Guides
Sample moving company quotes and the template behind them without the jargon
A moving company quote template laid out field by field, with the estimate type, access charges, and valuation stated so the customer and crew read the same job.
What to take away
- A quote is a record of the survey plus the terms under which the number holds. If either half is missing, it is a guess with a logo on it.
- The template below has eleven fields. The ones movers skip most often, access and valuation, are the ones that produce the dispute at delivery.
- The figures below are worked examples, not market rates. Your rate sheet supplies the numbers; a figure copied from a web page is wrong for your yard.
- State the estimate type in the first line the customer reads. Binding, non-binding, and not-to-exceed put the risk in different hands.
The template
Use the eleven fields in this order. Each one answers a question the customer or the crew will otherwise ask on the day.
- Parties and job reference.Customer name, contact numbers, and a job number that appears on the bill of lading, the crew sheet, and the invoice.
- Estimate type.One of: binding, non-binding, or not-to-exceed. The moving company pricing and profit guide explains what each one shifts onto the customer. For interstate work, FMCSA requires a written estimate, a signed order for service, and a bill of lading at pickup, along with the rights booklet. Confirm those items before you send the quote.
- Origin and destination.Full addresses, floor, elevator or stairs, parking distance from the door, and any building restrictions such as loading-dock hours.
- Survey basis.Date and method of the survey (walkthrough, video, photo inventory) and the total cubic feet or estimated weight it produced.
- Inventory of special items.Pianos, safes, oversized furniture, artwork, appliances that need disconnecting, and anything the customer packed themselves.
- Services included.Loading, transport, unloading, placement, and whether disassembly and reassembly are in scope.
- Services excluded.Packing, unpacking, debris removal, appliance servicing, and anything that needs a third party.
- Access charges.Each flight of stairs, long carry, elevator wait, and shuttle if the truck cannot reach the door, listed with its unit and quantity.
- Materials.Boxes, paper, tape, and crates, itemized by type and count.
- Valuation option.The protection level the customer selected, with the cost of that option and a plain sentence saying what the alternative would have been.
- Payment terms and dates.Deposit, balance timing, accepted methods, the move date, and the delivery window.
The three types shift risk in different directions:
Estimate types
- Binding.The price is fixed for the services listed. Extra hours or extra weight come out of the mover's margin, so the survey has to be firm.
- Non-binding.The final bill follows actual hours and weight. The customer carries that risk. On interstate moves the mover can require no more than 110 percent of the estimate at delivery, with the balance billed later.
- Not-to-exceed.A non-binding estimate with a ceiling. The bill can land below the estimate but cannot rise above it.
The pricing formula
Take a local move surveyed at 800 cubic feet. The office's own productivity record says a three-person crew loads and unloads 800 cubic feet in 6 hours under ordinary access.
The destination is a third-floor walk-up priced at $75 per flight per crew by the rate sheet. Two flights above the ground floor make the access line $150. Drive time between the addresses is 1.5 hours, charged at the hourly crew rate of $150.
The quote then reads:
Worked Quote Formula
- H x RLabor cost
- 2 x SAccess charge
- T x RTravel cost
- M + OMaterials and valuation
Written this way, the customer can see which line moves if the building holds the elevator and the stair charge drops. Labor is the largest line on most local jobs, so the hours figure carries the most weight. The relationship between your hourly rate and the margin the business needs is derived in the profit margins and break-even piece.
A second example: the customer-packed job
Same 800 cubic feet, but the customer packs everything themselves. The packing line is zero. Two things change that the template must record:
Customer-packed job
- Field 5 notes "customer-packed cartons" so that the crew knows to inspect and, if a box is unsafe to carry, to say so before loading rather than after it fails on the ramp.
- Field 10 records what the valuation option covers for customer-packed goods. Whether damage inside a box the customer sealed is claimable depends on the terms, and the customer should read that line before they tape the first box.
What the crew reads
The crew does not need the price. The crew needs fields 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8. Print those on the crew sheet and leave the money off it.
Crew Sheet vs Full Quote
Crew Sheet
- Origin and destination
- Included
- Special item inventory
- Included
- Services included
- Included
- Services excluded
- Included
- Access charges
- Included
- Price and money lines
- Left off
Full Quote
- Origin and destination
- Included
- Special item inventory
- Included
- Services included
- Included
- Services excluded
- Included
- Access charges
- Included
- Price and money lines
- Included
A crew that knows the access charges were quoted will not skip the stairs. A crew that does not know will assume the office missed them. The truck sizing question, whether the street can take the vehicle you planned to send, comes from field 3 and is covered in the equipment and setup guide.
Where the numbers come from
The rate sheet behind the labor, access, and materials lines is yours.
Set the wage component of your hourly rate against the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage tables, which publish metropolitan-area wage estimates for occupations including movers and drivers. Add the burden and equipment share your own books show. A rate sheet borrowing a competitor's number without knowing their cost guesses at both.
For long-distance work the basis may be weight and distance rather than hours, and a shuttle, a long carry at delivery, or a delivery window that misses all change the figure. The expansion and market guide covers what changes in the quote when the second market is on the other side of a state line.
Two disciplines around the document
Say only what is true. If the quote or the website says "no hidden charges," then every charge that could apply has to be on the quote. The Federal Trade Commission's advertising FAQs for small businesses treat such statements as claims that must be truthful and supported.
Keep the quote with the invoice. A quote is the document that explains the invoice. The IRS guidance on what kind of records to keep asks for a system that clearly shows income; the quote, the change orders, and the invoice filed together do that for every job. The how to price moving company services page shows the stage sheet that sits behind the quote and should be filed with it.
Common questions
Should the quote show hours or just a total?
A customer who sees the hours and the hourly rate can understand why the number changed when the survey was wrong. A customer who sees only a total will think the change was arbitrary.
What if the customer wants the price before a survey?
Offer an hourly basis with a stated minimum and write "no flat price without survey" on the document. Field 4 stays blank until a survey exists.
How long should a quote stay valid?
Your decision, but state it in field 11. Peak season and the end of the month fill the calendar, and a quote from a quiet week should not bind you to a crew you no longer have.
Do I need a different template for interstate moves?
The fields are the same. What changes is what FMCSA requires to be in writing and delivered to the customer, so confirm those requirements before you send an interstate quote from a local template.
