12 Moving Hacks and Tips

July 17, 2023

time saving moving hacks and tips

Moving is always mayhem. I don’t think there is any way around it being stressful! However, I do believe there are ways to make the process a little easier. Today I wanted to share 12 moving hacks and tips we used in our recent cross-state move.

color coded tape - moving tips and hacks


1. Color coded tape – We used different masking tape colors to mark boxes based on the room. Even though we marked what was in box and what room it was in, the colors will make it easier for anyone unloading boxes to know which boxes go to which room. I made a color code cheat sheet so everyone is on the same page.

moving caddy

2. Make a moving caddy with all of the supplies you need for packing so you can move it from room to room and avoid asking each other “where’s the packing tape?” 1,745 times!

vacuum sealed bags

3. Vacuum sealed bags – We used large vacuum seal bags to pack our linen closet, blankets, and pillows! It saves a good deal of space to shrink it all down. *A car vac was much vaster to vacuum seal than the hand pump it comes with.

press and seal wrap

4. Press and seal wrap – I used press and seal wrap for cutlery organizers, kitchen utensils, vanity makeup drawers, etc. It seals everything tightly allowing you to box up as-is.

5. Put smaller kitchen items in larger appliances – I am always looking for ways to stuff smaller items inside larger ones. I can’t remember where I saw this tip, but I loved it! Stick all of your spices and condiments inside your crock pot and/or insta pot. Cover in packing paper and call it a win.

garment bags

6. Use trash bags for hanging clothes – I didn’t want to have to deal with taking off all clothes on hangers and folding for boxes. You can actually just slip a garbage bag over bunches of hanging clothes and tie to seal!

7. Garment Bags – (As pictured.) For longer dresses I used zipper garment bags which made it easy to bunch together and pack.

wine boxes for moving

8. Use wine boxes for wine glasses and pantry canisters – You can actually check with your local liquor stores to see if they have any extra empty wine boxes they are getting rid of. We were able to pick up several to pack our wine glasses and glass food canisters!

mattress bags

9. Mattress bags – we used these zip-able zipper mattress bags with handles to protect our bigger mattresses from getting dirty during transport. They have handles on them as well which makes it easier to lift and move. There are also standard plastic mattress bags we used for the twin sized mattresses.

10. Tape screws and bolts to the back of the furniture piece it belongs to. (We used sandwich baggies.) This will save a lot of time hunting for the right screws in your new place!

11. Laundry basket for car – Keep a go to basket in your car for things you may need as soon as you get to your new place! (ie: toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning supplies, scissors, pocket knife)

12. “Unpack first” box – We have always thrown everything we know we need in the first few days in the unpack first box. Kids plates and cups, kids activities, I also have a separate box or bag for linens we will use on our mattresses right away!

We hired a local moving company (JustPro Moving) to wrap and load our furniture, as well as load all of our boxes into pods. They were by far the most thorough and careful packers we have experienced yet (this was our 6th move!). From previous experiences, we were in awe with their caution, efficiency, and diligence. We had zero pieces of furniture damaged in the move (which is a first for us), and every box was stacked securely. Highly recommend finding a company with great local reviews!

Anything you would add to the list?

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  • I use pallet wrap to protect wood pieces from scratching during the move, but it also works well to wrap your chests of drawers so that you don’t have to pack those contents. Wrap before you leave, unwrap when you are at your new home and you have all your clothes ready and know exactly where they are, almost as if you never moved.

  • To keep kids busy while you pack give them markers and crayons and let them color on the boxes that you are packing. It keeps them busy for hours and as a bonus people who are helping carry boxes get cheered by their artwork while they carry heavy loads!

  • What did you all put in your moving caddy? We’re getting ready to move and I want to be prepared with that sort of caddy.

    • Did you all pack and load up your own boxes into a pod or something to minimize what the movers actually moved for you? Trying to do some things ourselves as opposed to a company doing it all…and thank you for the recommendation of a moving company! It is SO HARD to make that decision. All of them make a good pitch when they come to give a price.

  • Thank you so much for sharing these tips. We had our apartment for an extra 2 weeks from the time we could move into our first home. I’m so glad I found your tips before the move. Now that we have everything out, cleaning was so much easier. I enlisted in some professional help from Chem-Dry Colorado Springs, CO to hopefully get our security deposit back to help with the costs to move.

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