How much do removals cost?

Are you planning to move house? If so, then you’re probably looking into removal options and trying to figure out where to begin. We get it, it can be overwhelming.

Don’t panic. We’ve put together a helpful guide to walk you through what to look out for when choosing a removals company for your home or business move. We’ll also help you figure out the exact costs involved.

Moving your home or business is always going to involve a certain level of upheaval - but a good removals company will make the entire process as stress free as possible, without breaking the bank.

Invest what you can when it comes to hiring a removals company that you trust, to make sure that your valued items get safely from A to B.

How much do removals cost?

Removals have a reputation for being expensive - but this isn’t always the case. It’s likely that you may pay slightly more for removal services in big cities such as London, Manchester or Bristol due to increased demand and extra charges such as on-street parking or low emission zones.

It can be hard to say exactly how much removals will cost as every household or business will have individual needs, different types of items that need moving and different access options to their properties.

Removal companies will also need to consider the distance between your current property and the one that you’re moving to – this is a key factor in determining the price you’ll pay.

Regardless of the different factors that could come into play, it’s useful to have a rough guide of what sort of prices you should expect when looking at removals options for you and your home or business.

Here are some estimates that might be helpful:

Small Moves from £399

A small move would relate to properties including a university room, a single or double room within a rented houseshare, a studio or 1-bedroom flat.

Generally, a small move would require 2 movers who would expect to be moving furniture and fill a van up to 400ft³.

You would usually be expected to have items packed up and ready to move. It’s important to always factor in some budget for buying packing materials as well as allowing enough time to dismantle furniture and box up your items.

With LOVESPACE you can book a professional packing service to help with all your packing needs – we can send you the materials if you need those too!

Large Moves from £699

As you increase the size of the property, it’s likely that you’ll start to need additional services such as furniture disassembling, help with packing and storage options. Obviously, this will increase the overall cost you can expect to pay for your removal.

An average 2-bedroom home is classified as a large move and is usually expected to fill a van up to 650ft³. This is based on 2 movers moving furniture - however it’s likely again that you’ll want to consider adding extra services to ease the process.

Trying to pack up a larger home yourself is likely to take much longer than you may expect so getting professional help can help to make things less stressful even if it involves an extra charge.

Packing Services from £159

It’s very common for homeowners and renters to start off their moving journey by saying they’ll pack everything themselves, but this sometimes turns out to be one job too far given how stressful moving house is already!

If you think you’ll need help with packing up furniture, household items and kitchenware or electrical appliances, speak to your removal company about the charges involved.

Often packing services start at around £159, but they can prove invaluable when it comes to freeing up your time to focus on other aspects of your move. Removal companies who offer packing services will generally provide packing materials including protective wrapping, cardboard boxes and tape.

Furniture Disassembly from £79

There’s a lot to think about when you’re moving house. Furniture disassembly is a big job and can take up valuable time, causing extra stress.

For around £50, you may be able to offload this job to your removals company. Being experts at disassembling furniture they will often be able to do this quickly and efficiently - limiting any chance of furniture getting damaged or lost.

Furniture disassembly can be useful for items such as beds, desks, office chairs and many other bulkier pieces of household furniture.

Storage Options starting at under £20 a week

When it comes to moving house, there are times when you simply can’t take everything with you. Whether you’re downsizing to a smaller property or renting somewhere short term til your next home is ready, you may need to put some of your items into storage. The ideal solution is for your removals company to have storage options too.

The different services removals companies offer

Removals specialists should help to make your house move as stress free and easy as possible. Here’s some of the different services that a good removals company will generally offer customers:

Removals

Every removal requirement is different - and a good removals company will adapt to your needs. It should be easy to book removals online for the removal service that you need.

Most removals companies may need to call you or make contact to discuss your needs and the services that they can offer in more detail.

To make the process easier, it’s useful to have a clear idea in advance of exactly what you need. This can avoid situations where you will pay for a service but will find that you actually need more (or less) from their service and may be charged extra to cover them.

For as smooth a process as possible, it’s good to be ready to tell the removals company some key information such as:

• The size of your home and the amount of boxes/furniture you have
• Your current home address and where you’re moving to
• The date and specific time you want to move
• Whether you need help with disassembling furniture and packing
• If you have parking available at both properties and whether your home has ground floor access

Your removals company should be able to give you an accurate quote for the removal and what they will need from you during the process.

You’ll usually be asked to pay a single upfront fee so make sure you have your credit or debit card ready for payment to be taken. Keep hold of receipts to go back to.

The different services removals companies offer

Removals specialists should help to make your house move as stress free and easy as possible. Here’s some of the different services that a good removals company will generally offer customers:

Removals

Every removal requirement is different - and a good removals company will adapt to your needs. It should be easy to book removals online for the removal service that you need.

Most removals companies may need to call you or make contact to discuss your needs and the services that they can offer in more detail.

To make the process easier, it’s useful to have a clear idea in advance of exactly what you need. This can avoid situations where you will pay for a service but will find that you actually need more (or less) from their service and may be charged extra to cover them.

For as smooth a process as possible, it’s good to be ready to tell the removals company some key information such as:

• The size of your home and the amount of boxes/furniture you have
• Your current home address and where you’re moving to
• The date and specific time you want to move
• Whether you need help with disassembling furniture and packing
• If you have parking available at both properties and whether your home has ground floor access

Your removals company should be able to give you an accurate quote for the removal and what they will need from you during the process.

You’ll usually be asked to pay a single upfront fee so make sure you have your credit or debit card ready for payment to be taken. Keep hold of receipts to go back to.

Storage

There are lots of different storage options available which can be really useful when you’re in the process of moving your home or business.

Storage units can be an efficient and cost effective solution to store items that you can’t move immediately or that are too big for your new home or office.

By choosing a storage service with doorstep collection and delivery, you won’t need to leave home or rent a car like with traditional self-storage.

LOVESPACE serves the whole UK and we’ll collect your stuff right from your front door, store it in one of our clean and secure storage facilities, then deliver it back to any UK address when you’re ready. Our contracts are flexible and budget friendly too.

You can choose the size of the storage unit that works best for your needs - from 15ft2 to 200ft2 and bigger. Our volume calculator can also help you figure out the best size if you’re unsure!

Man and van

Just like the name suggests, a man and van service will give you access to transport, and someone to help you move. Generally this service is cheaper than using a full removals service but be aware of exactly what the cost will cover.

A man and van service generally doesn’t include any help disassembling furniture or packing boxes - but they will help you to load up the van and drive your items from A to B.

You should always check whether you’re able to travel in the van with a Man and Van service as there could be restrictions due to factors such as Covid-19. You may need to travel separately and meet the Man and Van at the second property to help unload.

Packing and moving

For people who are stretched for time or have limited mobility or strength, asking a removals company for a packing and moving service can be incredibly helpful.

Outsourcing the packing of your entire home or business will mean that you have extra time to focus on other aspects of your move that need your attention. Packing can take hours or even days to complete so letting the experts take over is often cost effective.

Make sure that you provide clear instructions to the packers. You can direct them on how to organise the items, whether any items will be going into storage and alert them to any extremely fragile items which require extra care.

You will need to be present for most of the packing and moving process but by using this service you’ll enjoy simply overseeing everything rather than having to do intensive hands-on work.

Packing materials

Removals companies will generally give you the option to order the packing materials directly with them or remind you to order enough supplies to pack all the items for your home or business.

Some of the packing materials you’ll want to consider include:

• Small, medium and large boxes
• Packing tape
• Bubble wrap
• Poster tubes

Local and short distance moves

For people living and working in major cities such as London, Manchester and Bristol, short distance moves are increasingly common. Maybe your tenancy’s expiring in your flat and you need to move to a new one in the same area, or maybe your business is upsizing to a bigger office space nearby.

Removals companies will generally offer local and short distance moves as they understand that it’s simply not practical to move things over bit by bit - you just need to book a day and make the move.

Whether the move is a 5-minute drive or half an hour away, local and short distance moves are common for removals companies and shouldn’t affect the pricing dramatically.

Long distance moves

Long distance moves can be more complex but don’t panic - removals companies are fully capable of helping you with moving further away.

The price of long distance moves is likely to be higher than with shorter distance moves due to the costs involved with travel - such as fuel prices, road tolls or overnight stays for staff.

Long distance moves will also require more time as you’ll probably need to be extra careful about packing everything up in one go, and it may take you longer to unload and get set up in a totally new environment.

Short notice home moves

Sometimes life takes unexpected turns. Removals companies understand this and offer short notice home moves - so it’s always good to reach out and ask for help.

A good removals company will always try to accommodate your request - even if it’s short notice. However it’s important to be aware that certain times of year are especially busy for some removals companies, and there may be advanced bookings in place which can’t be moved.

This occasionally results in short notice home moves proving to be more expensive than those booked months in advance.

The best removal option for you

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to removal options - and there are different costs and savings involved with each one.

Generally, you’ll want to think carefully about exactly what you need in terms of:

• How much help you need (disassembling furniture, packing boxes, storage)
• The distance that you’re moving and how soon you need to move
• The amount, and size, of the items that you need to move

You also need to find the right option to fit your personal budget. Moving home can quickly become expensive with deposits to be paid and potential furniture to buy or redecorating to do.

Things to ask a removals company

Whether you’re planning months ahead or you’re in a rush to make a late notice move, it’s important to take some time to get organised.

Having a checklist with all the questions you need to ask a removals company will ensure that you can have an efficient and helpful phone call or Live Chat to get all the information you need.

Here’s an example of a checklist you could make and some of the things you might want to ask your removals company:

If you live in a major city such as London, Manchester or Bristol there may be specific items to organise such as parking permits. You may also want to think about the best time of day to book the removal factoring in traffic.

Once you confirm the addresses of where you are moving from and to, most removals companies should be able to advise you on what you’ll need to provide for them. It’s always a good idea to also keep an eye out for specific events that could disrupt your move such as a daytime sports event in the city centre or a large concert close to the area where you’ll need to find parking.

Conclusion

Each home or business move is different. This makes it especially tough to give an exact answer to the question ‘How much do removals cost?’.

Hopefully though, you’ll now see that you can start to get a rough idea of the various fees involved and the range in price options. By having a starting point and some knowledge ahead of time, you can speak to removals companies about the finer details and work out the best price option for you.