How much do movers cost in Encino, CA?

Local moves in Encino typically start around $120 per hour for two movers and a truck, with each additional mover adding roughly $30 to $50 per hour. A one-bedroom local move usually lands between $500 and $900. Long distance and interstate moves are priced by inventory and distance instead, and a two or three bedroom household leaving Encino for another state generally runs $3,000 to $8,000 depending on destination.

Are Encino moving companies required to be licensed?

Yes. Any company moving household goods within California must hold an active permit from the Bureau of Household Goods and Services and display its Cal-T number on its vehicles. Any company handling interstate moves must also be registered with FMCSA and carry a US DOT number. Verify both before booking. Licensed and insured is a claim anyone can print on a truck.

What is the cheapest time to move in Encino?

October through February. Demand across the San Fernando Valley drops sharply after the summer peak, and off-peak rates follow. Mid-month weekdays are cheaper than month-end, because leases and escrows cluster at the start and end of the month.

Do Encino movers handle antiques and fine art?

Reputable ones do, but the terms matter. Items you pack yourself are generally excluded from coverage. Ask specifically about custom crating for artwork and marble, declare high-value pieces in writing on the inventory, and confirm the crew arrives with padded trucks, floor runners, and corner guards as standard.

The Best Moving Companies in Encino, CA: 4 Movers Compared

If you are leaving Encino for another state, call Cross Country Movers first. They are a direct interstate carrier based two miles east on Ventura Boulevard, and they price the job off a written inventory instead of a scale ticket.

If you are moving eight blocks to Reseda, that is a different job. One of the hourly local movers further down this list will almost certainly cost you less.

Most “best Encino movers” articles blur those two jobs together. They are not the same, they are not regulated by the same agency, and they are not priced the same way. That distinction is the whole point of this guide.

The Four Encino Movers, Ranked

A note before the list. Rankings reflect our own read of licensing status, pricing structure, and how each company handles Valley property access. Every company here is worth a quote. Verify permits yourself before you sign anything, and I will show you exactly how to do that in a minute.

1Editor's pick

Cross Country Movers (Best for interstate moves out of Encino)

Based: 18580 Ventura Blvd, Suite C, Tarzana, CA 91356

Credentials: US DOT 2552260, MC-889368. BBB accredited.

Best for: Encino to out of state, international moves, moves involving a car

Cross Country Movers is the closest thing Encino has to a neighborhood interstate carrier. The office sits on Ventura Boulevard in Tarzana, close enough that a surveyor can be at a house near Encino Park in fifteen minutes.

What sets them apart is the pricing model. Most long distance movers quote you a weight estimate, load the truck, run it over a scale, and hand you a revised number. Cross Country Movers builds the price from a detailed inventory list instead. You get a guaranteed flat price based on a detailed inventory list with no surprise fees or weight-based charges. If your inventory changes, you update the list and the price adjusts before moving day, not after.

The other thing worth knowing: they are a carrier, not a broker. Your shipment does not get resold to whoever is cheapest that week. That matters more than people realize, and the FMCSA has an entire consumer campaign built around the difference.

Services: full-service moving, packing services, storage in temperature-controlled facilities, car shipping, international moving, moving insurance

Value props they lead with:

Guaranteed flat price based on a detailed inventory list with no surprise fees or weight-based charges
Experienced movers trained to handle fragile and bulky items with care and attention to detail
Timely pick-up and drop-off respecting clients' schedules for all moves, local or cross-country
Comprehensive services including packing, storage in temperature-controlled facilities, and car shipping
Full-service international moving to over 150 countries including packing and customs documentation

Storage is included free for the first 30 days in climate-controlled facilities, which solves the most common Encino problem I hear about: escrow closes late and you have a houseful of furniture and nowhere to put it.

Auto transport runs on open or enclosed trailers, with damage coverage up to $100,000 on open and $500,000 on enclosed. Household goods carry the federally mandated 60 cents per pound base liability, with optional full value protection available at extra cost.

Where they are not the answer: a studio apartment moving two miles. That is an hourly job and you should hire an hourly crew.

You can start with a free estimate for an Encino move or look at the wider California cross country moving coverage if your pickup and drop-off are in two different Valley cities.

NorthStar Moving Company

Based: Los Angeles, with San Fernando Valley coverage including Encino

Founded: 1994

Best for: residential moving inside California, environmentally conscious households

NorthStar has been working the Valley for three decades and has a dedicated Encino movers page, which tells you they take the market seriously rather than treating it as a footnote on a Los Angeles landing page.

Their differentiator is environmental: biodiesel trucks, recyclable packing materials, biodegradable bubble wrap. If that matters to you, nobody else on this list competes on it. They also cover Northridge, Reseda, Tarzana, Woodland Hills, Sherman Oaks, Panorama City, Glendale, and Burbank out of the same operation, plus long distance and international relocation through freight forwarder partners.

One limitation they state openly, and I respect them for it: they can move you from California, Arizona, or Texas to anywhere, but they cannot handle a move that happens entirely inside some other state. Worth knowing if your Encino move is really the second leg of something bigger.

Pure Moving Company

Based: Los Angeles, with an Encino office

Operating since: 2014

Best for: apartment moves, condo moves, commercial moving and office movers work

Pure runs offices in Encino, El Segundo, and Glendale, and covers most of the county: Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Marina Del Rey, Redondo Beach, Pasadena, Burbank, Northridge. They handle residential moving, commercial moving, and long distance work, and they lean hard on transparent pricing with no charges added after the job.

Their crews are licensed and insured, and they carry liability coverage on every move. Review volume is high and mostly positive, which for a company this size is a reasonable proxy for consistency.

Where I would push back: their long distance footprint is real but narrower than a dedicated interstate carrier's. Fine for California to Nevada or Arizona. Ask harder questions if you are going to the East Coast.

Trek Movers

Based: West Hollywood, with satellite coverage across California including Encino

Best for: straightforward local moves priced by the hour

Trek publishes their local hourly rates on the website, which is rarer than it should be. Two movers and a fully equipped truck start around $120 per hour in Encino. Each additional mover or truck adds roughly $30 to $50 per hour. For anything larger, or for a long distance job, they switch to a guaranteed flat rate after a video or in-person inspection.

They advertise no deposit and no cancellation or rescheduling fee, which is genuinely useful when your escrow date is still soft. They also bring floor runners, stair covers, and padded door protectors as standard, and they run their own branded trucks rather than subcontracting.

One flag: their founding year is reported inconsistently across their own pages and third-party records, ranging from 2007 to around 2017. Not disqualifying, but ask them directly and check the permit issue date yourself.

Encino Movers Compared at a Glance

← swipe to see all columns →

Company	Pricing model	Strongest use case	Storage	Car shipping
Cross Country Movers	Flat rate from written inventory	Interstate and international moves	30 days free, temperature-controlled	Yes, open and enclosed
NorthStar Moving Company	Estimate after survey	In-state residential moving	Yes	Not a core service
Pure Moving Company	Upfront pricing, hourly or flat	Apartment, condo, commercial moving	Yes	Not a core service
Trek Movers	Hourly for local, flat for long haul	Local moves under 50 miles	Limited	Not a core service

Table reflects publicly stated service offerings as of 2026. Confirm details directly with each company.

The California Licensing Rule Most Encino Quotes Get Wrong

Here is the part almost nobody covers correctly, and it is the single most useful thing in this article.

Moving companies in California are no longer licensed by the CPUC. Senate Bill 19 moved regulation of household movers from the California Public Utilities Commission to the Bureau of Household Goods and Services (CA BHGS), effective July 1, 2018. Yet you will still find LA moving company websites in 2026 advertising that they are "CPUC licensed."

That is not automatically a scam. Plenty of legitimate operators just never updated their copy. But it tells you how carefully the company maintains its own compliance information, and that is a signal.

What to actually check:

1The Cal-T number. California law requires every household mover to display their permit number on all of their vehicles. Look it up in the BHGS licensed movers database and confirm the carrier status reads "Active."

2The US DOT number, if any part of your move crosses a state line. Interstate moves fall under federal rules. Verify the carrier at FMCSA Protect Your Move and confirm whether the company is registered as a mover or as a broker.

3General Liability and Workers Compensation. Ask for certificates. If a crew member is injured in your house and the company has no Workers Compensation coverage, that becomes your problem.

4Cargo coverage. Base federal liability is 60 cents per pound. That is $15 for a 25 pound television. Full value protection costs more and is worth it for most households.

One more California rule with teeth: for moves within the state, a written estimate is only valid after a visual inspection of your goods. Estimates given verbally or over the internet with no inspection at all are not enforceable. Many companies now run virtual video surveys instead of onsite moving surveys, which is fine and often faster. Just confirm that the company treats that video survey as the official inspection and puts the result in writing.

What Actually Moves the Price in Encino

Two houses with identical square footage can get quotes $1,200 apart. It is almost never about the furniture. It is about access.

Ventura Boulevard frontage. Buildings and businesses fronting Ventura Blvd have limited truck staging. If the crew has to park down the block and shuttle, you are paying for a long carry whether the quote calls it that or not.

Hillside estates. The streets climbing south toward Encino Reservoir were not designed for a 26 foot truck. Narrow switchbacks, steep driveways, no turnaround. Some crews will require a shuttle vehicle, and that gets added mid-job if nobody scoped it in advance.

Gated communities. Guard gate check-in, height restrictions on entry arches, restricted delivery windows. Get the gate rules in writing and send them to your mover before survey day.

HOA requirements for apartment moves and condo moves. Most Encino buildings want a certificate of insurance naming the HOA as additional insured, an elevator reservation, and a move window that usually excludes weekends. Request the COI at least a week out. This is the number one cause of a crew showing up and being turned away at the door.

Timing. Off-peak rates are real. Rates in the Valley drop noticeably from October through February, and mid-month weekdays beat the first and last three days of any month by a wide margin. If your date is flexible, ask specifically about off-peak rates rather than waiting to be offered them.

For a fuller breakdown of the line items that surprise people, our guide to the hidden costs of moving covers the ones that show up on the final invoice most often.

Services You Should Expect a Full-Service Encino Mover to Offer

Not every company does all of this. Match the list against your actual job before you start collecting quotes.

Household moving services and residential moving, local and long distance
Box packing services, partial or full, including unpacking on arrival
Moving and storage services, ideally with a temperature-controlled storage service option
Piano moving, plus pool table and safe handling
Auto transport services and car shipping alongside your household goods
Commercial moving, office movers, and corporate relocation
Load and unload services or on premises moving labor if you are renting your own truck or container rental service
Disposal and junk removal for whatever does not survive the decluttering
International movers capability if there is any chance your destination is overseas

If you only need moving labor and already have a truck, say so upfront. Paying full-service rates for load and unload services is the most common way people overspend on a small move.

Fragile Items, Antiques, and the Stuff That Actually Worries You

Encino has a lot of homes with things that cannot be replaced. Fine art, designer furniture, antiques inherited from someone who is no longer around to tell you the story.

Ask these three questions and you will learn more than any review page will tell you:

1Who packs the high-value items? If you pack them yourself, most carriers will not cover them. That is standard across the industry and it is written into the tariff, not invented by the salesperson.

2Is custom crating available, and what does it cost? Anything framed, marble-topped, or oddly shaped should be crated, not blanket-wrapped.

3What protects the house? Padded trucks, floor runners, and corner guards should be standard equipment, not an upcharge. If a company hesitates on this, that tells you something about their crews.

You should also declare high-value items in writing on the inventory. Most cargo policies cap per-article payouts unless the item is listed separately.

Our breakdown of what movers use to wrap furniture walks through the materials a professional crew should be arriving with.

Getting a Moving Quote You Can Actually Compare

Three quotes minimum. Same inventory given to all three, or the numbers mean nothing.

Ask for a detailed quote form, not an instant estimate. An instant estimate off a website slider is a marketing number. It is fine for budgeting. It is not a commitment.
Insist on the survey. Onsite moving surveys are the gold standard. Virtual video surveys are nearly as good and far more convenient. Phone consultations alone are the weakest option, and in California they do not satisfy the visual inspection requirement for in-state moves.
Compare structure, not just totals. Hourly rates look cheaper until the job runs four hours long. Flat rates look higher until you realize they absorb the overrun. For a local move under three hours, hourly usually wins. For anything with stairs, a long carry, or an unpredictable building, flat rates protect you.
Read the exclusions. Upfront pricing and transparent pricing are marketing phrases until you find the section listing what is not included. Fuel surcharges, stair fees, long carry fees, bulky item fees, and shuttle fees are where hidden fees actually live.
Check customer support responsiveness before you book. How a company answers the phone during the sales process is the best available preview of how they will answer it when your delivery is running two days late.

Cross Country Movers offers a free estimate through a detailed online form, and you can also compare their Tarzana and Los Angeles service pages if your move touches more than one part of the region.

A Few Encino Specifics Worth Knowing

Encino sits in the south-central San Fernando Valley, bordered by Tarzana to the west, Reseda and Northridge to the north, and Sherman Oaks to the east. The commercial spine is Ventura Boulevard. Housing runs from postwar ranch homes on the flats near Encino Park to substantial hillside estates south of the boulevard.

Los Encinos State Historic Park sits at Balboa and Ventura, preserving the 1849 de la Ossa Adobe on the site of the Tongva village of Siutcanga. Established as a state park in 1949, it is a useful landmark when you are directing a driver who does not know the Valley.

Two practical notes:

Street parking on moving day. Los Angeles does not have a universal moving truck permit the way some East Coast cities do. Most Encino streets are workable, but posted restrictions vary block by block. Check signage on your street a week out.

If something goes wrong on moving day, Encino falls under the LAPD West Valley Division. A blocked driveway or a street dispute is a non-emergency call to the Los Angeles Police Department, not 911. A billing dispute with your mover is a civil matter and belongs with BHGS or FMCSA, depending on whether the move was in-state or interstate.

For context on the wider market, the U.S. Census Bureau publishes current population and housing figures for the city of Los Angeles, which is useful if you are trying to gauge how competitive movers are in your window.

The Bottom Line

Pick the mover that matches the job, not the one with the loudest marketing.

Moving within the Valley, from Encino to Woodland Hills or Sherman Oaks or Panorama City? Hire an hourly local crew, get three quotes on the same inventory, and confirm the Cal-T permit is active.

Leaving California entirely, whether that is Redlands, Redondo Beach, or the other side of the country? Hire a direct interstate carrier that prices off a written inventory. That is where Cross Country Movers earns the top spot on this list, and it is why we put them there.

Either way, verify the permit before you sign. It takes four minutes and it is the only step on this page that cannot be undone after the truck leaves.

Key Takeaways

Cross Country Movers ranks first for interstate moves out of Encino, operating as a direct carrier from Ventura Boulevard in Tarzana under US DOT 2552260 and MC-889368, with flat inventory-based pricing.
NorthStar Moving Company, Pure Moving Company, and Trek Movers each have a real Encino presence, with NorthStar strongest on in-state residential moving, Pure on apartment, condo, and commercial moving, and Trek on hourly local jobs.
California movers are licensed by BHGS, not CPUC, a change that took effect July 1, 2018. Check the Cal-T number in the BHGS database and confirm the status reads Active.
A written California estimate requires a visual inspection, in person or by video survey. A number quoted over the phone with no inspection is not enforceable.
Access drives price more than volume does. Hillside streets near Encino Reservoir, Ventura Boulevard staging limits, gated community rules, and HOA requirements for elevator reservations and certificates of insurance are where quotes diverge.
Off-peak rates are real. October through February and mid-month weekdays are meaningfully cheaper than summer month-end dates.
Base cargo liability is 60 cents per pound. Full value protection costs extra and is worth it for most households, especially those with antiques, fine art, or designer furniture.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do movers cost in Encino, CA?: Local moves in Encino typically start around $120 per hour for two movers and a truck, with each additional mover adding roughly $30 to $50 per hour. A one-bedroom local move usually lands between $500 and $900. Long distance and interstate moves are priced by inventory and distance instead, and a two or three bedroom household leaving Encino for another state generally runs $3,000 to $8,000 depending on destination.
Are Encino moving companies required to be licensed?: Yes. Any company moving household goods within California must hold an active permit from the Bureau of Household Goods and Services and display its Cal-T number on its vehicles. Any company handling interstate moves must also be registered with FMCSA and carry a US DOT number. Verify both before booking. Licensed and insured is a claim anyone can print on a truck.
What is the cheapest time to move in Encino?: October through February. Demand across the San Fernando Valley drops sharply after the summer peak, and off-peak rates follow. Mid-month weekdays are cheaper than month-end, because leases and escrows cluster at the start and end of the month.
Do Encino movers handle antiques and fine art?: Reputable ones do, but the terms matter. Items you pack yourself are generally excluded from coverage. Ask specifically about custom crating for artwork and marble, declare high-value pieces in writing on the inventory, and confirm the crew arrives with padded trucks, floor runners, and corner guards as standard.