Ratings Methodology for DIY and Container Moving Companies

NerdWallet’s overall ratings for DIY and container movers are weighted averages of ratings in the following categories:

Availability of online quotes.

Upfront payment or deposit requirements.

Fees to pay with a credit card.

Availability of binding and/or not-to-exceed quotes.

Availability of additional services.

Geographical breadth.

Availability of full-value protection.

Container trackability.

Availability of day-certain delivery.

Compensation for late delivery.

Better Business Bureau customer rating.

Number of BBB complaints over the last three years.

Number of U.S. Department of Transportation complaints over the last four years.

Customer service contact options.

Data collection and review process

NerdWallet reviews the largest residential solar installers in the U.S. based on market share and search volume (as a proxy for consumer interest). We gather information from installers’ websites and contact installers for further information.

The final output produces star ratings from poor (1 star) to excellent (5 stars). Ratings are rounded to the nearest half-star.

Information updates

Our writers and editors review providers on an annual basis. Throughout the year, we may maintain contact with providers and update any changes to their offerings.

Factor weightings

The weighting of each rating factor is based on our team’s assessment of which features are most important to consumers and which ones impact the consumer experience in the most meaningful way.

The review team

The review team comprises writers and editors who cover estate planning. Each writer and editor follows NerdWallet’s strict guidelines for editorial integrity. The combined expertise of our team is infused into our review process to ensure thoughtful evaluation of products and services from the customer's perspective.

Pricing and payment

The highest-scoring movers offer the following:

Online quote availability.

No upfront payment or deposit required.

No fee to pay with a credit card.

Offers binding and/or not-to-exceed quotes.

If the moving company doesn’t respond to our requests for information and the terms aren’t found online, we assume the options above aren’t offered. The lowest-scoring moving companies offer none of these options.

Features and services

The highest-scoring moving companies offer other services to customers, including packing, unpacking, car shipping, storage and debris removal. They also provide local, in-state, cross-country and international moves. They offer contents protection to customers, provide a way for customers to track the location of their containers, offer day-certain delivery and provide compensation for late deliveries. The lowest-scoring moving companies do not offer these things.

Customer satisfaction

NerdWallet averages the customer rating from the Better Business Bureau, the number of customer complaints to the Better Business Bureau over the last three years (obtained from the U.S. Department of Transportation), and the number of customer complaints to the Department of Transportation over the last four years. The highest-scoring companies have at least a four-star BBB customer rating and 50 customer complaints or fewer to the BBB or DOT. The lowest-scoring companies have less than a one-star BBB customer rating and 5.1 or more than 200 customer complaints to the BBB or DOT. The highest-scoring movers offer phone, chat, email, online form and app-based ways to get in touch with customer service; the lowest-scoring movers offered none or only one of those options.

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