Packing is the part of a move almost everyone underestimates. Even a modest two-bedroom home turns into a mountain of boxes, and each one has to be built, filled, padded, taped and labelled before the truck pulls up. Our packing services in Calgary take that work off your plate, so packing and moving are handled by one team instead of two separate headaches.
Best Calgary Movers is a family-owned, licensed and WCB-insured company with more than 15 years in the business. We pack with moving day in mind, so boxes leave your home ready for the truck: sensible sizes, heavy things at the bottom, and every box marked with the room it belongs in.
Three packing services to choose from
No two households need the same amount of help. Pick the level that suits your schedule and budget — or combine them, with full packing for the kitchen and nothing at all for the bedrooms.
Full packing service
We pack the entire home: kitchen cupboards, closets, bookshelves, décor, garage shelving and everything in between. You set aside what's travelling in your own car, and the crew handles the rest. If you've been looking for movers and packers in Calgary who can take care of the whole job, full packing combined with one of our moving crews does exactly that.
Partial packing
Some rooms take far longer than others. Kitchens, home offices and storage rooms packed with odds and ends are the usual culprits. With partial packing, you deal with the quick rooms and we pack the ones that would otherwise swallow your evenings.
Fragile packing service
Glassware, mirrors, framed art, lamps and electronics are wrapped, padded and boxed by our crew. It's a good middle ground if you're happy to pack clothes and books yourself but would rather not take chances with the good dishes.
What careful packing looks like
Breakables are where good packing earns its keep. A few techniques make most of the difference:
- Plates are wrapped one at a time and stood on edge rather than stacked flat, with crumpled paper filling the gaps.
- Glasses and stemware go into smaller boxes, with padding between every piece.
- Mirrors and framed art are wrapped, protected at the corners and kept upright.
- Lamps travel with shades and bulbs removed and packed separately.
- TVs go back in the original carton if you still have it; otherwise the screen is wrapped and padded and the set travels upright.
Boxes with anything breakable inside are clearly marked fragile and labelled by room, so they get loaded with care and unpacked in the right place.
Boxes and packing supplies
Packing some or all of the home yourself? We can supply the materials, and you pay only for what you use. Boxes come in three sizes:
| Box | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Small | $4 each | Books, pantry items, tools and other heavy, compact things |
| Medium | $5.50 each | Kitchenware, toys, shoes and small appliances |
| Large | $6.50 each | Bedding, pillows, lampshades and other light, bulky items |
Packing paper, bubble wrap and tape are available as well. We can drop supplies off ahead of your move so you can pack at your own pace, or bring them on moving day if our crew is doing the packing.
How packing is priced
Packing is quoted separately from the move, because the work varies so much from one home to the next: a minimalist one-bedroom and a family house with a finished basement are very different jobs. Tell us which rooms you want packed and roughly how full they are, and we'll quote it for you.
The move itself is billed at our regular hourly rates — $125/hr for two movers and a truck, $165/hr for three, $210/hr for four — plus one extra hour at the crew rate for truck and travel, and 5% GST. A home that's fully packed before the truck arrives is one of the simplest ways to shorten moving day, because the crew can start loading straight away. You can model the move in our moving cost calculator.
Packing it yourself? Start here
Lots of Calgary households pack their own boxes and book movers for the heavy lifting. If that's your plan, a little structure helps:
- Start two to three weeks out with the rooms you use least — guest rooms, storage, out-of-season clothing.
- Work one room at a time and write the room and a short description of the contents on each box.
- Fill boxes to the top so they don't cave in when stacked, and tape both the top and bottom seams.
- Leave the kitchen until last, keeping a few plates, a pot and the kettle out for the final days.
- Sort out what isn't coming. Our disposal service can remove unwanted furniture and items so they don't take up room on the truck.
What to keep with you
Whoever does the packing, some things shouldn't go into a moving box. Keep these in your car or a bag you carry yourself:
- Passports, ID and important documents
- Cash, jewellery and other valuables
- Medication and prescriptions
- Laptops, hard drives and chargers
- Keys, garage remotes and paperwork for the new home
It's also worth packing an “open first” box with bedding, towels, toiletries, the kettle and a couple of mugs. Moving a full house? Our residential movers handle the loading and unloading. For condos and towers, see apartment movers; for an office, see office movers; and for Canmore, Banff or other Alberta towns, see long-distance movers.