When it comes to convenience, there’s no question of whether it’s worth it to hire a moving company. Most people would love to have someone else do all the heavy lifting on their behalf. Yet, that isn’t the question most people ask. Rather, most people want to know, “How much does it cost?”
So, let’s do the math. Is it cheaper to hire a moving company, or is it cheaper to do it yourself?
What Are the Costs Associated with Hiring Movers?
When faced with the costs of moving, you’re likely to think it’s automatically more expensive to hire movers. In many cases, you’re right. However, that doesn’t mean it’s not worth considering, especially for large or long-distance moves. Here are some of the components you should factor into your expenses:
- Basic charges: Moving items from your old home to your new one. Local moves are charged per hour while long-distance moves are charged based on the weight of the cargo.
- Insurance: Movers must legally provide some insurance liability for your belongings, but this won’t typically cover the cost of replacing a damaged or lost item. For this, you’ll need full-value insurance from your moving company or your insurance company.
- Gratuity: It’s standard to tip movers (usually per individual on the moving crew).
- Miscellaneous charges: Depending on the service, there may be additional charges and fees. Make sure you ask about these when they quote you, so you can compare the cost of whether it’s cheaper to move with or without a moving company.
What Are the Costs Associate with Moving Yourself?
Let’s compare the costs of moving yourself. You’ll save a significant amount of money, but it can still get pricey.
- Truck rental: To move your items, you’ll need to rent a moving truck and purchase truck rental insurance.
- Gas: Gas for the truck as well as your own vehicle are both necessary to make the move.
- Moving helpers: No movers? You’ll need help to load all of those boxes as well as furniture into the truck! Even if you’re not paying them in cash, you’ll likely need to buy food and drinks on the day of. If you don’t have friends and family where you’re moving, consider hiring independent moving helpers online.
How Can I Reduce the Cost of Movers?
Are you interested in hiring movers but want to stretch your buck? Hiring movers can be worth the investment, but you need to work it into your budget. The following are some tips you can use to save money throughout the process.
- Enlist help from friends or family if possible. Most people think of a moving company as a swap for asking for help. However, just because you’re asking for help doesn’t mean you can’t recruit others. Especially if additional hands would reduce an hourly rate, then you’re saving money right there.
- Work alongside the movers. Just because you hire movers doesn’t mean you can’t help out as well! If you don’t have friends or family where you’re relocating, don’t forget that you can help move the process along faster too.
- Serve as quality control. People often worry that movers are not only expensive, but they also increase the likelihood that their possession will get broken or damaged. If you’re involved in the moving process, you can keep a close eye on them. Make sure they’re not dinging your walls or breaking your possessions!
- Prepare your furniture and boxes before they come. Sure, this is a benefit of hiring movers, but again, if you’re paying them hourly, then you want the process to go as quickly as possible. Buy boxes and packing saran wrap online and prepare your possession and furniture for the movers before they arrive!
- Rent your own truck. Did you know that many moving companies don’t have their own truck and charge you for the rental as part of their package? Find a cheaper truck and save money this way!
Final thoughts
The bottom line is that moving yourself is significantly cheaper than moving with professional help. However, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t make sense to invest. Use our tips above to help you reduce the cost when it comes time to relocate!