What is the Cheapest Way to Move to College?

Save money when shipping your things to campus

Getting accepted to your dream college is an exciting step as you prepare for your future. When that school is far from home, you might wonder what it’s going to cost to ship all your things to campus. If you’re looking to save money on your student move, the service you choose matters, and U-Pack® is available to help.

Let’s review different shipping methods to determine the cheapest way to move to an out-of-state college.

Cheapest way to ship stuff to college in another state  

When you need to move across the country for college or to another state, it means taking everything you’ll need for the semester (or year) with you. You might be surprised to learn that a DIY moving service like U-Pack is the cheapest way to ship your things to campus, but it’s true.

U-Pack makes small moves easy with our affordable ReloCube® moving containers, perfectly sized for one room’s worth of belongings.

What makes U-Pack cheaper than other options to get things to campus?

With U-Pack, you get the convenience of a moving service at significant savings compared to full-service movers. You handle loading and unloading the equipment, but you don’t have to drive a bulky rental truck hundreds of miles and navigate it to your dorm or apartment building.

Transportation costs are already included in U-Pack quotes, unlike with rental trucks, where you’ll pay out-of-pocket expenses for fuel. Plus, we service all 50 states, Canada and Puerto Rico, and storage is available in most locations.

Could parcel shipping be cheaper?

Parcel services like UPS®, FedEx®, or USPS® will send packages to campus, but keep in mind that some campus housing buildings don’t allow deliveries. On-campus post offices, which typically receive packages, can be far away from dorms, so you’ll still need a plan for moving things to your room.

Rates are based on the size and weight of the shipments, so the service can get expensive for multiple boxes and for heavy or oversized items. If you’re only taking one or two small boxes to campus, this can be a cost-effective option, but U-Pack makes more sense for transporting all your belongings out of state.

Save the most money with U-Pack student moving

You’ll already get our best rate for shipping your things with U-Pack. Here are some ideas to save even more:

Choose service center delivery 

You can save hundreds of dollars on the move by loading or unloading the Cube at a U-Pack service center. Learn more about service center delivery.

Don’t overpack

Pack only the essentials for the dorm so that you can use the smallest available equipment size. For U-Pack, that’s a single ReloCube container or 5 linear feet in a moving trailer.

Pick the cheapest moving date (if possible)

If your campus has flexible move-in dates, relocating on a weekday can be less expensive than choosing a weekend. Call 844-362-5303844-594-3077 to ask a moving consultant to check prices on different dates or adjust them in your online quote to view any price differences.

Share equipment with a friend

If you and a friend are attending the same university, consider splitting the moving costs. Work out the details with your friend to share the ReloCube by loading and unloading together at the same place (or a local service center for the most significant savings).

Note: U-Pack moving equipment can only be delivered to one location for loading and one for unloading. We can only accept one payment method, so you’ll need to settle the bill with your friend outside the U-Pack Customer Dashboard.

Use our student discount

U-Pack offers a student discount — just let us know or enter the code CAMPUS50 when making an online reservation. Search online for other moving coupons to save on packing supplies.

Book your cheap college move with U-Pack today 

Call 844-362-5303844-594-3077 to speak to a moving consultant or request your free quote online and don’t forget to request your student discount with code CAMPUS50.

If you have questions about U-Pack services or moving to campus affordably, let us know in the comments!