What Goes Into a Household Item Shipping Quote?
Published by Chris Townsend
Understanding the ins and outs of household shipping can help remove unnecessary levels of stress from your move. This guide is going to cover all of the major components that influence how much you’ll pay to transport your belongings.
Some of the cost influencing factors we’ll highlight may come as a surprise. We’re here to give you the transparency you need confidently navigate your consultation with a shipping service. This easy-to-understand guide aims to save you hours of internet research so you can invest your energy in other areas that relate to your move.
Let’s cut to the chase and discuss the main factors that dictate how much you’ll pay to ship household goods.
Quotes for shipping household goods interstate or long-distance are primarily calculated by:
- Your shipment’s weight
- The mileage between your origin and destination
- Labor costs
Local moves tend to operate off of a flat dollar amount every hour. Examples of extra labor costs and services during an intrastate move include assembling furniture or climbing tall stairs. You’ll find plenty of local moving companies that offer a flat rate option. This flat rate represents the estimated total hours the move will take times the hourly rate.
Keep reading to receive insider knowledge on household item shipping quotes.
What Factors Will Impact How Much I Spend to Ship My Household Items?
We’re going to take a closer look at possible moving expenses that may impact your final quote. Travel fees, packing services, and storage options are examples of common costs that movers take on. Moving supplies costs, your moving date, and liability/valuation coverage hold equal importance within the context of household item shipping.
Travel fees are naturally going to be higher over the course of a long-distance move. Fuel and labor costs are two major components that influence the amount you’ll pay in travel fees. Nobody can deny the convenience that packing services add to a move. Prepare yourself to pay a few extra hundred dollars on average to receive this type of moving assistance.
More complex moves might call for storage needs. Movers may store their household items before, during, or post-relocation. Storage rates are going to vary between each moving company you consult.
Most people end up purchasing supplies to support their move. Bubble wrap, cardboard boxes, and packing paper are typical examples of moving supplies.
Yes—the date of your move will impact your quote! Peak season moves and weekend moves tend to generate the highest costs.
When you schedule your move is equally as important as how you move. Let’s take a look at the different types of services available for shipping household items and discuss how they’ll affect your costs.
What Types of Household Shipping Services Can I Utilize?
Full-service moves involve you paying for labor and transportation. Self-move services consist of you packing and loading your household goods before the moving company takes care of transportation. The extra work you put in packing and loading your household items will be worth it if you’re eager to cut costs during your move. Moving services will use air freight or surface freight methods to transport your household goods.
Airfreight is the fastest, and therefore, the most expensive way to transport your items. International and domestic moving companies can achieve surface freight shipping by sea, rail, or road. Expect your moving service to pack your items in containers or crates. The type of goods you’re shipping and whether they’re traveling by sea or road will impact your item’s variety of crating. Movers that utilize container shipping can share a container with another party for less money or reserve their own container.
How Do Insurance Fees Play Into My Household Items Shipping Quote?
Insurance and related fees represent charges generated by the carrier and any costs to settle potential customer damage or loss claims. Your moving company won’t offer you insurance. Movers will supply you with tariff-based damage and loss liability—otherwise known as valuation. Valuation levels and charges will vary from company to company.
What Are the Fine Details Within Transportation Fees?
Some moves may require staff to use a shuttle service to gain access to a destination. Dense urban areas and gated communities are common examples of moving situations that may call for shuttle assistance. An origin and destination service charge covers challenging moving hurdles like large item transport and long-distance carrying. Fuel cost price adjustments help drivers manage the price of fuel during moves.
Your moving fuel cost will experience a percentage rise if the average cost for diesel fuel goes above the set price per gallon.
Some moving costs are hard to avoid. Don’t let this get you down! Next, we’re going to dive into some steps you can take to lower your household item shipping costs.
How Can I Lower My Household Item Shipping Costs?
Getting rid of excessive household items will help you lower the size, and therefore the overall cost of your move. Enlisting the assistance of family and friends can expedite the time you might spend packing and loading household goods for transport. Avoid spending too much money on moving supplies by searching for free moving boxes from local retail stores and offices. Adjusting your moving date to a less busy time and asking about any possible discounts are two steps you can take during your consultation with a moving company to possibly save some cash.
What’s a Fast Way to Source a Moving Quote?
Three Movers offers our site visitors easy access to online moving cost calculators that allow you to source a quote on-demand. Receiving your free moving quote starts with you entering your origin and destination and ends with you providing some simple shipping details.
What’s the Average Cost of Shipping Household Items?
Let’s get down to some figures. Local household item shipping costs an average of around $1,250, while long-distance shipping can cost $4,890 on average. The factors that influence these average estimates include 1,000 long-distance shipping miles, 7,500 pounds of weight, and 2-3 bedrooms worth of items.
Are There Any Other Ways I Can Source a Quote From Three Movers?
Saving time and energy on your next move starts with a call to Three Movers . Movers can contact Three Movers by phone at 1-888-202-0036to receive an instant household item shipping quote.
We’ve seen it all. Three Movers's experience translates to fast, safe, and low-priced shipping for all of your household goods. Our custom approach allows us to provide you with a moving plan that goes above and beyond to meet your needs. Whether you’re planning an intrastate, interstate, or international move, Three Movers’s industry expertise will help take you the distance.
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