I Got $500 for Sharing My Experience Moving from Massachusetts to Minnesota
Fact Checked by: 
Quincy, MA → Minneapolis, MN
$1,797
Minimally furnished 1,500 square foot home
$1,614
$183 under the estimate
1,400 mi
Long-distance, interstate
- I compared two quotes before I hired U-Box for my Massachusetts to Minnesota move.
- My final bill came in under the estimate, because the city denied our parking permit and I never got the door-to-door delivery I had paid toward.
- I shared all of it, my quotes, my bills, and my ratings, as part of moveBuddha’s Better Moves Project.
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This account is based on a conversation with Nancy, who moved from Quincy, Massachusetts, to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in October 2022 using U-Box. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
My move from Massachusetts to Minnesota
My fiancé, Alex, and I moved from Quincy, Massachusetts, to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the fall of 2022. We wanted to be closer to our families and take advantage of Minneapolis’s relatively low cost of living.
We were only moving about 10 boxes and some household items, under 1,000 pounds all in, so a full moving crew was never the right answer for us. I looked at a few providers on moveBuddha’s best moving container companies list to see what a container would run.
I used moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator to put together a preliminary budget and compare quotes, and U-Box, U-Haul’s moving container division, came through with the cheapest quote for the services I needed. According to moveBuddha, users who compare movers this way save more than 30% versus taking the first quote they get.
My U-Box experience at a glance
Here’s what stood out most about moving with U-Box, good and bad.
- Communication: U-Box communicated well throughout, including texting us updates the whole time we were driving. The parking permit should have been a bigger priority earlier in the process.
- Pricing accuracy and transparency: I paid less than my initial quote, because I never got the door-to-door service I had planned for.
- Timeliness: Our container reached Minnesota on September 22, 10 days earlier than I expected, though we couldn’t move in until October 1.
- Professionalism: The parking permit problem wasn’t U-Box’s fault, and I’d still rate the company highly here.
- Loss and damage: Nothing was lost and nothing was damaged, including after we trans-loaded everything into a rental truck.
- Would I use U-Box again? Yes, I’d consider U-Box again if we move in the future.
under my original U-Box quote
Find out what a move from Massachusetts → Minnesota actually costs before a mover tells you.
Why I chose U-Box
Alex and I weighed moving containers against renting a truck, and we even considered selling everything that wouldn’t fit in the car and replacing it after the move. We landed on a container because neither of us wanted to drive a moving van, and replacing things that were already in good condition made no sense. U-Box’s eight-foot container suited our minimalist load, I could pay in installments, and I could get an instant online quote by entering our move date, addresses, service type, and add-ons. I added Safestor Mobile coverage, $5,000 of protection for $18, against named perils like hurricanes, earthquakes, and vermin.
The drawback was the parking permit. U-Box told me we’d need to work together to get a permit for the container in Minneapolis, and when the city denied it without explanation, U-Box had to deliver to the nearest U-Haul facility instead of our apartment. Hiring movers to bridge that gap was too expensive, so we rented a U-Haul truck and moved everything ourselves, which added time, labor, and cost we hadn’t planned for.
rating
- More than 20,000 locations with prominent pricing
- Rental options include everything from pick-up trucks to 26-foot moving trucks
- Gentle-Ride Suspension add protection to avoid damaging your items during transit
- U-Box moving containers available if you don't want to drive
My move at a glance
Here are the basics of my relocation, including what I was quoted and what I actually paid for my Massachusetts to Minnesota move.
| Move date | October 1, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Moved from | Quincy, Massachusetts |
| Moved to | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| Distance | 1,400 miles |
| Move size | Minimally furnished 1,500 square foot home |
| Moving container company | U-Box |
| Moving quote | $1,797 |
| Actual cost | $1,614 |
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
I only got one other quote before choosing U-Box, and the gap between the two was more than double.
Pickup day
We prepared by buying packing materials, decluttering and downsizing, and packing a few boxes at a time so everything was ready when the container arrived. Packing was easy because we still had the original boxes for our electronics and small appliances.
U-Box delivered our empty container on September 17, right at our front door, so loading took just a few hours. After U-Box picked it up, Alex, our puppy, and I set out on the 1,400-mile drive.
Delivery was still weeks away, and U-Box kept in touch by text the whole time we were on the road. Twenty-one hours of driving with an energetic puppy can be trying, so we found dog-friendly hotels along the way and added an extra night to keep our daily driving time down.
Delivery day
Our container reached Minnesota on September 22, 10 days earlier than expected, and we couldn’t move into the new place until October 1. Because the city denied our parking permit, U-Box delivered it to the nearest U-Haul facility rather than our apartment.
We reserved a truck with U-Haul and called the day before to confirm the truck and the container would be placed side by side, which made trans-loading as easy as it could be. If you’re booking a container move to a city where street parking permits are required, ask about the permit process before you book rather than after.
Everything arrived without loss or damage, and once we trans-loaded, moving into the new apartment went quickly.
Final thoughts
My move wasn’t perfect, and U-Box still delivered our household goods on time, under budget, and without a single item lost or damaged.
The parking permit was frustrating and added cost and labor we hadn’t planned for, and it wasn’t U-Box’s fault. My guess is the city denied it because of limited parking and safety concerns on our street. If I moved again, I’d still consider U-Box.
If you’re planning a move, use moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator to compare quotes from top movers before you book.
My ratings
Here’s how I scored U-Box on a scale of 1 to 5 based on my end-to-end experience.
- Communication: 5 out of 5. U-Box texted us updates the entire time we were driving, which mattered on a multi-day road trip.
- Timeliness: 5 out of 5. The container reached Minnesota 10 days ahead of what I expected.
- Pricing accuracy: 5 out of 5. I paid $1,614 against a $1,797 quote, with no surprise charges at either end.
- Overall experience: 4 out of 5. The denied parking permit and the trans-load it forced are the reason this isn’t a five.
Tips for future movers
These are the practical steps we recommend based on Nancy’s experience:
- Ask about parking permits before you book: Minneapolis denied Nancy’s permit with no explanation, which sent her container to a U-Haul facility instead of her door and forced a trans-load she hadn’t budgeted for. Ask about the process and the timeline while you’re still comparing companies.
- Get multiple quotes even on a small move: Nancy compared two companies for a load under 1,000 pounds, and the quotes differed by $2,118. The spread on container moves is wide enough to be worth a second phone call.
- Line up pickup and delivery with your travel dates: Nancy’s container arrived 10 days before she could move in. Coordinate the container schedule with your lease dates and your drive so you’re not paying to store what you can’t reach.
- Ask how long you get to load and unload: Container companies differ on this, and it determines whether you can pack a few boxes at a time or have to do it in one push.
- Consider interstate movers if the budget allows: A container saved Nancy money and cost her a day of trans-loading. Full-service pricing is worth checking before you assume a container is cheaper overall.
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