How Much Does Professional Packing Cost?
Reviewed by Joey Padgett · Last reviewed September 2026
Professional packing typically costs $50 to $100 per hour per packer. For a 2-bedroom home, full packing labor commonly runs $600 to $1,500, and materials add $150 to $350 on top of that. A 3-bedroom home with a full kitchen commonly runs $1,200 to $2,500 in labor.
Whether that's worth it depends on your timeline, your fragile items, and how you value your time.
Professional Packing Costs by Home Size
Labor Costs
| Home Size | Packing Time (2 packers) | Labor Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Studio / 1 Bedroom | 2 to 4 hours | $200 to $800 |
| 2 Bedroom | 4 to 7 hours | $600 to $1,500 |
| 3 Bedroom | 6 to 10 hours | $1,200 to $2,500 |
| 4 Bedroom | 8 to 14 hours | $1,600 to $3,500 |
Source: HomeGuide, This Old House
These reflect typical totals at $50 to $100 per packer per hour with a 2-person crew. Rates vary by company and region. Some companies charge per job for full-home packing rather than by the hour; ask which model applies before booking.
Materials Costs
When moving companies pack your home, they charge for materials separately. These are rough estimates:
| Home Size | Materials Estimate |
|---|---|
| Studio / 1 Bedroom | $100 to $250 |
| 2 Bedroom | $150 to $350 |
| 3 Bedroom | $250 to $500 |
| 4 Bedroom | $350 to $700 |
If you buy your own materials and have the movers use them, you can reduce this cost. See Moving Supplies: The Complete List for what to buy and how much.
Combined (Labor + Materials) Estimate
| Home Size | Estimated Total |
|---|---|
| Studio / 1 Bedroom | $300 to $1,050 |
| 2 Bedroom | $750 to $1,850 |
| 3 Bedroom | $1,450 to $3,000 |
| 4 Bedroom | $1,950 to $4,200 |
What's Included in Professional Packing
Most full-service packing means the crew arrives, supplies all materials, and packs every room. They typically:
- Supply all boxes, tape, paper, and specialty materials
- Wrap fragile items individually
- Disassemble furniture as needed
- Label every box by room and contents
- Pack specialty items like mirrors and artwork (may cost extra)
What they typically don't include: moving the boxes (that's a separate service unless you've booked a full-service move), packing items you've asked to pack yourself, or packing things they can't legally transport (hazardous materials, perishables).
Partial Packing: A Middle Ground
Most moving companies offer room-by-room or item-by-item packing instead of full-home packing. This is worth knowing about.
Common partial packing scenarios:
- Kitchen only. The kitchen is the most time-consuming room in any home and the one where breakage is most likely. Hiring packers for just the kitchen while you handle everything else is a reasonable middle ground.
- Fragile items only. Pay for professional packing of your china, artwork, electronics, and anything irreplaceable. Handle everything else yourself.
- Specialty items. Some moves include one or two problem pieces: a large art collection, a piano, or antiques. Targeted professional help for those items only.
Partial packing usually costs the same hourly rate as full packing. You control the scope by what you leave for them.
Is Professional Packing Worth It?
It depends on what you're comparing it against.
If you're moving locally and have three weeks to pack gradually, doing it yourself is manageable. A 2-bedroom DIY pack takes roughly 24 to 35 hours of actual work. That's spread over evenings and weekends, not a single day.
If your move date is fixed and you're working full-time, that 24 to 35 hours is hard to find. A professional crew compresses it to 4 to 6 hours.
For a long-distance move, how your things are packed matters more. Items that will spend two days in a moving truck need to be packed more securely than items traveling 20 minutes across town.
If you have a significant amount of fragile or irreplaceable items, kitchen china, art, or anything that couldn't be replaced if broken, professional packing is usually the safer call.
→ Get quotes from movers who offer packing services
How to Save on Professional Packing
Pack your own non-fragile items. Pack linens, clothes, books, and pantry items yourself. Let the professionals handle the kitchen, bathrooms, and anything breakable.
Supply your own boxes. Some companies charge a markup on the boxes they supply. Buying boxes yourself from a home improvement store or getting free boxes from local retailers can lower the materials bill.
Book off-peak. The same labor cost reduction that applies to moving applies to packing. Booking a Tuesday pack job in October costs less than a Friday pack job in June.
Compare multiple companies. Packing rates vary by company. Get quotes from at least two or three.
See Moving Costs: The Complete Breakdown for how packing fits into your overall moving budget, or Moving Supplies: The Complete List if you'd rather pack yourself.