Moving Cost Calculator
Pricing depends on home size, distance, season, and the mover you choose. Drag the sliders below for a live 2026 estimate, then match with up to 4 licensed movers for written quotes — usually within 15 minutes.
Researched and written by Matthew Collins · Reviewed by Amanda Brooks · Last reviewed August 2026
Estimate your moving cost
Pick a home size and a move type. Every figure shown is read from the published pricing model, so the calculator and the cost tables cannot disagree.
800–1,200 sq ft, ~5,500 lb
Billed hourly for a two-mover crew and a truck.
- Estimated total for a 2 bedroom local move (under 50 miles), two movers and a truck billed hourly. Packing materials, stairs, and long carries are extra.
- Scope: national estimate, no state or metro baseline applied.
- Editorial estimate, not a measured transaction price. Reviewed May 2026.
Working range only. Confirm with a binding-not-to-exceed written estimate after a video survey.
Get real written quotes from licensed movers
Compare up to 4 FMCSA-verified movers for your route in under 60 seconds.
No obligation. Your quote request may be shared with up to 4 moving companies that may serve your requested route.
Where are you moving?
Get matched with licensed movers based on your route and move details.
.
.
Moving cost factors explained
The sections below explain what moves a moving quote: home size, distance, packing, storage, timing, and access. Every price range shown on this page is read from the published pricing model, dated May 2026, so nothing here can disagree with the cost tables elsewhere on the site.
Moving cost calculator guide
How moving costs are calculated
The four inputs every quote starts with
Every honest moving quote is built from four inputs: weight (or cubic feet for some van lines), distance, labor hours, and the calendar date. A dispatcher plugs those into a published tariff and the price falls out. If a sales rep gives you a flat figure without asking for at least three of the four, you are looking at a guess, not a quote.
Weight matters most on long hauls. Distance matters most on local moves, where the truck is metered by the hour rather than the mile. The date pulls everything with it: peak-season Saturdays are the most expensive slots a carrier sells, and mid-week off-peak dates are the cheapest.
Local moves: hourly rates and crew size
Inside a 50-mile radius most movers bill by the hour for a crew and a truck. Adding a fourth mover often lowers the total even though the hourly line rises, because the job finishes sooner. The hourly rates behind the local figures on this page are the ones published in the pricing model.
Travel time is almost always billed. A common structure adds one hour of travel to the on-site time; another bills door-to-door from the warehouse. Read which one is in the contract before you sign.
Interstate moves: linehaul, fuel, and accessorials
Crossing a state line puts the move under FMCSA jurisdiction and onto a published tariff. The linehaul charge is weight times mileage, looked up in a rate book. Fuel surcharge rides on top, recalculated against the national diesel index. Then come accessorials: long carry, stairs, shuttle truck, piano handling, appliance servicing, and packing materials.
Why two movers can quote the same job differently
Three reasons. The inventories differ, because one rep counted more boxes than the other. The tariffs differ, because a regional carrier may publish lower per-pound rates and bill more aggressively on accessorials. And the risk pricing differs: a binding-not-to-exceed quote is higher than a non-binding one because the mover absorbs the upside risk.
Average moving costs by home size
Use the table below as a sanity check on any quote you receive. Wide ranges are the honest ones. A mover quoting at the bottom of the band on a complicated job is either leaving something out or planning to add it back as an accessorial later. Editorial estimate, not a measured transaction price. Reviewed May 2026.
| Home size | Local move | Interstate move |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $315–$775 | $1,650–$4,200 |
| 1 Bedroom | $420–$930 | $2,250–$5,460 |
| 2 Bedroom | $630–$1,395 | $3,000–$7,000 |
| 3 Bedroom | $840–$1,860 | $4,350–$10,850 |
| 4 Bedroom | $1,155–$2,480 | $5,850–$15,050 |
| 5+ Bedroom | $1,470–$3,100 | $7,200–$18,900 |
Studio and 1-bedroom moves
A studio is the one home size where doing it yourself usually wins on price and a hired crew wins on time. A two-mover local studio job is the shortest booking most carriers take. Cross-country, a studio usually travels on a consolidated load with a van line.
2- and 3-bedroom moves
This is the bulk of the residential market and the size where comparing three written estimates pays off most. Interstate at this size is where binding-not-to-exceed estimates start earning their keep, because there is enough inventory that a miscount is worth real money.
4-bedroom and larger
Above four bedrooms you are in custom-quote territory. Most reputable carriers will insist on an in-home survey or a full video walk-through, and packing services are priced separately from the move itself.
Office and commercial moves
Commercial pricing is its own market and this site does not publish a commercial cost model. Anything with server racks or modular furniture should be quoted on-site.
Local versus long-distance moving costs
Local hourly billing
Local jobs, meaning under 50 miles, bill as crew-hours plus travel. A two-bedroom local move carries a published range of $630–$1,395 nationally.
Long-distance tariff billing
Interstate jobs bill on weight and distance against an FMCSA-filed tariff, with fuel surcharge recalculated weekly. The same two-bedroom household on a typical 1,000-mile lane carries a published range of $3,000–$7,000. Browse popular long-distance routes for lane-level context.
What affects your final moving quote
Non-binding estimates
A non-binding estimate is the mover's best guess. The final bill is calculated from actual weight or volume on moving day. On a non-binding estimate the carrier may require no more than 110 percent of the estimated charges at delivery; the balance is billed afterwards. That rule is set by 49 CFR 375.407. A non-binding estimate is workable when your inventory is small and stable, and risky when it is not.
Binding estimates
A binding estimate locks the price for the inventory listed. Add a single box on moving day and the mover can either honor the original price or reissue the quote.
Binding-not-to-exceed estimates
This is the customer-friendly version. The price is capped at the binding figure, and if the actual weight comes in lower the bill falls with it. It is worth requesting on any interstate move.
Your right to a re-weigh
The shipper may observe each weighing and may request a re-weigh before charges are computed. That right is set by 49 CFR 375.519 and costs nothing to exercise.
How distance impacts pricing
Doubling the distance roughly doubles linehaul but does not double labor, because origin and destination loading hours stay flat. A coast-to-coast move therefore costs less than twice a half-country move of the same inventory. The pricing model quotes interstate ranges against a typical 1,000-mile lane, and a materially shorter or longer lane moves the figure.
Lane direction matters too. Lanes into the Northeast and out of California price higher because of carrier imbalance: trucks return half empty, and the loaded direction subsidizes the deadhead.
Packing, storage, and extra service fees
Line items you should always see
A real written estimate breaks out linehaul, fuel surcharge, valuation coverage, packing labor and materials where they apply, and every known accessorial.
Common accessorial charges
Long carry applies when the truck cannot park close to the door. Stair carry is charged per flight above the first. Shuttle service is required when a full-size trailer cannot reach the address. This site does not publish accessorial prices, because they are tariff-specific: ask the carrier for its published rate for each one before you sign.
Fees movers add later if you do not ask now
Bulky-item handling for treadmills, gun safes, marble tables, and pianos is the most common surprise. Disassembly and reassembly of furniture is sometimes included and sometimes billed separately. Ask which, in writing.
How to compare mover estimates
Normalize the inputs
Two quotes built on different weight estimates are not comparable. Ask each company for the inventory sheet behind its number.
Compare line by line, not bottom line
Linehaul against linehaul, fuel surcharge against fuel surcharge, valuation coverage against valuation coverage. A binding-not-to-exceed quote that sits above a non-binding quote is often the better deal, because the non-binding figure is not the price you will pay.
Verify FMCSA registration and complaint history
Plug the USDOT number into the FMCSA SAFER tool and read the complaint history against the fleet size. Cross-check against our verified mover directory.
Red flags in a moving quote
- No USDOT number on the website or the quote document.
- A demand for a large deposit, or any cash-only deposit.
- A quote sent without an itemized inventory attached.
- A company operating under multiple business names on different review sites.
- Interstate pricing structured purely by cubic feet; weight is the federal standard.
- Reviews that are uniformly positive and dated within the same short window.
- A rep who pressures you to sign that day to lock in a rate.
- No physical address, or an address that returns a residential property in street view.
Ways to reduce moving costs
Move mid-week and mid-month, outside peak season, and you are buying the cheapest slot a carrier sells. Pack non-fragile items yourself and hire the crew for fragile-only packing. Source your own boxes rather than buying mover-supplied cartons.
Shed weight before the estimator arrives, not after. Interstate moves bill on weight, so the donation run you make before the survey lowers the estimate and the final bill alike. Compare three written estimates from our verified mover directory rather than two; the third quote is usually where leverage shows up.
Tipping and crew etiquette
Tipping is customary, not required, and this site does not publish a tipping figure because no connected source sets one. Tip the driver and the crew separately on a long-haul move.
When to book movers for the best price
Peak season
Household moving demand concentrates in late spring and summer, the best crews book out weeks ahead, and rates sit above the off-peak baseline. Booking early matters more than negotiating once the season is under way.
Weekday versus weekend
Saturdays carry a premium at most local carriers and book out first. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the cheapest weekdays.
End-of-month demand
Lease cycles drive a sharp spike in the last days and first days of every month. Mid-month dates are easier to book and cheaper to buy.
State-by-state moving cost differences
Local labor cost, traffic, fuel surcharge structure, and state regulation all shift the baseline. The table below shows the pricing model's two-bedroom ranges for each state, computed from that state's own baseline. Browse the regional pages on our popular routes hub to see specific lanes.
| State | Local, 2 bedroom | Interstate, 2 bedroom | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | $660–$1,575 | $3,500–$8,500 | High labor cost and fuel surcharges; Los Angeles traffic adds billable hours. |
| Texas | $570–$1,305 | $2,800–$6,700 | Long in-state distances mean even a local job can run all day. |
| New York | $750–$1,755 | $3,400–$8,000 | New York City parking permits and walk-up stair carries push the high end. |
| Florida | $570–$1,350 | $2,900–$6,800 | Hurricane season storage demand concentrates June through October. |
| Illinois | $600–$1,395 | $2,800–$6,700 | Chicago high-rise certificates of insurance and elevator reservations add planning time. |
| Pennsylvania | $570–$1,305 | $2,700–$6,400 | Older row-house staircases slow load times and raise hourly totals. |
| Georgia | $540–$1,260 | $2,700–$6,400 | Atlanta intown labor is tight; outer counties run cheaper. |
| North Carolina | $540–$1,260 | $2,700–$6,300 | A lower wage floor keeps hourly rates under coastal averages. |
| Washington | $630–$1,440 | $3,100–$7,300 | Seattle labor cost and ferry crossings affect island moves. |
| Colorado | $600–$1,350 | $3,100–$7,200 | Front Range altitude and weight surcharges on mountain routes. |
| Massachusetts | $690–$1,575 | $3,200–$7,400 | Boston narrow-street truck restrictions and shuttle transfers. |
| Arizona | $570–$1,305 | $2,900–$6,800 | Summer heat-policy crew breaks extend job duration. |
| Nevada | $600–$1,350 | $2,900–$6,800 | Las Vegas weekend demand from convention turnover tightens crew supply. |
| Oregon | $600–$1,350 | $3,000–$7,000 | Portland traffic plus rain-day reschedules add friction in winter. |
| Tennessee | $510–$1,215 | $2,600–$6,100 | Nashville inbound demand keeps outbound truck capacity tight. |
What the ranges on this page do not cover
The pricing model covers home size and move type at national and state scope. It does not model service tier, season, day of week, or a specific lane, so this page shows no figure for any of them. Where a quote you receive differs from the range here, the usual explanation is one of those four unmodelled dimensions, not an error in either number.
Sizes covered by the model run from studio to 5+ bedroom. Commercial and office moves are outside it entirely.