How to Price Moving Jobs for Profit

Moving companies that price on gut feel tend to look busy and stay broke. Here's how to price local and long-distance jobs so every move actually contributes to profit, not just revenue.

Local moves: price the hour correctly

Most local moves are priced hourly, typically $100–$200/hour for a two-person crew and truck, scaling up with crew size. To price this correctly, know your true hourly cost:

• Crew wages (including any overtime)
• Truck cost — fuel, maintenance reserve, depreciation
• Insurance overhead (cargo, general liability, commercial auto — allocate a per-hour cost)
• Admin and scheduling overhead

A common mistake is pricing off "what movers charge in my area" without checking whether that number actually covers your specific truck size, crew wages, and insurance costs. If your real cost per crew-hour is $85 and you're charging $110, that $25 margin evaporates fast with even minor overtime, traffic delays, or a no-show helper.

Long-distance moves: price by weight or cube, not by guessing

Long-distance and interstate moves are typically priced by shipment weight and distance, or by cubic footage of the truck used. This requires an accurate estimate of the shipment's actual size — underestimating cube or weight on a binding estimate means you eat the difference; overestimating loses you the bid to a more accurate competitor. A thorough in-home or video walkthrough before quoting is what separates profitable long-distance movers from ones constantly eating losses on underbid jobs.

Price specialty items and services separately

Standard hourly or per-pound rates don't cover everything:

• Piano moving — requires specialized equipment and technique; price it as its own line item, often $150–$500+ depending on size and stairs/access
• Packing services — full-service packing (materials plus labor) should be quoted and billed distinctly from the move itself
• Stairs, long carries, and difficult access — extra flights of stairs or a long carry from truck to door add real time; build in a surcharge rather than absorbing it
• Storage-in-transit — if items need temporary storage between pickup and delivery, that's a separate charge with its own liability considerations

Understand binding vs. non-binding estimates

For interstate moves, federal rules govern how estimates work. A binding estimate locks the price regardless of actual weight (assuming the inventory doesn't change) — customers like the certainty, but you eat the risk if you underestimate. A non-binding estimate is based on estimated weight and is settled at actual weight — more accurate for you, but customers may be wary of a number that can move. Decide which you'll offer and price your risk buffer accordingly.

Charge for cancellations and no-shows appropriately

Reserving a crew and truck for a scheduled move has a real cost even if the customer cancels last-minute. A clear cancellation policy — even a modest fee inside a short window — protects your crew scheduling from being treated as free options.

Track actual job cost against your quote

The only way to know if your pricing model works is to compare quoted price against actual time and cost on completed jobs. If your crews consistently run 20% over the quoted hours, either your estimating process or your pricing needs adjustment — not just a shrug. ServiQ lets you track quotes against actual job time and cost, so you can see which types of moves are genuinely profitable and price the next one smarter.