How Much Does a Long-Distance Move Cost?
A local move is priced by the hour because the hours are honest and predictable. A long-distance move is a different animal: hundreds of miles, a delivery window instead of a same-day finish, and road time nobody controls. That is why long-distance moves are flat-priced — one confirmed number before the truck rolls. Here are the starting tiers, the mileage bands, and exactly what can (and cannot) change your flat rate.
Long-distance moving prices: flat by home size
Every long-distance move includes professional wrapping and padding of every piece of furniture, loading, transport, unloading, and placement in the new home. These starting tiers include the first 50 miles:
Studio / 1 bedroom — from $1,995
A studio or light 1-bedroom apartment’s worth of furniture and boxes, professionally wrapped, loaded, and delivered to your new home.
2 bedrooms — from $2,395
A typical 2-bedroom apartment or small house — the most common long-distance size we coordinate out of NYC and Long Island.
3 bedrooms — from $2,995
A full 3-bedroom home, including garage and storage items that are on the inventory list before the truck is loaded.
4 bedrooms — from $3,895
Large houses and multi-room moves. Heavier inventories are quoted individually — the flat rate is confirmed from your actual inventory before you book, never after.
These are starting prices for a standard inventory of that home size. Your exact flat rate is confirmed once the real inventory and destination are known — if the actual inventory is bigger than standard, the price is adjusted before you book, not discovered at delivery. Our long-distance moving page walks through how a coordinated long-distance move runs end to end.
Distance bands: how mileage is priced
The first 50 miles are included in every tier. Beyond that, distance is priced in simple bands, added to the tier that matches your home size: 51–150 miles adds $595, and 151–400 miles adds $1,195. So a 2-bedroom move of about 120 miles starts at $2,395 + $595 = $2,990, and a 3-bedroom move of about 300 miles starts at $2,995 + $1,195 = $4,190. Moves beyond 400 miles are quoted individually — the same way, with one confirmed flat number before booking, after a full inventory review. A 5% admin fee applies to every job and appears on the written estimate, so the math you see is the math you pay.
What changes the flat rate — and what never does
A flat rate covers exactly the inventory listed when the quote is confirmed. Three things can adjust it, all disclosed up front: additional inventory beyond the list, difficult access at either address (long carries, tight stairs, no truck access), and specialty or heavy items — pianos, safes, oversized pieces — at $295 per item on flat moves. An extra stop, such as a storage unit or a second delivery address, adds $195. What never changes it: traffic, weather, or a longer-than-expected drive. That risk is the entire point of flat pricing, and it sits on our side of the invoice. The fastest way to a flat rate that holds is an honest, complete inventory — walk every room, include the garage and the storage cage, and list the heavy pieces by name.
Delivery windows and how booking works
Instead of a stopwatch, a long-distance move runs on a delivery window: you will know the window before departure, and the crew keeps you posted on the road. Getting the quote works like this: a custom flat-rate quote carries a $49 coordination fee at submission, which is credited in full toward your deposit if you book — so it costs booking customers nothing. Booking itself is a 25% deposit of the confirmed total, fee included, which holds your date and your truck. The balance is collected before unloading at the destination. Compare that with staying local: if your move is actually within NYC or Long Island, hourly pricing usually wins — our Long Island movers cost guide shows the hourly math.
Getting a flat quote you can trust
A flat rate is only as good as the inventory behind it, so the quoting step matters more than the number. Walk every room — including the garage, basement, attic, and any storage unit — and list the large pieces by name: sectionals, hutches, pianos, safes, gym equipment. Note the access at both ends: stairs, elevators, long driveways, streets where a truck cannot wait. Send photos or a short video walkthrough if you can; a coordinator who can see the job prices it once, correctly. Then read your written estimate before you pay the deposit: it should show the confirmed flat rate, the mileage band, any specialty or extra-stop charges by line, and the 5% admin fee — the complete number, not a teaser. If anything on the list is wrong, fix it before booking, while the fix is free. That ten-minute discipline is the entire difference between a flat rate that holds for 400 miles and one that gets “revisited” on delivery day.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a long-distance move cost?
Long-distance moves are flat-priced by home size and distance, starting at $1,995 for a studio or 1-bedroom, $2,395 for 2 bedrooms, $2,995 for 3 bedrooms, and $3,895 for 4 bedrooms, with the first 50 miles included. Moves of 51–150 miles add $595, and 151–400 miles add $1,195. Your exact flat rate is confirmed from your inventory and destination before you book — one number, agreed in writing, not an estimate that grows on the road.
Why are long-distance moves flat instead of hourly?
Because a stopwatch stops making sense once a move leaves the metro area. On a local move, hours are predictable and you control them with preparation. On a 300-mile move, traffic, weather, and road time are not in anyone’s control — with a flat rate, that risk sits with us, not with your invoice. You get a confirmed price and a delivery window instead of an open-ended clock.
What is the $49 coordination fee?
Custom and coordinator quotes carry a $49 coordination fee at submission — it covers the inventory review, carrier coordination, and scheduling work behind a flat-rate quote. If you book, the full $49 is credited toward your 25% deposit, so booking customers effectively pay nothing for it. A 5% admin fee also applies to every job and is shown on your written estimate up front.
What can change my flat rate?
Three things, all agreed before the truck rolls: inventory beyond what was listed (the flat covers the listed inventory only), difficult access at either end, and specialty or heavy items such as pianos and safes, which carry a $295 per-item charge on flat moves. An extra stop — storage, a second address — adds $195. If none of that applies, the number you signed is the number you pay, plus the disclosed 5% fee.
How does delivery work on a long-distance move?
You get a delivery window rather than a single guaranteed hour, because road time over hundreds of miles cannot be promised to the minute. The crew chief confirms the window with you before departure and keeps you updated on the road. On arrival, furniture is unloaded and placed where you want it, and the balance — your confirmed flat rate plus the 5% fee, minus the deposit you already paid — is collected before unloading.
Get your exact price in about a minute
Pick your crew and home size and see the expected total before you book. Movers & Cleanout Crew — Home Services & Commercial Coordination. WE MOVE. WE HAUL. WE CLEAN. WE COORDINATE IT ALL.
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