How much should I tip my movers?

I have read dozens of blogs about moving but none ever mention how much to tip your movers so if you’re moving soon and don’t know how much to tip, please read on!

 

As an owners of a moving company and former mover, I have to say that tipping is customary, not mandatory and should be based on your satisfaction.  If you are not happy with your movers, you don’t have to tip them. If you can’t afford to tip as much, its okay - any gratitude will be welcome. Avoid tipping under $10 and please no loose change!

 

Long Distance Movers:  The industry average is 10% of your move cost at pickup and 5% at delivery. The tip should be split evenly between all the movers. If your move is extremely expensive, say around $15,000 you are not expected to tip the full 10% at pickup ($1500) and then another 5% at delivery ($750). A tip of $800-$1000 at the pickup and then $400-$600 at the delivery will be generous enough. If you do tip the full 10% at pickup, you will probably gain yourself some new best friends J .  The reason why you should split the tip between pickup and delivery is because more than likely the crew that does your pickup will not be the same crew that delivers. So if you only tip after the move, the pickup crew will never see their tip portion.

 

Local Movers:  Tips for local moves should be reflective of how hard the move is. For a small job with a bill of around the $200, a proper tip would be $15-$20 per mover. If your move has flights of stairs or a long carry walk, the movers would be working harder and longer, so it would be appropriate to tip more. 
For an all day move (7+ hours), an appropriate tip would be $50 per mover on the low end and $100 on the higher end.

 

Another way to calculate mover tips would be to base it on the amount of hours worked. A good rule of them is $5-$10 per mover per hour. For example, a 2-hour move with 2 movers would be $10-$20 per mover.  Another example: a 5-hour move with 3 movers would be $25-$50 per mover.

 

If you are thinking about buying the movers lunch and providing cold drinks, that is great and highly appreciated especially on a hot, sunny day.

 

Don’t tip your movers at the beginning of the move – it will not make them do a better job. Let them work for it! It’s a great feeling to finish a job and get a tip. Also, don’t give the full tip money to the job foreman. If you can, it’s best to give the tip individually to the movers, in this way they will know that the tip is being split fairly. It will also give them the opportunity to thank you for your generosity. 

 

Again, tipping is customary but not mandatory –Thank you and have a good move.