Moving Experience: Jillian’s Move with Mayflower
Fact Checked by: 
In mid-2025, Jillian and her husband found themselves needing to move from Chicago to the Arizona desert for work.
With two months to prepare for the move, Jillian was most concerned about getting everything delivered to their new home in Arizona in a timely manner. An on-time delivery would give them enough time to unpack before her husband started at his new job. A delay could make things way more stressful.
As Jillian went online to compare full-service movers, she came across our Better Moves Project. In addition to finding a lot of helpful resources from moveBuddha as she tried to plan the move, Jillian also decided to participate in the Better Moves Project herself.
In exchange for a $500 stipend, Jillian shared her experience with the company she ultimately selected – Mayflower.
Move day takeaways for Mayflower customers
- Communication: Mayflower’s move coordinator was helpful and communicative throughout the moving process. However, the team that handled the delivery wasn’t quite as good at communication.
- Pricing accuracy and transparency: Jillian’s final expenses were the exact same as her initial quote – a big plus for her move experience.
- Professionalism: Jillian was impressed by the professionalism of the moving coordinator, as well as the team that handled moving day. While the delivery team was quick, they weren’t as attentive to detail and scuffed the floors in her new home.
- Timeliness: Jillian chose Mayflower because they offered a guaranteed delivery date. Everything arrived exactly on schedule, 9 days after Jillian and her husband left Chicago.
- Loss and damage: Upon delivery, Jillian noticed a damaged floor lamp, a broken cup holder on her Peloton bike, and a stained fabric headboard. Many of the boxes also seemed very dusty from spending time in Mayflower’s warehouse. Otherwise, everything was in good condition.
- Would Jillian use Mayflower again? Despite some minor issues, Jillian would gladly use Mayflower again thanks to their professional quoting process and the ability to schedule a preferred delivery date.
Jillian needed help moving from Chicago to Queen Creek, AZ
Jillian and her husband’s move wasn’t huge – they were moving from a one-bedroom, one-bathroom, 850-square foot apartment. However, moving from Chicago to Arizona is quite the journey, especially with the relatively short timeline for their move.
Jillian’s husband would be starting his new job three weeks after their planned moving date. Because of this, speed and a short delivery window became their top priority. They wanted to have plenty of time after arriving in Arizona to get everything unpacked and settled before Jillian’s husband went to work.
Jillian’s move at a glance
| Move date | May 27, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Moved from | Chicago, IL |
| Moved to | Queen Creek, AZ |
| Distance | 1,700 miles |
| Move size | One-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment (~850 square feet) |
| Moving company | Mayflower |
| Moving quote | $6,449.10 |
| Actual cost | $6,449.10 |
Jillian got several quotes before deciding on Mayflower
Jillian took a very thorough approach to getting quotes, contacting several companies to get phone estimates or video walkthroughs. Because the delivery timeline was her top priority, she wasn’t purely focused on price. After getting quotes from each company, she also evaluated their online reputation and estimated delivery windows.
In addition to loading and unloading their self-packed items, Jillian and her husband also wanted help with wrapping and loading furniture and TVs, full value insurance coverage, and expedited delivery. They also needed to ship a Peloton bike.
Mayflower immediately stood out during the quoting process. Their price was more than Jillian expected (and more than the quotes she received from other moving companies). However, she was impressed by the kindness and thorough approach of Mayflower’s video walkthrough professional, and their ability to provide a guaranteed delivery date.
Mayflower’s quote also gave a larger size estimate than the other moving companies. For example, Jillian thought United Van Lines’ estimate of two pods felt too low for the size of their move.
| Company | Estimated size | Estimate amount |
|---|---|---|
| Mayflower | 3,999 pounds/592.5 cubic feet | $6,449.10 |
| United Van Lines | 2 pods | $5,999.47 |
| Solomon and Sons | 500 cubic feet | $4,999.25 |
| Colonial Van Lines | 3,244 pounds | $4,942.33 |
|
|
|
|
rating
Jillian chose Mayflower for their professionalism and speedy timeline
With speed being such a priority for Jillian and her husband, Mayflower immediately won her over thanks to their guaranteed delivery date option. They let Jillian pick the exact delivery day she wanted their items to arrive, which gave her much-needed peace of mind. Other movers could only offer general delivery windows.
Another factor that made a difference was the professionalism of the Mayflower representative who did her video walkthrough. Jillian felt he did the best job of answering her questions out of everyone she contacted.
After Jillian agreed to the quote, she was assigned a personal moving coordinator to oversee the rest of the move. She and her husband were also given access to an online portal with their documents, a moving checklist, and more.
Moving day went smoothly
Moving out of their old apartment went great for Jillian and her husband. Their moving coordinator contacted them multiple times prior to the move to check in on their self-packing progress and answer questions. She also called the Friday before the move to confirm the moving crew’s arrival time.
The movers arrived exactly as scheduled at 8 AM on moving day, calling her and contacting the apartment building’s front desk to keep everything going smoothly. Jillian was able to continue working from home while the moving crew loaded everything in a little over 3 hours.
In addition to loading the items Jillian and her husband had already packed, the movers arrived with requested materials to pack and wrap their TVs and furniture. This included packing a marble table in a crate. The movers were courteous and professional throughout.
Delivery was on time, but with a few minor hiccups
As promised, Jillian’s items were delivered at her new home in Arizona after nine days. On the morning of the delivery, Jillian received a text message confirming that the movers were on their way.
The movers were once again on time and worked quickly, but Jillian found them to be less friendly and detail-oriented than the Chicago team. The workers didn’t put down any protective coverings on the floors, resulting in some scratches and scuff marks that could have been avoided.
Upon unpacking, Jillian and her husband also found that a few items had been damaged – a broken floor lamp, a snapped-off cupholder on the Peloton bike, and a stain on their bed’s fabric headboard. They were also surprised at how dirty and dusty their boxes seemed upon delivery, likely from being briefly stored in Mayflower’s warehouse. Fortunately, their move coordinator reached out to them after the move and Jillian was able to submit a claim form.
Despite these minor issues, Jillian was still satisfied with the fast and timely delivery Mayflower provided.
Our take on Jillian’s move
Getting everything delivered exactly when scheduled was the biggest priority for Jillian and her husband, and Mayflower came through with flying colors. While getting a guaranteed delivery date definitely added to their moving costs, in this situation, it helped provide peace of mind and keep the rest of their moving plans on schedule.
Having a personal moving coordinator who kept in touch before, during, and after the move was also a great touch. This professional attention to detail is the kind of thing that helps a move go smoothly and helped Jillian and her husband know exactly what to expect at every step of the way.
While it would have been better if the movers had placed protective covers on the floors for delivery day, the small amount of damage that Jillian found upon delivery is actually fairly normal for a long-distance move like this. Overall, Mayflower did a great job at keeping their promises, especially with the delivery timeline and price quote.
The verdict – how did Mayflower do?
Overall, Jillian was satisfied with her move with Mayflower, even if certain aspects of the delivery fell short of expectations. Overall, the fact that she and her husband paid exactly what they were quoted and got an on-time delivery left her happy with her move and likely to use Mayflower again in the future.
Here’s how Jillian rated Mayflower on a scale of 1 to 5:
- Communication: 4
- Timeliness: 5
- Quote accuracy: 5
- Overall experience: 4
Jillian’s advice for anyone planning a move like hers
For people who plan to do their own packing like Jillian did, she recommends taking your time – for both packing and unpacking! We couldn’t agree more. The earlier you start packing your items, the less rushed and stressful the process will feel. Jillian also advises carefully wrapping your items so they don’t get scratched while in transit. Careful packing can go a long way in preventing damage.
For Jillian, being able to select her exact delivery date was definitely worth the added cost. Depending on your needs and budget, you might prefer a more flexible option without a guaranteed delivery date to save money. Still, there’s no denying that getting a guaranteed delivery date (along with a fixed quote) helped prevent a lot of stress for Jillian’s move.
Not what you were looking for?
Check out other categories that can help you find the information you need!
