Movers Who Know the Hoboken Walk-Ups
Hoboken is a square mile with more than fifty thousand people in it, most of them living in nineteenth-century row houses with no lift. Two things decide how your move day goes, and neither of them is the furniture: where the truck can legally stop, and how many flights are between it and your door.
In Hoboken, Parking Is the Whole Job
Curb space is the scarcest thing in the city, and on moving day it matters more than the stairs.
The city requires temporary no-parking signs to hold space for a moving truck. They are arranged through the Hoboken Parking Utility and they need advance notice so the signs can physically go up on the block before your date. This is not something that can be arranged the morning of the move. If you are moving in Hoboken, get this moving as soon as your date is set. Tell us the address when you book and we will tell you exactly what your block needs and how far ahead to file it.
Two things people get caught by. First, a moving permit does not override street cleaning. If your block is cleaned on a Thursday morning and you have signs up for Thursday morning, the street cleaning still wins. Check the schedule for your specific block, not the general one. Second, without reserved space the truck ends up wherever it can fit, and every extra metre between the tailgate and your front door is carried by hand. On an hourly move, that distance is money.
This is the part local knowledge actually earns its keep on. We have been crossing the Hudson since 1979, we know how these blocks behave on a Saturday morning, and we will plan the crew’s arrival around the space you have rather than hoping for the best.
Four Floors, No Lift, and a Turn in the Stairs
Most of Hoboken’s housing stock is nineteenth-century row houses converted into apartments. Three or four storeys, no elevator, a staircase that was built before anyone owned a sectional sofa, and frequently a turn at the landing that a two-seater will make and a three-seater will not.
This is what we do. Furniture that will not make the turn comes apart at the top and goes back together at the bottom, and that is included rather than added to your bill on the day. Bed frames, table legs, shelving units, and the sofa if it comes to it.
Be honest with us about the floor and the stairs when you get a quote. Every flight adds roughly an hour, and a quote given on the assumption of an elevator is not a quote for your move. We would rather tell you five hours and be right than tell you three and watch the clock run.
The waterfront buildings along Sinatra Drive and the newer developments near the terminal are a different job — freight elevators, loading docks, booked time slots and a Certificate of Insurance required before anyone gets past the lobby. Our certificate is included and goes directly to the management company. The elevator reservation has to come from you.
What a Hoboken Move Costs
Hourly starts at $150 an hour for two movers and a truck, and a third mover starts at $195. No minimum. For a studio on a low floor with decent access, hourly is usually the cheaper answer.
For a third or fourth floor walk-up, a guaranteed price is usually the better one. The stairs and the carrying distance are priced in up front and itemised, and the number does not change on the day no matter how long the stairs actually take. That is the whole point of it.
| Move type | Crew | Typical time | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio, 1st or 2nd floor | 2 movers | 2–3 hours | $150/hr |
| One bedroom, 2nd floor walk-up | 2 movers | 4–5 hours | $150/hr |
| One bedroom, 4th floor walk-up | 2–3 movers | 5–6 hours | from $195/hr |
| Two bedroom walk-up | 3 movers | 6–8 hours | from $195/hr |
| Waterfront elevator building | 2–3 movers | 3–5 hours | $150/hr |
Starting rates for Hoboken moves. Times assume you are packed. Walk-up estimates include roughly an hour per flight.
Manhattan to Hoboken, and Back
A Short Crossing
The Lincoln Tunnel puts Midtown around two miles from uptown Hoboken. Most of the day goes on stairs and parking, not driving.
No Toll Westbound
The Port Authority collects tolls only entering New York. Nothing is collected entering New Jersey, so a move into Hoboken crosses free.
Two Sets of Paperwork
A Manhattan building and a Hoboken building may both want a Certificate of Insurance. Both are included and we issue both.
Timing Beats Distance
Tunnel peak hours run 6–10am and 4–8pm on weekdays. We will suggest a start time that works around them rather than through them.
Moving elsewhere in the state? Our New Jersey moving page covers the rest, and Jersey City has its own page if you are heading south along the waterfront.
Hoboken Moving Questions
Rates start at $150 an hour for two movers and a truck, with no minimum. A third mover starts at $195 an hour. A ground-floor studio is often two to three hours; a fourth-floor walk-up with a one-bedroom’s worth of furniture is more often five to six. A binding estimate gives you one guaranteed price instead.
Yes. Hoboken requires temporary no-parking signs to hold curb space for a moving truck, arranged through the Hoboken Parking Utility with advance notice so the signs can be posted before your date. Arrange it as soon as you have a date. Note that a moving permit does not override street cleaning on your block.
Yes, routinely — most of Hoboken is walk-ups. Furniture that will not make the turn in the staircase is taken apart and reassembled at the other end, which is included in the move rather than charged extra.
Add roughly an hour per flight of stairs. A second-floor one-bedroom is typically four to five hours, a fourth-floor one-bedroom five to six, and a two-bedroom walk-up six to eight. Waterfront buildings with a freight elevator are considerably faster.
No. There is no minimum on any move we do. You pay for the time the move actually takes.
The waterfront buildings and most managed properties do. Ours is included at no extra charge and we send it straight to the management company. Give us the building details when you book.
Yes, and it is a short crossing — Midtown to uptown Hoboken is about two miles through the Lincoln Tunnel. No toll is collected entering New Jersey, and tolls are included in your quote in any case.
For a low floor with straightforward access, hourly is usually cheaper. For a third or fourth floor walk-up, the guaranteed price is usually the better call, because the stairs are priced in up front and the number does not move however long they take.
Yes, but book early. End of month is the busiest window in both Hoboken and New York, and it is also when parking signage and building elevator slots are hardest to get. Two to three weeks of notice makes a real difference.
We store your belongings between the two dates and deliver when your new place is ready. Storage starts at $50 a month, climate controlled, with collection and delivery handled by us.
Get Your Hoboken Moving Quote
Tell us the floor, the stairs and the street. We will quote you hourly and as a guaranteed price, and tell you what your block needs for parking.
Or call 212-365-0707.
