It’s a well-known fact that packing for moving is extremely laborious and time-consuming. But how time-consuming exactly? How long does it take to pack for a move?
Obviously, the answer varies depending on a number of factors – the size of the move, the available packing help, the speed of packing, etc.
Having a general idea of how long it takes to pack a house, however, can help you plan things out – you will know approximately how much time you’ll need to pack your belongings, so, considering how many hours a day you can dedicate to packing, you’ll be able to determine whether you can manage by yourself or need packing help, how early you need to start packing, and how you should organize the packing tasks. You’ll be able to create an efficient packing calendar, arrange for packing help (if needed), and ensure that everything is ready in time.
So, how long does it take to pack for moving? Let’s take a look at the factors that affect the amount of time required to pack for a move and see how long it usually takes to pack up a house.
Affecting factors
The time to pack up a home for moving varies in a wide range depending on the specific circumstances in each relocation case:
How many items you have for moving
Needless to say, larger homes take longer to pack than smaller ones – you can box up the contents of a one-bedroom apartment much faster than you can pack the contents of a four-bedroom house, of course.
Yet, it’s not just the size of the home that matters – whether the home is rented or owned, how many people live in it, what their lifestyle is, and whether they want to keep their possessions or replace them after the move will also make a big difference:
- When moving out of a rental property, you won’t have as many items to relocate as when moving out of a home you’ve owned for many years – so packing will take less time;
- When moving out of your parents’ house, you won’t have many (if any) larger household items to pack – so packing will take less time;
- If you want to leave your old items behind and buy new things for your new home, you won’t be moving too much stuff – so packing will take less time;
- If you’ve embraced a minimalist lifestyle, you won’t have too many belongings – so packing will take less time;
- If you have many hobbies or don’t like to throw things away, you’ll have a lot of things – so packing will take longer;
- If you have a large family, there will be a lot of stuff to relocate – so packing will take longer.
In a word – how long it will take you to pack for moving will depend on the number of items you have for moving.
What type of items you’re moving
It’s no secret that some things are more difficult to pack than others:
- Fragile items, delicate items, and sensitive items are very susceptible to damage, so they need to be packed with ultimate care;
- Oddly-shaped items don’t fit in standard packing boxes, so they take more effort to pack;
- Large and heavy items are difficult to handle, so they too take more effort to pack;
- Specialty items require special packing care; etc.
And the more effort and care is needed to pack an item, the more time-consuming the packing task becomes.
Therefore, if you have a lot of difficult-to-pack items, packing will take longer.
See also: Packing tips for moving
How organized you are
Proper organization will allow you to save a lot of time when packing for a move:
- If you have a good packing strategy, you’ll be able to work in an efficient and organized manner – the packing process will be streamlined and will go faster;
- If you have the right packing supplies for the job (and enough of them), packing will require less effort and will, therefore, take less time (and you won’t be wasting precious time running to the store for more packing supplies);
- If you keep your items well organized, they will be easier – and faster – to pack;
- If you’re focused on the task, you’ll work faster.
If you want to make unpacking faster, though, you’ll need to take some extra time when packing – organizing your things in a meaningful way, labeling the moving boxes in detail, etc.
Good to know: How much packing experience you have will also affect the amount of time you’ll need to pack up your house – the more experienced you’re, the faster the packing process will go (as you’ll know exactly what to do and how to do it).
What kind of moving services you’re using
Depending on the level of professional help you’ve requested for your move, the packing job may take from several hours to several weeks:
1) If you’ve opted for a full-service move – or requested full packing services – the pros will pack up your home for you. You’ll only need to pack the essentials and valuables you intend to take with you, so you’ll be able to complete the task within several hours. (See also: What items to move yourself)
2) If you’re using partial packing services, the experts will only take care of the items you’ve requested them to. It will be up to you to pack most of your belongings, so packing will take quite some time. (See also: What items not to pack yourself when moving)
3) If you’ve hired professional movers to transport your items to your new home, but decided to do the packing yourself, you will need to dedicate a lot of time to the job.
4) If you’ve opted for a self-move, you’ll have to manage on your own – so, you’ll need to start packing well in advance, as you’ll have a lot of work to do and probably won’t be able to pack more than a couple of boxes a day.
Whether you have packing help or not
If you have someone to help you pack – family members, friends, etc. – the job will take less time than it will when you do it on your own. The more helping hands there are, the faster things will go, so the number of people involved in the job will also influence the amount of time it will take to pack for a move.
You can get your family to help you (your partner, your children (if they’re old enough), your parents (if you’re moving out of their house), or any other family members who are able and willing to give you a hand) or reach out to your friends (throw a packing party, so you can have some fun with your pals while getting your stuff ready for moving, or just ask a couple of reliable friends to come help you for a few hours every day during the last week prior to your move).
So, all things considered, the amount of time required to pack for moving will vary greatly from one move to another and from one person to the next. Yet, considering that it takes a non-professional about 30 minutes to pack one moving box, it’s possible to estimate the average time to pack up a home for moving.
How long does it take to pack a house?
As a rule of thumb, if you’re packing by yourself, you’ll need at least one day per room – assuming that you dedicate the entire day to packing, with only a few short breaks.
Considering that heavily furnished rooms, like the kitchen, take about twice as much time to pack, you can easily calculate approximately how long it will take you to pack your home for moving – 2 days for a one-bedroom apartment, 3-4 days for a two-bedroom home, 4-5 days for a three-bedroom house, 5-6 days for a four-bedroom house, etc. (add an extra day for each storage area in your home – basements, attics, garages, and other storage rooms are usually cluttered with things, so they take a lot of time to pack).
More accurately put, based on the size of the home, it generally takes about:
- 12-20 hours to pack a studio or one-bedroom apartment;
- 24-35 hours to pack a two-bedroom home (you may be able to pack a two-bedroom apartment in about 16-24 hours, but a two-bedroom house may take much longer as it may include an attic, basement, or garage);
- 35-50 hours to pack a typical three-bedroom home;
- 50-65 hours to pack a four-bedroom house.
If you have a lot of things, however, or don’t have much packing experience, it may take you double or even triple that time to finish packing. (See also: How to pack for a move quickly)
Good to know: How long before moving should you start packing?
Even if you can pack up your home in several days, you’re strongly advised not to wait until the last week before your move to start packing. A packing marathon right before moving day will put your items at risk (as you won’t have the time to pack them carefully enough) and will cause you a lot of stress (as you won’t be sure if you’ll manage to get everything ready in time).
Therefore, it’s recommended to start preparing your items for moving well in advance – a month or so before your move. This way, you’ll have plenty of time and will be able to work at your own pace, think things through, avoid rookie mistakes, and provide your belongings with the best protection possible. Packing will be less exhausting and less stressful and your items will have a better chance to survive the relocation intact and unscathed.
See also: Packing timeline for moving
How long does it take movers to pack a house?
As much as you may prefer to pack your items yourself, if time is of the essence, you should consider using professional packing services. The pros can get the job done in a fraction of the time it will take you to do it on your own – they have the technical know-how, expert skill, rich experience, and specialized supplies to pack your belongings in the safest and fastest way possible.
It takes professional movers and packers about:
- 2-4 hours to pack a studio or one-bedroom apartment (a crew of two experienced professionals);
- 3-5 hours to pack a two-bedroom apartment (up to 6 hours for a two-bedroom house) (a crew of two experienced professionals);
- 6-8 hours to pack a three-bedroom home (a crew of three experienced professionals);
- 8-10 hours to pack a four-bedroom house (a crew of three experienced professionals).
Of course, if you have a lot of specialty items that need special care to be safely packed for moving, the pros will need a bit more time to complete the packing job.
Related: How much does it cost to hire packers
Whether you choose to hire professionals or to pack on your own, make sure you sort out your items first and get rid of everything you don’t need or don’t like – this will not only speed up the packing process, but will also make your move cheaper and easier. Good luck with your relocation!
