7 Best Long-Distance Moving Companies for May 2022

International Van Lines

• Service Model: Full service
• Specialty Services: Yes
• Get a Quick Quote: Visit site

International Van Lines (IVL) is, at its foundation, an international logistics company that continues to specialize in global relocation services. IVL provides service to 180 countries—more than any other provider in our review—and is the direct source for all international moves. According to IVL, this is a unique feature, since many companies outsource international moves to partner agents.

As the only point of contact for international moves, IVL will oversee the moving process from packing and loading to ocean or air freight transport. IVL is a licensed freight forwarder (#021051NF) with the Federal Maritime Commission for ocean freight transport, the most common way to move abroad. Customers can choose from a full container load or consolidated load, the latter of which can help reduce costs but takes longer to deliver. IVL also provides air freight transport for those who want to receive their belongings more quickly.

While International Van Lines specializes in international moves, it also can accommodate domestic interstate moves and has a variety of add-on services, such as vehicle shipping, custom crating, debris removal, and storage.

We used International Van Lines’ online moving calculator to request a free quote to move a three-bedroom home from Nashville to Orlando in early May and received a price range of $4,200 to $6,150. That same move would cost between $6,000 and $8,700 for a four-bedroom home and $7,200 to $11,250 for a five-bedroom home. International Van Lines will provide you with a more detailed estimate once you complete an online quote form or contact a representative by phone.

A deposit of 25% of your total moving cost is required to book a moving date and can be paid via cash, credit card, check, or money order. The remaining balance must be paid with cash, cashiers check, or money order on moving day.

50 states

American Van Lines

• Service Model: Full service
• Specialty Services: Yes
• Get a Quick Quote: Visit site

If you have a large number of antiques, fine art, or other high-value items to move, American Van Lines might be worth exploring. The company places particular focus on hiring and retaining experienced moving crews that can expertly pack, load, and transport items that require special handling. Its crew members have an average of 10 years of experience in the moving industry.

American Van Lines’ full-time movers are required to complete ongoing education and annual training at the company’s on-site training facilities. According to the company’s website, this training includes coaching for moving bulky items like pianos, fitness equipment, and one-of-a-kind art pieces.

While a full-service mover, American Van Lines also offers partial-packing options, such as loading, transportation, and unloading, and has a variety of add-on services—storage, electronics crating, and vehicle shipping, among them—that customers can choose from to create a customized moving package.

American Van Lines does not give instant moving quotes online or by phone and will provide a binding estimate only after completing a thorough review of your home and its contents. However, the company has a moving cost page on its website that can give you a general idea of your moving cost and highlight special offers. For example, a move to Denver from a four-bedroom home in Dallas would cost approximately $8,178.

American Van Lines accepts cash, credit cards, and checks. The company offers price-matching but requires a steep up-front deposit of up to 50% of your total moving cost.

48 states (not available in Alaska or Hawaii)

JK Moving

• Service Model: Full service
• Specialty Services: Yes
• Get a Quick Quote: Visit site

JK Moving is our top choice for long-distance moving due to its flexible and fully customizable packages, aided by a personal moving coordinator. In addition to packing, unpacking, loading, and unloading, JK Moving offers more specialized services such as vehicle relocation and the handling of difficult items like pianos, framed art, and grandfather clocks. Customers can also add or change services, make payments, and check on the status of their items while they’re in transit through a user-friendly mobile app.

Additionally, JK Moving’s full-replacement coverage option may give some added peace of mind to those moving long distances. With JK Moving’s full-replacement coverage, the company will reimburse you for the full value of any items that are broken, damaged, lost, or stolen during transport. You may also adjust your full-replacement coverage to match the approximate value of your inventory rather than paying a flat rate.

JK Moving will provide you with a binding estimate—the actual amount you can expect to pay on moving day—after a virtual walkthrough of your home, where a company representative will take a look at your household items and identify any potentially difficult-to-move pieces such as home gym equipment and large electronics that require custom crating. The company doesn’t provide instant quotes online or by phone.

Sample Estimate: However, when we called a JK Moving representative, we were able to get a ballpark moving estimate of $7,500 to move the contents of a two-bedroom home approximately 750 miles—roughly the distance from Chicago to Atlanta—in mid-April. While the company does not provide figures for moving contents from homes of four bedrooms or more without an in-home visit, the estimate for the two-bedroom home includes furniture disassembly, wrapping, and padding as well as loading and unloading all household items and full-replacement valuation coverage.

In-House Financing: JK Moving is the only provider on our list that offers in-house financing through its partnership with Enhancify. With Enhancify, you can receive rates as low as 0%, same-as-cash, subject to credit approval. Simply submit an application and in 60 seconds, you can review your rate options and get pre-approved ahead of booking your move. It’s important to review your loan rates and terms carefully to avoid paying more in the long run.

The company accepts credit cards, cash, and checks and requires a $250 deposit to secure a moving date.

50 states

North American Van Lines

• Service Model: Full service
• Specialty Services: Yes
• Get a Quick Quote: Visit site

North American Van Lines (NAVL) accommodates long-distance moves of all sizes through a network of more than 500 local movers. This means that if NAVL cannot directly handle your move, the company will arrange for a partner moving company to help you.

Your relocation will still be coordinated and backed by NAVL, ensuring you have access to all of the company’s full-service offerings, add-on options, and moving resources. These resources include an easy-to-use app for assistance with virtual home surveys, creating a digital inventory of your move, and saving all documents related to your relocation.

As an experienced long-distance mover, NAVL offers optional services to streamline your move, such as transportation of your car, truck, SUV, van, and boat. For an additional cost, NAVL moving crews will handle the disconnection and reconnection of your major appliances, sparing you the expense and effort of hiring a handyman. Other add-on services include short- and long-term storage and crating of fragile, rare, expensive, and extremely large pieces to further protect them during transit.

According to our instant online quote from North American Van Lines, it would cost approximately $6,709 to $7,381 to move a three-bedroom home from New York City to Charleston, South Carolina, at the end of May. Online quotes are not available for homes with four or more bedrooms, but we called NAVL and received a minimum estimate of $7,555 to move the contents of a four-bedroom home the same distance.

That move would include packing and unpacking, loading and unloading, shipment tracking, and basic carrier liability coverage at 60 cents per pound for each item.

NAVL will provide you with flat-rate pricing, or binding estimate, after completing an in-person or virtual assessment of your home. As part of this process, you will need to itemize your moving shipment thoroughly and identify any current household items you aren’t planning to take with you when you move.

North American Van Lines accepts payment in the form of cash, credit cards, and certified checks. The company does not require up-front deposits to schedule a moving date.

50 states

Allied Van Lines

• Service Model: Full service
• Specialty Services: Yes
• Get a Quick Quote: Visit site

Allied has been in business since 1928 and is the most experienced provider on our list. The company focuses on the overall customer experience, which can be especially reassuring when you are trusting it to safely transport your belongings hundreds, or even thousands, of miles away. Like JK Moving, Allied assigns a moving coordinator to personally assist each customer.

In addition to providing standard full-service offerings—packing, unpacking, loading, and unloading—Allied has partial-service options, such as fragile-only packing services. Fragile-only packing may be helpful for those who can handle the bulk of their own packing but want some assistance with breakable or valuable items like antiques and heirlooms.

If you are moving cross-country but don’t need a large moving truck, Allied Van Lines has its own moving-and-storage container service called Allied Express, which comes with the added perk of a two- to four-member moving crew to help you load and unload your items.

Using Allied Van Lines’ online moving calculator, it would cost between $5,773 and $6,368 to move items from a three-bedroom home in Boston to Montpelier, Vermont, in mid-July. That instant quote includes packing and unpacking services, loading and unloading, shipment tracking, basic carrier liability coverage, item transport, and associated fuel and toll charges.

Allied Van Lines will not provide an online or phone estimate for homes larger than three bedrooms. For a binding estimate, you can schedule an in-person or virtual home survey on Allied’s website. An assessment specialist will review the layout of your house and your moving inventory and factor in the distance, size, and date of your move to determine the total cost you can expect to pay on moving day.

Allied Van Lines accepts cash, credit cards, and certified checks and doesn’t require you to pay an up-front deposit to reserve your moving date.

50 states

1-800-PACK-RAT

• Service Model: Self-service
• Specialty Services: No
• Get a Quick Quote: Visit site

For those moving long-distance with a small number of items or those who prefer to handle packing and loading on their own, 1-800-PACK-RAT is a great option. The company offers waterproof steel portable storage containers, delivered to your home for loading. After you load your belongings into the containers, 1-800-PACK-RAT will pick up the containers and deliver them to your new residence.

DIYers will find a lot of support for their move on 1-800-PACK-RAT’s website. Online tools such as how-to videos, a tool to calculate how many containers you need, checklists, location guides, and a weight calculator make the self-service process a little easier and more efficient.

A 16-foot container delivered to a home in Montgomery, Alabama, and moved to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, would cost approximately $2,632, according to our quote from 1-800-PACK-RAT. For reference, a 16-foot container holds up to 6,000 pounds, which is about two or three rooms of furniture and other items. The contents of a four-bedroom home typically weigh around 14,000 pounds. That price includes drop-off and pick-up of the container at your current residence and delivery to the new residence as well as a security lock and coverage of up to $10,000 on your items.

30 states

Not available in:

Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, or Wyoming

uShip

• Service Model: Self-service
• Specialty Services: No
• Get a Quick Quote: Visit site

While not a traditional moving company, uShip is an outside-the-box alternative to transporting vehicles, appliances, or other large and expensive items. An online marketplace, uShip allows customers to connect directly with more than 800,000 providers by posting a request for shipping a vehicle or other items.

The company can move your vehicle using either open or enclosed carriers. Enclosed carriers—which provide protection from the elements—may be particularly attractive if you need to move a rare, classic, or high-value vehicle. You can also search for a provider that can move your vehicle individually or opt to include it on an open carrier that is transporting multiple cars.

Because uShip is a virtual marketplace, most—if not all—of the process can be handled online. The company also has a mobile app for tracking your shipment. Through our analysis of reviews on the Better Business Bureau, we found that many customers appreciated how simple and fast it was to list and book a shipment through uShip’s online platform, which includes step-by-step instructions. Customers also cited the app as a helpful tool for staying in touch with providers.

Through uShip’s website, we received a ballpark price of $805 to ship a 1962 Chevrolet Corvette from Olympia, Washington, to San Diego via enclosed transport in early April.

To receive an exact cost estimate, you will need to create a profile on the uShip platform and list your shipping requests online. After posting your request, you can let uShip recommend providers with positive customer reviews who can assist you, or you can handle the process yourself by accepting bids from providers and choosing the one that best fits your needs and budget.

Coordination of and payment for services from third-party providers is handled through uShip. The company accepts all major credit cards but will no longer process payments via PayPal.

50 states