What size van do I need to move?
Estimate the volume of your belongings from your home size and how much you've got, and see which van fits — and how many trips it'll take. Hiring one too small means a second run; too big and you're paying for fresh air. Free, no sign-up.
A guide, not a guarantee. Real volumes vary hugely with how you pack, so treat this as a starting point and round up if in doubt. A Luton van with a tail lift is the usual DIY choice for a house move. To drive anything over 3.5 tonnes you may need an extra licence category, and a big lorry is harder to park and manoeuvre on a narrow street — often a removals firm is cheaper once you count the trips, fuel and time. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
A volume estimate, then the right van.
Start from the home. A typical two-bed home's contents are around 20–25 cubic metres, a three-bed 35–40, and so on. We take a baseline for your home size and adjust it for how much you actually have — a recently decluttered home packs far smaller than one with full lofts, garages and sheds.
Add the bulky one-offs. A piano, an American-style fridge, a big wardrobe or a shed full of garden kit don't follow the room count, so add them separately at roughly a cubic metre each.
Match to a van. We allow for the fact you can't pack a van to the last centimetre, then find the smallest van that does it in one trip. The common hire sizes are a small van (~6 m³), a medium long-wheelbase van (~10 m³), a Luton box van with a tail lift (~18 m³), and a 7.5-tonne lorry (~35 m³).
Trips matter as much as size. If your load won't fit in one go, two trips in a Luton may still beat hiring a lorry you can't park or aren't licensed to drive. We show the trip count for each van so you can weigh it up. A 7.5-tonne lorry usually needs the right licence category — check yours.
When to call a firm. Past a three- or four-bed load, a removals company with a big lorry and a crew is often cheaper and far less stressful than several self-drive trips — especially over a long distance. Get a couple of quotes and compare.
Move house without losing the details.
Stead keeps your moving checklist, suppliers, meter readings and key dates in one place — and a handover pack you can pass to whoever's coming next.