I Compared 3 Quotes for My California to Florida Move
Fact Checked by: 
Santa Clara, CA → Sarasota, FL
$5,768
Five rooms, 724 cubic feet
$8,345
+$2,577 for items I left off
3,000 mi
Long-distance, interstate
- I compared three quotes before I hired Safeway Moving for my California to Florida move.
- My final bill landed $2,577 over the estimate because I left several items off the phone inventory, and Safeway added those line items on move day.
- 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.
Free · no phone calls · real prices from vetted movers
This account is based on a conversation with Shayndel K., who moved from Santa Clara, California, to Sarasota, Florida, in March 2023 using Safeway Moving. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
My move from California to Florida
I had just retired and I was ready for a change of scenery, so my partner and I picked Sarasota, Florida, and started planning a move out of Santa Clara, California, five months ahead of time. It is close to 3,000 miles door to door, which is not the kind of move you improvise.
We had five rooms of furniture and boxes going into a 1,200-square-foot house in Florida, so I was shopping the best interstate moving companies rather than anyone local. What I cared about most was punctuality. I wanted a company that would show up when it said it would, and I wanted the people on the phone to be pleasant to deal with, because I knew I would be talking to them a lot.
My move ended up costing $8,345, and I did not know that number until move day. If you want a realistic price for your own route before a salesperson gives you one, moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator shows real prices from vetted movers in about a minute.
My Safeway Moving experience at a glance
Here is how Safeway Moving did on the things I was actually watching.
- Communication: Safeway’s reps were friendly and easy to reach whenever I called. I would have liked a few more check-ins between booking and move day, but I never felt like I was in the dark.
- Pricing accuracy and transparency: I left several items off my phone estimate, so my final cost came in $2,577 above the quote. Safeway walked me through every line item it added and why, which I appreciated even though I did not enjoy the number.
- Professionalism: The phone reps and the crew were both excellent. Nobody rushed me, and nobody cut corners in my kitchen or my driveway.
- Timeliness: My belongings arrived in Sarasota on time. Pickup ran about 30 minutes past the window because of heavy rain, which I could hardly hold against them.
- Loss and damage: I had minor damage to a few items and filed a claim. For a 3,000-mile move that included three weeks of storage, that felt like a reasonable outcome.
- Would I use Safeway Moving again? Probably yes, with one change. I would insist on a video estimate instead of a phone estimate so the quote actually matched what I owned. You can compare Safeway against other long-distance movers with moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator.
over my original Safeway Moving quote
Find out what a move from California → Florida actually costs before a mover tells you.
Why I chose Safeway Moving
I spent about a week Googling movers and could not find what I needed: companies with strong ratings and a real reputation for customer service, not just a slick website. Then I found moveBuddha and read through several review posts, which is how I narrowed a long list down to three companies. I clicked with Safeway Moving’s reps on the very first call, and between that and the reviews, I was sold.
The drawback showed up later. My estimate was done over the phone from a list of items I read off myself, and I missed quite a few things. That single decision is the reason my bill went up $2,577, and it is the one part of this move I would do differently.
rating
- GPS tracking en route
- Veteran-owned
- Dedicated move coordinator
- Flat-rate pricing
- Donates a portion of moves to charity
My move at a glance
Here are the numbers from my move, from the quote I booked on to what I actually paid at delivery. Safeway priced my load at 724 cubic feet rather than by weight, and it is worth understanding weight vs. cubic feet moving estimates before you sign anything.
| Move date | March 27, 2023 |
|---|---|
| Moved from | Santa Clara, California |
| Moved to | Sarasota, Florida |
| Distance | 3,000 miles |
| Move size | 1,200-square-foot home, 724 cubic feet |
| Moving company | Safeway Moving |
| Moving quote | $5,768 |
| Actual cost | $8,345 |
On average, moveBuddha users save more than 30% by comparing movers before booking. Running your route through the moving cost calculator takes about a minute and gives you a baseline before anyone quotes you.
Quotes I compared
I knew five months out that I wanted to move, so I had time to shop. After reading moveBuddha’s reviews, I narrowed my list to three of the best moving companies and got a quote from each one. Here is what they came back with.
| Company | Estimated volume | Estimated cost |
|---|---|---|
| Safeway Moving | 724 cubic feet | $5,768 |
| Colonial Van Lines | 800 cubic feet | $8,000 |
| New Leaf Moving Group | 800 cubic feet | $6,000 |
Pickup day
It poured. California picked my move day in March to deliver a downpour, and it changed how the whole morning went, in ways I wish I had read up on beforehand: there is a real playbook for moving in the rain. Safeway emailed me an approximate arrival time that morning, and the crew called later to say they were about half an hour out.
The movers pulled up at 2:30 p.m. on March 28. My window had been noon to 2 p.m., so the rain put them a little behind, and they told me as much rather than leaving me guessing.
I have nothing bad to say about that crew. They wrapped and packed everything carefully because of the weather and kept my boxes dry while they loaded, which I did not expect given how hard it was raining. Loading took two and a half hours start to finish, and I paid half the invoice by check before they pulled out.
Here is what I would change. I spent the whole load camped out in the kitchen, staying out of the way so the crew could work. I thought I was helping. If you are booking a long-distance move, stay near the truck instead and watch how your things get handled and stacked, because that is where damage starts.
Delivery day
My things took three weeks to reach Sarasota, which was exactly what Safeway told me to expect. The company held my belongings in storage while I sorted out the Florida end of the move, and having that handled took one big worry off my list. Ask up front how long moving companies will store your stuff before the free window runs out.
When it was time, Safeway called ahead and the truck arrived right on schedule. The crew was respectful and unloaded everything without any drama.
I did have minor damage to a few items and I filed a claim for it. That was the point where my final number landed too. My move cost $8,345 instead of the $5,768 I was quoted, a difference of $2,577, and the reason was simple: I had more stuff than I accounted for on the phone. Safeway explained each line item it added and how it would change my total, so the increase was at least transparent. Added inventory is one of the legitimate ways movers can increase final costs, and mine was a textbook case.
Final thoughts
Three thousand miles, three weeks of storage, on-time delivery, and a few scuffs. Looking back, I got my money’s worth. The estimate is the part I would fix, not the mover.
An estimate is only as accurate as what you tell the estimator, and I left things off. A video estimate would have caught them. It takes a scheduled block of time and a walk through your house on camera, and it would have saved me the surprise at the end.
If you are pricing a long-distance move right now, start with a number that is not attached to a sales call. moveBuddha’s moving cost calculator gives you real prices from vetted movers for your route, so you know whether a quote is reasonable before you book.
My ratings
Here is how I scored Safeway Moving on a scale of 1 to 5.
- Communication: 4. Safeway was friendly and responsive every time I called, though I wanted more contact in the stretch between booking and move day.
- Timeliness: 5. Pickup ran 30 minutes late in a downpour and my delivery landed on schedule three weeks later, which is as good as I could ask for on a 3,000-mile move.
- Quote accuracy: 3. My final bill was $2,577 over the estimate, and while that traces back to the items I left off my phone inventory, the gap was still a shock.
- Overall experience: 4. Good crews, good communication, on-time delivery, and one pricing lesson I will not need to learn twice.
More moving resources
Tips for future movers
These are the practical steps we recommend based on Shayndel K.’s experience:
- Ask for a video estimate, not a phone estimate: A phone estimate is only as good as the list you read aloud, and Shayndel K. missed enough items to add $2,577 to her bill. A video walkthrough puts every room on camera and gives the estimator what they need to quote you accurately. It is also worth knowing the difference between binding vs. non-binding estimates before you sign anything.
- Get quotes from at least three companies: Shayndel K.’s three quotes ranged from $5,768 to $8,000 for nearly the same load, and the spread is the whole argument for shopping around. Run your route through the moving cost calculator first so you know what a fair number looks like.
- Stay near the truck while the crew loads: Getting out of the way feels polite, but watching how your things are wrapped and stacked is the cheapest damage prevention there is. Shayndel K. waited in the kitchen and ended up filing a claim on the other end.
- Budget for a bill above your quote: Even a transparent mover will add line items on move day for anything that was not on the original inventory. Set aside a cushion so an accurate correction does not turn into a crisis, and read up on the hidden and unexpected moving costs before you book.
- Ask what storage does to your timeline: Shayndel K.’s belongings sat in storage while she got settled in Florida, and the three-week transit window worked in her favor. Confirm the storage arrangement and the delivery spread in writing before you sign.
Better Moves Project · now accepting this year’s moves
Moving soon? We’ll pay you $500 to tell it like Shayndel K. did.
Share your quotes, your final bill, and what actually happened on move day. No script, and we never edit your rating.
Not what you were looking for?
Check out other categories that can help you find the information you need!
