Moving industry know-how
Crew and truck sizing rules of thumb
Common rules of thumb for how many movers, trucks and hours a move needs by home size and access — and how to turn them into MoveBoard's crew and truck rules.
- 2 min read
- Checked against MoveBoard
- For owners & admins, sales
Every company sizes jobs from experience, but most start from the same rules of thumb. Use them as a starting point and adjust to your own crews' speed.
How big is the move?
Typical volumes for a fully furnished home (cubic feet; weight at about 7 lbs per cu ft):
| Home | Cubic feet | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | 250–400 | 1,800–2,800 lbs |
| 1 bedroom | 400–600 | 2,800–4,200 lbs |
| 2 bedrooms | 700–1,000 | 5,000–7,000 lbs |
| 3 bedrooms | 1,000–1,500 | 7,000–10,500 lbs |
| 4 bedrooms | 1,500–2,000 | 10,500–14,000 lbs |
| 5+ bedrooms | 2,000+ | 14,000+ lbs |
A full inventory beats the table every time: garages, basements and storage rooms can double a "two-bedroom".
How many movers?
- Studio or 1 bedroom — 2 movers.
- 2 bedrooms — 2–3 movers.
- 3 bedrooms — 3–4 movers.
- 4+ bedrooms — 4–5 movers, sometimes two crews.
Add a mover for hard access: stairs with no elevator, a long walk from the truck, or a lot of heavy items. Adding movers speeds a job, but not in a straight line — four movers in a narrow walk-up aren't twice as fast as two.
How many trucks?
A 26-ft moving truck holds roughly 1,400–1,700 cu ft when packed well. Above that, plan a second truck or a return trip. Long-distance trailers hold far more (a 53-ft trailer around 4,000 cu ft).
How long?
Divide the volume by your crew's speed — the cubic feet they move an hour — to get the loading time; unloading usually goes a little faster. Add travel time and the drive between the homes. Stairs, long carries and packing on the day slow every load, so time a few of your own jobs to learn your crews' real speed.
In MoveBoard
These rules become your settings, per move type:
- Settings › Pricing & calculator › Crew Size & Minimums — the minimum crew and "N movers when job size more than…" rules, raised for hard entrances. See How many movers.
- Truck count — "N trucks when cu ft more than…". See How many trucks.
- Mover speed — how fast a crew works by entrance type, which turns the volume into hours. See Mover speed.
- Test any combination on the test calculator before you change your prices.
Related guides
- Estimates & pricingHow many moversHow MoveBoard picks the crew size from the size of the move and the entrances, and how minimum crew, minimum hours and single-item moves work.
- Estimates & pricingHow many trucksSet how many trucks a quote needs for the size of the move, and change the trucks on one order.
- Estimates & pricingMover speedHow fast a crew moves cubic feet, how entrances, elevator floors and the walk from the truck slow it down, and how packing adds time.
- Estimates & pricingSize, inventory or custom volumeThe three ways an order gets its cubic feet — the move size, the inventory or a custom volume — and which one prices the order.
- SettingsCrew Size & MinimumsThe page that sets the smallest crew and billable hours for a move, the single-item exception, and when a bigger job needs more movers.
Still stuck? A person will help.
Open a ticket from Support inside MoveBoard, or email us — we usually reply within one business day.