How Much to Charge for Heavy Item Moving
Single heavy-item moves typically run $250–$500 for items under 500 pounds on ground level, $400–$900 for 500–1,000 pounds, and $800–$2,000+ above that or where stairs and tight access are involved. Stairs add $40–$100 per flight at each end, a fourth crew member adds their hourly cost, specialty equipment like stair-crawlers or gantries is its own line, and every operator should hold a minimum equal to their base rate.
Weight bands set the crew
- Under 500 lbs, ground level — $250–$500
- 500–1,000 lbs — $400–$900
- Over 1,000 lbs, or stairs/tight access — $800–$2,000+
- Stairs — $40–$100 per flight, each end
- Minimum — at least your base rate
What the surcharges actually pay for
- Crew size — three people versus four is a 33% labor jump
- Specialty equipment — stair-crawlers, gantries, skates, toe jacks
- Turns and landings — where the difficulty genuinely lives
- Long carry — beyond a stated distance
- Disassembly and reassembly — pool tables, gym equipment
- Floor and doorway protection
- Disposal of an item being replaced
Price the geometry, not the pounds
A 400-pound item around a tight landing is genuinely harder than an 800-pound one down a straight hall. Weight sets the equipment; the route sets the hours and the crew.
Get photos of the stairwell and the doorway every time, before you give a number.
Hold the minimum
“It’s only going out to the garage” still needs a crew, a truck, and equipment. A minimum equal to your base rate is what keeps small jobs from turning into unpaid favors, and customers accept it just fine when it’s stated up front instead of negotiated on arrival.
Say no more often than feels comfortable
Floors that can’t take the load, stairs that can’t take the turn, customers who want the price that comes with one fewer person on the crew — declining is honestly a professional skill in this trade, and the operators who last longest tend to be the ones most willing to use it.
Charge for the assessment on complex jobs
A site visit to measure a stairwell and check a floor is real work that produces a real answer. Charge for it and credit it against the move — it filters out price shoppers and costs you nothing on the jobs you actually win.
Frequently asked questions
Should I price by weight or by item?
By weight band, with the item type noted. A pool table and a safe of the same weight are different jobs — one disassembles, one doesn't — but the band sets the crew and equipment, which is where the cost actually lives.
When should I decline a job?
When the access genuinely doesn't allow it safely, when the floor can't take the load, or when the customer wants a price that requires cutting the crew. Declining costs one job; an injury or a destroyed staircase costs far more, and experienced operators say no regularly.
How do I price a fourth crew member?
At their fully-loaded hourly cost plus margin, as a visible line. Crew size is the single biggest cost driver in heavy moving, and a job that needs four people quoted for three is the most common way these moves lose money and get dangerous simultaneously.
Should disassembly be included?
Quote it separately. Pool tables, gym equipment, and some appliances come apart and go back together — that's often more hours than the carrying, and it's skilled work that has nothing to do with weight.