# How Public Storage (PSA) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/psa
> Data as of October 20, 2026. Total returns include reinvested dividends. Past performance does not predict future results; nothing here is investment advice.

Built by QuantCommons' quantitative engine, this page is about relative opportunity, not data on PSA alone. It places PSA (Public Storage) against 6 popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where PSA stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: PSA's full trading record, from October 1986 through September 2026. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 20, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** Over the past 6 months, PSA fell 1.4% while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%.
- **Stock or market?:** PSA's 3.4% fall over the past 3 months is part of a broader self-storage reits sell-off: the self-storage reits ETF VNQ (Vanguard Real Estate ETF) fell 6.4%, with EXR (Extra Space Storage, down 3.1%) and CUBE (CubeSmart, down 4.0%).
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** PSA has lagged well behind the market, rising 0.8% over the past year against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. The same gap shows up over 3 years (35.6% against 89.3%). The last two calendar years both went the same way: PSA fell 9.7% in 2025, against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100.
- **Long term:** PSA turned $10,000 into $20,700 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500.
- **In a crash:** PSA fell less than the S&P 500 in five of seven sell-offs, but the 2022 bear market broke the pattern: it fell 29.1%, more than the S&P 500's 24.5%.
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, PSA has a correlation of 0.58 over 5 years, more closely than 87% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. PSA cushions stocks less than it used to: its correlation with the S&P 500 rose to 0.58 over the past 5 years, from 0.13 in the 5 years before.
- **Better options**
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** GATX (equipment rental) earned more than PSA over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 12.4% a year at 25.1% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 24.1%.
  - **Whole market:** 708 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than PSA with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI (Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF), VOO (Vanguard S&P 500 ETF) and BRK-B (Berkshire Hathaway).

## How much would $10,000 in PSA have grown?

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in PSA over the past 21 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of PSA over the same span and PSA's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in PSA at the end of September 2005 would have grown to $86,949 by September 2026, less than the $90,973 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the seven other investments on the chart ended ahead of PSA, and EXR finished highest, at $197,164.

## PSA at a glance

This section summarizes the key facts about the stock, its returns over periods from one to ten years and the risk it has carried, with dividends reinvested throughout.

- PSA's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 55.8%, from February 2007 to March 2009. It took 18 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 29 full calendar years, PSA's best was 2021, when it returned 66.6%, and its worst was 2007, when it lost 22.9%. It lost money in eight of those years.
- PSA is 11.2% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Real Estate (REIT - Industrial)
- Trading since: October 17, 1986
- Market value: $56B
- Volatility (5 years): 24.1%; Sharpe ratio: 0.25
- Worst decline ever: −55.8%, from February 8, 2007 to March 5, 2009; back at its high by September 3, 2010

| Period | PSA total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +1.7% |
| 3 months | −3.4% |
| 6 months | −1.4% |
| year to date | +20.3% |
| 1 year | +0.8% |
| 3 years | +35.6% |
| 5 years | +17.0% |
| 10 years | +107% |

## PSA against the whole market

Where PSA ranks among every stock and fund, and what across the market has done better.

### How does PSA rank among all stocks?

This section ranks PSA on return, volatility, risk-adjusted return and worst decline against every stock worth at least $300 million with enough history.

- PSA's worst decline of the past 10 years ranks in the top 5% of the 2,187 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top fell the least.

| Measure | PSA | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +0.8% | 1,953 of 3,287 (top 60%) |
| 3-year return | +35.6% | 1,763 of 3,017 (top 59%) |
| 5-year return | +17.0% | 1,498 of 2,893 (top 52%) |
| 10-year return | +107% | 1,313 of 2,202 (top 60%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 24.1% | 272 of 2,893 (top 10%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.25 | 1,699 of 2,893 (top 59%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −37.9% | 103 of 2,187 (top 5%) |

### What has beaten PSA on both return and risk?

Each dot is an investment, placed by how much it earned a year over the past 5 years (higher is better) and how much its price swung, its volatility (further left is calmer).

- 108 stocks and 600 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than PSA over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 19% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half PSA's swings, DXJ has the best return for its risk: 26.6% a year at 19.1% volatility, 21% less than PSA's 24.1%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.34 against 0.25 for PSA.

### Is there a better investment than PSA?

The table below lists investments that beat PSA over the past 5 years on at least one of these measures: a higher annual return with lower volatility, a higher annual return at similar volatility, a similar return with lower volatility, a higher Sharpe ratio with a smaller worst decline, a higher total return in most periods from 3 months to 10 years, or smaller losses in recent market crashes.

- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, GATX (equipment rental) earned more than PSA over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 12.4% a year at 25.1% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 24.1%.
- Across the whole market, 708 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than PSA with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI, VOO and BRK-B.

The 15 strongest of 708 investments that beat PSA over the past 5 years, out of 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million.

| Investment | Group | Annual return (5 years) | Volatility | Sharpe | Worst decline (10 years) | 10Y return | Correlation with PSA | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PSA: Public Storage (this page) |  | +3.2% | 24.1% | 0.25 | −37.9% | +107% |  |  |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.48 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BRK-B](https://easycompare.io/research/brk-b): Berkshire Hathaway Inc. | Insurance | +13.4% | 17.1% | 0.82 | −29.6% | +274% | 0.49 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [JNJ](https://easycompare.io/research/jnj): Johnson & Johnson | Pharmaceuticals | +12.7% | 17.9% | 0.76 | −27.4% | +196% | 0.34 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | International Equity | +17.0% | 11.1% | 1.48 | −32.4% | +194% | 0.48 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [NVS](https://easycompare.io/research/nvs): Novartis AG | Pharmaceuticals | +17.1% | 20.7% | 0.87 | −26.8% | +226% | 0.46 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [PG](https://easycompare.io/research/pg): The Procter & Gamble Company | Household & Personal Products | +5.1% | 18.3% | 0.37 | −23.8% | +145% | 0.43 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [LIN](https://easycompare.io/research/lin): Linde plc | Chemicals | +11.5% | 20.9% | 0.63 | −32.6% | +394% | 0.49 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VIG](https://easycompare.io/research/vig): Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF | US Dividend Equity | +10.4% | 14.1% | 0.78 | −31.7% | +258% | 0.67 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [COR](https://easycompare.io/research/cor): Cencora, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +24.2% | 22.8% | 1.07 | −32.4% | +406% | 0.35 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [IWF](https://easycompare.io/research/iwf): iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF | US Large-Cap Growth | +11.7% | 21.8% | 0.62 | −32.7% | +416% | 0.46 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [DFAC](https://easycompare.io/research/dfac): Dimensional - US Core Equity 2 ETF | US Total Market | +11.4% | 17.0% | 0.72 | −23.1% | — | 0.62 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| PJUL: Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF | Broad Market | +10.5% | 8.6% | 1.20 | −18.2% | — | 0.53 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [WM](https://easycompare.io/research/wm): Waste Management, Inc. | Environmental Services | +9.3% | 19.2% | 0.56 | −30.1% | +344% | 0.47 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| FJAN: FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - January | Multi-Asset | +11.1% | 10.5% | 1.05 | −13.6% | — | 0.51 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [AEP](https://easycompare.io/research/aep): American Electric Power Company, Inc. | Electric Utilities | +12.4% | 20.2% | 0.68 | −32.9% | +185% | 0.45 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |

## PSA against its popular alternatives

The investments people most often weigh against PSA, compared period by period and year by year.

### How do PSA's risk and return compare with its alternatives?

This map plots each investment's annual return over the past 5 years against its volatility, the size of its typical price swings.

- None of the six popular alternatives earned more than PSA over the past 5 years with smaller price swings, so every higher return on the map came with a bumpier ride.
- Five of the six popular alternatives earned less than PSA over the past 5 years while swinging more, the weaker corner of the map.
- Over the past 5 years, PSA returned 3.2% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (24.1% against 17.1%).

### Has PSA consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares PSA with the investments people most often weigh against it, checking each one over eight periods from one month to ten years.

- None of the six popular alternatives outperformed PSA in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes. The closest was PLD.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of PSA | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PSA: Public Storage (this page) | +0.8% | +35.6% | +17.0% | +107% |  |  | 0.25 |
| [PLD](https://easycompare.io/research/pld): Prologis, Inc. | +3.4% | +37.1% | +3.0% | +221% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.16 |
| EXR: Extra Space Storage Inc. | −2.4% | +46.8% | −6.4% | +168% | 1/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.10 |
| REXR: Rexford Industrial Realty, Inc. | −11.9% | −4.4% | −30.9% | +120% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | -0.13 |
| CUBE: CubeSmart | −1.5% | +28.6% | −5.8% | +136% | 1/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.08 |
| UHAL: U-Haul Holding Company | +1.3% | +9.3% | −22.5% | +75.7% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.02 |
| AMH: American Homes 4 Rent | −1.2% | +2.3% | −9.1% | +77.3% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.03 |

### How did PSA do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 1997, along with where PSA ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- PSA finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 14 of its 29 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last four.
- Among its popular alternatives, EXR came out ahead of PSA most often, in 14 of the 21 years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, PSA finished in the top quarter in five of 21 years and in the bottom quarter in five. In 2025, it ranked 4 of 7.

| Year | PSA | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | −9.7% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +2.1% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +13.6% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −20.2% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +66.6% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +12.7% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +9.0% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +0.6% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | −4.7% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | −6.9% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How PSA has fallen, how it held up in crashes beside the S&P 500 and its popular alternatives, and what moves independently of it.

### What were PSA's worst declines?

A drawdown is the decline from a peak to the lowest point before a new high.

- In all three of PSA's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: PSA fell 37.9% from April 2022 to October 2023, while the S&P 500 slipped only 3.8%.
- The slowest recovery came after PSA fell 51.7% from May 1989 to October 1990; it did not regain that peak until February 1993, two years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −55.8% | February 8, 2007 | March 5, 2009 | September 3, 2010 | −50.5% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −51.7% | May 30, 1989 | October 15, 1990 | February 12, 1993 | — |  |
| −37.9% | April 20, 2022 | October 25, 2023 | not yet | −3.8% | 2022 bear market |
| −37.6% | August 30, 2019 | March 23, 2020 | April 1, 2021 | −22.6% | Covid crash |
| −34.6% | November 20, 1986 | October 28, 1987 | March 15, 1989 | — |  |

### How did PSA do in stock market crashes?

This section measures how far PSA, the S&P 500 and each alternative fell from peak to trough during every major market crash since 2000.

- PSA fell less than the S&P 500 in seven of the ten crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when PSA fell 23.9% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.
- None of its popular alternatives fell less than PSA in most of the crashes they both traded through.

| Crash | Dates | PSA fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | −23.9% | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −51.6% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −1.4% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −17.2% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −10.3% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −5.2% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −8.2% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −29.4% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −29.1% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −6.5% | −3.4% |

### How closely does PSA move with the S&P 500?

Upside capture measures how much of the S&P 500's gains an investment kept in the months the market rose, and downside capture how much of its losses it took in the months the market fell.

- None of the six popular alternatives with the same record had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than PSA's 0.89.
- Over the past 10 years, PSA captured 49% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 55% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.56. Its share of the market's losses was slightly larger than its share of the gains.

Measured over the past 10 years of monthly returns against SPY.

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PSA: Public Storage (this page) | 49.0% | 55.0% | 0.56 |
| [PLD](https://easycompare.io/research/pld): Prologis, Inc. | 103% | 122% | 1.04 |
| EXR: Extra Space Storage Inc. | 71.0% | 80.0% | 0.72 |
| REXR: Rexford Industrial Realty, Inc. | 90.0% | 127% | 0.93 |
| CUBE: CubeSmart | 67.0% | 81.0% | 0.70 |
| UHAL: U-Haul Holding Company | 85.0% | 124% | 0.99 |
| AMH: American Homes 4 Rent | 56.0% | 76.0% | 0.66 |

### What diversifies PSA?

Correlation measures how closely two investments move together, on a scale from 1 (in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to -1 (in opposite directions).

- Moving a fifth of the money in PSA into DXJ would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 17% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+3.5% for PSA alone, +8.4% for the mix).
- MCK made money in six of the eight calendar years in which PSA lost money.
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and PJAN have moved largely independently of PSA over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.48 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with PSA | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in PSA's 8 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.48 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 3 of 8 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.21 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 4 of 8 |
| PJAN: Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF | 0.47 | +54.6% | 9.0% | 1.02 | 1 of 8 |
| FTLS: First Trust Long/Short Equity ETF | 0.48 | +62.9% | 10.4% | 0.99 | 3 of 8 |
| MLPX: Global X - MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF | 0.42 | +135% | 19.7% | 0.97 | 3 of 8 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.32 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 4 of 8 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.17 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 4 of 8 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.47 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 3 of 8 |

## Common questions

### What was PSA's worst drawdown?

PSA's deepest decline since it began trading in 1986 was 55.8%, from February 2007 to March 2009. It took 18 months from the low to climb back to its old high.

### What were PSA's best and worst years?

Over 29 full calendar years, PSA's best year was 2021, when it returned 66.6%. Its worst was 2007, with a return of -22.9%.

### Is there a better investment than PSA?

Looking beyond its popular alternatives, GATX (equipment rental) earned more than PSA over the past 5 years with similar volatility: 12.4% a year at 25.1% volatility, against 3.2% a year at 24.1%. Across the whole market, 708 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than PSA with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI, VOO and BRK-B.

### Is PSA more volatile than the S&P 500?

Yes. PSA's volatility over the past 5 years was 24.1%, 1.4 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, PSA's return lands within 24.1% of its average, either way. The higher it is, the rougher the ride and the harder it is to hold through a slump.

### What is PSA's Sharpe ratio?

PSA's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.25, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so PSA earned less for each unit of risk than an index fund did. The Sharpe ratio is the return earned above cash for each unit of volatility: two investments with the same return are not equal if one got there with far bigger swings.

### How correlated is PSA with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, PSA's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.58 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They often move together: some diversification next to an index fund, but not a cushion. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against PSA instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a PSA holding.

### What are the best alternatives to PSA?

None of the six popular alternatives we compared outperformed PSA in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, which says more about PSA's strength than about its alternatives.

### Did PSA outperform the S&P 500?

PSA finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 14 of 29 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned -9.7%, against +17.7% for the index.

### How did PSA do in stock market crashes?

PSA fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in seven of the ten major crashes it has traded through, and further in two. The clearest case was the dot-com bust, when PSA fell 23.9% and the S&P 500 fell 47.5%.

### What diversifies PSA?

These had a low correlation with PSA over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.48), DXJ (correlation 0.21) and PJAN (correlation 0.47); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.30), CLS (correlation 0.07) and FIX (correlation 0.36). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

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## Explore further

- Full page with charts: https://easycompare.io/research/psa
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against PSA live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=PSA&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research