Should I Hire Professional Movers or Do it Myself?

There’s no getting around it: A move of any kind — whether it’s just across town or to the other side of the country — takes time, stress, and money. And before you make your move, you have a lot to figure out. How are you going to handle all the packing? Are you going to hire movers to do the heavy lifting? And what is all this going to cost you?

For some, hiring movers is the right answer. Offloading the stresses of packing, heavy lifting, and transporting is well worth the money spent. For others, saving that money through a do-it-yourself move is the way to go. There are also ways to mix-and-match your services to get the help you really need.

To make the right choice for you and your family, you have to consider a number of factors. MYMOVE is here with the necessary steps you should take to plan for a smooth move.

A step-by-step guide to determining if you should hire professional movers

Step 1: Take a look at your timeline

So you got that new job that’s moving you to another state, but the catch is that you have a month to move. Or maybe you’ve sold your current home and have told the buyers that you could close in the next few weeks.

Whatever the life circumstance (and we know that there are a lot of them surrounding your move), time is one of your biggest scarcities. If you have the time to organize, pack, load, and transport your belongings, you may be able to move yourself. But if you don’t have the time or, quite frankly, don’t want to take the time to move, you may want to hire a moving company.

Sit down with your family and be honest with yourselves. Discuss the time it would take to move and compare it to the time life allows. That will help determine if hiring movers is the way to go.

Step 2: Consider the different moving approaches

Today, there are more options than ever before when it comes to hiring movers. But engaging professional help with your move does not have to be an all-or-nothing approach. There are ways to cut down on the stress while also being conscious of your wallet through various hybrid moving techniques.

In order to make the best decision based on your moving needs, you have to know what kind of services are out there — starting with these four broad approaches:

Do a DIY move:

This approach is for those who don’t have room in their moving budget to hire movers or are just natural DIY-ers. Choosing to move yourself will save you a lot of money, but will also require extra time, effort, and preparation. You will be in charge of buying moving supplies (like boxes, packing paper, tape, etc.), renting a moving truck, and enlisting help with heavy lifting.

Hire self-pack movers

If you feel like you can handle the packing but don’t want to be in charge of transport and heavy lifting, hiring self-pack movers is a good choice for you. You will be in charge of buying moving supplies and packing your boxes, but can hire furniture movers to take care of the rest.

Another choice within the self-pack approach: Renting a moving container. Companies like U-Pack Moving or Pods bring you a moving container that you fill yourself. The company then puts the container on the truck and moves it to your location — where you can either unpack it or pay for it to be stored. This approach is best if you feel like you can handle the heavy lifting yourself.

Pay for professional packers, but move yourself

If it’s the packing that stresses you out most, offload the task to a professional. Professional packers are trained to treat your belongings with care, using the right materials to ensure that your things get to your new location safely. Hiring packers can save you the midnight box-packing and labeling that creates headaches during the move. You can look for professional packers online through services like Thumbtack and TaskRabbit.

This is a good approach for those who don’t have the time to devote to the tedium of packing, or for those who have valuable items that should be treated with professional care. But choosing to just hire a packing service means that the heavy lifting on Moving Day is left up to you.

Hire full-service movers

If you’re short on time or just want to cut down on the stress, hiring movers to do everything for you could be worth the money. From bringing the supplies to packing, lifting, and transporting, you can delegate the whole process to the pros.

If you choose to engage professional help with your move, understand what you’re paying for. Make sure you understand every moving service included in your quote. There are a lot of questions you should ask a moving company before you hire them, so make sure to shop around and compare services.

Most full-service movers include damage coverage, in case your belongings were to break during packing or transport. This offers a great safety net that isn’t included when you do a DIY move. Just make sure to double-check damage coverage policies with the moving company before hiring them.

Step 3: Examine your budget 

Next to time, money is the biggest factor when deciding to hire movers. Whether you decide to hire a full-service moving company or choose to stick with one of the hybrid approaches mentioned above, those services will have to be factored into your moving budget.

As you sit down to research moving services and crunch the numbers, there are costs to consider:

Understand the starting prices: 

Costs of moving companies depend on a number of factors, like distance (is it a local move or an interstate move?), your move date, the number of boxes and pieces of furniture and/or rooms, and how the company charges — do they have a set price, or do they charge by the hour or weight?

When researching companies, MYMOVE recommends that you gather at least three different moving company estimates. Just to give you an idea of pricing, we researched a few of the top moving companies and gathered estimates for a 100-mile, 500-mile, and 1,000-mile move:

Here’s the range for the base moving price, which includes loading the moving truck, driving, and unloading:

*Average of quotes through MYMOVE for 2-bedroom apartment

Calculate the moving cost add-ons:

Most moving companies also include optional services like packing. Electing these additional services will require an additional fee.

Here’s an example price range for packing services for a three-bedroom house:

Other additional costs may include protection for your items, storage, moving supplies, and moving specialty items.

Please note: These numbers are estimates and are subject to change.

Consider the costs associated with a DIY move

While doing it yourself is often cheaper, there are costs you still have to consider. Before you decide to forgo professional help, make a list of everything you will need to prepare for Moving Day.

Here are some list items to consider:

• Moving boxes
• Packing tape
• Packing paper
• Rental moving truck
• Rental moving equipment (like furniture pads and a dolly)
• Moving truck insurance (typically an added daily fee)
• Gas for your moving truck
• Pizza (or other food) for your friends and family. You’ve got to say thank you somehow, right?

These costs individually may seem small, but they do add up. There’s no getting by the expenses associated with moving. You have to decide what the work and effort are worth to you.

Step 4: Make your home inventory

There’s a big difference between moving a three-bedroom house and a one-bedroom apartment. Most moving companies will ask you about the size of your house because that will help them estimate how much stuff they’d move.

To help determine if hiring movers is worth it, you need to take a look around and take note of your belongings. Don’t just roughly estimate the number of things you own, make a home inventory.

Clearly listing your belongings serves multiple purposes:

1. It will help you determine if you and some friends can take care of the packing and heavy lifting yourselves. If you have a ton to move, we recommend saving your back and calling the pros.
2. A home inventory will help you keep track of your valuables during the move. If anything gets lost or damaged during the move, you will have proof it’s covered under your valuation coverage.
3. This list will also help when it’s time to secure homeowners or renter’s insurance.

Step 5: Be honest about your physical capacity

Moving can take a physical toll. Between the bending, stretching, and heavy lifting, there’s a chance of hurting your back or pulling a muscle. Lifting something incorrectly could result in a painful injury.

Don’t overestimate your physical capacity when planning for a move. You don’t want to have rented a moving truck only to realize you can’t lift that heavy washer or bulky armoire (even with the help of a dolly!).

Professional movers have the tools and training to keep themselves and your belongings safe. If you think that the job is too big (and too heavy!) for you and your family, consider hiring movers.

But if you do plan on doing the job yourself, follow MYMOVE’s tips to safe-guarding your back during the move.

Step 6: Enlist free help (and don’t be disappointed if there’s none to be found)

In most, if not all, cases, moving is more than a one-man job. You will need help, so don’t be afraid to ask for it. Call on your friends and family to help before and on Moving Day. Promise them that you’ll pay them in beer and pizza (or other food, if they’re gluten-intolerant).

But you might be moving on a weekday. Or you could be moving to a place where you don’t know anyone yet. Ask around and see who’s available to lend a helping hand, but be understanding if no one is free. You may have to bring in professional reinforcements.

The bottom line

There’s no right or wrong when determining if you should hire professional movers. It all depends on your individual circumstances.

If you have the time and energy that’s required of you in a DIY move, you could save some money. But if you want to offload some stress and can fit it into your moving budget, research moving services around you. A hired helping hand could be the difference between a stressful and smooth move.