Moving from one home to another is a rather stressful period that’s often filled with a myriad of tough questions and suspenseful uncertainties.
Interestingly enough, there are a couple of questions that seem to worry (almost) everyone who’s decided to do the sensible thing and hire a top-rated moving company to help them move their belongings between the two homes:
Should you tip your movers? And if yes, how much to tip movers?
How much you should tip movers is a delicate matter: on one hand, you don’t want to look cheap or unappreciative of the hard work your movers did, but then you would not want to over-tip your hired workers either because for you, just like millions of fellow countrymen who move house each year, every dollar counts.
Your movers wouldn’t really mind getting bigger tips than they usually receive, but after all, it’s your hard-earned money, and besides, you’re most probably moving on a tight budget as it is.
The following guide to tipping movers will provide the right answers to the puzzling questions:
Are you supposed to tip movers? And what’s a proper amount to tip movers?
Do you have to tip your movers?
Let’s get this straight: tipping residential movers is not something you should feel obliged to do. Based on the quality of the move, the (professional) attitude of the hired workers, and the number of items that remain intact at the end of the day, you get to decide whether to tip your moving crew members or not.
Wait a minute! Why should you tip your movers when they already get paid by the moving company they work for? What an interesting question! Well, that’s true, but then again – why do you bother tipping waiters or waitresses, cab drivers, plumbers, restaurant or hotel valets or bellhops who happen to provide a good service? Isn’t tipping a good way to show whoever is employed in the service industry that they are doing a great job and should continue to do so?
Moving companies are in the service industry and tipping is a standard way to show your gratitude. Thus said, in no way should tipping your movers be considered something that you have to do. While a lot of people get genuinely worried about whether they should tip their movers or not at the end of the move, the answer cannot be any simpler than that: just ask yourself if you’re happy with the moving service you just received. It’s that simple.
Here are a few pointers to help you make up your mind about whether your movers deserve to be tipped or not:
Have your packers and movers arrived on time?
Have your hired workers been nice, friendly, and sociable, or maybe rude, cold, and disrespectful?
Have your movers acted in a professional way from the moment they stepped inside your home?
Have your packers and movers treated your possessions with care and attention? You can tell a lot about the quality of the service you’re paying for by merely observing from a distance how your moving crew goes about handling your household items.
Have your movers done what is necessary to avoid property damage?
Have your hired professionals worked hard from start to finish, or have they tried, on numerous occasions, to deliberately extend the time they need to finish the job through frequent cigarette or bathroom breaks, or by using other dishonest and disrespectful time-wasting tricks? This is especially true for local moves where you get charged by the hour.
In movers we trust. Or do we?
Of course, there are other good indicators that will let you decide whether your movers deserve tips or not. By the time your moving experts are done, you should know perfectly well what to do. Just remember that you are under no obligation whatsoever to reward your movers if they have not done their work like true moving professionals.
Is it rude not to tip movers? No, it isn’t. Things have a funny way of balancing themselves out – professional movers should automatically know just how well they did their job, so they can often sense whether a generous tip, a standard tip or no tip at all is coming their way even before you do.
In case you did your homework right, spared a bit of time for a little research on a few top-rated moving companies, and chose an established mover with an impeccable reputation, then you shouldn’t find yourself in any unpleasant no-tip situations. On the contrary, you should find yourself gladly tipping each individual worker to show your appreciation for their hard work and professional attitude throughout the move.
But just how much to tip household movers? Read on to find out.
Here’s the best answer to the question that might have been bothering you for some time: how much to tip your movers should be based entirely on their job performance, your level of satisfaction, and your budget. In other words, use your best judgment under the presented circumstances to come up with the proper amount to tip movers.
Tip your movers what you believe is fair:
bigger tips if they really did an outstanding job or had to work under tougher conditions (long flights of stairs, narrow corridors, heavy and huge furniture pieces, etc.),
standard tips if they did a good job protecting, carrying, and loading your household items with care,
no tips at all if they did a poor job, damaged some of your belongings, or had a rude or disrespectful attitude.
How much should you tip movers? See the standard tipping amounts below.
How much to tip local movers?
One thing is clear – you will hear various pieces of advice on how much to tip movers. Unlike most industries in the service sector, tips based on percentages won’t work well in the moving industry. For example, the standard tipping practice in restaurants is 15-20% of the final bill.
However, should you tip your movers 20% of your final moving bill, you might be okay with the tipping amount but you might also be giving your hired crew a fortune depending on just how much your final bill turns out to be.
Here’s a universal tipping formula that will help you know how much to tip movers when you’re moving short distance:
If your movers do a satisfactory job, consider tipping them $4-$5/hour per mover. For instance, if a team of 3 local movers works 8 hours to complete your short-distance move, then you will end up tipping each mover $40/day which is a decent, appropriate, and pretty standard tip for movers.
If your movers do an outstanding job and you’re very happy with the way they handled your move, then you may be willing to reward their efforts in the range of $6-$7/hour per mover, or even $8/hour per mover. Again, use your best judgment to determine how much the tip should be.
How much to tip long-distance movers?
Don’t forget to prepare tipping money in 10- or 20-dollar bills so that you can reward each mover individually.
If you’re moving long distance and you’re thinking of tipping your movers based on a percentage of your final moving bill, you might want to reconsider.
The average moving cost of an interstate move is around $4,300, so if you decide to reward your cross-country movers with tips of about 20%, then, well, you can do the math. In order to earn such astronomical tips, your movers must have really had superpowers or something!
What’s more, tipping on long-distance moves can be much more confusing because you may get two sets of movers: 1) the movers who will load the truck at your current home and 2) the movers who will actually drive the truck across the country to your new home and unload your stuff at the new address.
Do you tip movers on both ends?
Sometimes only one crew of professional movers completes the two-stage long-distance move. So, what do you do? Your best bet is to call up the main office of the moving company and find out how many crews will be handling your move – one or two.
How much do you tip movers for a long-distance move? Forget about percentage-based tipping.
Instead, use the universal tipping formula above: a good amount to tip long-distance movers is around $5/hour per mover if they do a satisfactory job, or you can round up the tip to $40/day per mover.
Of course, you can always add a bit more cash if you can afford it and you’re more than satisfied with their services.
Now that you can recognize when the professional furniture movers in your home deserve to be tipped for their service or not, let’s go through the proper way to tip movers. Although tipping movers is pretty easy and straightforward, there are still a few things to keep in mind to thank your moving crew the right way.
Give your movers a bit of an incentive [It works!]
In the best-case scenario, the packers and movers who have arrived at your home will earn their rightful tips by working quickly, safely, and efficiently from start to finish. But even if you’re lucky enough to have hired such a hard-working crew, it won’t hurt to encourage your movers to do their best by informing them in advance that good tips will be waiting for them at the end provided that they do their jobs the way they’re supposed to.
In fact, this powerful tactical move in the form of an added incentive has proven to boost the productivity and efficiency of professional movers for obvious reasons. Of course, once your hired men do their job admirably, you should live up to your promise and reward their genuine efforts.
When do you tip movers? [Timing is important.]
It seems like your move is drawing to an end. What’s your verdict: generous tips, standard tips, or no tips at all?
If you’ve decided to tip your movers, then it’s important that you get the timing right. As discussed above, you may want to encourage your crew to work harder by promising tips at the end of the move provided that they do a good job.
In addition to your verbal assurance, you could also hand a $10 bill to each worker to let them know that you’re serious about tipping them. The chances are great that they will get serious about being tipped too.
However, if that initial tipping makes you nervous or if you don’t think it’s a good idea, then stick to the general unwritten rule that says that you should tip your moving team only after they’ve completed the job – that is, when they have delivered your boxes and furniture pieces and taken them inside your home. If you’ve opted for the extra service of unpacking, then you should hand out the tips after they’re done with it too.
First of all, make sure all of your possessions are accounted for, and that they are all in good shape. Then, sign your final paperwork, and only then should you take out your wallet to reward each mover individually.
Know in advance who to tip [Avoid awkward moments!]
There’s always one person who is in charge of the crew of packers and movers – the foreman. The foreman, who sometimes happens to be the moving truck driver, is the individual you should go to if any problems or misunderstandings arise during the household move. Provided that you’re happy with the way your movers handled the entire job, then it’s only natural that you would consider tipping your house movers.
According to the unofficial and unwritten tipping etiquette for movers, you are expected to tip each mover individually according to their level of service, professional attitude, and general performance. Be sure to prepare separate tipping money in advance as that will show your appreciation towards their individual efforts.
Don’t make the mistake of giving the entire sum to the foreman or the driver!
If you’re wondering why that could prove to be a mistake, then keep in mind that some not-so-honest foremen might simply forget to share the tipping money among the crew members and keep the money to themselves.
It’s not only about money [Are you serious?]
It’s not always about money, is it? Tipping your movers is one thing, but there are other good ways to show your movers that you’re a good host and that you appreciate the quality moving service they provide.
Remember that your moving crew does not consist of charged robots unfamiliar with the concepts of fatigue, thirst, or hunger. Sooner or later, the strangers in your own home will start to tire, they will get thirsty and hungry, and their work efficiency will drop as a result.
Nobody is blessed with limitless energy – not even the top-rated professional movers who are currently packing and moving your household items. Sometimes playing the role of a considerable host can mean more to your hired professionals than any monetary tips you offer them at the end of the day.
How to treat movers? To motivate the moving experts you’ve hired for the job and to keep their morale and energy level high enough throughout the house move,
Offering cash tips to your movers for a job well done is always appreciated but there are other ways you can thank your moving crew: leave a positive review about their outstanding service.
offer refreshing beverages to your workers: cold drinking water or sodas during the summer period, and tea, coffee, or hot chocolate during the winter. Stick to non-alcoholic drinks as most moving companies have a policy against their moving crews drinking alcohol before, during, or after a job is completed.
If the move is bound to take many hours to complete, offer your professional helpers snacks, sandwiches, or even think about treating them to pizza for lunch. Or, considering how often they get offered pizza, maybe you are willing to ask them what they would like to have for lunch to renew their energy?
Get a bathroom ready for them and make sure it’s equipped with enough liquid soap and disposable paper towels.
Finally, if you’re satisfied with the moving company you’ve chosen and the way the professional workers handled your household move from Day 1, then do find 10 minutes in your busy schedule to do them a huge favor: to share the successful partnership with the world by writing a moving review about the quality services of your mover.
It’s never a bad idea to ask the names of the professional helpers who you noticed to work the hardest, and then to praise their commendable efforts by mentioning their individual names in the moving review – you can be sure that they will appreciate it.
Follow the tips of the above guide on tipping professionals and your movers will appreciate the gesture by putting even more effort into their work. Ultimately, your goal is to reach a win-win situation where both parties of the relocation job benefit from two-thirds of professional obligations and one-third of goodwill, understanding, and mutual respect.
Tipping your movers is highly depending on the work process, work time and place where the work is implemented. Different moving companies charge different amount of money from their clients and tipping your movers is extra charges you are paying to movers which is certainly out of contract thing. But after seeing the good indication of work, you may give tip according to your standard.
How did wait staff come up? But since they did, one thing MOST people do not realize is wait staff have to do is pay taxes based off of their sales. So if their customers do not tip them appropriately they can actually end up paying for you to eat in their section. Which is why, until the way they are paid is changed, we as their customers ARE obligated to tip appropriately. Easiest way to do it is to take the sales tax and double it and work up or down from there depending on how much the sales tax is in your state.
Comparing waitstaff and movers is like comparing apples & oranges
I’d like to comment that movers do not make much money.Most movers typically make a little more than minimum wage at best.Also , the heaviest thing your waitress is gonna carry is probably is your plate of food while your mover has to carry your furniture up and down stairs while protecting your furniture and walls.It is by far the hardest job of all blue collar work.I know this as fact……..I was a mover for over a decade when I was younger till the physical toll started to take a toll on my body.
I really appreciate your advice to provide food like pizza or sandwiches to a team of movers if your move is probably going to take a while. My husband and I think that our move from our apartment to our new home will take at least 6 hours. It would be really great to hire a moving service because I think they would help make our move faster and less stressful. We’ll start looking into a residential moving service in our area.
Best ever blog out of many I have a read-through. It not only shows the talent of the writers, but their way of writing enables the readers to understand completely about the service.
I appreciate your tips on knowing when to tip movers or not. I like how you said it can be as simple as were you satisfied with their service or not. I will keep these tips in mind.
I guess in America everyone expects to be tipped for things that suppose to be done and paid for by the company. The article mentioned “wait staff”, “hotel staff”, etc. I stopped believing in tipping anyone who works a regular job. Restaurants is because they mainly work off tips due to the $2 a hour pay.
But the moving company I hired is charging $170 an hour for 3 people. So if each gets paid $25 per hour it is still above min wage and the company makes out big time. So why should I tip again for a mover?
If that is the case you should tip everyone that does any type of work, if you buy your TV at Walmart, are they entitled for a tip? I personally think that most have their hand out, if you don’t like your job, get another. I don’t mind tipping but if companies charge outrageous prices I would assume they pay their employees well, if not then that is not my problem and they should take it up with the company. I don’t have to make up for the difference.
Tips should be something for services where people go above and beyond their regular job, not for something they are hired to do and just show up for.
Movers all over the planet do not make 25 an hour. Most not even close to that. Moving is some of the hardest work a person will ever do in there life while also risking the future of there body. It’s very bold to suggest that everyone deserves or expect a tip. But the movers do deserve to be treated like a service based industry who if the job is complete with perfection are entitled to a tip of some kind. I am a mover. I can tell you first hand that it’s honest hard work that you clearly don’t understand. Be respectful about your assumptions. It goes both ways. Movers have the capability of getting it done or destroying your most prized possessions. Tip your movers.
I want to move to a different part of my state this year. I have been thinking about hiring a moving service to help me with the process. It is good to know that I should think about how much I will need to tip the service. That does seem like a good thing to keep in mind when coming up with a budget.
I am always stunned by both the math involved and the lack of generosity. I did a local move with 2 guys recently. They lifted all of my heavy things and valuable possessions onto a truck while breaking nothing but a lot of sweat, unloaded all of my heavy things while taking care to walk up 3 stairs from a sloped driveway and they worked a full 3 hours – no coffee breaks. They also put my bed together. They make minimum wage. I tipped them each $60. And I thought that wasn’t enough. I came to this blog to find out if I should have tipped them each more and I discover that people are quibbling about tipping nothing more than pennies. Its the year 2020. It costs a whole lot to live decently. Why wouldn’t I want my moving guys to have a decent day.
I like how you mentioned telling the movers ahead of time that you will be tipping them for the good work they do. My wife and I are moving at the end of the summer and we’re trying to find a good moving company to help us move our big furniture pieces. I’ll remember this article so we can tip them the right amount for the work they do.
Good article. Tipping is so awkward; but I think it’s good to do so when movers do a good job. I think we also have to tip according to what we can afford. I’m moving long-distance and plan to tip on both ends. I tipped the guys who collected my stuff $12 each for 2 hrs of work. If I had more cash I would have tipped more. I would normally offer water, but with COVID-19 around I think we have to be careful about infecting ourselves and the people providing a service. They took a short break, which is good. I live in a small 2-bedroom apt and they moved furniture and many boxes (no large appliances). They were very professional and efficient. If the people on the delivery end are as professional I plan to tip them too — maybe a bit more because they’ll have to carry my stuff upstairs. Once, with a different moving company, I didn’t tip because the movers were incredibly unprofessional. I do notice that the level of professionalism is better when the movers charge a medium to higher rate, maybe because the employees are better-trained and better-paid (??)
Do you have to tip movers? Tipping movers is up to you. While it’s common etiquette to tip some amount, if your movers aren’t doing an adequate job you can choose to withhold a tip. If they have done a good job, it’s best practice to tip $4–$5 per mover per hour or 5–10 percent of the total moving cost.
If your movers do an outstanding job and you’re very happy with the way they handled your move, then you may be willing to reward their efforts in the range of $6-$7/hour per mover, or even $8/hour per mover.
I have a large house. Will have a split move, 1/2 to NC, then the rest to storage, then eventually to FL. All with the same company. How do I tip and when?
I tipped way more then I should have but the amount you are suggesting is horrible and embarrassing. I don’t think you have actually done any moving frankly. Being able to hire movers is a privilege just like going out to eat. If you can’t tip well do it yourself.
I agree with what you said that customers should only tip the moving team they hire after they have completed the job. My sister plans to hire a moving service soon because she is moving apartments with my niece. I’ll share this advice with her tomorrow when we have lunch out. Thanks!
I recently moved my small business from one location to another, about 10 miles apart. I hired a reputable moving company that did a great job and were very professional in the process. I tipped 20% of the total bill and the two movers shared the tip. I live in northern NJ where cost-of-living is high. The suggested $4-$5 per hour is laughable and would be insulting in this geographical area. Naturally, there are a lot of factors to consider when one decides to tip and I believe location is definitely something to consider.
Most movers today are independent contractors. The driver receives a percentage of what you pay the moving company (50-75% of the linehaul; 90% of the packing/unpacking cost). The standard where I used to work was 56% for linehaul, 90%+ for packing). The driver then hires labor to help, pays all of his costs (insurance, gas, maintenance, licensing, tolls, etc.). These costs are the responsibility of the driver, not the moving company. Do some math, figure about what he might be getting paid after his expenses and you’ll find it’s pretty minimal for what he will do.
Thanks for explaining that it would be smart to find a mover who is good at avoiding property damage. It does seem like a very good thing to do if you are renting. After all, I wouldn’t want to lose my security deposit.
I’m looking at an out-of-state move, downsizing from 3000 sf to 1200 sf. I have already paid about $3k to get rid of larger furniture pieces for which I don’t have room. Basically, the large pieces of furniture that remain include: a living room set (sofa, swivel rockers, occasional tables): a queen-sized mattress and box springs, a dresser; a piano; and many boxes. The moving company quoted me a “guaranteed” price of $8k, and I am paying to have many items packed for storage. The packers will have done the bulk of the work, but I expect they won’t be part of the long-distance work. My practice is to tip the foreman, in the presence of at least one of his crew. Thoughts?
It’s great that you mentioned that Your movers wouldn’t really mind getting bigger tips than they usually receive, but after all, it’s your hard-earned money. My sister will move to her new home soon since she will start a family with her husband. I’ll share this with her since movers can make her move much easier. Thanks!
First I ever heard of tipping movers was a couple weeks ago when they delivered 40 boxes to my ex. At her end they actually told her it was customary to tip 20%. Are you kidding me. A $400 tip? That’s $10 per box. I spent 20 years in the military with several moves and never heard a suggestion of tipping. Your article compares tipping a waiter to tipping a mover. In most cases, wait staff aren’t paid a living hourly wage and tips make up most of their salary. I suspect movers make more than 2 or 3 dollars an hour plus tips. Now that I have heard of it, I agree it is a nice gesture to add 20 to 40 per crew for half a day load or unload. For my move, they were significantly late for pick up and delayed by three hours at delivery. My ex tipped them what she had, $20 each. I would not have based on the fact they expected it and tried to take advantage.
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Tipping your movers is highly depending on the work process, work time and place where the work is implemented. Different moving companies charge different amount of money from their clients and tipping your movers is extra charges you are paying to movers which is certainly out of contract thing. But after seeing the good indication of work, you may give tip according to your standard.
I’d like to comment that the reason you tip your waiters and waitresses for their service is often because they are making less than $3/hour to work.
How did wait staff come up? But since they did, one thing MOST people do not realize is wait staff have to do is pay taxes based off of their sales. So if their customers do not tip them appropriately they can actually end up paying for you to eat in their section. Which is why, until the way they are paid is changed, we as their customers ARE obligated to tip appropriately. Easiest way to do it is to take the sales tax and double it and work up or down from there depending on how much the sales tax is in your state.
Waitstaff came up because they used that as an example in the article
Comparing waitstaff and movers is like comparing apples & oranges
I’d like to comment that movers do not make much money.Most movers typically make a little more than minimum wage at best.Also , the heaviest thing your waitress is gonna carry is probably is your plate of food while your mover has to carry your furniture up and down stairs while protecting your furniture and walls.It is by far the hardest job of all blue collar work.I know this as fact……..I was a mover for over a decade when I was younger till the physical toll started to take a toll on my body.
I really appreciate your advice to provide food like pizza or sandwiches to a team of movers if your move is probably going to take a while. My husband and I think that our move from our apartment to our new home will take at least 6 hours. It would be really great to hire a moving service because I think they would help make our move faster and less stressful. We’ll start looking into a residential moving service in our area.
This blog enables me to spread information about your services to many people. Keep on helping people with your best services.
Best ever blog out of many I have a read-through. It not only shows the talent of the writers, but their way of writing enables the readers to understand completely about the service.
Thanks for this awesome article on how much to tip movers! I’m always unsure on how much to tip them, but this article gave great advice.
I appreciate your tips on knowing when to tip movers or not. I like how you said it can be as simple as were you satisfied with their service or not. I will keep these tips in mind.
I guess in America everyone expects to be tipped for things that suppose to be done and paid for by the company. The article mentioned “wait staff”, “hotel staff”, etc. I stopped believing in tipping anyone who works a regular job. Restaurants is because they mainly work off tips due to the $2 a hour pay.
But the moving company I hired is charging $170 an hour for 3 people. So if each gets paid $25 per hour it is still above min wage and the company makes out big time. So why should I tip again for a mover?
If that is the case you should tip everyone that does any type of work, if you buy your TV at Walmart, are they entitled for a tip? I personally think that most have their hand out, if you don’t like your job, get another. I don’t mind tipping but if companies charge outrageous prices I would assume they pay their employees well, if not then that is not my problem and they should take it up with the company. I don’t have to make up for the difference.
Tips should be something for services where people go above and beyond their regular job, not for something they are hired to do and just show up for.
Movers all over the planet do not make 25 an hour. Most not even close to that. Moving is some of the hardest work a person will ever do in there life while also risking the future of there body. It’s very bold to suggest that everyone deserves or expect a tip. But the movers do deserve to be treated like a service based industry who if the job is complete with perfection are entitled to a tip of some kind. I am a mover. I can tell you first hand that it’s honest hard work that you clearly don’t understand. Be respectful about your assumptions. It goes both ways. Movers have the capability of getting it done or destroying your most prized possessions. Tip your movers.
I want to move to a different part of my state this year. I have been thinking about hiring a moving service to help me with the process. It is good to know that I should think about how much I will need to tip the service. That does seem like a good thing to keep in mind when coming up with a budget.
I am always stunned by both the math involved and the lack of generosity. I did a local move with 2 guys recently. They lifted all of my heavy things and valuable possessions onto a truck while breaking nothing but a lot of sweat, unloaded all of my heavy things while taking care to walk up 3 stairs from a sloped driveway and they worked a full 3 hours – no coffee breaks. They also put my bed together. They make minimum wage. I tipped them each $60. And I thought that wasn’t enough. I came to this blog to find out if I should have tipped them each more and I discover that people are quibbling about tipping nothing more than pennies. Its the year 2020. It costs a whole lot to live decently. Why wouldn’t I want my moving guys to have a decent day.
So I’m moving 11 hours away and the cost is $15,000. I should tip the movers 20% or $3,000. That seems a bit much!
This is getting ridiculous. Waters, cab drivers now getting 35% . Whats next? tipping drivers $1000.? Get real,!
It totally depend upon mover that this person is royal with us.
I like how you mentioned telling the movers ahead of time that you will be tipping them for the good work they do. My wife and I are moving at the end of the summer and we’re trying to find a good moving company to help us move our big furniture pieces. I’ll remember this article so we can tip them the right amount for the work they do.
Good article. Tipping is so awkward; but I think it’s good to do so when movers do a good job. I think we also have to tip according to what we can afford. I’m moving long-distance and plan to tip on both ends. I tipped the guys who collected my stuff $12 each for 2 hrs of work. If I had more cash I would have tipped more. I would normally offer water, but with COVID-19 around I think we have to be careful about infecting ourselves and the people providing a service. They took a short break, which is good. I live in a small 2-bedroom apt and they moved furniture and many boxes (no large appliances). They were very professional and efficient. If the people on the delivery end are as professional I plan to tip them too — maybe a bit more because they’ll have to carry my stuff upstairs. Once, with a different moving company, I didn’t tip because the movers were incredibly unprofessional. I do notice that the level of professionalism is better when the movers charge a medium to higher rate, maybe because the employees are better-trained and better-paid (??)
Do you have to tip movers? Tipping movers is up to you. While it’s common etiquette to tip some amount, if your movers aren’t doing an adequate job you can choose to withhold a tip. If they have done a good job, it’s best practice to tip $4–$5 per mover per hour or 5–10 percent of the total moving cost.
If your movers do an outstanding job and you’re very happy with the way they handled your move, then you may be willing to reward their efforts in the range of $6-$7/hour per mover, or even $8/hour per mover.
I have a large house. Will have a split move, 1/2 to NC, then the rest to storage, then eventually to FL. All with the same company. How do I tip and when?
I tipped way more then I should have but the amount you are suggesting is horrible and embarrassing. I don’t think you have actually done any moving frankly. Being able to hire movers is a privilege just like going out to eat. If you can’t tip well do it yourself.
I agree with what you said that customers should only tip the moving team they hire after they have completed the job. My sister plans to hire a moving service soon because she is moving apartments with my niece. I’ll share this advice with her tomorrow when we have lunch out. Thanks!
I recently moved my small business from one location to another, about 10 miles apart. I hired a reputable moving company that did a great job and were very professional in the process. I tipped 20% of the total bill and the two movers shared the tip. I live in northern NJ where cost-of-living is high. The suggested $4-$5 per hour is laughable and would be insulting in this geographical area. Naturally, there are a lot of factors to consider when one decides to tip and I believe location is definitely something to consider.
Most movers today are independent contractors. The driver receives a percentage of what you pay the moving company (50-75% of the linehaul; 90% of the packing/unpacking cost). The standard where I used to work was 56% for linehaul, 90%+ for packing). The driver then hires labor to help, pays all of his costs (insurance, gas, maintenance, licensing, tolls, etc.). These costs are the responsibility of the driver, not the moving company. Do some math, figure about what he might be getting paid after his expenses and you’ll find it’s pretty minimal for what he will do.
Thanks for explaining that it would be smart to find a mover who is good at avoiding property damage. It does seem like a very good thing to do if you are renting. After all, I wouldn’t want to lose my security deposit.
I’m looking at an out-of-state move, downsizing from 3000 sf to 1200 sf. I have already paid about $3k to get rid of larger furniture pieces for which I don’t have room. Basically, the large pieces of furniture that remain include: a living room set (sofa, swivel rockers, occasional tables): a queen-sized mattress and box springs, a dresser; a piano; and many boxes. The moving company quoted me a “guaranteed” price of $8k, and I am paying to have many items packed for storage. The packers will have done the bulk of the work, but I expect they won’t be part of the long-distance work. My practice is to tip the foreman, in the presence of at least one of his crew. Thoughts?
It’s great that you mentioned that Your movers wouldn’t really mind getting bigger tips than they usually receive, but after all, it’s your hard-earned money. My sister will move to her new home soon since she will start a family with her husband. I’ll share this with her since movers can make her move much easier. Thanks!
I cannot imagine if there is no moving company. It will be rough moving to other place, especially if you have huge furniture. Thanks to them.
First I ever heard of tipping movers was a couple weeks ago when they delivered 40 boxes to my ex. At her end they actually told her it was customary to tip 20%. Are you kidding me. A $400 tip? That’s $10 per box. I spent 20 years in the military with several moves and never heard a suggestion of tipping. Your article compares tipping a waiter to tipping a mover. In most cases, wait staff aren’t paid a living hourly wage and tips make up most of their salary. I suspect movers make more than 2 or 3 dollars an hour plus tips. Now that I have heard of it, I agree it is a nice gesture to add 20 to 40 per crew for half a day load or unload. For my move, they were significantly late for pick up and delayed by three hours at delivery. My ex tipped them what she had, $20 each. I would not have based on the fact they expected it and tried to take advantage.