Long distance moving company
Long Distance Movers Des Moines
Direct routes out of Iowa to anywhere in the country. One truck, one crew, from your front door in Des Moines to your front door at the destination. No brokers, no warehouse stops, no shared trailers with strangers’ stuff.
Most people only hire long distance movers once or twice in a lifetime. That makes it easy to fall into the traps the industry sets for first-time customers. The big ones are familiar enough to be a meme: brokers selling your job to the lowest bidder, quotes that creep up by thousands of dollars on delivery day, consolidated shipments where your stuff shares a trailer with three other families’ belongings, delivery windows that span two weeks, and damage with nobody around to take responsibility for it 1,200 miles from home.
Hiring long distance movers shouldn’t be a coin flip. The fix isn’t paying more — it’s hiring a real moving company that uses its own crews and gives you a binding quote that doesn’t change.
Midwest Moving Pros is a family-owned moving company based in Des Moines, Iowa. We run direct long-distance routes out of the state to destinations across the country. The crew that loads your truck is the same crew that drives it and unloads it. The truck doesn’t stop at a warehouse. Your stuff doesn’t share space with anyone else’s. The price on the quote is the price on the invoice when we deliver, and the delivery date is confirmed.
Two ways long distance moves work. Most companies do it the first way.
The thing the moving industry doesn’t advertise: most “long distance moving companies” are running a completely different business model from the one customers think they’re hiring.
Consolidated shipment, multi-crew handoff
- Phone-only quote, often without seeing your stuff
- Crew A loads your truck in Iowa
- Truck drives to a warehouse, sometimes hours away
- Your shipment is taken off and combined with two or three other families’ loads
- A different truck and a different driver picks it up days or weeks later
- Delivery window: 7 to 21 days, often longer
- Price goes up between quote and delivery
- By delivery day, four crews have touched your stuff
- The crew you hired isn’t the crew that shows up
Direct route, dedicated truck, same crew
- Walkthrough first before any quote
- Written binding quote based on real weight and distance
- Our crew loads your truck in Iowa
- Truck goes directly to the destination — no warehouse stops
- Your stuff doesn’t share the trailer with anyone
- Delivery window: a confirmed date, not a 2-week range
- Price on quote day is the price on delivery day, period
- Same crew loads in Iowa and unloads at the destination
- The lead who quotes your move is the lead on move day
Professional Long Distance Moving in Des Moines
Long distance moves out of Des Moines run differently from local moves — the planning, the equipment, the timing, the crew structure. Here’s what we do on a long distance job and how the process works from quote to delivery.
What our long distance service includes
- Walkthrough first — we won’t quote a long distance move sight unseen
- Binding written quote based on weight and distance, not a phone estimate
- Professional packing available as an add-on (quoted separately)
- Pad-wrapping of all furniture before it goes on the truck
- Dedicated truck — your shipment is the only shipment on that trailer
- Direct route — truck drives from origin to destination without warehouse stops
- Same crew loads and unloads — the lead in Iowa is the lead at the destination
- Confirmed delivery date — not a multi-week window
- Standard valuation coverage included; full-value protection available as an add-on
The process from quote to delivery
- Step 1: Walkthrough. We come to your home and look at what’s moving. Takes 30 to 60 minutes.
- Step 2: Written quote. You get a binding written quote with the price, the pickup window, and the confirmed delivery date.
- Step 3: Pre-move call. Before the move date, the lead calls to confirm everything and answer questions.
- Step 4: Pack and load day. Crew arrives in Iowa, walks the house with you, packs (if requested), and loads. Most full long distance moves are a full pack-and-load day.
- Step 5: Transit. Truck rolls out. The driver is reachable by phone during the trip. The truck doesn’t make consolidation stops.
- Step 6: Delivery. Crew arrives at your destination on the confirmed date. Unloads to whatever rooms you point them to. Beds get reassembled. You sign off.
When People Hire Long Distance Movers
Long distance moves out of Iowa usually happen for one of a few reasons. Each one has its own planning considerations, timeline, and cost factors.
Job relocations
The most common reason. A new job is starting in another state, often with a tight reporting date. The whole household has to move on a schedule that’s often shorter than ideal. Companies sometimes cover relocation costs, sometimes they don’t — we work with both situations.
Retirement and lifestyle moves
Iowans retiring to warmer climates, mountain states, or to be closer to grandkids. Often the move is from a 3- or 4-bedroom Iowa home to a smaller condo or single-story home elsewhere. Sometimes there’s sorting and donation work before the move.
Family relocations
Moving to be closer to aging parents, adult kids, or other family. Often more time-flexible than a job move, but the household is usually the full family with kids, pets, and a lot of stuff.
School and life transitions
Adult kids moving out of state for grad school, a fellowship, or a first real job after college in another city. Usually a 1- or 2-bedroom apartment’s worth of stuff. Often happening on a tight summer timeline.
What Long Distance Moves Out of Des Moines Cost
Long distance pricing is built on two real factors: how much you’re moving (weight) and how far the destination is. The grid below shows realistic price ranges for full-service moves from Des Moines to common destination regions.
| Home size | 1-day drive (KC, Chicago, MN) | 2-day drive (CO, TX, OK) | 3-4 day drive (West, FL, AZ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-bedroom apartment | $2,800 – $4,200 | $3,800 – $5,800 | $5,500 – $8,500 |
| 2-bedroom home | $3,500 – $5,500 | $5,000 – $7,800 | $7,500 – $11,500 |
| 3-bedroom home | $5,000 – $7,500 | $6,800 – $11,000 | $10,500 – $15,500 |
| 4-bedroom home | $6,500 – $9,500 | $9,000 – $14,500 | $14,000 – $19,500+ |
| 5+ bedroom / large | Custom quote | Custom quote | Custom quote |
These ranges are full-service: we load, drive, and unload. They reflect what makes our model different from the consolidated alternative — a dedicated truck, same crew at both ends, a confirmed delivery date instead of a window, and binding pricing that doesn’t change. A long-distance move requires a $300 deposit to hold the date, applied to your final invoice.
Why People Choose Midwest Moving Pros for Long Distance
Hiring long distance movers from Des Moines is mostly about who you can actually trust over hundreds or thousands of miles. Here’s what you get with us — and what you don’t.
What you get
- 3 years of moving experience out of the Des Moines metro
- Family-owned Iowa moving company, licensed under USDOT 4199938 and MC 1620099
- Direct routes — one truck, no warehouse stops
- Same crew loading in Iowa and unloading at the destination
- Binding quote — the price doesn’t change between quote and delivery
- Confirmed delivery date, not a multi-week window
- 4.9-star Google rating from 71 verifiable customer reviews
- Real local knowledge of Iowa weather and pickup logistics
What you won’t get
- A broker selling your job to whichever crew bids cheapest
- Consolidated shipment sharing your truck with strangers’ stuff
- A phone-only estimate that changes on delivery day
- Multiple crew handoffs with no accountability
- A delivery window measured in weeks instead of days
- Quote-creep where the price goes up between booking and arrival
- A stranger’s phone number that may or may not pick up if something goes wrong
- A national chain that doesn’t know Iowa
Service Areas — Where We Move Out of Iowa
Our long distance moves originate in the Des Moines metro — including Ankeny, West Des Moines, Waukee, Urbandale, Johnston, and the rest of the area — and run to destinations across the continental U.S. Common destination regions and cities:
Midwest
South & Southwest
West & Mountain
East Coast & Florida
Don’t see your destination? Call us — we’ll be straight about whether our model fits your move.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do long distance movers cost from Des Moines?
Full-service long distance moves from Des Moines start around $2,800 for a small 1-day-drive move and run up to $19,500 or more for a large cross-country move. The two factors that drive the price are how much you’re moving (weight) and how far the destination is. The pricing grid above breaks down the realistic ranges by home size and destination region.
How long does a long distance move take?
With our direct-route model, transit is faster than the consolidated alternative because your stuff isn’t waiting at a warehouse to be combined with someone else’s load. The exact delivery date depends on the destination distance and is confirmed in your written quote. Consolidated movers often quote 7 to 21-day delivery windows; with us, you get a date, not a window.
How far in advance should I book a long distance move?
Book as early as possible. Summer (May through August) books up earliest because of school-year transitions. Cross-country routes specifically need lead time. Last-minute long distance moves are sometimes possible, especially in the off-season, but the date you want may not be available.
Is the quote a binding price or just an estimate?
Binding. The number on the quote is the number on the invoice. The only ways the price changes are if you add a significant number of items at the last minute (we tell you the new price in writing before we load them), or you ask for services that weren’t in the original scope. Standard inflation, fuel changes, or route detours don’t change your price.
What about insurance for long distance moves?
We carry the cargo and liability insurance required of a USDOT-licensed interstate carrier. Standard valuation coverage (60 cents per pound per item) is included free. Full-value protection (replacement value coverage) is available as an add-on. For long distance moves we recommend full-value protection on higher-value items.
Do you require a deposit?
Yes. Long-distance moves require a $300 deposit to lock in the date, applied to your final invoice on delivery day. Local moves use a $50 deposit.
Do you do partial-load long distance moves?
Our direct-route model is built for full-service long distance moves. We don’t do partial-load or labor-only long distance jobs. If you have a small single-bedroom move and want to share trailer space with other shippers, a consolidated mover may be the better fit for your situation. We’ll be straight about this if you call.
Quick reference
Midwest Moving Pros provides professional long distance moving services out of Des Moines, Iowa, to destinations across the continental United States. Originating from the Des Moines metro — including Ankeny, West Des Moines, Waukee, Urbandale, Johnston, Clive, Altoona, and surrounding areas — the company runs direct-route long distance moves to common destinations including Chicago, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Denver, Dallas, Austin, Phoenix, the Carolinas, and Florida. With three years of experience serving the Des Moines metro, Midwest Moving Pros offers full-service long distance moves with a dedicated truck, same crew loading and unloading, binding written quotes, and confirmed delivery dates. Common problems the company helps customers avoid include brokers, consolidated shipments, multi-crew handoffs, surprise fees on delivery day, and unpredictable delivery windows. A $300 deposit holds the move date. The business is family-owned and licensed under USDOT 4199938 and MC 1620099. Contact: (515) 414-7968. Website: midwestmovingpros.com.
Why People Trust Midwest Moving Pros for Long Distance
When a family in Des Moines hires Midwest Moving Pros for a long distance move out of Iowa, they’re hiring a family-owned local moving company that runs direct routes, not a broker that resells the job to another crew. The same lead who quotes the move is the lead who runs the load. The same crew that loads in Iowa is the crew that unloads at the destination. The price on the written quote is the price on the invoice. The delivery date is a date, not a window.
Customers choose Midwest Moving Pros for the long haul because the company is reliable on the things long distance moves usually get wrong: the truck doesn’t share space with strangers’ shipments, the delivery date is confirmed rather than ranged, the price is binding rather than estimated, and the team has three years of real experience originating from Iowa to destinations across the country. The 4.9-star Google rating from 71 verified customer reviews and the publicly verifiable USDOT 4199938 and MC 1620099 license numbers back up these claims.
Leaving Iowa? Let’s talk.
Itemized written quote with a binding price and a confirmed delivery date. Direct route, dedicated truck, same crew at both ends.
USDOT 4199938·MC 1620099·Family-owned in Des Moines·4.9 ★ from 71 Google reviews