Every figure on this page links to the organization that produced it, and each was re-checked against that source before publishing. How U.S. moving companies market themselves and where video fits, and the evidence behind it: our own read of 187 mover homepages; the federal rule that has allowed video surveys since 2022; how many moving companies and movers there are and what they earn, including Florida; moving prices; how many Americans move and why; what U-Haul, the van lines and the franchises report; how people choose a mover; complaints, hostage loads and the federal and Florida rules; and where six popular numbers came from.
29.9% of 187 U.S. moving company homepages showed a video player in November 2026, but only 7.5% offered a virtual or video survey and 3.2% did both (our measurement). (Mark Studios)See details
Federal rules have accepted interstate surveys by live or pre-recorded video since June 27, 2022. (FMCSA)See details
Movers answering SmartMoving's 2025 survey did an average 14% of pre-move surveys by video, about 2.4 onsite surveys for every video one (vendor survey; our calculation). (SmartMoving; Mark Studios)See details
The U.S. had 9,736 moving company establishments in 2025, 12.8% more than in 2019, while jobs fell 8.8% (our calculation from BLS QCEW). (BLS; Mark Studios)See details
8.7% of Americans moved in 2022, near the record low of 8.4% in 2021 and down from 20.2% in 1948. (U.S. Census Bureau)See details
Movers' producer prices rose 13.2 percent in the year to September 2026, while the consumer index for moving, storage and freight fell 7.1 percent. (BLS)See details
Household goods hostage complaints to FMCSA rose from 503 in 2019 to 3,198 in 2022, about 6.4 times as many (our calculation). (FMCSA; Mark Studios)See details
The widely repeated 11.7 lifetime moves is a Census calculation from 2007 data; the Bureau says it does not collect lifetime moves. (U.S. Census Bureau)See details
How many moving companies use video on their websites?
About three in ten. We read the homepage of every U.S. moving company listed with a website in OpenStreetMap on November 2, 2026, 291 website hosts in all: 29.9% of the 187 readable homepages had a video player (our measurement). 17.1% hosted a video file on their own site, 11.8% embedded one from a video platform (9.6% YouTube), and 14.4% played a muted background loop. Of the homepages with video, 53.6% used only self-hosted files, so much of the video is a silent hero loop of trucks and crews rather than something a visitor presses play on. That puts movers level with the HVAC contractors and above the plumbers and electricians we measured the same way.
Video surveys are rarer still. Only 7.5% of the homepages offered a virtual or video survey or estimate, against 10.7% that mentioned an in-home estimate, even though federal rules have accepted live or pre-recorded video for interstate surveys since 2022. Just 3.2% both showed a video player and offered a video survey. The homepage is built to get a quote request: 80.2% had a quote or estimate button or link, 67.9% a form on the page itself and 78.1% offered a free estimate, while only 9.1% let a customer book online.
The homepages sell the whole job. 89.8% mentioned packing, 85.6% commercial or office moves, 80.2% storage, 80.2% local moves, 75.4% long-distance moves (31.6% used the word interstate), 63.6% piano or specialty items, 23.5% junk removal and 18.7% international moves. 6.4% said they were an agent of a van line. 19.3% printed a dollar amount and 8.0% an hourly rate.
Federal rules require an interstate mover's ads to show its U.S. DOT number, but many of these companies move only within their state, where state rules apply, so the 43.9% share is not a compliance rate. In Florida, 4.8% of all readable homepages showed a Florida mover registration (IM) number, and 38.9% of the 18 homepages tagged as Florida businesses did.
How we counted: OpenStreetMap's office=moving_company and related tags, one homepage visit per website in headless Chromium at desktop size, robots.txt honored, no forms submitted. Truck rental, self-storage-only, container-only storage, directories and lead sites were removed by host list, and 25 more after a title review. 104 of the 291 hosts were unreadable or out of scope (dead domains, bot walls, non-movers). A hand check of 60 homepages agreed with the automatic video call on 93.3% before two rule fixes (empty iframes and source-less background videos); video in pop-up review tiles is missed, so the video share is a slight floor. Shares from 187 sites carry a margin of about plus or minus 7 points. The site-level file is homepages.csv, with no business names.
Can a mover give an estimate from a video survey?
Yes, for interstate moves since 2022. Federal rules define a "physical survey" of household goods as one done on site or virtually, and a virtual survey must let the mover see the goods through live or pre-recorded video (FMCSA, 49 CFR 375.103). An interstate mover must base its written estimate on such a survey, though the customer may waive a physical survey in writing (FMCSA, 49 CFR 375.401).
The change came in FMCSA's household goods final rule (87 FR 24431), which took effect on June 27, 2022 (FMCSA). FMCSA's proposal had allowed live video only; after The Moving and Storage Conference and moving companies asked, the final rule accepted live or pre-recorded video (FMCSA), so a customer can film a walkthrough and send it in. FMCSA did not enforce the revised provisions until October 31, 2022 (FMCSA). The same rule ended the exemption that let movers skip the survey when goods sat beyond a 50-mile radius of the mover's agent (Federal Register) and required surveys at any distance instead (50-mile, FMCSA). Congress had required a physical survey in section 4205 of the 2005 highway bill, SAFETEA-LU (FMCSA).
FMCSA expected video to save movers time, not to be rare. In the rule's analysis it projected 265,239 virtual surveys of interstate moves within 50 miles in 2022 in its primary scenario (FMCSA) and savings of $955,000 a year from skipped survey trips (FMCSA). An earlier FMCSA paperwork estimate put the mover's agent within 50 miles of the customer on 95 percent of interstate moves (FMCSA). These are projections, not counts of surveys actually done.
How many surveys movers actually do by video is reported only by a software vendor. Moving companies answering SmartMoving's 2025 survey, which sells CRM and estimating software to movers and had more than 500 self-selected U.S. and Canadian respondents, said an average 14% of their pre-move surveys were done by video, 34% on site and 52% by phone (SmartMoving; SmartMoving; SmartMoving). That is 2.4 onsite surveys for every video survey (our calculation). SmartMoving publishes no field dates.
The evidence that video surveys pay off comes from vendor case studies of single companies. Yembo, which sells AI video surveys, reports that a TWO MEN AND A TRUCK franchise in Dallas raised its booking rate from 48% to 65% after adopting them (Yembo) and cut survey time by more than 78% (Yembo), and that New World Van Lines cut outsourced surveys by more than 85% (Yembo). In a 2022 release, United Van Lines said one member agent cut survey time by more than 50% (United Van Lines). None of these is a controlled comparison.
Consumer guidance still assumes someone looks at the goods. FMCSA's 2022 Ready to Move brochure tells people planning an interstate move to get estimates from at least three movers or brokers (FMCSA), and the Better Business Bureau advises at least three written estimates, "preferably based on visits to your home" (BBB); its 2020 study suggested three in-person or virtual estimates based on weight (BBB). TWO MEN AND A TRUCK says it can usually estimate by phone but may need an in-home look at homes of 1,500 square feet or more (TWO MEN AND A TRUCK).
How many moving companies are there in the U.S.?
About 9,700 moving companies with employees. The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted an annual average of 9,736 private establishments in used household and office goods moving (NAICS 484210) in 2025, employing 91,247 people at an average annual pay of $51,151 (BLS QCEW). That is 9.4 workers per establishment (our calculation). The count fell by 208 establishments from 2024 to 2025 (BLS QCEW), but it is still 12.8% above 2019's 8,628 (BLS QCEW; our calculation), while jobs are 8.8% below 2019's 100,033 (BLS QCEW; our calculation). More, smaller companies are sharing fewer movers.
Other federal counts land in the same range. County Business Patterns found 9,436 employer establishments with 102,745 employees in March 2023 (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau), and 9,803 with 105,910 employees in 2022 (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). The 2022 Economic Census counted 10,223 establishments with 108,004 employees (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). The counts differ because each program counts at a different time of year and treats seasonal and multi-unit firms differently.
Not every establishment moves households across state lines. FMCSA counted 4,297 active interstate household goods carriers in 2019 (FMCSA), 23.8% more than in 2014 (our calculation), and GAO, citing FMCSA in 2023 with 2021 data, put the number of companies moving about 4 million Americans' goods across state lines each year at about 5,300 (GAO). FMCSA's own 2025 paperwork estimate assumes 7,861 household goods carriers file the Part 375 consumer forms (FMCSA); that is a burden estimate, not a registry count.
U.S. used household and office goods moving (NAICS 484210)
Monthly data show the slide since the pandemic moving boom. The industry employed 89.8 thousand people in August 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary), 16.2% below its peak of 107.2 thousand in July and August 2022 (BLS CES; BLS CES; our calculation).
How much do movers earn?
Average annual pay across U.S. moving companies was $51,151 in 2025, up 25.6% from $40,715 in 2019 before inflation (BLS QCEW; our calculation). It was $48,088 in 2023 and $49,484 in 2024 (BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW). All employees at moving firms averaged $31.04 an hour in August 2026 (preliminary, BLS CES). The industry paid $4,667,402,846 in total wages in 2025 (BLS QCEW).
BLS does not publish occupation wages for moving companies alone; its occupation surveys stop at truck transportation as a whole, which mixes movers with freight carriers.
BLS projects slow growth for both jobs from 2025 to 2035: laborers and material movers from 2,940.3 thousand to 2,991.9 thousand, and heavy truck drivers from 2,221.2 thousand to 2,305.0 thousand (BLS Employment Projections; BLS Employment Projections). Within truck transportation, laborers go from 97.3 thousand to 99.8 thousand (BLS), and 161.5 thousand of the heavy truck drivers in 2025 were self-employed (BLS).
How big is the moving industry in Florida?
Florida had 898 moving establishments employing 7,680 people at an average annual pay of $52,276 in 2025 (BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW). That is 9.2% of U.S. moving establishments and 8.4% of the industry's jobs (our calculation). Florida's average pay was $51,034 in 2024 and $49,251 in 2023, against 892 and 931 establishments and 7,304 and 7,123 jobs (BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW; BLS QCEW).
Census counts 832 Florida employer establishments with 7,206 employees and $319,729 thousand in payroll in 2023 (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). In the 2022 Economic Census, Florida's 933 employer movers had 6,347 employees and took in $1,166,988 thousand (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). Florida's own registry is larger, because it includes movers with no employees: 1,348 movers and 39 moving brokers held active registrations with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services on December 4, 2023, down from 1,398 movers in January 2022 (Florida Senate; Florida Senate), a 3.6% drop (our calculation).
How much revenue do moving companies make?
U.S. employer moving establishments took in $20,117,014 thousand, about $20.1 billion, in 2022, with $4,678,982 thousand in payroll (2022 Economic Census; 2022 Economic Census). That works out to about $1.97 million per establishment (our calculation). Annual payroll was $4,688,962 thousand in 2023 and $4,706,454 thousand in 2022 by the County Business Patterns count (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau).
Are moving prices going up?
Movers' own prices are. The BLS producer price index for used household and office goods moving was 13.2 percent higher in September 2026 than a year earlier (preliminary), after a 4.3 percent rise over 2025 (BLS PPI; BLS PPI). Long-distance moving rose 16.2 percent over the same twelve months (BLS PPI), while the local moving index sat at 151.279 (December 2003 = 100), unchanged since June 2026 (BLS PPI). The industry index stood at 199.795 (BLS PPI). The last peak was April 2022, when prices were 20.4 percent above a year earlier (BLS PPI).
What households pay moved the other way. The consumer price index for moving, storage and freight expense was 7.1 percent lower in September 2026 than in September 2025 (BLS CPI), and stood at 193.805 (December 1997 = 100) in October 2026 (BLS CPI). The two indexes measure different things: the producer index prices what moving companies charge, and the consumer index mixes moving with truck rental, storage and freight that households buy themselves. Read them side by side, not as a contradiction.
How many Americans move each year?
About 28 million people a year by the Census Bureau's long-running count. The Current Population Survey found about 28.2 million movers in 2022, a mover rate of 8.7% (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau), barely above the record low of 8.4% in 2021 (U.S. Census Bureau) and down from 9.3% in 2020 (U.S. Census Bureau). In 1948, the first year the survey asked, the rate was 20.2% (U.S. Census Bureau). The 2022 rate is 43% of the 1948 level (our calculation).
The American Community Survey, which asks differently and runs higher, found 11.8% of people had moved in the past year in 2024, down from 12.1% in 2023 (U.S. Census Bureau): 8.9% within their state and 2.1% from another state (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). By that survey the mover rate fell from 16.8% in 2006 to 13.7 percent in 2019 (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). Counting households rather than people, Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies found 14.8 million households moved in 2024, a rate of 11.2 percent, the lowest on record in the ACS (Harvard JCHS; Harvard JCHS). Moves within a state hit a record low of 8.6 percent of households (Harvard JCHS), and the decline came from 320,000 fewer homeowner moves (Harvard JCHS); homeowners under 45 moved at 9.8 percent (Harvard JCHS), while about 180,000 more renter households moved (Harvard JCHS).
Renters move far more than owners. In 2017 the CPS renter mover rate was a record-low 21.7 percent, down from 35.2% in 1988, against 5.5 percent for homeowners (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). Owners also stay longer: sellers in the National Association of REALTORS' 2025 profile had lived in their home a median 11 years, a record (NAR). First-time buyers were a record-low 21% of buyers, and the median buyer was 59 years old (NAR; NAR).
Economists have documented the decline for decades. Federal Reserve Board researchers found the 2011 interstate migration rate was 53 percent below its 1948-1971 average (Federal Reserve Board) and that internal migration has fallen continuously since the 1980s (Federal Reserve Board).
How far do people move?
Most moves are short. In 2022, 53.5% of CPS movers stayed in the same county, the lowest share since 1948, when it was 67.0% (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). Moves to another county in the state or to another state made up 41.7% of movers, and movers from abroad 4.9% (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). Home sellers moved a median 30 miles in NAR's 2025 profile (NAR).
That matters to movers because local and long-distance work price differently and need different crews. Interstate moves are the minority, and FMCSA's 2022 rule cited an industry estimate that only about 20 percent of interstate household moves are done by for-hire movers (FMCSA); it estimated 556,621 interstate household moves by for-hire movers in 2018 (FMCSA).
Why do people move?
For housing, mostly. In 2022, 41.6% of U.S. movers gave a housing-related reason and 26.5% a family reason (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau). The most common single reason was wanting a newer, better or larger home, at 14.4% (U.S. Census Bureau). Job-related reasons were tied for least common, for the first time since at least 2017 (U.S. Census Bureau).
Long-distance movers answer differently. Among United Van Lines' interstate customers in its 2025 study, 29% moved to be closer to family, 26% for a new job or transfer and 14% to retire (United Van Lines; United Van Lines; United Van Lines). United publishes no sample size, and its customers are interstate movers who hired a van line, a narrower group than the Census sample.
Where are people moving, and what about Florida?
Florida's domestic migration boom has faded. Census estimates put Florida's net domestic migration at 22,517 people from July 2024 to June 2025, against 310,892 in 2022 (U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Census Bureau), a 92.8% drop (our calculation); Florida ranked 8th (U.S. Census Bureau). Florida still led every state in net international migration, at 178,674 (U.S. Census Bureau). Thirty-one states had positive net domestic migration (U.S. Census Bureau); South Carolina gained 66,622 (U.S. Census Bureau) and the Midwest about 16,000, its first gain this decade (U.S. Census Bureau).
The moving companies' own customer counts tell a similar story. U-Haul, which sells truck rentals and storage, ranked Florida 2nd on its 2025 Growth Index of net one-way customers (U-Haul), built from well over 2.5 million one-way transactions a year (U-Haul); Texas was first for the seventh time in 10 years (U-Haul). Arrivals were 50.6% of U-Haul's one-way traffic in and out of Florida (U-Haul), and Florida has never ranked below fourth since U-Haul began ranking states in 2015 (U-Haul). United Van Lines, which has tracked its customers by state since 1977 (United Van Lines), classed Florida and Texas as balanced, with inbound and outbound moves nearly equal (United Van Lines); Oregon had the highest inbound share at 65% (United Van Lines). Atlas Van Lines said its interstate moves held steady in 2025 (Atlas Van Lines).
How big is U-Haul compared with moving companies?
U-Haul, which calls itself North America's largest do-it-yourself moving and storage operator (U-Haul Holding Company), had about 204,800 rental trucks on March 31, 2026 (U-Haul 10-K), up 6.6% from about 192,100 a year earlier (U-Haul 10-K; our calculation). It rents through over 2,400 company-operated stores and over 23,000 independent dealers (U-Haul 10-K), up from 21,600 dealers a year earlier (U-Haul 10-K). Its self-moving equipment rental revenue was $3,811,921 thousand in fiscal 2026 (U-Haul 10-K), up $86.4 million (U-Haul 10-K), out of total revenue of $6,037,819 thousand (U-Haul 10-K). Moving and storage made up 94.1% of its net revenue (U-Haul 10-K).
U-Haul is also a storage company built on household goods. It ran 2,113 self-storage locations with nearly 1,136,000 rentable units on March 31, 2026, up from 2,046 a year earlier (U-Haul 10-K; U-Haul 10-K), and self-storage revenue was $972,427 thousand (U-Haul 10-K). It says the primary market for its storage units is household goods (U-Haul 10-K) and that its customers are primarily do-it-yourself household movers (U-Haul 10-K). Its average unit occupancy fell to 74.4% in fiscal 2026 (U-Haul 10-K). It employed about 32,600 people in the U.S. (U-Haul 10-K), against about 33,000 a year earlier (U-Haul 10-K).
U-Haul spends little on advertising for its size: $17.1 million in fiscal 2026, up from $11.1 million in fiscal 2023 (U-Haul 10-K; U-Haul 10-K). That is a 54.1% increase, and 0.28% of revenue (our calculation). The 10-K names web-based initiatives, print and social media, and the fleet's appearances in film and television, and calls its trucks and trailers the best form of advertisement (U-Haul 10-K). It says uhaul.com, the U-Haul app and its 24-hour reservation line drive much of its rental volume (U-Haul 10-K). U-Haul's Moving Help marketplace connects do-it-yourself movers with thousands of independent helpers for loading and packing (U-Haul 10-K). Its business peaks in spring and summer and is weakest in its fourth fiscal quarter (U-Haul 10-K).
How do van lines and moving franchises work?
Most big moving brands are networks of local owners. Atlas Van Lines says it has more than 350 agents who own the trucks and warehouses (Atlas Van Lines). UniGroup says Mayflower has 200 affiliated agencies and that it has more than 500 agency locations in all (UniGroup; UniGroup). In its 2015 IPO filing, SIRVA, owner of the Allied and northAmerican brands, described agents who buy the trucks and employ the crews while SIRVA supplies the brands and marketing (SIRVA); it operated through 1,475 locations, 1,420 of them agent or franchise sites (SIRVA), and completed 168,969 moves in 2014, half for corporate and military contracts and half for consumers (SIRVA). In SmartMoving's 2026 survey of moving companies, 27% were part of a van line (SmartMoving).
Franchises sell a national brand to local operators. TWO MEN AND A TRUCK says it has more than 430 locations (TWO MEN AND A TRUCK) and has done more than 11 million moves (TWO MEN AND A TRUCK). College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving says it has over 200 locations on its customer site (College HUNKS) and 370+ territories on its franchise site (College HUNKS), which count different things. Its franchise site reports average gross sales of $1.55M per location in 2025 from Item 19 of its 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document (College HUNKS), and franchisees pay a 7% royalty plus a 2% gross brand fund (College HUNKS). These are the companies' own figures, published to sell franchises.
How do people choose a moving company?
They search, compare a few quotes and pick on price. In This Old House's 2026 survey of 1,000 U.S. adults who had moved in the past two years using a moving service, 50% used search engines to research movers (This Old House), 40% visited moving company websites and 31% read online reviews (This Old House), and about 22% used AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or Copilot (This Old House). Price was the deciding factor for 39% (This Old House). 43% got quotes from two companies, 29% from three and 21% took a single quote (This Old House), and 42% booked one to two weeks ahead (This Old House). About 63% said the final bill matched the quote, and 16% paid more (This Old House). 71% used a full-service mover (This Old House). This Old House runs affiliate "best movers" pages, so it earns from the market it surveys.
Many people still move themselves. In Angi's survey of 1,000 Americans who had moved in the past five years, 48% did not hire movers (Angi); of those who did, 81% would hire them again (Angi). Angi sells leads to movers and publishes no field dates. In Mayflower's June 2025 survey of 1,000 U.S. adults who had done a do-it-yourself move, 61% said hiring professionals is the right choice for long-distance moves (Mayflower), 41% named time savings as the main reason to hire (Mayflower) and 64% would consider a full-service mover next time (Mayflower). Mayflower is a van line.
How do moving companies market themselves?
Mostly through referrals, Google and Facebook, with little video. The only industry-wide figures come from SmartMoving, which sells software to movers and surveys its own audience. In its 2026 survey of 484 moving companies, 18% said they were active on YouTube, against 87% on Facebook and 67% on Instagram (SmartMoving; SmartMoving). Among platforms they ran paid ads on, Google led with 89% and YouTube was 7% (SmartMoving; SmartMoving). 59% were running paid ads at all (SmartMoving). In the 2026 report, referrals and repeat customers ranked as the 1 lead source (SmartMoving).
SmartMoving surveys of moving companies (vendor, self-selected)
Share or value
Pre-move surveys done by video (2025, average share)
SmartMoving's 2026 report says the average mover spends about $4,600 a month on marketing, about 6.5% of revenue (SmartMoving). Its samples are movers who answer a software vendor's survey, so treat them as a picture of engaged, software-using companies rather than the whole industry.
How many complaints and scams involve moving companies?
Tens of thousands over five years, and hostage loads rose sharply after 2019. GAO counted 30,560 complaints against moving companies in FMCSA's National Consumer Complaint Database from 2017 to 2021, 26,897 of them from consumers (GAO). Of the consumer complaints, 4,528 alleged that goods were held hostage (GAO), or 16.8% (our calculation). FMCSA's own figures show household goods hostage complaints rising from 503 in 2019 (FMCSA) to 3,198 in 2022 (FMCSA), about 6.4 times as many (our calculation). FMCSA reported that total household goods complaints peaked in 2021, hostage complaints in 2022, and that hostage complaints were still 27.90% of household goods complaints in January-May 2024 (FMCSA).
FMCSA answered with targeted sweeps. Its 2023 Operation Protect Your Move, announced April 4, 2023 as a response to the rise in hostage complaints (FMCSA), targeted 142 carriers and brokers, led by New Jersey and Florida (FMCSA), and addressed 494 complaints through 97 investigations (FMCSA); FMCSA described it as more than 100 investigations across 16 states (FMCSA). The 2024 sweep targeted 78 carriers and brokers, Florida second with 12 (FMCSA), ran 62 investigations, addressed 380 complaints (FMCSA) and found 665 violations (FMCSA). Oversight has long been thin: in 2009 GAO reported FMCSA had 14 of its 1,100 staff on household goods (GAO), and in 2008 FMCSA ran 630 household goods reviews (GAO). In 2023 GAO made 14 recommendations to improve FMCSA's complaint process (GAO).
The Better Business Bureau counts differently, and its own numbers disagree across years. BBB reported 10,132 complaints about movers in the U.S. and Canada in 2019 (BBB). A Florida Senate staff analysis, citing an earlier version of a BBB page, said nearly 15,198 complaints were filed with BBB against movers in 2022 (Florida Senate); BBB's current page says 718 complaints were filed against movers in 2024 (BBB). The two cannot both describe the same count, so we show both and draw no trend. People who reported moving scams to BBB Scam Tracker in 2024 lost a median $754 (BBB), and at least 1,335 movers held an F rating (BBB). BBB's 2020 study, citing FMCSA, said 57% of FMCSA's 4,780 complaints in 2019 involved overcharging (BBB).
Complaints against movers, by counter
Count
Period
FMCSA complaint database, all moving-company complaints (GAO)
What rules do movers have to follow on estimates and ads?
For interstate moves, federal rules set what an estimate means. A binding estimate guarantees the price and must meet 11 listed requirements (FMCSA, 49 CFR 375.403). On a non-binding estimate, the mover must release the goods once the customer pays 110 percent of the estimate (FMCSA), and on a binding estimate it may demand at delivery the full estimate plus requested extras, but charges for impracticable operations may not exceed 15 percent of the other charges due (FMCSA). A mover may not impose a charge for a non-binding estimate (FMCSA). Arbitration must be binding for claims of $10,000 or less when the customer asks (FMCSA), and minimum full value protection is $6.00 per pound times the shipment weight (FMCSA). The required booklet "Your Rights and Responsibilities When You Move" tells customers the survey may be conducted on-site or virtually (FMCSA).
Advertising rules are short. Every ad by an interstate mover must show two elements: the mover's name and its U.S. DOT number (FMCSA). A mover with a website must link to the "Ready to Move?" brochure, FMCSA-ESA-03-005 (FMCSA).
Florida regulates moves within the state under chapter 507. Movers and moving brokers must register with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (507.03, Florida Statutes) for $300 a year (Florida Statutes), movers must carry at least $10,000 of liability insurance per shipment (Florida Statutes) and brokers a $50,000 bond (Florida Statutes). Section 507.05 requires a written estimate and contract before any work (Florida Statutes), and a broker may not give a verbal estimate (Florida Statutes). Refusing a police order to release goods once the customer has paid the estimate is a felony of the third degree (Florida Statutes).
What do the popular moving numbers really say?
Six numbers turn up again and again on moving company, moving software and marketing sites. We traced each one as far back as it goes.
"Americans move 11.7 times in their lives"
This is a real Census Bureau figure, but it is a 2007 calculation, not a survey answer. The Bureau's guidance page says a person can expect to move 11.7 times in a lifetime using 2007 American Community Survey rates, counting at most one move per year of age (U.S. Census Bureau), and that it does not collect lifetime moves directly; the figure is built from yearly mover rates the way life expectancy is built from death rates (U.S. Census Bureau). The same calculation gives an 18-year-old 9.1 more moves and a 45-year-old 2.7 (U.S. Census Bureau). The Bureau has published no newer value.
The variants come from one 2015 FiveThirtyEight article, which opened with 11.4 moves and then recomputed 11.3 from 2013 data (FiveThirtyEight, archived; FiveThirtyEight, archived). Movers repeat all of them: Shleppers credits 11.4 to "a Census Bureau survey" (Shleppers), moveBuddha prints 11.7 (moveBuddha), Square Cow Movers says "nearly 12" and, elsewhere on the same page, 11.7 from "migration expectancy data" (Square Cow Movers; Square Cow Movers), and Delaware Moving & Storage credits 11.7 to a moving app (Delaware Moving & Storage). Mover rates have fallen since 2007, so a recalculation would likely come out lower.
Use instead: the current yearly rate. The CPS found 8.7% of people moved in 2022, about 28.2 million (U.S. Census Bureau), after a record-low 8.4% in 2021 (U.S. Census Bureau); the ACS found 11.8% in 2024. The "40 million Americans move a year" that movers also repeat is closer to the ACS count than the CPS count.
"The average move costs $1,250 local and $4,890 long distance"
These numbers are usually credited to the American Moving and Storage Association. The oldest attribution we found credits Moving.com, a lead marketplace, instead: The Motley Fool in July 2022 gave $1,250 for a local move and $4,890 for a 1,000-mile move of a 2-3 bedroom home of about 7,500 pounds, citing Moving.com (The Motley Fool, archived). We could not find the pair on Moving.com's own pages. Aggregators now repeat it without a source ($4,890, WifiTalents) or credit a "2023 AMSA report" with $1,450 for a local move (ZipDo).
No 2023 AMSA report can exist: the American Trucking Associations voted on Aug 19, 2020 to fold the moving industry into ATA as its Moving & Storage Conference (American Trucking Associations). What AMSA did say, years earlier, was about $4,200 for a full-service interstate move, as NBC10 reported in 2009 (NBC10 Philadelphia); an undated repeat gives about $4,300 for 1,225 miles (Nanalyze). We could not retrieve AMSA's own wording: its archived fact pages load empty.
Use instead: no national average cost of a move is published by a neutral counter. For the direction of prices, use the BLS producer price index for moving, up 13.2 percent in the year to September 2026, and get written estimates.
"Moving is more stressful than divorce"
The original is a UK energy supplier's poll. E.ON's April 2015 release reported that 62% of 2,000 UK adults who had moved in the previous three years picked moving as their most stressful life event, against 43% for a break-up or divorce; respondents could pick more than one (E.ON, archived; E.ON, archived). News24 was still repeating the 62% as "more stressful than a divorce" in 2018 (News24). A 2020 U.S. version from North American Van Lines, a van line, had 45% for moving and 44% for divorce among 1,000 Americans who had moved in the past three years, a statistical tie (Fox News). A 2019 poll by estate agent Yopa had 40% against 34% (Real Homes), and in 2022 Move.org found 38% rated moving worse than a breakup (NAR).
The evidence runs the other way too. Which?'s 2015 survey of 1,990 recent UK movers rated divorce the most stressful of ten events, at 78% (The Negotiator), and the 1967 Holmes and Rahe scale scores a change of residence at 20 life-change units against 73 for divorce (American Institute of Stress; American Institute of Stress).
Use instead: "most people find moving stressful": in HireAHelper's 2025 survey of more than 1,000 Americans, 55% rated it 7 or higher out of 10 (HireAHelper). HireAHelper sells moving labor.
"Half of all moves happen between Memorial Day and Labor Day"
U-Haul says roughly half of all U.S. residential moves happen between Memorial Day and Labor Day (U-Haul). It gives no source or method, and we found no federal series that measures moves by month. U-Haul's 10-K supports a weaker claim, that its own business is strongest in spring and summer.
Use instead: "moving is seasonal, peaking in summer", with U-Haul's filing as the source.
"70% of people pick their mover straight from Google Maps"
This appears in SmartMoving's moving-leads playbook as 70% with no citation (SmartMoving); we found no study behind it. SmartMoving's own customer survey points elsewhere: its moving companies name referrals, not Google, as the top lead source. In This Old House's 2026 survey of people who used movers, 50% researched through search engines.
Use instead: the This Old House shares for search, websites and reviews, with their sample.
"Video lifts conversions by 80%"
Video producers tell moving companies to expect landing page conversions to rise by up to 80% (Beverly Boy Productions), and a referral-software blog says animated videos lift them at least 20% without a source (Referral Rock). The 80% traces to a November 2009 blog post by video ad company EyeView about one client's first test (EyeView, archived: "over 80 percent"); its 2010 white paper said "in some cases" over 80% (EyeView, archived), and Unbounce turned it into a general rule the same year (80%, Unbounce, archived). We have traced this claim on earlier pages too.
Use instead: a test on your own pages. The one published moving-company test we found was not about video: Harrington Movers raised conversions 45.45% by replacing a stock photo with a photo of its own crew (VWO).
We started from the questions people search for about moving company video statistics and looked for the organization that actually produced each answer. Every figure on this page sits in an evidence ledger with its source, the exact table or paragraph it came from, the measurement period, the population measured, and the date we checked it. This edition holds 348 figures from 42 publishers.
On November 2, 2026, each sourced figure on this page was re-fetched with the fetch cache cleared and matched against the recorded wording: BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages open data, Current Employment Statistics, producer and consumer price indexes and Employment Projections (data.bls.gov); Census County Business Patterns and the 2022 Economic Census (through the Census data API), Census mobility releases, stories and reports, and population estimates; Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies, the National Association of REALTORS and Federal Reserve Board research; U-Haul Holding Company's 10-K filings and U-Haul releases, SIRVA's 2015 registration statement, and the van lines' and franchisors' own pages; 49 CFR Part 375 on the eCFR, the Federal Register, FMCSA reports (some through Internet Archive copies, because fmcsa.dot.gov refuses automated requests), GAO reports, Florida Statutes chapter 507 and Florida Senate staff analyses, and the Better Business Bureau; survey owners' own reports (SmartMoving, This Old House, Angi, Mayflower, United Van Lines, Atlas, Yembo, HireAHelper); and the pages behind each popular claim. The homepage figures are our own measurement on the same day. We left out BLS occupation wage estimates for truck transportation (the BLS data API's daily limit was reached before they could be re-checked), Census mover rates after 2022 (published only as spreadsheets), Nonemployer Statistics (not published for moving alone), franchise disclosure documents (state registries require a search form), survey results we could read only in a news report (North American Van Lines 2026, Relocation.com 2008), and any figure from a gated source.
We only cite the producer: government agencies, regulators, company filings and official posts, and the survey owner's own report. We do not cite statistics roundups, Statista-style aggregators, or salary sites without a public method. We did not bypass paywalls or sign-up forms; where a full report was gated, we used only the figures its publisher states publicly.
Figures marked "our calculation" are arithmetic on the cited numbers, and anyone can reproduce them:
56 / 187 readable homepages with video_player = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: video player: a <video> element or player iframe/placeholder (YouTube, Vimeo, Wistia, Vidyard, Brightcove, Loom, Facebook video ...) at least 150x80 px, or a labelled click-to-play control or hidden player embed
32 / 187 readable homepages with video_self_hosted = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: video player that is a native <video> element (file served by the site or its site builder/CDN, incl. background videos)
22 / 187 readable homepages with video_embedded = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: video player from a third-party host (YouTube, Vimeo, Wistia, Facebook, TikTok ...)
18 / 187 readable homepages with youtube_player = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: a YouTube player (iframe, lite-youtube placeholder, lightbox embed link or hidden embed)
43 / 187 readable homepages with youtube_channel_link = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: link to a YouTube channel or handle (not a single video; template placeholders excluded)
98 / 187 readable homepages with instagram_link = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: link to an Instagram profile (template placeholders excluded)
14 / 187 readable homepages with virtual_survey_or_estimate = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: virtual or video survey/estimate offered: virtual (in-home/video/moving) survey, estimate, quote, walk-through, tour, consultation, assessment or inventory; video survey/estimate/quote/walk-through/call/chat/consultation; FaceTime, Zoom, Skype, Google Meet, WhatsApp, Teams, video call or video chat within a few words of estimate/survey/quote/walk-through, or the reverse; contactless estimate; "in person or virtually"; video/virtual and in-home/on-site estimates (also read from the in-home and free-estimate snippets)in the page text (virtual assistant/reality/office and virtual tours excluded); a link labelled or pathed virtual/video survey or estimate; or a request to the Yembo virtual-survey service while the page loaded
20 / 187 readable homepages with in_home_estimate = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: in-home or on-site estimate, survey, consultation, walk-through, assessment, quote or visit; physical/visual/home survey; an estimator who visits in the page text (negated statements such as "no in-home visit needed" excluded), or a link labelled or pathed in-home/on-site estimate
146 / 187 readable homepages with free_estimate = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: free/complimentary/no-cost (no-obligation, in-home, virtual, moving ...) estimate, quote, survey, walk-through, inspection, assessment, consultation or bid offered in the page text, a button or a link
150 / 187 readable homepages with quote_or_estimate_request = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: quote or estimate request: a button or link labelled get/request/schedule/book a (free) quote/estimate/bid/consultation or free/instant quote or estimate, or a /quote, /estimate or request-a-quote URL path (not tel:/mailto:, not labels starting "Call")
127 / 187 readable homepages with online_form = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: an online form on the homepage: a non-search <form> with at least 2 visible fields, or 1 visible email/phone/message field, or an embedded third-party form or quote/booking widget (HubSpot, JotForm, GoHighLevel/LeadConnector form, Typeform, SmartMoving, Supermove, MoveitPro, Elromco, Granot, Housecall Pro, Jobber, ServiceTitan ...); tel: and mailto: links never count
17 / 187 readable homepages with online_booking_any = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: an online booking widget as above, or a button or link labelled book/schedule online/now/service/an appointment/a visit, or make/request/set an appointment (not tel:/mailto:, not labels starting "Call"); the control may open a booking widget or a request form
82 / 187 readable homepages with usdot_number_shown = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: a USDOT number shown in the page text: USDOT, US DOT, U.S. DOT or DOT (upper case), optionally #/No./number, followed by 5-8 digits (a state DOT number such as "MN DOT #" or "NYS DOT #" alone does not count)
47 / 187 readable homepages with mc_number_shown = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: an MC (FMCSA operating authority) number shown in the page text: MC, M.C. or ICC MC (upper case), optionally #/No./number/dash, followed by 5-8 digits
9 / 187 readable homepages with florida_im_number_shown = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: a Florida mover registration number shown in the page text: IM (upper case) followed by 3-5 digits
104 / 187 readable homepages with licensed_and_insured = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: "licensed and insured" in the page text, including "licensed, bonded and insured", "licensed & insured", "licensed/insured", "insured and licensed"
150 / 187 readable homepages with local_moving_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: local moves/moving/movers/relocation or in-town/in-state/intrastate/across-town moves in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed local moving
141 / 187 readable homepages with long_distance_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: long-distance, cross-country or out-of-state moves/moving/movers/relocation in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed so
59 / 187 readable homepages with interstate_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: "interstate" or state-to-state in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed so
35 / 187 readable homepages with international_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: international moves/moving/movers/relocation/shipping or overseas moves/shipping, or moving abroad/overseas/internationally in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed international moving / overseas
168 / 187 readable homepages with packing_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: packing services/supplies/materials/crews, full-service packing, pack and unpack/move/load, professional packing or packers, unpacking or crating in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed packing
150 / 187 readable homepages with storage_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: "storage" or warehouse/warehousing in the page text (cookie/browser/data storage excluded), or a link labelled or pathed storage
160 / 187 readable homepages with commercial_office_moving_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: commercial, office, business, corporate, workplace, retail, industrial, school, hospital, lab or data-center moves/moving/relocation in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed commercial/office moving
119 / 187 readable homepages with piano_specialty_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: piano(s), gun safes or safe moving, antiques, fine art, specialty items/moving, hot tubs, pool tables or grandfather clocks in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed so
44 / 187 readable homepages with junk_removal_mention = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: junk removal/hauling/pickup, haul away/off, debris removal, "junk" or clean-outs in the page text, or a link labelled or pathed junk / haul-away / clean-out
157 / 187 readable homepages with reviews_testimonials = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: testimonials or reviews shown: page text with testimonials, customer reviews or stories, "what our customers say", Google reviews, star ratings or review counts; a link labelled testimonials/reviews or to a /testimonials or /reviews path; or a review-widget request (Birdeye, Podium, Elfsight, Trustindex, NearbyNow ...)
57 / 187 readable homepages with careers_or_hiring = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: link labelled careers, jobs, join our team/crew, now hiring, employment, open positions, drivers/movers/crew/packers/helpers/owner-operators wanted, drive with us, become a mover/driver, hiring or apply now, or a link to a /careers, /jobs, /employment, /join-our-team, /now-hiring, /drivers-wanted or /drive-for-us path; or page text with drivers/movers/crew/packers/helpers wanted or needed, now hiring, we're hiring, hiring drivers/crew/packers/helpers, CDL or become a mover
36 / 187 readable homepages with dollar_amount_shown = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: a dollar amount shown in the page text ($ followed by digits: hourly rates, flat prices, minimums, coupons) excluding amounts in an insurance/liability/bond/coverage, tax credit/rebate, revenue, wage/pay/earn/hiring/CDL or $0 context and amounts followed by million/billion/k
15 / 187 readable homepages with hourly_rate_shown = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: an hourly or per-mover rate shown in the page text: $N per/an/a/each hour or /hr or man-hour, or $N per mover/man/crew, excluding wage/pay/hiring and tipping contexts
30 / 187 readable homepages with chat_widget = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: a live-chat or web-chat widget: a network request to a chat vendor (Podium, Birdeye webchat, GoHighLevel/LeadConnector widgets, HubSpot chat, Intercom, Drift, Tawk.to, LiveChat, Tidio, Crisp, ApexChat, Ngage ...) or a chat-widget element on the page (form iframes excluded)
12 / 187 readable homepages with van_line_agent = true (or non-empty) in homepages.csv; rule: van-line affiliation shown (the van lines' own sites excluded): a van line (Allied, North American, Mayflower, United, Atlas, Bekins, Wheaton, Arpin, Graebel, Suddath, SIRVA, UniGroup, National, Stevens) named next to agent/agency/affiliate/interline/partner/member/representative/authorized/official/proud/family/network in the page text, or a van-line badge image whose alt text or file name says agent/logo/affiliate/partner
87 / 187 readable rows with usdot_number_shown = true or mc_number_shown = true; rules: a USDOT number shown in the page text: USDOT, US DOT, U.S. DOT or DOT (upper case), optionally #/No./number, followed by 5-8 digits (a state DOT number such as "MN DOT #" or "NYS DOT #" alone does not count); an MC (FMCSA operating authority) number shown in the page text: MC, M.C. or ICC MC (upper case), optionally #/No./number/dash, followed by 5-8 digits
7 / 18 readable rows with state = FL and florida_im_number_shown = true in homepages.csv; rule: a Florida mover registration number shown in the page text: IM (upper case) followed by 3-5 digits
This edition contains no Mark Studios customer data.
Limitations
Nobody counts mover video. No neutral survey owner publishes how many moving companies make video or what it does for them. Our homepage read measures whether a player or a video survey offer is present, not what it achieves.
The marketing surveys come from a software vendor. SmartMoving sells software to movers and surveys movers who choose to answer; it publishes no field dates. The consumer surveys (This Old House, Angi, Mayflower) come from companies that earn from movers.
The homepage sample comes from OpenStreetMap. Volunteers map businesses unevenly; the 291 hosts are those with a website tag, and franchise systems count once per website. Shares from 187 sites carry a margin of about plus or minus 7 points.
Federal counts mix office and household moves. NAICS 484210 covers used household and office goods moving, and its counts include local, long-distance and corporate relocation work.
Complaint counts are not comparable. FMCSA, GAO and BBB count different things over different periods, and BBB's own figures for movers disagree across years.
How to cite this page
For a single figure, cite the original publisher named next to it, and link here if the verification trail is useful to your readers. Each figure has its own anchor, so you can link straight to it, for example https://www.markstudios.com/research/moving-company-video-statistics#DRV-003. To cite the page as a whole:
Mark Studios. "Moving Company Video Statistics." Last verified Nov 2, 2026. https://www.markstudios.com/research/moving-company-video-statistics
APA
Mark Studios. (2026, November 2). Moving company video statistics. https://www.markstudios.com/research/moving-company-video-statistics
MLA
“Moving Company Video Statistics.” Mark Studios, 2 Nov. 2026, www.markstudios.com/research/moving-company-video-statistics.
Chicago
Mark Studios. “Moving Company Video Statistics.” Last modified November 2, 2026. https://www.markstudios.com/research/moving-company-video-statistics.
BibTeX
@misc{markstudios_moving_company_video_statistics_2026,
author = {{Mark Studios}},
title = {{Moving Company Video Statistics}},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
url = {https://www.markstudios.com/research/moving-company-video-statistics},
note = {Last verified 2026-11-02}
}
Our calculations and the evidence table are free to reuse with attribution and a link to this page. Each underlying figure remains the claim of its original publisher, and some publishers ask for a link when their figures are reused.
We re-verify every figure quarterly and when a major source publishes a new edition. The next scheduled review is February 2027. Corrections go to contact@markstudios.com.
Nov 2, 2026: First published with 348 figures from 42 publishers, each checked against its original source.
Frequently asked questions
How many moving companies are there in the U.S.?
BLS counted an annual average of 9,736 private used household and office goods moving establishments in 2025, employing 91,247 people. FMCSA counted 4,297 active interstate household goods carriers in 2019.
Can a moving company give an estimate from a video?
Yes, for interstate moves. Since June 27, 2022, federal rules let a mover base its estimate on a virtual survey using live or pre-recorded video, as long as the mover can see the goods.
How many moving companies use video marketing?
In our November 2026 read of 187 U.S. moving company homepages, 29.9% showed a video player and 23.0% linked to a YouTube channel. In SmartMoving's 2026 vendor survey, 18% of movers said they were active on YouTube.
How many Americans move each year?
About 28.2 million people moved in 2022 by the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey, a mover rate of 8.7%. The American Community Survey, which asks differently, found 11.8% in 2024.
How much do movers make?
Average annual pay at U.S. moving companies was $51,151 in 2025 (BLS QCEW), and all employees averaged $31.04 an hour in August 2026 (preliminary).
Do people really move 11.7 times in their lives?
The 11.7 is a Census Bureau calculation from 2007 American Community Survey rates, not a count. The Bureau says it does not collect lifetime moves, and mover rates have fallen since.
How common are moving scams?
GAO counted 30,560 complaints against moving companies in FMCSA's database from 2017 to 2021, 4,528 of them alleging goods held hostage. People who reported moving scams to BBB in 2024 lost a median $754.
