How Much Do I Need?

Moving Truck Size Calculator

What size moving truck do I need?

Enter the rooms you are moving and roughly how much you own. The calculator estimates the volume of your furniture and boxes, allows for the space you can’t fill in a truck, and suggests a truck size.

Units
Your home

Living room, dining room, home office, and so on. The kitchen counts too if you are taking its furniture and appliances.

Assumptions

A common rule of thumb is roughly 150–200 ft³ (4–6 m³) per furnished room, including its boxes.

Furniture and boxes never pack perfectly. 80–90% is typical for a careful load.

Cost (optional)

Add the price to see an estimated total.

Results update as you type.

Your estimate

Truck to rent

15 ft truck

Your belongings take about 600 ft³; allowing for gaps you need 706 ft³ of cargo space.

Estimated amount to buy

Suggested size
15 ft truck
Its approximate cargo space
760 ft³

Calculated quantity (no allowance)

Rooms
4
Belongings
600 ft³
Cargo space needed at 85% usable
706 ft³
How this was calculated
  1. Rooms = 2 bedrooms + 2 other + 0 storage = 4
  2. Belongings = 4 × 150 ft³ = 600 ft³
  3. Space needed = 600 ft³ ÷ 85% usable = 706 ft³
  4. Smallest size with at least 706 ft³: 15 ft truck (about 760 ft³)
  • Truck capacities are approximate and differ between rental companies. Check the cargo volume on the company’s website before booking.
  • Large awkward items such as sectional sofas or pianos can need more space than their room suggests.

How the truck size calculation works

  1. Belongings = number of furnished rooms × space per room × how much you own (0.8, 1 or 1.25).
  2. Cargo space needed = belongings ÷ the share of the truck you can actually fill.
  3. Truck = the smallest common size with at least that much space, or several of the largest size.

Approximate truck sizes

SizeCargo spaceOften suits
Cargo vanabout 245 ft³ (7 m³)a studio or a few large items
10 ft truckabout 400 ft³ (11 m³)a studio or 1-bedroom home
15 ft truckabout 760 ft³ (22 m³)1 to 2 bedrooms
20 ft truckabout 1,015 ft³ (29 m³)2 to 3 bedrooms
26 ft truckabout 1,680 ft³ (48 m³)3 to 5 bedrooms

These are typical figures for rental trucks; exact capacities vary. If you are between sizes, the bigger truck is usually the safer choice. A second trip can cost more than the upgrade.

Rounding rules

  • The suggestion is always the next size up that holds the estimate.
  • Past the largest common size, the number of trucks (or trips) is rounded up.