I Compared 3 Quotes for My Move from Colorado to Texas
Fact Checked by: 
Centennial, CO → Spring, TX
$2,296
A 5 x 5 storage unit, under 20 items
$2,176
$120 under the estimate
990 mi
Long-distance, interstate
- I compared three quotes before I hired MiniMoves for my Colorado to Texas move.
- My final bill came in $120 under the estimate, and I never found out how the final charges were calculated.
- I shared all of it, my quotes, my bills, and my ratings, as part of moveBuddha’s Better Moves Project.
See what your move really costs before a mover tells you.
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This account is based on a conversation with Jennifer W., who moved from Centennial, Colorado, to Spring, Texas, in August 2022 using MiniMoves. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
My move from Colorado to Texas
My partner and I had recently retired and moved to Mexico, and we hedged our bets by putting our belongings into a 5 x 5 storage unit in Centennial, Colorado, in case the expat life didn’t stick. Once it was clear we were staying, paying storage fees indefinitely stopped making sense.
My mother had free attic space in Spring, Texas, about 990 miles away, so moving everything there was the smarter financial call. Nothing in the shipment was a specialty item, and plenty of it carried real sentimental value, including family photos and holiday decorations. I considered renting a van from U-Haul or Penske and driving it myself, and that sounded inconvenient and exhausting, so I focused on full-service movers instead. Since I was coordinating all of this from Mexico, I needed accurate estimates and reliable communication above everything else.
I used moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator to compare quotes and get a sense of what the move should cost. According to moveBuddha, users who compare movers this way save more than 30% versus taking the first quote they get.
My MiniMoves experience at a glance
Here’s what stood out most about moving with MiniMoves, good and bad.
- Pricing accuracy and transparency: I paid $2,176 against an estimate of $2,296, so the move came in under budget. I never found out how the final charges were calculated, which is why I wouldn’t call the pricing transparent.
- Customer service: The office staff was polite and professional and genuinely hard to reach. Communication is where this move fell down, and I initiated nearly every check-in after pickup.
- Crew efficiency and professionalism: The movers were personable and efficient at both ends, in Colorado and in Texas. Loading took under an hour.
- Timeliness: My items were delivered one day past the original window, and the delivery crew arrived several hours past the scheduled morning slot.
- Loss and damage: Nothing was lost and nothing was damaged.
- Would I use MiniMoves again? Yes. MiniMoves came in under budget with no damage and a minor delay on a 990-mile move, and overall I was happy with the outcome.
under my original MiniMoves quote
Find out what a move from Colorado → Texas actually costs before a mover tells you.
Why I chose MiniMoves
I spent about two and a half weeks searching, using Google, moveBuddha, and the Better Business Bureau. After reading moveBuddha’s guide to the best small load moving companies, I searched for small moves from Denver to Houston, read reviews, and contacted several companies for estimates. It took a few missed calls before I finally reached Paul at MiniMoves, who gave me a binding quote based on an inventory form I’d filled out on their website.
The quote was more than I wanted to spend, and MiniMoves had an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, wasn’t a broker, and had mostly positive reviews. I had been leaning toward ShipSmart to save money until I read several reviews from customers whose final costs jumped significantly, which set off alarm bells. After a few days of mulling it over I bit the bullet, signed the contract, and gave them my card to lock in the date and crew. Reaching Paul still took persistence, and his patience and professionalism reassured me.
rating
- No minimum size
- Top-quality materials
- Full-service packing
My move at a glance
Here are the basics of my relocation, including what I was quoted and what I actually paid for my Colorado to Texas move.
| Move date | August 4, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Moved from | Centennial, Colorado |
| Moved to | Spring, Texas |
| Distance | 990 miles |
| Move size | The contents of a 5 x 5 storage unit (fewer than 20 items) |
| Moving company | MiniMoves |
| Moving quote | $2,296 |
| Actual cost | $2,176 |
We found that when you use moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator, you can save 30% on moving costs compared to customers who go with the first quote they receive.
Quotes I compared
Here’s how my three estimates stacked up. The cheapest was the one I walked away from.
| Moving company | Estimated weight/number of items | Estimated cost |
|---|---|---|
| MiniMoves | 14 items (MiniMoves priced my move on the number of items rather than weight) | $2,296 |
| Sterling Van Lines | 1,232 pounds | $2,477 |
| ShipSmart | 632 pounds | $1,795 |
MiniMoves’ estimate covered everything except packing, since nearly everything was already packed, and extra insurance. I chose not to buy additional coverage because my items weren’t valuable enough to justify the deductible.
Pickup day
After booking, Paul told me delivery would take between one and three weeks and that he’d follow up within a day or two with a pickup time. I didn’t hear anything until about a week before the move, when a representative from Amazing Moves, MiniMoves’ partner in Colorado, called to schedule. They wanted noon, I had a lunch meeting, and they worked around my schedule and set a 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. window.
Because I was still in Mexico, my preparation amounted to staying organized, buying plane tickets, and hoping for the best. I flew into Colorado the day before the movers came so I could discard and donate what I no longer needed and label the boxes clearly enough that I’d know what was in them later.
On the day itself, the movers had trouble finding the storage facility. They called several times for directions, and the calls showed up as out-of-state on my phone, so I didn’t answer. We connected eventually and the crew arrived just before 3 p.m., well inside the window.
The Denver-based crew was professional and personable, and I was impressed by how carefully they built out a detailed inventory. Loading took less than an hour, and the movers told me my shipment was even smaller than they’d expected.
Delivery day
My original delivery window was August 11 through 25. When I called for a status update on the 15th, I was told my things hadn’t left Colorado yet.
I made more calls over the following days and left several voicemails, and it was days before anyone got back to me. Only one of my calls was returned, and what I learned was vague. I assumed both teams were overworked, and as the customer I was doing most of the work to keep my own move on track. Delivery was eventually set for the 26th, one day past my window, and since I couldn’t be there I arranged for my mother’s neighbor to meet the movers.
The Texas crew, Roadrunner Moving, was running late and didn’t call to tell me, so I reached out to find out what was happening and learned they’d struggled to round up enough movers that morning. The service window was 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and the crew arrived just after noon. It wasn’t a disaster, and the silence made it more stressful than it needed to be. Despite the late start, the movers were courteous and careful, everything ended up where it belonged, and nothing was lost or damaged.
Final thoughts
Communication was the biggest frustration of this move, and it surprised me given MiniMoves’ reputation. Some of it may have been peak season, because I moved during one of the busiest stretches of the year.
On price, I paid about $120 less than my estimate, and I never learned how the final charges were calculated, so I didn’t walk away feeling the pricing was transparent. Looking at the whole picture, though, my move came in under budget, my items arrived one day late, and nothing was lost or damaged. For a small shipment moved nearly 1,000 miles during peak summer moving season, that’s a good outcome. Twenty-two days is a relatively quick turnaround for a move like mine, and while I’d rather spend $2,176 on almost anything else, the quote was competitive.
Planning a similar small-load move? Use moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator to compare quotes from vetted movers and find the best price for your route.
My ratings
Here’s how I scored MiniMoves on a scale of 1 to 5.
- Communication: 1 out of 5. I initiated nearly every check-in after pickup and the responses I did get were vague. For a move I was coordinating from another country, this was the most stressful part of the process.
- Timeliness: 2 out of 5. The delivery crew arrived a day outside my window and several hours past the 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. slot, with no proactive updates about the delay.
- Overall experience: 2 out of 5. I didn’t feel I got my money’s worth, and I didn’t think moving a shipment this small should cost more than $2,000. The quote was in line with the competition, the crews at both ends were professional and careful, and I came in under budget. The communication gaps are what pulled this score down.
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Tips for future movers
These are the practical steps we recommend based on Jennifer W.’s experience:
- Understand the difference between brokers and agent networks: MiniMoves is not a broker, and both the pickup and the delivery were handled by partner companies. That’s standard across most van lines, so ask your sales contact who will actually load and deliver your items.
- Plan for communication gaps during peak season: Jennifer W. moved in August, when movers run at full capacity. Ask upfront how and when you’ll get transit updates, and don’t assume anyone will reach out proactively.
- Don’t choose on price alone: Jennifer W.’s instinct to skip the cheapest quote was right. ShipSmart came in $501 lower, and recent reviews described final costs jumping at delivery. Read reviews specifically for mentions of price changes at the end of a move.
- Build in buffer time if you’re coordinating remotely: Jennifer W. managed this move from Mexico, which made every communication gap worse. Give yourself a wider window and line up a trusted local contact who can be present at pickup and delivery when you can’t.
- Answer the unknown number on move day: Jennifer W.’s crew called repeatedly for directions to the storage facility and the calls showed as out-of-state, so she let them ring. Expect your movers to call from an unfamiliar area code.
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