Piano moving

Piano Moving Invoicing and Quoting App (2026)

Short answer

Piano moving is quoted by instrument type, stair count, and access — not by weight or distance — and a hoist or crane job is a different business entirely. ShowTheReceipts ($15/mo) saves per-instrument base rates with stair, turn, and hoist surcharges, takes a deposit on scheduled moves, and invoices from the truck with the instrument and condition recorded.

How we picked

Entry-plan prices as published in 2026, taken from each vendor's own pricing page or a recent third-party summary. Judged on the specialty mover's workflow — per-instrument quoting with access surcharges, deposits, condition documentation, and on-site invoicing — not on household-goods dispatch, bill-of-lading systems, or long-haul tariff management.

Prices as published by each vendor, 2026. Entry-level plans shown.
Software Starting price Best for
ShowTheReceipts That's us $15/mo Piano movers: per-instrument rates, stair and hoist surcharges, deposits, condition records
Invoice2go $9.99/mo+ Basic mobile invoicing
Wave Free / $16/mo Free invoicing with light bookkeeping
Kickserv Flex $19/mo Budget scheduling with invoicing
Elromco $99/mo+ Full-service moving companies needing dispatch and BOLs

Geometry, not weight

A 600-pound upright down a straight hallway is easier than a 500-pound baby grand around a landing. Piano moving is priced by access — stairs, turns, doorway widths, and whether the instrument has to leave through a window on a hoist.

Quote by weight or mileage instead, and you’ll end up with four people, a crane rental, and a price you agreed to for a completely different job.

1. ShowTheReceipts — $15/mo

Per-instrument base rates, stair and turn surcharges, hoist and crane lines, deposits at booking, condition photos on the job.

2. Invoice2go — $9.99/mo+

Basic mobile invoicing.

3. Wave — Free / $16/mo

Free invoices plus light bookkeeping.

4. Kickserv Flex — $19/mo

Budget scheduling with invoicing.

5. Elromco — $99/mo+

Built for full-service moving companies with dispatch and bills of lading.

The lines a piano quote needs

  1. Instrument type — base rate by size and shape
  2. Stairs — per flight, at each end
  3. Turns and landings — the actual difficulty
  4. Long carry — beyond a stated distance
  5. Hoist or crane — equipment plus additional crew
  6. Disassembly — legs and lyre on a grand
  7. Board / skid and padding
  8. Storage — climate-controlled, per month
  9. Tuning referral — after settling, a genuine value-add

Photograph the route, not just the piano

Door casings, stair treads, banisters, and walls — damage claims in this trade run in both directions, and a two-minute walk-through with a camera settles nearly all of them before they even start.

Say when it’s a crane job

Some grands just don’t come down stairs, ever. Naming that early, with the crane price attached, is what separates an experienced mover from someone who’ll attempt it and find out the hard way.

Customers accept that answer readily enough. What they don’t accept is discovering it halfway through.

Frequently asked questions

How should a piano move be quoted?

By instrument type — spinet, console, upright, baby grand, concert grand — with surcharges for stairs, tight turns, long carries, and hoists. Weight matters less than geometry: a grand that won't fit a stairwell is a crane job regardless of what it weighs.

Should I ever quote a piano move over the phone?

Only for straightforward ground-level moves you've done many times. Anything with stairs, a turn at the landing, or a doorway anyone is unsure about needs photos or a site visit — this is the trade where a bad phone quote turns into a genuinely dangerous afternoon.

Do I need a deposit?

On scheduled moves, yes. You're committing a crew of three or four and often specialty equipment to a specific window, and a cancellation the morning of costs you the whole slot with no chance of refilling it.

How do I document condition?

Photograph the instrument and the route — walls, door casings, stair treads — before you touch anything. Piano moving carries real damage exposure on both the instrument and the house, and the photo set is the only defense that works after the fact.