What to Expect When You Move with U-Haul’s U-Box—Zig’s Move

U-Haul U-Box is a container company that is especially known for its low prices and wide availability. Though the company doesn't make it to our list of the best moving container companies, we wanted to learn more about it from first-hand experience. That’s why we asked one of Move.org’s moving grant recipients to use a U-Haul U-Box container and tell us about his experience.

Want to know how much your U-Box move will cost?

In August 2020, Zig, a bartender and musician, moved from Astoria, NY, to Durham, NC with his two cats and gecko.

Like many people who decided to move because of COVID-19, Zig was looking for a fresh start. In an interview with Move.org, Zig told us: “During my time in quarantine, it became clear that the universe was screaming at me, and I was being given a blank slate. So, I packed up my life for Durham!”

U-Box has low prices. The company’s moving container is generally about $100 cheaper than the industry average, and Zig liked the affordable rates. U-Box quoted him approximately $2,340 to move a 700-square-foot home from Astoria, NY, to Durham, NC.

Zig contacted two other companies but didn’t find a cheaper option. PODS was about $660 more expensive than U-Box, and 1-800-PACK-RAT wasn’t available in Zig’s zip codes.

Zig used two U-Box containers (95” in length x 56” in width x 83.5” in height for a total of 257 cubic feet of space). He was impressed with how much he could fit into the U-Boxes—in fact, he still had room left over in the second box. “I regretted selling my bike earlier in the week!” Zig said.

U-Box has a reputation for charging more than its initial quotes. Zig experienced this firsthand when his final bill included an additional $119 delivery fee. “This probably shouldn’t have been a surprise,” he said, “but I feel it could have been made a little bit more clear from the get-go that this charge was not included with the shipping rate.”

Zig’s customer service experience with U-Box was mixed because he worked with both U-Haul representatives and movers he hired through U-Haul’s third-party service, Moving Help. He didn’t have any strong feelings about U-Haul’s customer service but was so impressed with the Moving Help staff that he plans to leave them a positive online review.

Zig did experience significant delays, however, which affected his plans for his going-away party with friends. The movers were four hours late in New York and two hours late in North Carolina.

Although Zig was understanding about the situation, he has this advice if you choose to move with U-Box: “Don’t plan your going-away party for the same night as your move.”

U-Box’s customer service is sub-par compared to other moving container companies. Its average customer review rating of 2.8 out of 5 stars is nearly a full star lower than the industry average.

There are tricks of the trade you can only learn through first-hand experience. It’s one reason Move.org pays people to move in exchange for their feedback. In Zig’s case, we learned two things you should know about U-Box:

We’ve reviewed U-Box and are familiar with its overall strengths (low costs and online quotes) and weaknesses (surprise fees and poor customer service). But Zig’s story surprised us in two ways:

1. The U-Box does well in a storm. U-Haul says that the U-Box comes with a weather-resistant cover, but the plywood construction can be a turnoff—especially when some companies use steel. But it wasn’t a problem for Zig. “The boxes were left for two days outside my new place and even weathered a severe rainstorm,” he said. “I didn’t experience any weather-related damages.”
2. U-Haul disclosed one of two shipping fees. We’ve collected dozens of quotes for U-Haul’s U-Box, but the company never included mandatory shipping fees that can increase the cost of your move by hundreds of dollars. Zig dealt with one surprise fee (an extra $120), but U-Haul was up front about another. We haven’t seen that before, and appreciate U-Haul’s progress towards transparent pricing.

We wouldn’t recommend U-Box over one of our best moving container companies. Zig’s experience confirms a lot of what we already knew: U-Haul has surprise fees and below-average customer service. While we admire Zig’s forgiving attitude about his movers’ tardiness, we still believe that customers like him deserve better than U-Haul’s delays and extra costs.