To Pay or Not to Pay for Packing, That Is the Question

Moving isn’t a cheap undertaking, so it’s understandable that people want to cut costs whenever possible.

Take packing services, for example. Are they worth the money?

Packing Services

We’d like to give you a definitive yes or no answer, but it truly depends on your individual set of circumstances.

But make no mistake: Packing services do offer several big advantages.

First, they save you time and effort. Anyone who’s moved knows that packing can be a full-time job. Leaving a time-intensive (and back-straining) task to the professionals is a real plus.

Also, packing isn’t as easy as it looks, especially when large or breakable items are involved. Anybody can pack up their books or throw pillows.

But say you have a large mirror you’d like transported. After realizing you don’t have a big enough box, you may throw a blanket over it, wedge it in the back of the truck—and hope for the best before winding up disappointed.

DIY Packing

That said, not everybody needs a packing service. If you’re well-versed in how to safely pack breakable possessions (and have the right boxes and padding), you may not need it. Ditto if you don’t have many precious items—or if you simply don’t have that much stuff to pack.

If you do elect to use a packing service, you’ll have to decide if you want the movers to pack everything in your home or just the things you can’t do yourself.

Packing Costs

We typed in some figures into our cost calculator and found that for a hypothetical move from Oakland, CA, to Cincinnati, a customer should expect to pay about $1,000 more to have the pros pack some of their more precious items—or about $2,000 more if they’d like them to do it all the work.

Again, those numbers are just examples: Your figures would depend on number of rooms, where you’re moving to or from … and your time frame.

One last tip: Even if you don’t hire a moving company to physically move your items, you can still investigate packing services. Many companies will come to your home, pack your stuff professionally and then leave it to you to get it to its destination. That’s ideal for the DIY person who doesn’t want to risk a broken mirror.

After all, who has time for seven years’ bad luck?