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7 Shipping Container Cabin Design Ideas for Sustainable Living
Thinking of building your own shipping container cabin? Explore shipping container cabin concepts from around the world with Boxhub.
Shipping containers are trending as cost-effective, eco-friendly housing solutions. Searching for “tiny homes” or “container homes” online typically yields a flood of images and articles showcasing creative shipping container cabins featuring a rainbow of configurations, modifications, styles, and amenities.
Thinking about making your own container home (or just craving some more container eye candy)? We’ve rounded up some of the most popular examples of how people are converting shipping containers into dwellings and off-grid cabins.
1. Cozy Studio Container Cabin
Ship Shak Container Cabin (Images via Airbnb)
Lots of tiny home blogs might suggest purchasing a 40ft container or a combination of different container sizes to get the most out of a container cabin. But if you don’t mind closer quarters (or if your budget only allows for a smaller single unit), you can certainly turn a 20ft container into a snug, chic, and functional living space.
Take a look at Ship Shak on the River, a cute 20ft studio container cabin that’s gaining popularity as a top getaway in Bryson City. This cabin proves you can do plenty with a 20ft container if you keep things simple.
Wood paneling on the floor and the walls (except for the tiled shower) gives the interior a cozy log cabin vibe. There’s just enough room for a queen-sized bed, a modern bathroom, and a fully functional kitchenette with a refrigerator and tall cabinets. A French door and large windows go a long way to further open up the space.
To get a better idea of what your tiny container cabin might feel like, consider booking Ship Shak on the River for a weekend getaway.
2. Container Cabin With a Rooftop Deck
"The Meadows" Container Cabin (Images via Airbnb)
Rooftops offer the ultimate outdoor space—especially if you don’t have the luxury of a backyard, porch, or deck. Because it’s flat, the rooftop of a container cabin can easily be modified to serve as the perfect area to relax, sunbathe, or stargaze.
Check out this example—one of the most striking container cabins with a rooftop deck in Waco, Texas.
The exterior of this particular container cabin is paneled with wood slats and features black trim around the doors and windows. A spiral staircase by the entrance winds up to the rooftop deck, with guard rails sectioning out a portion for relaxation.
To create a functional space on the roof of your container, all you need is a sturdy staircase, guard rails, and some light furniture.
3. Shipping Container Log Cabin
Shipping Container Log Cabin (Image via Discover Containers)
Because of their simple rectangular shape, shipping containers structurally resemble traditional log cabins. And with a little wood paneling, they can achieve a rustic log cabin aesthetic, too.
Brian Morris of Yellowstone Timber Fusion achieved this look with about $17,000. A passionate log-smith, he realized that the design versatility and structural integrity of shipping containers allowed for plenty of creativity. With some tasteful finishes, he knew he could create a cozy and durable log cabin.
To get started, he purchased a 20ft used container (Boxhub sells new 20ft containers from $2,700 and used 20ft containers from $1,800). He then added stacked logs to the facade, a wooden deck, and porch rafters to make the container look like an old-fashioned log cabin.
4. Hunting Cabin
Shipping Container Hunting Cabin
Shipping container hunting cabins are becoming widely popular as a strong alternative to conventional cabins—and for good reasons, too.
They’re far more affordable, customizable, sustainable, and easy to transport. More importantly, they’re sturdy and allow enough flexibility for modern fittings and furnishing, making it easy to create a cozy home away from home, even in the wilderness.
- • A typical shipping container hunting cabin is usually modified with the following:
- • A kitchenette, a restroom, and custom built-in beds.
- • A water tank (up to 100 gallons) to provide off-grid fresh water.
- • Double pane windows and steel man doors for extra security.
- • A rooftop deck for relaxing (this also serves as a higher ground for monitoring game, baits, and traps).
- • An elevated deck and base, keeping the cabin 2-3 feet off the ground.
- • A solar-powered lighting system.
- • Deer extension pole systems.
Most hunters also prefer to coat the exterior of their container hunting cabins with a camo paint job, blending their cabin into the natural surroundings.
5. Short-Term Rental Cabin
Short-Term Rental Shipping Container Cabin (Image via Vrbo)
Shipping containers have also become popular alternatives to traditional hotel rooms among tourists. They can sometimes be more affordable, more private, more unique, or better situated than hotels. Like Brian Morris’s container cabin in Waco, Texas, there are many shipping container vacation rentals across the U.S., which you can find on Airbnb and Vrbo. Many of them are top-rated and frequently booked, indicating a booming market.
If you’re living in an area with significant tourist traffic, converting a shipping container into a short-term rental cabin could offer a great stream of passive income for you.
This Deer Woods vacation cabin provides insightful ideas on how you can modify a shipping container into a chic vacation rental loaded with amenities, including a bedroom, a bathroom with a walk-in shower, a living room (with an additional Murphy bed), a kitchenette, a dining area, air conditioning, and fiber-optic Wi-Fi. This container also boasts a hot tub, a fire pit, a rooftop deck, a patio, and a veranda—plenty of options to unwind or entertain.
6. DIY Container Cabin
DIY Shipping Container Cabin (Image via Flickr)
It’s time to get ready for your next exciting home project—your container cabin! Pinterest and Flickr offer lots of simple DIY container cabin ideas to inspire you as you get started.
Paul Stankey and Sarah Nordby’s weekend place is a great example. It’s a combination of two shipping containers joined on either side of a spacious glass- and wood-based extension. You can keep things simpler with one shipping container, or weld two containers together to make a larger space.
The best part is that you can customize your container cabin however you want. If you’re working with a budget, start small. You can always make new additions over time as your budget allows.
7. Off-Grid Luxury Container Cabin
Most tiny homes are cozy, cute, and functional—but you can also use shipping containers to create a space that’s as magnificent and extravagant as a traditional luxury home. Container cabin experts Tyler and Todd set out to do just that. They started by building a state-of-the-art two-story container home on their 10-acre property using four containers. They outfitted it with all the comforts of a traditional home and added multiple gardens, a swimming pool, and a courtyard with space to entertain. To crown it all, they installed a hydro-solar system powerful enough to heat their home and provide hot water around the clock for indoor use and their swimming pool.
In short, their luxurious container home project is an awe-inspiring feat that will give you lots of brilliant ideas on how you can build your shipping container cabin.
Ready to start your container cabin project? Boxhub can provide high-quality containers of all sizes, along with accessories and modification kits to help you customize your tiny home. We deliver anywhere in the country within five business days. Speak to a container expert near you today!
About Hannah Swinkin
Hannah is a B2B marketing leader with a passion for container upcycling projects and cargotecture. She sharpened her marketing expertise at disruptive tech companies transforming antiquated industries, including shipping, parking, and commercial real estate.
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