Public Storage is celebrating the success of its popular contactless move-in program, which launched at all its locations nationwide just two short years ago, and has surpassed its one-millionth customer.

eRental has been such a success with customers, it consistently represents about half of our monthly move-ins—making it possible for customers to do everything online and skip the rental counter completely when they first move in.

In as little as six minutes (depending on how much time a customer takes to review the rental agreement) a customer is able to find, rent and pay for a storage unit all while on their smartphone or from the comfort of their home.

“It’s the convenience factor that’s driven people in,” said David Collins, our vice president and head of marketing. “We haven’t had to advertise because there’s been such demand for it.”

Our customers have noticed, giving us high marks when it comes to the overall experience.

“It was quicker and easier than most online shopping experiences,” noted customer Jonah H.

Public Storage continues to be the only self-storage company to offer this service at each location.

Despite being the leader in contactless move-ins, we’re continuously making improvements to the eRental process with the customer in mind.

“It was very easy to book my storage,” customer Arleyah H. shared in an online review. “It took no time at all, I was very impressed and satisfied.”

Previously, many customers began their rental online by searching for units large and small that fit their needs: from indoor to drive-up outdoor spaces to climate controlled storage and more.

They often reserved their space online, but then had to meet up with a property manager to finalize the process in-person and load in for the first time all during the location’s office hours, which are often more limited than storage unit access hours.

But now, you not only can find the perfect space on the website but also be offered our online rates. Once you’ve reserved your space, you have the option to continue and pay online, skipping the rental counter and enjoying an expanded set of move-in hours. It’s not only contact-free, but paper-free as well.

Next, we will email or text you a personal keypad entrance code as well as directions to the location and storage unit the day before your selected move-in date—or immediately if you plan to move in the same day. That’s it!

“eRental added the convenience and flexibility to do your rental agreement anytime you want, from anywhere,”; Collins said. “Even if you have five minutes at the end of your kid’s soccer game, you can get it done.”

Looking to further enhance the customer experience, we’ve also launched an app to help make one-time payments, and, best of all, enable remote gate access directly from your smartphone. No need to remember your personal gate code or physically punching your code into a keypad.

In honor of our milestone, we awarded the lucky one-millionth eRental customer with their choice of $1,000 or one year of free rent.

As part of our larger effort to be kind to the environment, we’ve launched an initiative to add solar panels to our buildings. You can also learn all about Public Storage’s partnership to reduce our carbon footprint and to help shape a sustainable future.