# Recommend me a good moving company for cross-country moves **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 11, 2007, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-good-moving-company-for-cross-country-moves/391762 "2007-02-11T21:22:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SweetHomeColorado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d26b3c/32.png) [@SweetHomeColorado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SweetHomeColorado)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2007, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-good-moving-company-for-cross-country-moves/391762/1 "2007-02-11T21:22:04Z")
I am moving from IL to CO and I’m looking for moving help. I want to hire a company to move my items for me since my car just won’t cut it. I checked PODS and they were over $2,000 a little more than I’m willing to spend. Who do you recommend and what is their ballpark cost? ---
**Author:** ![Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilvert_s_Pagan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2007, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-good-moving-company-for-cross-country-moves/391762/2 "2007-02-11T21:41:18Z")
IMHO, you won’t get a moving company for less than that, because you’re paying a moving company for labor, including someone to drive the load. Have you looked into renting a truck? You can tow your car behind it if logistics require it. Moving a full household cross country can cost 10k-20k or more depending upon the distance, weight, and how much packing the mover does for you. Never pay them to unpack, even if you did any/all of the rest. ---
**Author:** ![sugar\_and\_spice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@sugar\_and\_spice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sugar_and_spice)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2007, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-good-moving-company-for-cross-country-moves/391762/3 "2007-02-11T22:37:31Z")
Another low-cost opton is [U-pack](http://www.upack.com/), which is run by ABF. Basically, they park a truck in front of your old place, you pack it up, and a few days later said truck shows up in front of your new place, for you to unload. They also have an option where you can drop-off/pick-up at an ABF terminal, if you can’t have a truck parked on your street all day. I used the terminal-to-termninal option for a NY-\>Chicago move, and I was very happy with it. This was in 2005, and the total cost was ~$500 to U-pack, and and extra $250 or so to move the stuff between terminals and apartments (local u-hauls and student labor). Obviously I wasn’t moving a lot, but the shipment included (but was not limited to) my bed, a sofa, misc furniture, a TV, an oriental rug, and piles upon piles of boxes. They handle large moves too-- price is by volume, but you’re packing so you can spend hours playing 3D-tetris if you want. It was far cheaper than any pro moving quote I got, I’d totally recommend it to someone who doesn’t want to drive a truck x-country themselves. That being said, I think renting a truck is a great idea of you’re up for it, I’ve heard a lot of people say they’re not that hard to drive. I just didn’t want to find out for myself. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2007, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-good-moving-company-for-cross-country-moves/391762/4 "2007-02-11T22:41:24Z")
Mayflower worked out well for the Indianapolis Colts. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![According\_to\_Pliny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@According\_to\_Pliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/According_to_Pliny)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2007, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-good-moving-company-for-cross-country-moves/391762/5 "2007-02-12T17:39:34Z")
I’ve always used Viking. No bad experiences.