The FMCSA motor carrier census lists 244 household goods registrants whose physical address is in San Diego, CA, and 49 of those are classified by FMCSA as interstate operations. BestMovers.info holds no San Diego price measurement, only the California range on the California page. Moves that stay inside California are licensed by the Bureau of Household Goods and Services.
San Diego is half military relocations, half coastal HOA moves — both have specific rules that change which mover makes sense. Here's how to navigate Camp Pendleton PCS season, La Jolla weekday-only restrictions, and California's Maximum Rate Tariff 4.
Common service neighborhoods: La Jolla, North Park, Pacific Beach, Hillcrest, Coronado, Mission Valley.
Researched and written by Grant Holloway · Reviewed by Brittany Evans · Last reviewed August 2026
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San Diego is half military relocations, half coastal HOA moves — both have specific rules that change which mover makes sense. Here's how to navigate Camp Pendleton PCS season, La Jolla weekday-only restrictions, and California's Maximum Rate Tariff 4.
San Diego's moving market is dominated by two seasonal forces. May through August is military Permanent Change of Station (PCS) season, when crews from Camp Pendleton, Naval Base San Diego, and MCRD all rotate at once. Local availability tightens sharply, and DOD-approved movers can charge a premium because they're locked into Defense Personal Property System contracts.
Outside PCS season, San Diego is a relatively easy market. Coastal HOAs in La Jolla, Coronado, and Del Mar enforce weekday-only moves and 30-day notice — but most other neighborhoods have generous truck access. Verify any mover's BHGS Household Movers permit (in-state) or USDOT (interstate) before booking.
Significantly cheaper quotes during PCS season are usually brokers reselling work — see broker vs carrier.
Outbound interstate from SD is competitive. The LA basin sits 120 miles north, so interstate trucks often deadhead through SD on the way to or from the rest of the country. Pull a moving cost estimate for your specific route and home size.
Maximum Rate Tariff 4 applies. Hourly billing, double drive time, written estimate required for moves over 4 hours. Coastal HOA restrictions can constrain scheduling.
FMCSA-regulated. Verify carrier USDOT + MC. Military PCS has its own DOD process — DPS reservations made through Military OneSource, not a civilian quote.
Military PCS season (May–August) tightens the entire market. November through February is the cheapest window.
The only moving cost range BestMovers.info holds for San Diego is the California statewide range, and it is published in full on the California page.
Driving distances and transit windows from the routes dataset; transit days are carrier delivery spreads, not guarantees.
Get a personalized estimate before any sales call. Editorial estimate based on broader national moving-cost data; BestMovers.info does not maintain a separate San Diego transaction-price dataset.
IRS county migration data for filing years 2022 to 2023 records 75,600 returns moving out of San Diego County, the county San Diego sits in, and 70,215 moving in. A return approximates a household rather than a person. Those filings cover 128,346 individuals leaving and 110,134 arriving.
The counties receiving the most households from San Diego County were Riverside County (6,563 returns), Los Angeles County (4,999 returns) and Orange County (3,258 returns).
Arrivals came mainly from Los Angeles County (6,449 returns), Riverside County (5,038 returns) and Orange County (4,006 returns).
These figures come from federal tax return data and cover all household moves, not only those using professional movers.
IRS SOI county outflow fileIRS SOI county inflow fileData as of tax filing years 2022 to 2023
The FMCSA motor carrier census lists 244 registrants carrying household goods whose physical address is in San Diego, and 49 of those are classified by FMCSA as interstate operations. That figure counts companies whose federal registration lists an address in San Diego. It is not the number of companies that will serve a move there: a mover registered in a neighbouring city can take the job, and a company registered in San Diego may not.
FMCSA motor carrier census, Company Census FileData as of 2026-08-10
Moving crews quoting San Diego work La Jolla, North Park, Pacific Beach, Hillcrest, Coronado, Mission Valley and the surrounding areas.
Movers working inside San Diego are licensed by the Bureau of Household Goods and Services, whose licence, lookup route and complaint channel are set out on the California page.
These companies have a documented headquarters or company location in San Diego or its metro. Placement is based on documented location information, not a numeric ranking.
Editorially independent, funded by referral fees. We may be paid when you request a quote from a company listed here. Payment does not decide who is listed or the order they appear in, and we publish no score or star rating. Advertising disclosure
Atlas agent and one of the largest West Coast interstate operators. Strong corporate-relocation track record with Fortune 500 clients.
Ace Relocation Systems publishes its headquarters in San Diego, CA.
The trading name is Republic Moving & Storage, but the registered legal entity behind it is Lovejoy's Family Moving Inc, and that is the name a reader should look for on the federal record shown below, filed from the same San Diego address the website publishes. The company operates as a North American Van Lines agent with 21 power units and 20 drivers of its own. Its history pages date the business to 2008, while the federal registration was added at the end of 2019.
Republic Moving & Storage publishes its headquarters in San Diego, CA.
These companies are headquartered elsewhere in California. Their inclusion here does not by itself confirm a local office in San Diego.
South Bay mover with steady operations across Silicon Valley and the Peninsula. Tech-relocation experience.
Bay Area Movers is headquartered elsewhere in CA. That does not by itself confirm an office in San Diego, and no service claim is made here.
These companies publish broad nationwide moving service and are shown separately from locally or state-based companies.
Colonial Van Lines Inc files from 1441 SW 29th Avenue in Pompano Beach, Florida, active on the federal census with 25 power units, 25 drivers and an MCS-150 filed 21 March 2025. The licensing record carries motor carrier of household goods authority granted 31 March 2010 and motor carrier of property authority recorded as reinstated on 27 June 2025, both active at the time of reading; no broker authority is carried on this registration. The federal file records a Satisfactory safety rating dated 28 June 2021 alongside a compliance review dated 3 October 2012. A safety rating is a dated federal snapshot of the review that produced it, not a current assessment of the company. The company publishes this USDOT number and MC docket in its own website footer, which is how the registration and the brand were joined. Two further registrations filing from the same address, one under the identical legal name and one under a Texas corporate name, are disclosed separately as related registrations rather than merged into this record. The company states it was founded in 2003.
Colonial Van Lines publishes broad nationwide moving service on its own site. It is shown separately from companies based in this area and its presence here is not evidence of a local office.
International Van Lines services overseas destinations in addition to US interstate work. What it is licensed to do federally is set out in the federal record on this page rather than described here.
International Van Lines publishes broad nationwide moving service on its own site. It is shown separately from companies based in this area and its presence here is not evidence of a local office.
53 companies with a San Diego address on their federal registration hold a granted household goods authority from the FMCSA, and 29 of those identify as a moving business in their legal or trade name. The 29 listed below are the ones registered with the agency longest, ordered by the federal registration date, earliest first. Registration age is the agency's own record. It is not a ranking, it is not a quality judgement and it is not a recommendation.
404 active registrants in San Diego tick household goods among their cargo types on the census form, and 228 of those carry any authority row at all. The cargo tick box is filled in by the registrant, so this list uses the agency grant instead, then sets aside general freight, trucking, logistics and courier registrants that hold the authority without presenting themselves as household movers. It is not every mover serving San Diego: a company based elsewhere may serve the city, and a registered address is not a service area.
SULLIVAN MOVING & STORAGE INC
USDOT 56181 · 5704 COPLEY DRIVE, SAN DIEGO, CA 92111-7905
It filed 17 power units, registered with the FMCSA on June 1, 1974, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC127405, active as common carrier and contract carrier.
ACE RELOCATION SYSTEMS INC
USDOT 1052359 · 5608 EAST GATE DR, SAN DIEGO, CA 92121
It filed 108 power units, registered with the FMCSA on September 4, 2002, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC495480, active as common carrier.
FMCSA SAFER snapshot for USDOT 1052359Read our review of Ace Relocation Systems
ONE STOP MOVING & STORAGE
USDOT 1956864 · 6260 MARINDUSTRY DR #B, SAN DIEGO, CA 92121
It filed 4 power units, registered with the FMCSA on October 20, 2009, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC694565, active as common carrier.
MOTIVATED MILITARY MOVERS LLC
USDOT 2403743 · 4158 DECORO ST SUITE 19, SAN DIEGO, CA 92122
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on May 7, 2013, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC826888.
TMT SOCAL INC, trading as TWO MEN AND A TRUCK
USDOT 2430454 · 9245 FARNHAM ST, SAN DIEGO, CA 92123
It filed 11 power units, registered with the FMCSA on August 17, 2013, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC837788, active as common carrier and contract carrier.
FINCH REALTY INC, trading as FINCH MOVING
USDOT 2434969 · 7949 STROMESA CT UNIT T, SAN DIEGO, CA 92126
It filed 4 power units, registered with the FMCSA on September 4, 2013, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1171659.
FORWARD RELOCATION LLC, trading as ACE MOVING & STORAGE INC
USDOT 2582558 · 9840 SIEMPRE VIVA ROAD, SAN DIEGO, CA 92154
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on February 20, 2015, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC904461, active as common carrier.
GRIZZLY MOVING LLC
USDOT 2642040 · 9557 CANDIDA STREET, SAN DIEGO, CA 92126
It filed 7 power units, registered with the FMCSA on June 4, 2015, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC920877, active as common carrier.
KEF SOUTHTOWN LLC, trading as AWESOME MOVERS
USDOT 2715339 · 10635 SCRIPPS RANCH BLVD STE H, SAN DIEGO, CA 92131
It filed 5 power units, registered with the FMCSA on June 12, 2015, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1408558, active as common carrier.
MOVINGWITHLOVE MOVING COMPANY LLC, trading as MOVING WITH LOVE MOVING COMPANY
USDOT 2943162 · 9450 MIRA MESA BLVD STE C #325, SAN DIEGO, CA 92126
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on November 2, 2016, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1107845.
ELMERS MOVING LLC
USDOT 2986520 · 4401 TWAIN AVE # 1, SAN DIEGO, CA 92120
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on March 17, 2017, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1432659.
SPECTRUM MOVING AND STORAGE
USDOT 3061315 · 4574 39-TH ST APT #1, SAN DIEGO, CA 92116
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on October 22, 2017, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC055412.
VECTOR MOVING LLC, trading as VECTOR MOVING AND STORAGE
USDOT 3152229 · 8963 CARROLL WAY # A, SAN DIEGO, CA 92121
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on June 22, 2018, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC105580, active as common carrier.
CREDO MOVING INC, trading as CREDO MOVING AND STORAGE
USDOT 3293337 · 5205 FIORE TER APT 211, SAN DIEGO, CA 92122
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on May 30, 2019, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1192905.
LOVEJOY'S FAMILY MOVING INC, trading as REPUBLIC MOVING & STORAGE
USDOT 3369820 · 8140 ST ANDREWS AVE STE 200, SAN DIEGO, CA 92154
It filed 21 power units, registered with the FMCSA on December 13, 2019, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1080243, active as common carrier.
SPACE MOVING AND STORAGE INC
USDOT 3391740 · 7901 CIVITA BLVD UNIT 452, SAN DIEGO, CA 92108
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on February 5, 2020, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1743932.
SUNSHINE MOVERS LONG DISTANCE LLC
USDOT 3391949 · 9828 MIRAMAR RD # 1013, SAN DIEGO, CA 92126
It filed 0 power units, registered with the FMCSA on February 5, 2020, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1090297.
ASPIRE MOVING SERVICES LLC, trading as WEST COAST MOVING & STORAGE
USDOT 3455570 · 1455 FRAZEE RD STE 500, SAN DIEGO, CA 92108
It filed 0 power units, registered with the FMCSA on July 17, 2020, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1126274.
ALL GOOD SAN DIEGO MOVING LLC
USDOT 3467399 · 1240 HORNBLEND ST, SAN DIEGO, CA 92109
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on August 10, 2020, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1289993.
THE MARATHON MOVING COMPANY LLC
USDOT 3596119 · 6920 MIRAMAR RD, SAN DIEGO, CA 92121
It filed 2 power units, registered with the FMCSA on March 24, 2021, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1219814.
THE ROCK MOVERS INC, trading as THE ROCK MOVERS
USDOT 3653432 · 4901 MORENA BLVD SUITE 503, SAN DIEGO, CA 92117
It filed 8 power units, registered with the FMCSA on June 9, 2021, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1541470, active as common carrier.
AMERICAN LONG DISTANCE MOVERS VAN LINES LLC
USDOT 3688250 · 11650 IBERIA PL STE 230, SAN DIEGO, CA 92128
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on July 27, 2021, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1285668.
PLYMOUTH VAN LINES INC
USDOT 3757491 · 3443 CAMINO DEL RIO SOUTH STE 216, SAN DIEGO, CA 92108
It filed 5 power units, registered with the FMCSA on November 3, 2021, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1336333, active as common carrier.
SIX EIGHT LOGISTICS INC, trading as GORILLA MOVERS
USDOT 3801918 · 7310 MIRAMAR RD, SAN DIEGO, CA 92126
It filed 2 power units, registered with the FMCSA on January 18, 2022, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1564437, active as common carrier.
MUST HAVE MOVERS LLC
USDOT 3826519 · 7077 CONSOLIDATED WAY, SAN DIEGO, CA 92121
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on February 21, 2022, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1386548.
JG MOVERS SAN DIEGO LLC
USDOT 4059454 · 4825 70TH ST APT 11, SAN DIEGO, CA 92115
It filed 0 power units, registered with the FMCSA on April 11, 2023, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1539991.
DISCOUNT MOVING AND STORAGE LLC, trading as DISCOUNT MOVERS
USDOT 4372335 · 5530 MOUNT ACARA DR, SAN DIEGO, CA 92111
It filed 2 power units, registered with the FMCSA on March 5, 2025, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1712689, active as common carrier.
LIT MOVERS LLC
USDOT 4379921 · 7059 EL CAJON BLVD, SAN DIEGO, CA 92115
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on March 19, 2025, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1716736.
B&L MOVERS & CLEANERS LLC, trading as B&L MOVERS & CLEANERS LLC
USDOT 4574960 · 4073 OAKCREST DR, SAN DIEGO, CA 92105-2154
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on April 29, 2026, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1820295.
Data as of 2026-08-15 from the FMCSA company census, with authority status as of 2026-08-16. The query behind this list. Information provided by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
No. Federal registration and California authorisation are separate. The list above shows the federal record only, and we have not verified whether any company listed holds a California licence or permit.
A mover operating inside California needs the Household Movers (HHM) permit, commonly called a Cal-T number from the Bureau of Household Goods and Services. Its rates sit in maximum Rate Tariff 4.
California publishes a licence lookup: Bureau of Household Goods and Services licence search.
Source: Bureau of Household Goods and Services, read 2026-08-09.
Peak demand across California runs May–September. Dates outside that window, and dates away from the last and first few days of any month, are where carriers have spare capacity — and spare capacity is what makes a crew negotiable on price.
We do not publish a percentage saving for moving off-peak in San Diego. We hold no month-by-month booking price data for this city, and a discount figure taken from a national average would not describe this market. What we can say is structural, and it holds in every market:
The only reliable way to price a specific date is to put the same date in front of several licensed carriers and compare written estimates. Ask each one what the same move costs two weeks earlier or later — the gap between those two numbers is your real off-peak saving in San Diego, measured on your move rather than on an average.
A tip is never part of a written estimate and never part of a binding price. It is discretionary, it is paid per mover rather than per crew, and it is handed to each mover directly at the end of the job rather than to the foreman to divide. Our working guideline scales with hours rather than with the value of the shipment, because that is how moving labour is actually priced:
These are a BestMovers.info editorial guideline, not a survey result. We hold no tipping survey for San Diego and no federal record covers gratuities, so nothing here is a local figure. Read the full tipping guide for stairs, long carries, storage and interstate deliveries, where the crew that loads is not the crew that unloads.
Free boxes come from businesses that receive stock in cartons and throw the cartons away, and from households that finished moving last week. The sources are the same in every city, including San Diego:
Ask in the morning, when the overnight delivery has just been unpacked and the cartons have not yet been flattened. Skip anything damp, greasy or previously used for produce that leaked. The free boxes guide covers how many you need by home size — those counts are BestMovers.info planning estimates rather than measured figures — and which boxes are worth buying rather than scavenging.
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Researched and written by Grant Holloway · Reviewed by Brittany Evans · Last reviewed August 2026
How we evaluate San Diego movers: we verify federal registration and operating authority against FMCSA records, record carrier or broker classification, and note state licensing where the state regulator publishes it. The list above is not ranked and carries no numeric score. Read the full methodology