Table 5-37).
| Pay grade | With dependents | Without dependents |
|---|---|---|
| O-6 and above | 18,000 lbs | 18,000 lbs |
| O-5 / W-5 | 17,500 lbs | 16,000 lbs |
| O-4 / W-4 | 17,000 lbs | 14,000 lbs |
| O-3 / W-3 | 14,500 lbs | 13,000 lbs |
| O-2 / W-2 | 13,500 lbs | 12,500 lbs |
| O-1 / W-1 | 12,000 lbs | 10,000 lbs |
| E-9 | 15,000 lbs | 13,000 lbs |
| E-8 | 14,000 lbs | 12,000 lbs |
| E-7 | 13,000 lbs | 11,000 lbs |
| E-6 | 11,000 lbs | 8,000 lbs |
| E-5 | 9,000 lbs | 7,000 lbs |
| E-4 | 8,000 lbs | 7,000 lbs |
| E-1 to E-3 | 8,000 lbs | 5,000 lbs |
Professional books, papers, and equipment (pro-gear) are allowed on top of these figures, up to 2,000 lbs for the member, as long as they're declared and weighed separately at pack-out. Go over your allowance on a government move and the excess is billed back to you. On a PPM, weight above your allowance isn't reimbursed.
CONUS vs. OCONUS: How the Storage Plan Changes
CONUS Moves
Most stateside moves don't need a storage unit at all. You ship up to your allowance, drive your vehicles (mileage is paid for up to two), and SIT covers a short gap if housing isn't ready. Storage becomes useful when you're over your allowance and don't want to pay excess-weight charges, when you're doing a PPM and need somewhere to hold the load, or when a housing gap looks likely to run past what SIT will cover.
OCONUS Moves
Overseas orders change the math. The government usually ships one vehicle, housing is often smaller or comes furnished, and U.S. appliances may not suit local power. That's why NTS exists: furniture and appliances you won't use overseas stay in government storage for the tour. Some locations also carry an administrative weight restriction, which can cut your shipment to a fraction of your normal allowance. A storage unit fills the gaps NTS doesn't: a second car, items you want to reach during a two- or three-year tour, and anything over your total allowance.
Unaccompanied Tours
If your family stays in your current home, there may be nothing to store. Your shipment covers what you need at the new station and the household stays put. If nobody's staying behind, treat it like a restricted OCONUS move, with most of the household in NTS.
Six Situations Where a Storage Unit Earns Its Keep
You're Over Your Allowance
Sell or donate the heavy, low-value items first. What's left that you want to keep costs less in a unit than on an excess-weight bill, and you can collect it later.
You Have More Vehicles Than Orders Cover
OCONUS orders usually ship one vehicle. A second car, a motorcycle, or an RV needs a place to wait. Many of our facilities offer vehicle storage; check yours for availability.
You Want Access During the Tour
NTS is sealed until your next move. If you'll want the winter clothes on a trip home, or need a relative to pull tax records, a unit keeps those items within reach.
You Need a Do-Not-Pack Zone
Movers pack what's in the house. Moving keepsakes, your NTS-bound or hand-carry items, and anything you're selling out of the way before pack-out keeps them off the truck.
You're Doing a PPM
When you move yourself, a unit near your new station can hold the load until housing opens up. If you want the government to reimburse that storage, get your transportation office's approval before you move in.
The Housing Gap Outlasts SIT
SIT covers up to 90 days, and extensions aren't guaranteed. If a build, a waitlist, or a lease gap looks likely to run longer, planning ahead is cheaper than scrambling on day 91.
10 Federal Locations Near Military Installations
We have 11 facilities near 8 installations. Three markets have two facilities, which helps in summer when orders land at once and availability near a base tightens.
| Installation | Nearby 10 Federal location |
|---|---|
| JBSA-Randolph | Converse, TX (two facilities) |
| Fort Bliss | El Paso, TX |
| NAS Fort Worth JRB | Fort Worth, TX |
| Fort Hood | Nolanville, TX |
| Little Rock AFB | Jacksonville, AR, and North Little Rock, AR (two facilities) |
| Camp Robinson | North Little Rock, AR (two facilities) |
| Seymour Johnson AFB | Goldsboro, NC |
| Fort Jackson | West Columbia, SC (two facilities) |
Moving somewhere not on this list? We operate 130+ facilities across 16 states. Find storage near your new station.
What to Know Before You Rent From Us
We don't offer a military discount. We'd rather say so up front than make you hunt for it. We do run special deals on available units, and every move-in includes a free lock.
We follow the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. During online signup we ask whether you're on active duty and direct active duty members to verify their status. Answer that question and finish the verification, because protections only apply if we know they apply to you.
Terms are month to month. There's no long lease to break if your report date moves or orders change.
Everything happens online. Our facilities are fully automated, with no on-site staff, so you can rent, pay, and manage your unit from anywhere, including overseas. Our friendly customer support team can help if something comes up. Autopay keeps the account current while you're away.
One renter per unit. There are no joint accounts. Decide ahead of time who gets your gate code and portal login, and add an emergency contact at signup.
We can't accept deliveries. If movers are delivering into your unit, you or someone with your gate code has to meet them there.
Access and coverage. Gate access is 24/7 at nearly all of our facilities. A protection plan is required at checkout, so check what your own renters or homeowners policy covers before you choose one.
How This Planner Works
The planner estimates your household weight with the Military OneSource rule of thumb of roughly 1,000 lbs per furnished room, adds an allowance for a garage or attic, and nudges the figure up slightly for larger households. It compares that estimate with your Joint Travel Regulations allowance, then sizes a storage unit for only what the plan sends to self-storage, not your whole household. Weight converts to volume at about 7 lbs per cubic foot, stacked 8 feet high, the same basis as our unit size guide.
For OCONUS locations with a weight restriction, the planner assumes the greater of 2,000 lbs or 25 percent of your allowance can ship. If you choose "Not sure," it assumes a restriction applies so the plan errs on the safe side. The timeline works backward from your report date with a short travel buffer, places pack-out about five days before departure, and targets renting a unit about three weeks before pack-out.
Every figure here is a planning estimate. Your orders and your transportation office decide your actual entitlements, and a professional pre-move survey will give you a better weight estimate than any calculator. Use Move.mil's weight estimator for a room-by-room count, or our storage size calculator if you want to size a unit from a specific inventory. For the rest of your move, see our military storage page and the moving timeline generator.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Find storage near youSources
- Defense Travel Management Office, Joint Travel Regulations, Table 5-37 (household goods weight allowances) and section 0518 (storage in transit and non-temporary storage).
- Military OneSource, How to Get Your Household Goods Overseas (1,000 lbs per room estimate, pro-gear).
- Move.mil, Entitlements and Weight Estimator.