Free moving boxes? Wait, where’s the catch?

It’s always nice to get something for free, especially when you’re getting ready for a costly house move. It can be really tough to estimate just how costly your move will turn out to be, but one thing you can be sure is that it won’t be as cheap as you would like it to be.

Before you start the packing marathon, the question of where to get free moving boxes will momentarily take center stage, and that’s perfectly understandable. Why should you pay for something when you can find it for free?

After all, when it comes to packing materials, cardboard boxes are known as the biggest packing expense because of the great number of containers you will need to have your items packed up and ready for transportation.

Find below useful information on how to get cardboard boxes free of charge, including a checklist of all the places that give free moving boxes. But before that, let’s say a few words about why you shouldn’t get too excited about the prospect of scoring free moving boxes for your upcoming residential move.

Free moving boxes? What you must know.

Whenever you have the rare chance not to pay for something, be it an object or a service, you should seriously consider taking that opportunity. Yes, you should consider it instead of going for it blindly simply because you do want to avoid some of the usual traps that come with free stuff.

The idea for free moving boxes sounds really nice and tempting but there is a catch too! Here’s what you must know when looking for free moving boxes:

Good overall condition. There are several good ways to get your hands on free packing boxes /see below/ but the fact that you won’t be paying for those cartons doesn’t mean that you should automatically agree to take all of them. Sure, your goal is to save money by not purchasing brand new cardboard boxes but if any of those containers break during a house move due to their poor condition, then you risk of damaging whatever items have been packed inside. The risk of sustaining a personal injury or causing property damage is also greater should you choose to use free moving boxes with substandard quality. So, be careful not to get too greedy and accept only cardboard containers in good overall condition to prevent bigger problems in the end.
Strength. It’s hard to determine just how strong a box is unless you put to the test during the packing task later. Nevertheless, the cardboard containers you are offered for free should look sturdy enough with no holes of any kind, and no torn, ripped, or weak spots either. The lids should be present as well. Take a closer look at the seams of the packing boxes as they the places that get worn out the fastest
Cleanliness. One of the major differences between new packing boxes and used cardboard boxes is just how clean they are. Because of their unrivaled level of versatility, cardboard containers can be used for storage and transportation of all kinds of things both animate and inanimate – vegetables, fruits, small animals, or even chemicals. Inspect carefully the free cardboard boxes for moving you are offered and make sure they are clean enough to serve you well. Infestation is a serious problem when it comes to second-hand boxes so if you have your doubts, don’t risk it.

Be somewhat picky when collecting free moving boxes. It always feels nice to get something for free but sometimes the risk is not worth it.
Dryness. Another thing to look out when inspecting free moving boxes is how dry they are at that moment in time and whether or not they seem to have withstood water damage in the past. Look for wet sports or any signs of mold growth on them – if you do find anything suspicious, don’t accept the box or boxes no matter how desperately you want to save on packing supplies. Ultimately, your health and the well-being of the prized possessions you plan to move to your new home are worth more than that.

Purpose. Try to keep in mind what the cheap or free moving boxes will contain and select the containers according to their purpose. Large boxes should be used for lighter items, while medium-sized and smaller ones should store heavier things such as books, for example. People often disregard this safety rule when packing up for a move, and then often wish they didn’t.
See also: 10 things people forget to do when moving house

Extra risks of getting free cardboard boxes

By now you should be well aware of the 3 major risks of using second-hand moving boxes:

If your boxes are not strong enough, they may break under the weight when being carried around and the items inside them will probably break too when they hit the ground.
If your boxes are not clean enough, they could damage the items inside them or even be harmful to your health and the health of the people around you, especially if there’s some kind of parasitic infestation or mold growth.
If your boxes are not dry enough, they will have a number of weak spots that may easily compromise the integrity of the cardboard, and that will lead to serious Moving day safety concerns.
However, there are a couple of somewhat hidden risks as well when you choose to find free moving boxes or to get cheap moving boxes.

Lost time. Your mission to find cheap or free moving boxes may be successful in the end, but how much time did you lose in the process? Don’t forget to factor in the hours or days you’ve spent because the time factor is one of the most important ones during a residential move. If you manage to save money by collecting free moving boxes but lose 2 entire days (or more!) during that hunt, then maybe you didn’t save much in the end, did you?
Extra expenses. Driving around your neighborhood or city, or visiting various businesses in your area in search of free cardboard boxes will not only cost you time, but it will incur extra costs as well, like gas money. The energy and efforts you invest into obtaining those free packing boxes for moving won’t even be included in the rough estimate.
Good to know: All you need to know about hiring professional packers

Best places to get free moving boxes


Ask friends, coworkers, and neighbors if they have good cardboard boxes they no longer need. Their response may surprise you in a good way.
Now that you have all the information you need to decide whether looking for cheap or free cardboard boxes will be worth it, let’s take a closer look at the best places for free moving boxes.

Friends and neighbors

Each successful house move leaves plenty of cardboard boxes that get thrown away even though they can be re-used at least one more time. So, if you know somebody in your neighborhood who has recently moved, then you can simply go to that person and ask them if they have any cardboard boxes they won’t need anymore. Oftentimes, good neighbors will gladly give you the packing containers they were planning to recycle anyway.

It’s easier with friends unless they live like 3 time zones away. Ask your circle of pals about spare boxes, either face to face or by using the power of social networks – a brief Facebook or Twitter post can help you collect more moving boxes that you’ll actually need, sometimes much more than going around and checking with local businesses.

Online

The Internet is a good place to get free moving boxes provided that the people who happen to offer such packing and moving containers live in your area, or are able to ship those cardboard containers to you at minimal shipping costs. Otherwise, the whole online search won’t be worth your time and efforts.

Notable mentions when you’re searching for free moving boxes online are:

Freecycle. This famous site has more than 9 million registered users worldwide /Freecycle membership is free/ who offer all types of no longer wanted items completely free of charge. Just do a local search and see if anyone who lives near you offers cardboard boxes for moving. Yes, they should be free.
Craigslist. No introduction is needed for Craigslist – just search for moving boxes and see who offers such in your location. Additionally, it’s worth checking if other types of packing supplies are offered as well, such as second-hand Bubble wrap or used but still usable packing paper.
Packing checklist: Packing timeline for moving

Local businesses

Retail stores and medium-sized local businesses that get frequent shipments of goods delivered directly to them will have plenty of cardboard containers in all shapes and sizes. Such local businesses are required to dispose of those corrugated cardboard boxes in an environmentally-friendly way – that is, to recycle them properly. And as you can imagine, if somebody can spare them those cardboard recycling efforts, then that’s even better for them.

Find below a pretty detailed list of places that offer free cardboard moving boxes. Go to a few large retail stores, speak with their managers, and see what they will tell you. Basically, the worst that can happen is for them to say No, so you can only win from your decision to save money on packing materials. And considering the average costs of moving house, your smart decision to look for free moving boxes, combined with other cost-saving tips and tricks, will let you save big on your upcoming residential move.

Where to get free cardboard boxes near you?


The city or town you live in should be able to offer you a number of good places to get free moving boxes – all you have to do is take a closer look.
Large supermarkets. Big grocery stores get deliveries on a daily basis so they are probably your best chance of going home with enough cardboard containers to last you at least 3 house moves in a row. Get in contact with a few big supermarkets in your area and see if they will be willing to part with the excess of boxes, and if yes, whether they have any requirements about the pick-up time.

Shopping centers. Shopping centers house numerous individual stores that also tend to have more cardboard boxes than they know what to do with. Shoe boxes can be ideal for fitting the smaller items you own.
Home electronics stores. The boxes you can find in such electronics stores are almost always clean as they have been used for transportation of electronic devices. Some of these containers can be too big, but hey, that’s okay – you can always cut them up and use the cardboard itself for various protective purposes.
Bookstores. Again, the containers you will find there are as clean as they can get. Also, cartons for transportation of books are usually stronger /double-walled/ which should come very handy for your collection of books or for some other heavier things in your home.
Liquor stores. Specialized liquor stores usually have stronger boxes designed to withstand the extra weight of glass bottles. Some of the containers they use will be made of plastic, and that’s even perfect provided that you can convince them to give them to you free of charge.
Recycling centers. Well, most cardboard boxes end up right there in various recycling centers. The good news is that not all containers that go there are in bad shape. So, if there’s a recycling center in your vicinity, maybe a quick visit there first will save you loads of time and efforts. Just remember to be fairly picky about the condition of the boxes you agree to take home with you.
As mentioned above, getting something for free is great, but there’s usually another price to pay for that – your time. It’s definitely a good idea to contact a few reputable local movers and see what offers they will give you – they may be able to offer you cheap moving boxes, or they can offer you a really good package price for a packing service that will include the cost of all packing materials.

Top 10 Ways to Find the Best Place to Live:

Where should you move to? Where will you feel at home? These are complicated questions with many variables to consider, so today we're taking a look at tips on finding the right neighborhood (or city or state) for you, and maps and statistics that might reveal why some areas would be more or less attractive than others for you.

Many of these tips are US-centric—simply because most of us Lifehacker writers and readers are in the US—but not all of them are. (Regardless, the state data maps might be as interesting as maps visualizing the internet.) There are also basic, widely applicable guidelines you might want to follow too below. The key is to check out not just one of these information points, but all of them together to pick the best place to live. (At the very least, it's better than throwing a dart at a map on the wall.) Here are ten things you might want to consider:

The Internet Map Is a Searchable, Bubble-Filled Visualization of The Internet

This map of the internet is a fun way to explore how sites are related to each other. Each of the…Read more

10. Where You Should Live If You Want to Avoid a Natural Disaster

This may or may not be at the top of your mind when you're thinking about the best place to move to: the chances of Mother Nature coming after you just as soon as you're settled. Some areas in the US, however, are more prone to natural disaster than others. It doesn't mean those in the Texas or neighboring areas should head northwest right away, but if you know you'd be anxious about emergency storm warnings and the like, this is a good map to consult.

Tornadoes and earthquakes aside, perhaps you just want to find the cities with the most pleasant weather year-round. There's a clever US map for that too.

9. The Best and Worst States to Earn a Living

Besides being near family and friends, probably the biggest consideration for where to live —at least for those of us who are still working—is whether the area pays enough for you to survive there. We've highlighted a Money Rates analysis of the 10 hardest and 10 best states to make a living here (based on average salary, cost of living, employment rate, and workplace conditions). Another in-depth study found the minimum amounts—by state, county, and metropolitan area—an adult or family would need to cover basic expenses. (Think of it as a "this is how much it'd cost to live here at the bare minimum" guide.)

The Living Wage Calculator Finds What You Need to Support Your Family

Ever wonder just how much money is enough to survive on? This calculator from MIT tells you how…Read more

If you're retired or nearing retirement, consult AARP's lists of the best/most affordable cities or US News and World Report's roundup.

8. The Most Prominent Jobs in Each State

To get a more personal look, you'd probably want to find out where the jobs are for your given line of work. This previously mentioned interactive chart visualizes the most prominent job by state and salary. You might also want to do a search for "best states [or cities] for [your occupation]." For your occupation and industry, you want to go where the job opportunities and long-term growth are.

7. What It Costs to Live There

Cost of living is another huge consideration. Can you even afford to live there? Would it be smarter—money-wise—to move to a different area? $100 in Mississippi goes a whole lot farther than $100 in DC when it comes to spending power. In terms of just making enough to be happy living there, a study a few years ago suggested that $75,000 a year is the household income happiness tipping point—beyond that, your happiness and well-being might not be substantially improved. So what's the magic number for each state (after which you can stop worrying about making more)? Here are the numbers.

The "Perfect" Salary for Happiness, by State

A few years ago, a Princeton study suggested that $75,000 is the happiness tipping point—earning…Read more

6. How Long Your Commute Will Be

Salary isn't everything when it comes to finding the right place to live. For many, a short commute (or no commute at all!) would be ideal. In fact, just moving 20 minutes closer to work could save your health (and savings account).

5. Whether You'll Rent or Buy

Housing is the biggest expense in our budgets, so it pays to compare the rent prices for different locations as well the disparate average home buying costs and mortgage rates by location (Rhode Island had a low 3.395% average mortgage rate in August, compared to Nebraska's 4.102% rate). In some places, renting is better than buying; in others, buying is better—and that can make a difference if you're intent on being a homeowner or not or even if you want to make some extra money as a landlord.

The Most Common Ways You Waste Money (and How to Save It)

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4. How Well the Area Matches Your Lifestyle

Enough about work and money, we want to know if you can actually livethere. Here's how to quickly vet a neighborhood. Many of you Lifehackers have also spilled the secrets to your local hotspots and . This is a lifestyle question: Some people might prefer a neighborhood with a great nightlife, entertainment, and shopping opportunities within a quick walk; others might prefer well-maintained public play areas and noise nuisance laws. That said, don't discount a totally different lifestyle than you're used too—like rural living if you're from the city—because you might be surprised if you gave the other kind a chance.

How Can I Quickly Find the Best Neighborhood(s) in Any City—and the Best Hangouts Therein?

Dear Lifehacker, I'm planning my vacation and want to make sure I pick a good neighborhood to…Read more

What's the Best Local Food in Your State?

There are more varieties of great food in the US than there are states, which is saying a lot. The…Read more

3. How Weird or Restrictive the Area Is

On the other hand, you don't want to go through all the trouble of moving only to discover your town has a one-dog limit and you've got two (or more) dogs—and similar strange laws (like bizarre driving laws). Before you make a major moving decision, read through your renter's agreement and rights, at the very least, or your town laws (especially for those buying a house).

Bizarre Regional Laws In the U.S. Are Even Weirder Than You Thought

Every now and then there's a writeup of some weird U.S. laws, and it's always interesting …Read more on gizmodo.​com

2. The "Type" of People Who Live in the Neighborhood

Although it's not right to stereotype everyone by Zip Code, communities often do have characteristic socio-demographic leanings. Some towns may match your political opinions more than others, for example. Marketers use where we live to group us into segments; depending on where you live, your neighborhood might be full of "Urban Elders," a "Bohemian Mix," and/or "Big Sky Families" (here's the previously mentioned Nielsen PRIZM Zip Code lookup tool). As gross as this might seem, it could come in useful when you're looking to maintain a certain lifestyle.

Learn Which Towns Are a Match for Your Political Beliefs

Picking where to move in a state can be a difficult decision. One thing you may consider is the…Read more

1. Check Out a City or Neighborhood for Yourself

In the end, you're going to have to do your own research to get a feel for a new city. You can do that without having to actually live there. This comes in handy when you need to decide whether or not to move to a new city to look for a job or are just exploring your options for the next place you should live. Still, it's good to at least visit for a while. I like City-Data, other "best cities" lists and maps and so on, but there's nothing like being in a place until you have a good feel for it to help guide your (difficult) decision.

Instructions to Hire Moving Day Help:

As your huge move methodologies and you review your prized belonging, you may ask yourself, "How am I going to get the majority of my furniture and things from Point A to Point B?" Well, discovering a moving organization doesn't need to be an upsetting experience. Actually, there are moving alternatives for each situation. 

It is safe to say that you are moving cross-country or crosswise over town? Do you have a major family or would you say you are flying solo? These things component into the kind of moving help that is a good fit for your movement. In this way, before you monstrosity out over your heaps of moving boxes and overstuffed love seats, pause a moment to see what sort of help you may requirement for your enormous moving day. 

Moving Help Companies: There are some who were conceived with the Tetris quality, a superhuman capacity that permits them to proficiently pack bunches of things into restricted spaces. Shockingly, not everybody has the Tetris quality, which makes the presence of moving help organizations all the more critical. In the event that pressing is not your strong point or you essentially don't have room schedule-wise to corral your effects, there are moving help organizations that have practical experience in pressing up your belonging and dispatching them on out.