New, used & refurbished containers for sale in Santa Monica
Santa Monica is Southern California’s premier urban coastal destination — a hub for upscale residential properties, tech startups, creative agencies, and innovation-driven businesses. Whether you’re expanding a Westside home, launching a startup workspace, or creating a pop-up retail concept, Shipping Container Depot delivers design-forward containers optimized for Santa Monica’s premium market. Delivery is typically 3–7 business days.
Our Santa Monica expertise includes modern architectural finishes, tech-space customization, residential storage solutions, and high-end design integration. We work with architects, designers, and developers to turn containers into seamless urban solutions — not industrial eyesores.
Containers are Corten weathering steel, which handles coastal air well by design, and we can finish them in premium paint or cladding with lighting and climate control fitted in our own shop. The harder question in Santa Monica is usually access rather than specification, so tell us the street and we will tell you honestly what can be placed there.
Watertight roof, hole-free floors, sealing doors — inspected before dispatch.
Our drivers, our tilt-bed trucks, Santa Monica in 3–7 business days.
What Santa Monica customers say
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 Santa Monica
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 Santa Monica
Santa Monica has no container ordinance — we searched the full municipal code for “storage container,” “cargo container” and “portable storage” and got zero results for all three. What it does have is an outdoor storage rule with a very short clock.
| Rule | What the city requires |
|---|---|
| Outdoor storage (§ 9.21.100) | No long-term storage of building materials or their receptacles in any front yard or side yard |
| What “long-term” means | 48 or more consecutive hours. That is the whole margin |
| Exception | Building materials for use on the same parcel may be stored while a valid building permit is in effect |
| Screening | Outdoor storage areas must be screened from public streets, freeways, residential areas and publicly accessible open space. Stored goods may not exceed the fence height |
| Accessory structures (§ 9.21.020) | Not permitted above 14 feet. Over 14 feet requires 2 storeys or 24 feet but no more than 650 sq ft total. Rear setback at least 5 feet; side setback at least 5 feet |
| Vacant parcels | In residential districts, parcels without a main building may not be used for long-term storage |
| Coastal Zone | Santa Monica is in the Coastal Zone. § 9.54.130 requires a coastal development permit application for work in the zone. Whether the city or the Coastal Commission issues it depends on the parcel |
| Materials in the street (§ 7.04.670) | Permit required from General Services. Not within 25 feet of a fire hydrant. Removal within 5 days of completion |
Read together, Santa Monica pushes storage off the front and side of the lot and off the street quickly. A container tied to an active building permit is the cleanest path; a container as ongoing storage on a residential parcel runs into the 48-hour rule almost immediately if it is anywhere visible.
If your Santa Monica project has a building permit, a container is usually workable. If it does not, be careful. The 48-hour threshold is unusually tight and it applies to front and side yards specifically. Talk to City Planning about your parcel and the Coastal Zone question before you order, and we will hold delivery until you have the answer.
Container delivery in Santa Monica
Santa Monica is flat and gridded, which helps, and densely parked with narrow alleys, which does not. Most deliveries here come down to the alley.
- Rear alleys — much of the residential city is served from behind. Alleys here are narrow, often blocked by bins on collection day, and rarely offer a turnaround. Measure the alley and tell us collection day.
- Street parking density — a container truck needs a run of clear kerb. If the block is permanently full you may need temporary no-parking arrangements.
- Coastal blocks and the bluffs — tighter still, with the coastal permit question on top.
- Mid-City and the industrial pockets — the easiest deliveries in the city.
- Traffic windows — early morning is materially easier than any other time of day here. We will suggest a slot rather than let you guess.
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 a photo of the alley or driveway and the drop spot. In Santa Monica the alley width usually decides whether it is a 20ft or nothing.
Container solutions for Santa Monica
Secure tool and material storage for Westside renovations and tenant improvements — placed where a dense street grid actually allows.
High-cube boxes built out as backyard studios and accessory dwelling units on Westside lots where building out beats 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.
Santa Monica container questions, answered
+Can a delivery truck actually reach my Santa Monica site?
+Do I need a permit to place a container in Santa Monica?
+Can a container be used as pop-up retail or a brand activation?
+Can I use a container as an ADU in Santa Monica?
+How do containers hold up to coastal air this close to the ocean?
+Can the container be finished to suit an architect’s spec?
+How much are shipping containers in Santa Monica?
+Do you deliver to Venice, Marina del Rey, Brentwood and West LA?
We also deliver to: Pacific Palisades, Malibu and Torrance. 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 Santa Monica?
Get a free quote today — priced by us, delivered by us, on our own fleet.
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