New, used & refurbished containers for sale in Malibu
Malibu properties come with constraints most sites don’t: coastal setbacks, Coastal Commission jurisdiction, narrow lots along PCH, and driveways that were never designed for a tilt-bed truck. Shipping Container Depot delivers to Malibu homes and commercial projects with those constraints planned for in advance rather than discovered on delivery day.
Whether you’re adding secure storage to a beachfront property, planning a modular ADU, or staging a coastal renovation, we deliver 20ft, 40ft, and custom-modified containers — typically within 24–48 hours once access is confirmed. We’ll tell you honestly which size your site can take before you order.
Containers are Corten weathering steel and hold up well in coastal air; marine-grade paint and cladding are available if you want the unit finished to match the property. Modifications are done in our own shop — doors, windows, insulation, electrical, HVAC. Same-day quotes.
Watertight roof, hole-free floors, sealing doors — inspected before dispatch.
Our drivers, our tilt-bed trucks, Malibu often within 24–48 hours.
Rated 5 stars by Malibu buyers
Real reviews from our Google Business Profile & Facebook. Read our Google reviews →
On the way back from picking up parts we finally stopped by since we drive past it a lot. Solid spot — the guy working was super helpful and got us in and out quick with the container we needed. Prices seemed fair compared to what everyone else charges online.
A Google UserWorked over a weekend to get us a modified shipping container ahead of schedule at a reasonable price. This company is the best!
Byron Young
Container sizes for sale in Malibu
Every unit available one trip / new or used. Real external dimensions shown.
Compact, easy to place, ideal for tight lots and tool storage.
9’10” L × 8’0″ W × 8’6″ HOne trip / new · UsedView details
Same small footprint, a foot more headroom inside.
9’10” L × 8’0″ W × 9’6″ HOne trip / new · UsedView details
The workhorse — the most-ordered size for storage and job sites.
20’0″ L × 8’0″ W × 8’6″ HOne trip / new · UsedView details
Extra interior height on the most popular footprint.
20’0″ L × 8’0″ W × 9’6″ HOne trip / new · UsedView details
Double the length, same footprint width — maximum storage per dollar.
40’0″ L × 8’0″ W × 8’6″ HOne trip / new · UsedView details
A foot taller inside — the go-to for container homes and offices.
40’0″ L × 8’0″ W × 9’6″ HOne trip / new · UsedView details
The longest standard box — most volume in a single unit.
45’0″ L × 8’0″ W × 9’6″ HOne trip / new · UsedView details
Reefers, open-side, open-top and other specialty units — tell us what the job needs.
Refrigerated · open-side · open-topOne trip / new · UsedView detailsNot sure which size?
Tell us the job and we’ll recommend the right container and condition — no pressure, no obligation.
Where you can put a container in Malibu
Malibu has no container ordinance. It has something more consequential: a certified Local Coastal Program in which “development” is defined to include the placement or erection of a solid material or structure — language broad enough that a container on a lot raises a coastal permit question the city has never answered in writing.
| Rule | What the city requires |
|---|---|
| Container-specific ordinance | None. The only “container” references in the Malibu code are solid waste receptacles |
| Temporary Use Permit list (§ 17.68.040) | Real estate offices, model homes, Christmas tree and pumpkin sales, circuses, swap meets, contractors’ construction yards. Storage containers are not on the list |
| Local Coastal Program | § 17.68.090: “These provisions do not supersede the requirements of the city’s Local Coastal Program” |
| Coastal Development Permit | LIP Chapter 13 governs. The temporary-event exemption at LIP § 13.4.9 covers events, not storage containers |
| Rebuild — Temporary Housing Permit | Mobile homes, trailers, RVs or self-contained units. Initial 4 years, renewable to 6. Maximum 2 structures totalling 1,000 sq ft. Requires approved power and functioning septic or sewer |
| Rebuild — Ordinance No. 524 | Like-for-like rebuild plus 10% additional square footage, within 50% of the original footprint |
| Bins in the right-of-way (§ 8.32.035) | Hauler permit plus encroachment permit required. Name and phone on the bin in letters at least 2 inches high |
Note carefully what the Temporary Housing Permit does and does not cover: it is for structures people live in, with sanitation and cooking. The rebuild booklet does not address storage or cargo containers at all.
The Franklin Fire burned 4,086 acres in December 2024, destroying 20 structures and damaging 28. The Palisades Fire followed in January 2025. Malibu is rebuilding, and containers are an obvious answer for staging materials and storing what survived. We are not going to tell you a coastal permit is or is not required, because Malibu has not said. Call Malibu Planning with your parcel first — on a coastal lot that call is not optional.
Container delivery in Malibu
Malibu is 21 miles of coastline threaded onto one road, and almost every delivery constraint here traces back to that.
- Pacific Coast Highway — the only practical approach for most of the city. Timing is everything: early morning slots avoid the worst of it, and a truck that misses its window can lose hours.
- Canyon roads — Malibu Canyon, Topanga, Kanan. Steep, winding, with tight switchbacks and posted restrictions in places. A 40ft on a trailer often cannot make the turns. Twenty-foot containers succeed far more often.
- Beachside lots — narrow frontage, no turnaround, houses tight to the road, and sand rather than compacted ground. Frequently a crane placement from PCH rather than a tilt-bed.
- Hillside and rebuild sites — grade plus debris-clearance status. Tell us the current condition of the lot, not what it was when you first called.
- Overhead lines and eucalyptus — low service drops and heavy canopy on canyon approaches. This ends more Malibu deliveries than width does.
You need roughly 60 feet of straight clear run for a 20ft and 100–120 feet for a 40ft, plus 14 feet of overhead clearance the whole way in. Our full container delivery guide covers site prep, the three ways a container comes off a truck, and the eight things that most often go wrong on the day.
Send photos from the road looking in, and tell us the grade and the surface. Malibu is a city where the honest answer is sometimes “a 40ft will not get there” — and we would rather say that on the phone.
Container solutions for Malibu
Secure tool and material storage for estate builds and coastal renovations — placed where the access actually allows, not where the plan assumes.
High-cube boxes built out as backyard studios and accessory dwelling units on Malibu properties where building out is easier than building up.
Retail pop-ups, event bars, and turnkey site offices — modified, delivered, and ready to open.
Temperature-controlled units for restaurants, growers, and biotech that need reliable cold on site.
Malibu container questions, answered
+Can a truck actually reach my Malibu property?
+What do I need to know about permits and the Coastal Commission?
+Can I use a container as an ADU in Malibu?
+How do containers hold up to salt air on the coast?
+How fast can you deliver to Malibu?
+Can the container be finished to match the property?
+How much are shipping containers in Malibu?
+Do you deliver to Point Dume, Zuma, Paradise Cove and the canyons?
We also deliver to: Pacific Palisades, Santa Monica and Thousand Oaks. We also serve buyers across the rest of the state — see every city on our shipping containers for sale in California page.
Ready to get your container in Malibu?
Get a free quote today — priced by us, delivered by us, on our own fleet.
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