Movers in Ohio charge about $85 to $135 per hour for a two-person crew on local jobs, and a two-bedroom interstate move from Ohio is estimated at $2,500 to $6,000. Intrastate movers in Ohio are licensed by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), while any company moving household goods across state lines must hold FMCSA operating authority. Peak demand runs May to September, when quotes sit at the top of those ranges. BestMovers.info compares 182 licensed carriers serving Ohio, with pricing data as of May 2026.
Key facts
Local rate, two movers
$85 to $135 per hour
2-bedroom interstate
$2,500 to $6,000
Intrastate regulator
Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO)
Interstate licensing
FMCSA USDOT and MC authority
Peak season
May–September
Cities covered
4
Carriers compared
182
Pricing data as of
May 2026
Bottom line
Compare moving companies, Federal Records, and moving resources for Ohio. BestMovers.info publishes no numeric score, star rating or ranked order.
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Updated August 2026 Reviewed by Amanda Brooks8 companies analyzed
What moving in Ohio actually looks like
Moving inside Ohio means working around a May–September peak and a Midwest labour market of roughly 11.8 million people. Off-peak dates in November–March price 15% to 25% below the summer band.
Two crew members at standard rates run roughly $110/hr in most of the state, with downtown high-rise jobs and gated communities pulling toward the upper end. A typical 2-bedroom interstate move out of Ohio settles around $4,250, though distance and packing services swing that meaningfully.
Local quirks worth pricing in: winter pickups that can slip a day after snowstorms, and a strong August student-move surge. None of these are dealbreakers, but they show up in the final bill if you don't ask about them upfront.
Verification in Ohio runs through the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). A PUCO certificate is required to transport household goods within Ohio. Interstate carriers additionally need active FMCSA authority, which you can check on SAFER by USDOT number.
Keep the bill of lading and the inventory sheet after delivery; both are required if a claim goes to arbitration.
Ohio runs its heaviest volume May–September, and its 4 covered metros feed most of that demand out of and around Columbus. Population sits near 11.8 million, which is what sets how deep the local crew pool actually is in November–March.
How we select movers for this state
Selection for Ohio starts from licensing, not marketing. A company is listed here when it is headquartered in Ohio or its record shows coverage of the state, and when we can describe it from sourced fields: federal registration, operating authority, founding year, and service coverage. We publish no numeric score and rank nobody first.
Which company suits your move is a question of scope and date, not of a score: BestMovers.info publishes no numeric score, star rating or ranked order. The pricing model behind the estimates on this page is dated May 2026.
Pricing
Ohio moving cost snapshot
Two movers, ground-floor access, standard packing. Peak season in Ohio is May–September.
Home size
Local move
Interstate move
Studio
$255–$675
$1,375–$3,600
1 Bedroom
$340–$810
$1,875–$4,680
2 Bedroom
$510–$1,215
$2,500–$6,000
3 Bedroom
$680–$1,620
$3,625–$9,300
4 Bedroom
$935–$2,160
$4,875–$12,900
5+ Bedroom
$1,190–$2,700
$6,000–$16,200
How many licensed moving companies are registered in Ohio?
The FMCSA motor carrier census lists 1,718 registrants carrying household goods whose physical address is in Ohio, and 734 of those are classified by FMCSA as interstate operations. That figure counts companies whose federal registration lists a Ohio address, which is not the same as the number of companies that will serve a move in Ohio. An interstate move into or out of Ohio can be performed by a carrier registered in any state.
IRS tax return data for filing years 2022 to 2023 records 102,591 returns moving out of Ohio to another state, and 94,026 moving in, a net loss of 8,565 returns. A return approximates a household rather than a person. The same filings cover 164,709 individuals leaving and 157,796 arriving.
The states receiving the most Ohio households were Florida (13,170 returns), Kentucky (6,769 returns) and Texas (6,519 returns).
Arrivals came mainly from Florida (10,564 returns), Kentucky (6,362 returns) and Pennsylvania (6,060 returns). These figures count all filers who changed address, not only those who hired a moving company.
Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) regulates household goods movers operating inside Ohio. Moves crossing the Ohio state line fall under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration instead, a separate authorisation with separate requirements.
PUCO publishes no confirmed public household-goods lookup. Verify an Ohio carrier's certificate number through the PUCO call centre on 1-800-686-7826. For a move leaving Ohio, check the company's USDOT record in FMCSA SAFER as well. Holding one authorisation does not imply the other.
Ohio requires each mover to file its own rates rather than setting a ceiling. The mechanism is Household goods carrier tariffs are filed and docketed with PUCO, so the rates are public and enforceable against the mover that filed them, but Ohio does not cap them. Rates on a move that leaves Ohio are not set by the state.
Complaints about a move inside Ohio go to Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) through PUCO call centre on 1-800-686-7826, weekdays 8am to 5pm; 7-1-1 relay for hearing or speech impaired callers. A complaint about a move that crossed the Ohio state line goes to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration through the National Consumer Complaint Database instead.
Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) publishes what applies to a company moving household goods in Ohio. Each of the following comes from the agency's own pages:
Every Ohio household goods carrier must include in every advertisement its name or trade name, address, telephone number, and the certificate number assigned by the commission, in the format "PUCO No. _____". An advertisement means any communication to the public in connection with an offer or sale of intrastate transportation service.
An Ohio household goods carrier must acknowledge receipt of a claim within fifteen days of receiving it and must respond to that claim within thirty days.
What is different about an interstate move from Ohio?
FMCSA. PUCO does not regulate moves between states. A Ohio state licence does not cover that work, and the federal record is the one to check: confirm the USDOT number is active and authorised for household goods before paying a deposit.
A move that leaves Ohio is an interstate move and falls under federal authority, so the company needs active operating authority for household goods rather than only an Ohio licence. A move that stays inside Ohio is different: it is regulated by Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), and this page names no Ohio authorisation because the record holds none. Check which kind of move you are booking before you compare quotes, because the two are verified in different places.
Ohio publishes no lookup, so a licence is confirmed by calling Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) on 1-800-686-7826.
Distance — local moves under 50 miles are billed hourly; cross-state jobs are billed by weight + mileage.
Home size — going from a 1-bedroom to a 3-bedroom roughly doubles crew time and truck space.
Stairs and access — every flight above the first commonly adds $25–$100; long carries from truck to door add similarly.
Packing — full-pack service usually adds 30–45% to a base move; partial packing (kitchen + fragiles only) adds 10–20%.
Season — book a Saturday move in late June and expect to pay 20–30% more than the same job mid-week in February.
Specialty items — pianos, gun safes, large aquariums, and oversized art each carry their own line item.
Ohio season — quotes inside May–September run at the top of the $85–$135 hourly band; November–March quotes sit near the bottom.
Fuel surcharge — interstate quotes float with diesel pricing, so a quote held for weeks may be re-priced.
Ohio licensing — Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) handles intrastate oversight, which changes what paperwork you can demand before deposit.
Full-service, labor-only, container, or rental truck
Labor-only is the entry point in Ohio: you supply the truck, the crew supplies the muscle. Two movers for a small apartment usually total $255 to $540, since the $85 to $135 hourly band still applies.
Once a household passes three bedrooms, full service is usually the cheaper mistake to avoid. Budget two to three times the labor-only figure; the premium buys equipment, insurance, and a crew that does this daily.
Containers are the middle option for Ohio households. Providers such as PODS, U-Pack, and 1-800-PACK-RAT drop a unit at the curb. You load on your schedule, the company drives. On a Ohio interstate move the container route is usually cheaper than a full-service van line, because you are supplying the loading labor the carrier would otherwise charge for. Bestmovers.info holds no container rates, so price the provider quote for your own lane and dates. The catch is the delivery window, which is set by the provider rather than promised to you, and limited recourse for damage during loading, since you packed it.
Companies
Moving Companies Based in Ohio
These companies have a verified headquarters or documented company location in Ohio. Placement is based on documented location information, not a numeric ranking.
Bell Moving and Storage Inc files from Fairfield, Ohio, active on the federal census with seven power units and six drivers, and carries docket MC-137495 on the registration. The operating-authority presentation read for this registration shows motor carrier of household goods authority; nothing further is stated, and no property or broker authority is inferred from the household goods entry. The filed address is in Fairfield while the company publishes the Cincinnati area as the market it serves: a filed address and a published market describe different things, and neither value is treated as a correction to the other. No federal safety rating is on file, which is neither a positive nor a negative signal. The company states first-party that it holds a Wheaton certification; Wheaton is a separate registrant and any Wheaton corporate identifier is recorded as a van-line identifier rather than stored on this record. The company states first-party that it was founded in 1922.
Why is this company shown here?
Bell Moving & Storage is headquartered in Ohio according to its published company location.
E.E. Ward traces its business to 1881 and describes itself as the oldest continuously African-American owned moving company in the United States. The federal registration behind the brand is E E Ward Moving and Storage Company LLC at 2235 Southwest Blvd in Grove City, the Columbus-area address the site publishes, with 20 power units and 20 drivers on the census and a household goods cargo entry. The licensing record shows common and contract authority both active with household goods authority. Interstate work is routed through the northAmerican network, whose own registration belongs to the van line and is not stored on this record.
Why is this company shown here?
E.E. Ward Moving & Storage is headquartered in Ohio according to its published company location.
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.
Why is this company shown here?
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.
USDOT 1434373Pompano Beach, FL2BR est. $2,200–$6,500
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.
Why is this company shown 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.
USDOT 2293832Coral Springs, FL2BR est. $2,700–$6,400
Mayflower Transit is the second large UniGroup brand alongside United Van Lines and runs full-service interstate moves through an agent network under its own federal registration.
Why is this company shown here?
Mayflower Transit 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.
North American Van Lines is part of SIRVA and moves interstate household goods through an agent-affiliate network. The federal registration shown here belongs to the van line, not to the local agent that loads the truck.
Why is this company shown here?
North American 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.
United Van Lines is the largest brand under UniGroup and publishes the annual National Movers Study. It offers shipment tracking and a published claims process; we hold no dataset that compares its claims outcomes with other carriers.
Why is this company shown here?
United 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.
A demand for cash deposit over $100 before move day. Reputable carriers bill on or after delivery.
A quote without a USDOT number on the paperwork. No USDOT means no FMCSA accountability if something goes wrong.
A "binding" estimate with no inventory list attached. Without inventory, the binding part is meaningless.
Refusal to do a video survey or in-home estimate for moves over 5,000 lb.
A blank Bill of Lading on move day. Sign nothing blank. Ever.
A name change in the last 12 months on the FMCSA record. It often signals a previous carrier under a complaint cloud.
No Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) credential on an intrastate Ohio job. State-licensed work requires it, and the agency publishes the register.
An hourly quote far under $85 in Ohio. Below-market rates on a local job usually reappear as stair, carry, or materials charges on the invoice.
An eight-week timeline that actually works in Ohio
Eight weeks out: get three written quotes. Two should be in-home or video surveys. One online quote is fine for comparison only — it will rarely be the binding number.
Six weeks out: book the carrier. Ask for binding-not-to-exceed pricing in writing. Confirm valuation coverage (released vs. full-value protection — there is a real difference if a TV gets dropped).
Four weeks out: order packing supplies if you're self-packing. Boxes go on sale at U-Haul and Home Depot in late winter and late summer.
Two weeks out: confirm parking, building COIs, and elevator reservations at both ends. Ohio buildings vary wildly here — some need 72 hours notice, some 30 days.
One week out: pack a personal essentials box (medications, chargers, three days of clothes, toilet paper, coffee, scissors, the lease/closing folder) and keep it with you, not on the truck.
Move day: walk the truck before driver pulls away. Sign the Bill of Lading only after the inventory list matches. First week in the new place, file any damage claim within nine months — that's the federal interstate window.
Where in Ohio you're moving matters
Ohio pricing varies city by city. Downtown cores with high-rise residential typically run 10–20% above the state median because of COI requirements, freight elevator wait time, and tighter parking. Suburban single-family moves usually land near the median. Rural pickups outside metro service areas often add a per-mile travel fee from the nearest depot.
Local moves in Ohio are estimated at $315–$2,480 depending on home size, while an interstate move out of Ohio is estimated at $3,000–$7,000 for a two-bedroom household. Distance, packing services, and the time of year all shift those numbers.
When is the cheapest time to move in Ohio?
October through April is generally the cheapest window in Ohio — most movers cut rates 15–25% outside the May-to-September peak. Mid-month, mid-week pickups give the biggest discounts.
Are moving companies in Ohio licensed and insured?
All interstate moving companies must register with the FMCSA and carry a USDOT number. Ohio also requires intrastate movers to register with the state — verify any quote against the FMCSA SAFER tool before signing.
Should I tip movers in Ohio?
Tipping is customary but not required. A typical tip in Ohio is $20–$40 per mover for a half-day local job, or $50–$100 per mover for a full day or long-distance move.
How far in advance should I book a mover in Ohio?
Book 4–6 weeks ahead for moves between May and September. For off-peak fall and winter moves in Ohio, two weeks is usually enough notice.
What's the difference between binding and non-binding estimates?
A binding estimate locks in your price based on the inventory at the time of the survey — the mover can't charge more on move day for the same items. Non-binding estimates can change based on actual weight or volume. For OH interstate moves, request binding-not-to-exceed quotes whenever possible.
Who licenses movers in Ohio
Intrastate household-goods movers in Ohio are licensed by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). A PUCO certificate is required to transport household goods within Ohio.
How we evaluate moving companies: we verify federal registration and operating authority against FMCSA records, record carrier or broker classification, note state licensing where a state regulator publishes it, and state the limits of what we could source. No numeric score, star rating or ranked order is produced from those checks. Read full methodology
