How We Rate Moving Companies

How We Rate Moving Companies

We rate movers with one goal: give readers an honest starting point. Here is exactly how we rate moving companies.

What We Collect

We pull public Google Business Profile ratings and review counts from Google Maps results, city by city. Our current data was collected in Oct 2026. We do not call companies, visit offices, or hire mystery shoppers. The numbers you see are the same ratings any consumer can view on Google.

We cover 663 places across Arizona, Nevada and California. Our data includes 1,003 companies. That scale lets us compare local options, but it also means we rely on publicly posted information rather than first-hand inspection.

How the Score Is Calculated

We use a Bayesian average weighted by review volume. A company with many reviews and a high rating gets more statistical confidence than a company with few reviews and the same score. The weighting pushes extreme results toward the mean until enough reviews exist to support them.

To appear in our ranked lists, a company must have at least 8 reviews and a minimum rating of 3.8 stars. We cap national brands at one per list so that locally based operators receive visibility. If a city has few qualifying movers, we fill the list with out-of-town companies and label each with its base city and whether it is locally based there.

No company pays for placement. Rankings change as new reviews post and as we refresh our data.

What We Do Not Do

• We do not verify licenses, insurance, or bonding.
• We do not confirm that a company's vehicles, equipment, or staff match its online claims.
• We do not audit whether quoted prices match final bills.

Those gaps matter. A high Google rating does not guarantee legal compliance or fair pricing. Readers should treat our lists as a first filter, not a final decision.

How to Verify a Mover Yourself

Before you book, check the regulator for your move type.

For any move that crosses a state line, use the FMCSA SAFER company snapshot to look up USDOT numbers, operating authority, and complaint history.

Our editorial policy explains how we handle updates, corrections, and conflicts of interest.

Where Our Rankings Appear

You can see the results of how we rate moving companies on our state pages. We publish ranked lists for moving companies in California, moving companies in Arizona, and moving companies in Nevada. Each list applies the same methodology, so ratings in one city and another were calculated the same way.

Planning Estimates for Context

Ratings tell you past customer satisfaction. Cost tells you whether a mover fits your budget. Below are planning estimates drawn from the ranges we track. These are not quotes.

Hourly rates for a two-mover crew with truck run $120-$190 in Arizona, $130-$210 in Nevada, and $150-$250 in California (higher in Los Angeles and the Bay Area).

How to Use This Information

Start with our ranked list for your city. Read recent reviews for specifics about punctuality, damage, and billing surprises. Then verify licenses through the agencies above. Get written estimates from at least three companies. Ask whether the estimate is binding or non-binding, and what happens if the weight or hours exceed the projection.

That is how we rate moving companies Arizona Nevada California readers can trust as a starting point. FindTheMovers updates its data periodically, but ratings change daily on Google. A company that ranked fourth last month might rank second today, or fall off the list entirely. Always check the current numbers before you decide.

We built this system because we wanted readers to understand how we rate moving companies before they trust any list. Transparency about our limits matters as much as the rankings themselves. When you know that our scores come from public Google ratings, that we require at least 8 reviews and 3.8 stars, and that we weight by review volume, you can judge whether our approach fits your needs.

Some readers prefer to dig deeper into individual reviews. Others want the speed of a pre-sorted list. Either way, knowing how we rate moving companies helps you use the tool correctly. Combine our rankings with your own verification steps, and you will have a stronger shortlist than either method alone.

We refresh our explanation of how we rate moving companies as our data collection improves. The core principles stay the same: public ratings only, minimum thresholds, volume weighting, no paid placement, and clear labeling of out-of-town operators. If you see a change in our methodology, we will note it here and in our editorial policy.

More about how we rate moving companies

That is exactly how we rate moving companies. We collect public Google Business Profile ratings and review counts from Google Maps results per city as of Oct 2026. We apply a Bayesian average weighted by review volume. A company needs at least 8 reviews and a minimum 3.8 stars to appear in our rankings. We allow a maximum of one national brand per list. Out-of-town companies fill shorter lists and we label each with its base city and whether it is locally based. No company pays for placement. Ratings change as new reviews appear on Google Maps, so a company's standing this month may differ next month.

Where to verify a mover

We do not visit offices or verify licenses ourselves. Readers should confirm any mover's credentials directly with the regulator.

California movers need a CPUC permit (CAL-T or MTR number) and insurance on file with the California Public Utilities Commission. Nevada movers need a Nevada Transportation Authority certificate. Arizona has no state moving license, so check USDOT registration on the FMCSA SAFER company snapshot, Arizona Corporation Commission records, and complaint history with the Attorney General and Better Business Bureau.

We cover 663 places and our data includes 1,003 companies across the three states. How we rate moving companies reflects this scale: automated data collection across hundreds of cities, not manual curation of a handful.

Related reading on FindTheMovers

Our free moving quotes page lets you compare planning estimates from multiple movers at once.

Browse our full collection of moving guides for checklists, timelines, and state-specific rules.

See current how much do movers cost? (2026 rates) for hourly crew rates and price ranges by bedroom count in Arizona, Nevada, and California. For example, a two-mover crew with truck runs $120-$190 per hour in Arizona, $130-$210 in Nevada, and $150-$250 in California, with higher California rates in Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

Learn how to choose a moving company with questions to ask about estimates, inventory methods, and delivery windows.

Protect yourself by reading about moving scams and how to avoid them, including red flags like large deposits, blank contracts, and phone-only estimates.

How we rate moving companies Arizona Nevada California uses the same methodology across all three states. The process is transparent: public Google ratings, volume-weighted scoring, minimum thresholds, and clear labeling of origin. When you understand how we rate moving companies, you can use our rankings as one input among several when hiring a mover. No company pays for placement, and we limit national brands to one per list so locally based options remain visible even when out-of-town firms fill shorter lists. That is how we rate moving companies at FindTheMovers.

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