The 4 Best Motorcycle Shipping Companies of 2021

Our top pick: You can’t do better than Montway Auto Transport. The company has low rates, uses the safest drivers, and gets excellent customer reviews.

1. Montway Auto Transport: Best overall
2. uShip: Low prices
3. American Auto Shipping: Guaranteed prices
4. AmeriFreight: Extra insurance

• Motorcycle expertise. Find a company that specializes in motorcycles. Sure, a run-of-the-mill car shipper can probably get the job done, but you want more for your bike. Look for things like a web page devoted to motorcycle shipping or a company that pops up when you search for motorcycle shipping, which generally means that the website has a lot of useful information that is most relevant to you.
• Affordable rates. Price matters. The average motorcycle shipping cost is around $880, so try to find a motorcycle mover that costs less without sacrificing quality.

• Binding prices. It’s not uncommon for your price to increase by about 25% by the time you pay your bill. Look for a motorcycle shipping company that has guaranteed quotes.
• Years of experience. Longevity is a huge trust signal. Every company on this list has been helping bikers and other auto shipping customers for at least 10 years.
• Additional insurance. It helps if the professional motorcycle shipping company has something more than basic liability coverage to protect your bike on the off chance it’s damaged during transit. The best motorcycle shipping companies have extra insurance perks like cash toward your deductible or gap coverage.
• Customer reviews.org has looked at tens of thousands of transport reviews. The average motorcycle transporter gets a rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars, so look for a broker with scores at least that high. We recommend checking out a few different review sites, including popular landing spots like Yelp, Google Reviews, and Transport Reviews.

Montway Auto Transport is our number one pick for motorcycle shipping. The company has low prices, guarantees your pick-up date, and even works with carriers that allow GPS tracking. It also carefully scrutinizes each driver to make sure your precious motorcycle is in safe hands. Montway doesn’t have guaranteed quotes (few companies do), and its website has an annoying pop-up ad. Still, those are minor irritations compared to what the company brings to the table. This motorcycle transport company earns its top spot.

Montway ships all of its motorcycles on enclosed carriers. While most companies let you choose cheaper open transport shipping, Montway knows that motorcycle lovers want an extra safe shipping experience. By using only enclosed motorcycle transport, Montway eliminates the worries that are often associated with an open trailer:

• Montway’s enclosed carrier shipping protects your bike from the elements, including rain, snow, and dirt.
• You never have to worry about road debris hitting your chopper because it’s tucked away inside a fully enclosed carrier the entire way.
• It’s nearly impossible for thieves to make off with your motorbike when it’s inside a transport truck.

It would be easy for a company to lower its rates by offering open transport (usually about $200 cheaper than enclosed shipping). But Montway doesn’t believe in providing a service that it doesn’t feel is good for your bike—even if that means its prices are higher than they would otherwise be.

Impressively, Montway’s prices are still below the industry average even though they’re inflated by enclosed-only shipping.

Montway’s prices are about $20 below average. That’s stunning, considering the company doesn’t offer open transport services that typically run about $220 lower than enclosed shipping. But the savings get even bigger if you look only at rates for enclosed shipping. For example, the industry average for enclosed motorcycle shipping is just under $1,000.

Montway gets the job done for about $860—an average savings of $130.

It seems to boil down to experience. While many companies base estimates on seasonal trends, Montway negotiates discounted and set rates with the best motorcycle shippers in the country. That means Montway can get you low rates even when prices are high everywhere else. And it’s all because Montway has spent 14 years building relationships with reliable motorcycle shipping carriers.

Montway is all about safety when it comes to motorcycle shipping. In addition to offering only enclosed motorcycle transport, the company also carefully vets each of its drivers. While Montway carefully scrutinizes each carrier’s paperwork to make sure it has the necessary certifications and insurance, the company also looks for safety trends in its massive internal database.

Here’s some background.

Montway has used more than 15,000 drivers to ship nearly 750,000 vehicles—including motorcycles. And it tracks safety details for every shipment. Each time a carrier makes a bid to ship your motorcycle, Montway checks out its records to see if the drivers are up to par. If they aren’t, Montway won’t use them.

That means you’re left with the cream of the crop. And just to be extra safe, Montway uses only enclosed shipping for motorcycles. Put it all together, and you can see why Montway has an average customer review score of 4.7 out of 5 stars.

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uShip can save you about $400 compared to the auto shipping industry average. That kind of savings is almost unheard of. The online marketplace lets you sort through bids to find the safest and most affordable drivers rather than trust a broker to do it for you. While uShip doesn’t have guaranteed quotes and the customer service is a bit slow, you can find a shipper in all 50 states.

uShip even has extra insurance worth up to $500 if you need to file a claim. When it’s all said and done, you often end up saving hundreds of dollars. And all you have to do is spend a few minutes learning how to navigate the uShip website.

uShip is unlike almost any company out there. While most bike shippers are either brokers or carriers, uShip is an online marketplace. That means you can work directly with auto transport companies rather than hire a broker to act as a go-between. As a result, you can often save more money and find safer drivers than you can in other places.

Two features highlight uShip’s unique value compared to a traditional auto transport broker:

1. Pricing options. Brokers conduct auctions to find low-priced truck drivers to ship your motorcycle. You trust the brokers to find the lowest rates and not rip you off. uShip lets you make the decision. There’s no trust involved. You simply scroll through the options and pick the lowest one. Easy peasy.
2. Rating system. Brokers don’t usually tell you anything about the drivers they find to transport your bike. uShip gives you a detailed profile for each carrier and calculates a star rating based on the reviews of uShip customers. You can even browse individual uShip customer reviews to sort out the good companies from the bad ones.

uShip has low motorcycle transport prices. And when we say low, we mean rock bottom. We haven’t found another company that comes close to the savings uShip offers. You save nearly as much as you spend. Seriously. The average uShip motorcycle transport costs about $490, and the typical savings is around $390.

If you’re looking to save money shipping your motorcycle, it’s tough to do better than uShip.

uShip has one of the biggest perks in the motorcycle shipping biz: extra insurance. Every company you work with must carry liability insurance. It’s the law. As long as you choose a reputable company, that’s going to be the same no matter which one you work with. But some companies—like uShip—go above and beyond by offering extra cash in case your bike gets damaged.

In this case, uShip has a $500 Ship with Confidence Guarantee that puts cash back in your pocket in the rare event that your motorcycle gets damaged or goes missing. To qualify, you must immediately notify uShip of damage within 15 days of delivery (or 30 days of booking) and follow a seven-step safe shipping process.

It’s unusual to need this kind of benefit, but uShip offers it just in case. That’s the sign of a high-quality motorcycle shipper.

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American Auto Shipping has what everyone in the motorcycle shipping industry wants: guaranteed prices. While your rate will often go up by hundreds of dollars with other companies, it stays the same with American Auto Shipping. Plus, it doesn’t charge a deposit, so you aren’t out anything if you find a lower rate somewhere else. The company also kicks in $500 toward your insurance deductible if your bike gets damaged.

Add in the fact that American Auto Shipping has been around for more than two decades, and you can see why it’s one of our favorite bike shippers.

Don’t be scared off by American Auto Shipping’s high initial prices: the company may save you money in the long run, thanks to its guaranteed quotes. It’s the only auto transport broker we’ve found that promises your initial estimate is the same as your final price.

That’s a big deal because your price with many companies often inflates around 25–50% by the time your final bill is due. So while American Auto Shipping’s motorcycle transport costs of $1,130 are about 30% above the industry average, your final price may be lower than you pay in other places.

Plus, you’re not dealing with the frustration of needing to come up with more money for a surprise bill. This is such a valuable feature that American Auto Shipping also lands near the top of our list of the best car shipping companies.

American Auto Shipping has been around longer than almost anyone in the business. The auto transport company has learned a thing or two about how to make their bikers happy in its 22 years. Check out just a few of the things that impress us:

• Instant online quotes. No one wants to spend 10–15 minutes on the phone getting a motorcycle shipping quote. You can get a fully guaranteed quote from American Auto Shipping in just a few minutes online. No elevator music required.
• No deposit. Some companies require a deposit of about $200 to book a shipment. They keep that money if you cancel. And since prices often go up after your initial estimate, you must either bite the bullet and pay a higher rate—or lose your deposit. American Auto Shipping gives you the best of both worlds: fully guaranteed quotes and no deposit.
• Expedited pick up. If you’re in a rush to leave town and need your bike picked up for an upcoming rally, you can pay for a faster pick up. American Auto Shipping will pick up your motorcycle in two days (rather than the standard five) for an extra $200, or you can have it arrive within 24 hours for an additional $500. It’s a pricey feature reserved for travel emergencies, but American Auto Shipping has you covered if you need it.
• Customer satisfaction. It’s tough for a transport company to be in business for 20-plus years and get an average customer review score of 4.8 out of 5 stars. But American Auto Shipping does it. While the company doesn’t have as many total reviews as others, there’s no way to fake a nearly perfect score over two decades. The motorcycle shipping service is legit.

We love American Auto Shipping’s extra insurance perk. The motorcycle shipping company will pay up to $500 toward your insurance deductible as long as your claim aligns with the shipment’s terms and conditions and is denied by the carrier’s insurance company.

Almost as impressive is the work that American Auto Shipping does behind the scenes to make sure you never need to use this. Rather than choose a carrier at random, American Auto Shipping carefully reviews each carrier’s history and then picks one of the top 2% of drivers. Bar none, that’s the most impressive carrier vetting we’ve seen.

American Auto Shipping does the legwork to make sure your beloved motorcycle stays safe in transit—and then kicks in its own cash if your bike gets damaged.

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AmeriFreight has some of the best insurance we’ve seen. Its gap coverage contributes up to $2,000 toward your deductible and gives you 48 hours to find damage. You simply don’t find that kind of motorcycle coverage anywhere else. But that’s not all AmeriFreight brings to the table. The motorcycle shipping broker also has a long company history, guaranteed prices, and stellar customer reviews.

AmeriFreight has supplemental insurance coverage that blows other companies out of the water. Like all companies, AmeriFreight uses only carriers that have legally mandated liability coverage. But it also provides additional coverage through an Allied Fidelity Total Assurance (AFta) plan.

The AFta coverage costs between $50–$100 and includes two key benefits:

1. Time. Most motorcycle shipping companies require you to identify damage to your bike at the time of delivery. That gets tricky if you don’t perform well under pressure or can’t inspect your bike due to bad weather or poor lighting. Your AFta plan gives you 48 hours to find any damage and file a claim, something we’ve never seen with another motorcycle shipping company.
2. Money. Your AFta plan will contribute up to $2,000 toward your insurance deductible if your car gets damaged and the carrier’s insurance denies your claim. The most we’ve previously seen is $500.

To summarize, AmeriFreight offers more additional insurance coverage and gives you more time to find damage than any other company we’ve reviewed. It’s the top of the line for customers who value vehicle safety above all else.

AmeriFreight goes the extra mile to make sure you’re working with the safest drivers. Before choosing a carrier, AmeriFreight verifies that the company is properly licensed and registered with the U.S. Department of Transportation. It also makes sure that the company has the authority to cross state lines and even double-checks the carrier’s insurance information.

After that, AmeriFreight does two other things that set it apart from much of the competition:

1. Driver selection. AmeriFreight has access to more than 10,000 carriers but works with only the top 5%. That means it weeds out all but the best carriers before picking a driver for your motorcycle shipment.
2. In-house statistics. AmeriFreight also keeps its own records. If a company gets customer complaints or doesn’t live up to its word, AmeriFreight won’t use it again. And since the company has 16 years’ worth of data, chances are AmeriFreight will find a reputable driver for your motorcycle shipment.           

AmeriFreight guarantees your quote if you’re in a hurry to get that bike on the road. The company has three pricing options, one of which is a fully guaranteed estimate for next-day shipping. These can be a bit confusing, so we’ve broken them down for you:

1. Economy Saver Rate. AmeriFreight takes a few weeks to find the lowest bids for your motorcycle shipment. This is where you save the most money, but your final price can sometimes be higher than your initial quote.
2. First Class Rate. This is your guaranteed price, but it’s available only for customers who need to ship their bikes in 24 hours or less. 
3. Priority Preferred Rate. AmeriFreight picks the lowest price after giving motorcycle carriers a few days to bid on your job. The amount won’t be as low as the Economy Saver Rate or guaranteed like the First Class Rate. Still, it will be comparable to most other vehicle shipping companies.

Very few companies advertise bona fide guaranteed pricing, so it’s worth paying attention to a company like AmeriFreight.

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We scoured the country to find four of the best motorcycle shipping companies. Each one offers something unique:

• Montway Auto Transport. This is our best overall motorcycle shipper. Montway has an outstanding combo of low prices, guaranteed pick-up dates, and GPS tracking.
• uShip. The online marketplace has super low prices. We’re talking almost half what you’d pay with most motorcycle shipping companies.
• American Auto Shipping. The broker has the rarest feature in the industry: guaranteed quotes. Your motorcycle shipping price never goes up.
• AmeriFreight. The bike shipper has the best extra insurance we’ve seen. You get four times the coverage of top-tier companies and have two full days to find damage to your bike.

Move.org calculates industry averages and identifies pricing trends by following a fourfold research approach:

1. Compare quotes. We collected more than 200 quotes from 10 different companies. The transport quotes included prices for a motorcycle across 11 distances on both open and enclosed transport.
2. Mystery shopping. We contacted motorcycle shipping companies posing as customers to gather pricing data and learn how the brokers formulate their prices.
3. Site visits. We invited several industry leaders to visit our headquarters in Salt Lake City, UT, and explain what goes into their pricing. We then compared their answers to information we independently obtained to verify accuracy
4. Annual calendar. We repeat this process every year and save our data so that we can compare trends over time.

Most car shipping companies transport motorcycles. Move.org’s favorite options include Montway Auto Transport, American Auto Shipping, uShip, and AmeriFreight.

Yes, you can often put your motorcycle inside a moving truck. While it’s not recommended, moving truck companies will typically recommend that you bleed the bike’s engine and then safely secure the motorcycle for transport.

You can ship your bike on either an open trailer or an enclosed trailer. However, some of the best motorcycle shipping companies use only enclosed shipping because it protects your bike from bad weather and road debris.

The best international motorcycle shipping company is Montway Auto Transport. The motorcycle transport service has developed a reputation for low prices and excellent customer service.

You should look for several things when shipping a motorcycle across the country, including low prices, a history of on-time delivery, and positive customer reviews. You should also make sure your broker verifies the driver’s interstate transportation authority.