How much do PODS cost in a move?
October 5, 2011 10:57 AM Subscribe
How much does it cost to ship a PODS (those portable moving/storage things) across the country?
Have you shipped your stuff across the country in one of those PODS containers or something similar?
Between gas prices and rental truck mileage, it might be cheaper for me to just put it in a box.
I would love to get a ballpark of what it costs and I don't want to really get in the "call for a quote" loop with the companies.
Say I was moving a small household (think one room apartment) from IL to OR, how much might that cost?
Any data will be helpful if you've used these things.
Thanks!!
Have you shipped your stuff across the country in one of those PODS containers or something similar?
Between gas prices and rental truck mileage, it might be cheaper for me to just put it in a box.
I would love to get a ballpark of what it costs and I don't want to really get in the "call for a quote" loop with the companies.
Say I was moving a small household (think one room apartment) from IL to OR, how much might that cost?
Any data will be helpful if you've used these things.
Thanks!!
I believe we had the biggest PODS, from Dallas to San Diego ran about $2500. It took 10 days to get here. I doubt you would need the largest unit for a one bedroom, but we did pitch quite a bit of stuff.
It was going to cost more than that, all told, for a one-way truck rental (which logistically didn't work for us anyway), and I wouldn't use movers because of the scams. I don't think we did any comparison shopping, but I'd advise it since there's a number of providers and one of them may be more competitive in either your current location or destination.
posted by Lyn Never at 11:06 AM on October 5, 2011
It was going to cost more than that, all told, for a one-way truck rental (which logistically didn't work for us anyway), and I wouldn't use movers because of the scams. I don't think we did any comparison shopping, but I'd advise it since there's a number of providers and one of them may be more competitive in either your current location or destination.
posted by Lyn Never at 11:06 AM on October 5, 2011
ReloCubes (mentioned by foxxie33) are cheaper and worked great for my last move. I quoted both and saved ~1000 (or, 25-30%) using ABF vs. PODS.
posted by jeffch at 11:37 AM on October 5, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by jeffch at 11:37 AM on October 5, 2011 [1 favorite]
We used two ABF cubes (not actually cubes) to move from DC to LA about four years ago. We also had them store the cubes for a few weeks while we found an apartment. I think it cost something in the region of $2500.
We chose ABF because the containers seemed the sturdiest, they're union, and I think it was also looking to be cheaper than PODS. We were really happy with every aspect of it and I would move that way again in a heartbeat. I wish I could find something comparable for our upcoming international move.
posted by crabintheocean at 12:10 PM on October 5, 2011 [2 favorites]
We chose ABF because the containers seemed the sturdiest, they're union, and I think it was also looking to be cheaper than PODS. We were really happy with every aspect of it and I would move that way again in a heartbeat. I wish I could find something comparable for our upcoming international move.
posted by crabintheocean at 12:10 PM on October 5, 2011 [2 favorites]
Should have said: This was to move roughly the contents of a one bed (we had two but got rid of a lot of stuff) including many, many boxes of books and the largest couch I have ever seen.
posted by crabintheocean at 12:12 PM on October 5, 2011
posted by crabintheocean at 12:12 PM on October 5, 2011
I don't believe they give you a direct quote on the site, when I tried previously they want to get back to you. Honestly that compelled me to google some more and read about others bad experiences which lost then my business. So go Pods!
posted by tremspeed at 12:58 PM on October 5, 2011
posted by tremspeed at 12:58 PM on October 5, 2011
I did some research, and for me, the cheapest option was U-Haul U-Box. It's similar to Pods but the offer smaller containers for less money. They also have the option to pick up and drop off the "pods" yourself or even load them at the uhaul location, which was the cheapest option. In my case, I loaded and unloaded at uhaul and my move from Houston to Saint Louis was about $1000.
posted by raygan at 2:14 PM on October 5, 2011
posted by raygan at 2:14 PM on October 5, 2011
My one bedroom apartment, moved from Ames, IA to San Marcos, TX including shipping and storage was slightly over $1800. I used ABF. They were extremely helpful and prompt with the whole deal and it really lessened the whole headache of moving. You're going a lot farther than I was, so I would expect the price to not be any lower than that.
posted by King Bee at 4:05 PM on October 5, 2011
posted by King Bee at 4:05 PM on October 5, 2011
I used ABF for two moves (MA->CA and CA->MA). I don't recall the exact price, but it was a lot cheaper than the quote from Pods. I recommend them highly.
posted by disaster77 at 4:21 PM on October 5, 2011
posted by disaster77 at 4:21 PM on October 5, 2011
I used ABF for several linear feet in a semi truck. It was pretty cool because it was cheap ($1400 AZ->VA) and we had live tracking of our stuff. The cubes are more expensive but probably easier to park near wherever you're loading.
posted by bookdragoness at 7:19 PM on October 5, 2011
posted by bookdragoness at 7:19 PM on October 5, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
http://www.pods.com/
enter your info and get a quote
posted by fozzie33 at 10:58 AM on October 5, 2011