Professional packing in San Diego is priced hourly plus materials at cost-as-used. A partial pack (kitchen and fragiles) is commonly a half-day for two packers; a full pack scales with bedroom count and is quoted exactly, in writing, within one business hour.
The three packing levels
- Fragile-only: kitchen, glassware, art, lamps — the boxes that cause most claims
- Partial pack: you pack clothes and books; pros take the kitchen, fragiles, and awkward items
- Full pack: the crew packs everything, usually the day before load day
Why materials are billed as used
Flat 'packing kits' price everyone for the worst case. Billing materials as used means a lightly-furnished one-bedroom doesn't subsidize a packed four-bedroom — and the itemized quote shows box counts up front, so there are no surprises on the invoice. To estimate your own box count before calling, the box calculator gives a realistic starting list.
What makes packing worth it
Packing is where moves go sideways: it's the difference between a crew loading sealed boxes at full speed and a crew waiting while drawers get emptied. It's also where damage prevention actually happens — dish packs, wardrobe boxes, and proper paper beat any amount of careful carrying of a badly-packed box.