HireAHelper's Guide to Choosing a Moving Container

America's best-known portable storage brand, with over 8,600 verified customer reviews and a fleet of steel-framed 8-, 12-, and 16-foot containers. Known for door-to-door delivery, flexible storage, and moves where you never have to touch a steering wheel.

•  No truck driving required — PODS handles all the transport
•  Load at your own pace — first 30 days of storage included
•  Steel-framed, weather-resistant containers with ground-level access
•  Flexible cancellation policy and straightforward pricing

•  Book early — availability fills up during peak moving season
•  Some long-distance orders still require a phone call to finalize
•  Costs for larger homes on long routes can stack up vs. other DIY options

1-800-PACK-RAT builds its all-steel containers to feel solid, and customers notice. Available in the same three sizes as PODS (8’, 12’, and 16’), their containers use barn-style doors that swing open wide — a genuine advantage over roll-up doors when you’re wrestling a couch or a dresser inside.

Every rental includes a built-in 30-day window, so you’re not scrambling to load and unload on a tight clock. With 65-plus locations, they offer both at-home and facility storage, and climate-controlled storage is available in some areas. Reviewers frequently call out their careful drivers and responsive local teams.

The main watch-outs: delivery windows can be broad, and because the network is smaller than PODS’, prices rise the farther you are from a facility. If a sturdy container and easy loading matter most to you, it’s an excellent pick.

•  Sturdy all-steel containers with easy barn-style doors and 30 days of storage built in.

•  Delivery windows can be broad, and prices rise the farther you are from a facility.

U-Pack (by ABF) takes a different approach with its ReloCubes — small metal containers that each hold roughly one furnished room. You can use as many cubes as you need, or rent space on an ABF trailer, and you only pay for the cubes or trailer space you actually use. A professional driver handles the long-distance transportation, so you never get behind the wheel.

With 240-plus locations, U-Pack is built for long-distance and cross-country moves rather than local hops. The pay-for-what-you-use model is a real money-saver for smaller long-distance loads.

The limitations are specific: U-Pack isn’t meant for true local moves or driveway storage, and you can’t access your stored items at the service center mid-move. If you’re moving long distance on a budget, though, it’s one of the best values out there.

•  Pay only for the cubes or trailer space you actually use, with a pro handling the long-distance drive.

•  Not built for true local moves or driveway storage, and no access to stored items at the service center.

Go Mini’s offers roomy steel containers in three sizes (12’, 16’, and 20’) — including a 20-footer that’s larger than what most competitors carry. Operating on a franchise model with 200-plus locations across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, Go Mini’s pairs you with local crews who tend to be easy to reach and quick to respond.

You can keep the container in your driveway or have it held at a facility, and the larger sizes are handy if you’d rather use one big container than juggle two smaller ones.

Because it’s a franchise network, most locations handle local and regional moves well but offer limited long-distance reach — coverage and pricing can vary from one franchise to the next. For a local or regional move where you want a big, sturdy container and a responsive local team, Go Mini’s is a strong choice.

•  Roomy steel containers in three sizes, with local crews who are easy to reach.

•  Most franchises handle only nearby moves, so long-distance coverage is limited.

U-Haul’s U-Box leans on the company’s enormous national footprint — 2,400-plus locations — to make containers available almost anywhere. Each U-Box is a single small plywood container with one month of use and storage included in the base price, and you can mix and match delivery options: have it dropped in your driveway, load it at a U-Haul center, or even tow it yourself with the right equipment.

That flexibility and reach make U-Box a convenient pick for smaller homes, apartments, and college moves, especially when you want options without driving a full moving truck.

The catch is size: a single U-Box is small, so a larger home needs several of them, which adds up fast. And because fulfillment runs through local U-Haul branches, timing and communication can vary from one location to the next.

•  A huge national network with flexible delivery and storage options, without driving a truck.

•  A single small container means larger homes need several U-Boxes, and timing varies by branch.

SMARTBOX keeps things simple with a single container size that loads at ground level — no ramp, no lifting boxes up into a raised container. You pack at your own pace, and when you’re ready, SMARTBOX can move your container or hold it in temperature-controlled facility storage, which is a nice plus for sensitive belongings.

Available across 37-plus U.S. metro areas, SMARTBOX is best suited to people who want to pack gradually and value an easy path into climate-controlled storage.

The limitations: there’s only one (smaller) box size, and deliveries run on weekdays only — which makes it a poor fit for tight timelines or larger homes that need more capacity. For a relaxed, pack-when-you-can move in a covered metro, it’s worth a look.

•  A ground-level container you can pack on your own schedule, with an easy path into climate-controlled storage.

•  One smaller box size and weekday-only deliveries make it tough for tight timelines or larger homes.

Zippy Shell uses a distinctive design: a ventilated steel cage wrapped in a weatherproof shrink-wrap cover, available in two sizes (10’ and 15’). Like U-Pack, you only pay for the containers you actually use. Its carrier network reaches into areas that some of the bigger national brands skip, with 80-plus U.S. locations.

That coverage makes Zippy Shell worth a look if the larger brands don’t serve your route, and the pay-for-what-you-use pricing keeps smaller loads affordable.

The tradeoffs: loading windows tend to be short, and on long-distance moves your container may make intermediate warehouse stops, which adds a layer of complexity. If you value flexible pricing and broader-than-usual coverage, it’s a solid option.

•  Pay only for the containers you use, with coverage in areas some national brands skip.

•  Loading windows are short, and extra warehouse stops can add complexity to long-distance moves.