Moving Supplies Calculator
Turn your box counts into tape, packing paper, blankets, bubble wrap and stretch wrap using published mover supply ratios.
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What this tool does
Turn your box counts into tape, packing paper, blankets, bubble wrap and stretch wrap using published mover supply ratios. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
How to use the Moving Supplies Calculator
- Enter or select small boxes (1.5 cu ft).
- Enter or select medium boxes (3 cu ft).
- Enter or select large boxes (4.5 cu ft).
- Enter or select wardrobe boxes.
- Read the calculated result; change any measurement to compare alternatives.
Formula
Ratios per total boxes: 1 tape roll per 15 boxes; 1 paper bundle per 10 boxes; 1 furniture blanket per 6 boxes; 2 ft of bubble wrap per box; 1 stretch-wrap roll per 25 boxes
- small
- Small boxes (1.5 cu ft)
- medium
- Medium boxes (3 cu ft)
- large
- Large boxes (4.5 cu ft)
- wardrobe
- Wardrobe boxes
Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
Worked example
For moving supplies calculator, the following measurements illustrate the exact method: Small boxes (1.5 cu ft): 15; Medium boxes (3 cu ft): 20; Large boxes (4.5 cu ft): 10; Wardrobe boxes: 3.
Inputs
- Small boxes (1.5 cu ft)15
- Medium boxes (3 cu ft)20
- Large boxes (4.5 cu ft)10
- Wardrobe boxes3
Result
- Total boxes48
- Tape rolls4
- Packing paper bundles5
- Furniture blankets / pads8
- Bubble wrap96 ft
- Stretch wrap rolls2
- Total box volume157.5 cu ft
Results explained
- Total boxes
- Total boxes from the formula above. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
- Tape rolls
- Tape rolls from the formula above. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
- Packing paper bundles
- Packing paper bundles from the formula above. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
- Furniture blankets / pads
- Furniture blankets / pads from the formula above. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
- Bubble wrap
- Bubble wrap from the formula above, expressed in ft before metric conversion. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
- Stretch wrap rolls
- Stretch wrap rolls from the formula above. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
- Total box volume
- Total box volume from the formula above, expressed in cuft before metric conversion. Ratios are published mover planning ratios, not guarantees — fragile-heavy homes (kitchens, dishware) need more paper and bubble wrap, book-heavy homes need more small boxes and tape.
Frequently asked questions
A studio often packs 20–30 boxes, a 2-bedroom home 45–60 and a 4-bedroom house 80+. Count what you own room by room; this tool starts from your own box counts rather than a bedroom guess.
Plan on roughly one bundle (about 10 lb / 100+ sheets) per 10 boxes. Kitchens eat paper fastest because every dish and glass gets wrapped.
About one pad per 6 boxes of household goods is a workable planning ratio, but count large furniture pieces directly too — each dresser, table and TV wants its own pad.
Small and medium boxes do most of the work. Large boxes are only for light, bulky items (linens, pillows) — a large box of books can exceed safe lifting weight.
About one roll per 15 boxes, counting bottom and top seams plus reinforcement on heavy small boxes. Buy one extra roll; tape is the supply everyone runs out of.