Worked example
A two bedroom home with 12 pieces of large furniture, 40 boxes and 2 large appliances.
- Volume: 2 × 200 + 12 × 20 + 40 × 3 + 2 × 25 = 400 + 240 + 120 + 50 = 810 cubic feet.
- Add 10% so you are not packing to the roof: 810 × 1.10 = 891 cubic feet needed.
- A 15 ft truck holds 764 ft³, which is not enough. A 20 ft truck holds 1,016 ft³, so that is the pick, arriving 88% full.
Eighty-eight percent is a comfortable place to be. Much above 95% and you are relying on perfect packing; much below 70% and you are paying for a truck you are not using.
The formula
Volume = bedrooms × 200
+ large furniture × 20
+ boxes × 3
+ large appliances × 25
Needed = volume × 1.10
Truck = smallest capacity that clears "needed"The per-item figures are averages across typical households. A sparsely furnished bedroom runs well under 200 cubic feet, and a room with a piano in it runs well over, so treat the answer as a starting point rather than a promise.
Why the 10% allowance exists
A truck rated at 1,016 cubic feet does not hold 1,016 cubic feet of furniture. Sofas do not tessellate, mattresses cannot be squashed, and you need aisles to get the last pieces in. Ten percent is the slack that turns a rated cube into a loadable one.
It also gives you somewhere to put the things you forgot to count, which on every move is more than you expect.
What the numbers assume
The per-item figures here are averages across typical households, and averages hide a lot. A bedroom with a bed, a dresser and a wardrobe is well under 200 cubic feet. A bedroom that also holds a desk, a bookcase and boxes of files is well over it.
A few things throw the estimate off more than most. Garages and basements are almost never counted and frequently add 200 to 400 cubic feet of tools, bikes, garden furniture and paint. Exercise equipment and pianos are dense, awkward and effectively uncrushable. Mattresses take far more space than their weight suggests, and a king set can be 60 cubic feet on its own.
Walk the whole property before you book, garage included, and count what you actually see rather than what you remember owning.
Common mistakes
- Sizing to the exact cube. A truck loaded to its rated volume is a truck whose door will not close.
- Forgetting the garage. Bikes, tools, paint, garden furniture and boxes of cable add up fast and are rarely in anyone’s count.
- Planning two trips to save money. Once you count fuel, mileage, and a whole extra day, one bigger truck usually wins.
- Ignoring what you can drive. A 26 ft truck is a different proposition to a 15 ft one on a narrow street, and some rentals have licence or age conditions.
- Trusting a generic capacity chart. Cubic feet vary between rental companies and model years. Confirm the number on the booking page for the truck you actually reserve.
FAQ
What size moving truck do I need?
Estimate your load in cubic feet, add about 10 percent so you are not packing to the roof, then pick the smallest truck that clears it. As a rough guide, a one bedroom apartment fits a 10 to 15 ft truck and a three bedroom house usually needs 26 ft.
Why add 10 percent to the volume?
Because nothing packs perfectly. Odd shapes, blankets, straps and the gaps between furniture all eat space, and a truck loaded to its exact rated cube is a truck you cannot close.
Is it better to size up or make two trips?
One larger truck is almost always cheaper and faster than two trips, once you count fuel, mileage and your own time. Two trips only make sense for a short local move.
How many boxes fit in a moving truck?
At roughly 3 cubic feet per medium box, a 10 ft truck holds about 130 boxes if you carried nothing else. In a real move furniture takes most of the space, which is why this tool counts both.
Are these truck capacities exact?
They are typical published figures for the US rental fleet, and they vary between companies and model years. Confirm the cubic feet on the booking page for the specific truck you reserve.
Rules last checked: Sep 24, 2026
Estimate only. Confirm with your carrier before booking.