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What size moving truck do I need?

A 2-bedroom home is 4 furnished rooms, 720 to 960 cu ft of belongings with the loading margin, so a 20 ft truck (1,016 cu ft); a 3-bedroom house is 900 to 1,200 cu ft and a 26 ft truck. The rule is 150 to 200 cu ft per furnished room plus 20%, from a published guide; the rental companies' own picks are shown beside it, and the truck sizes chart is under the calculator.

Result

Belongings to move
720 to 960 cu ft
Recommended truck
20 ft truck (1,016 cu ft)
The rental company's own pick
20 ft truck: 2-3 bedroom home
10 ft truck
402 cu ft: 3 trips
15 ft truck
764 cu ft: 2 trips
20 ft truck
1,016 cu ft: 1 trip
26 ft truck
1,682 cu ft: 1 trip

4 rooms x 150 to 200 cu ft per room, plus 20% for loading (Storage Scholars, What Size Moving Truck Do I Need? Complete Guide, read 2026-09-20). The recommended class is the smallest that takes the high end in one trip; 1,016 cu ft; $39.95 a day plus mileage. Company picks: moveBuddha, U-Haul Truck Rental Sizes and Prices, read 2026-09-20. Estimates from published moving guides and rate pages, each with its source and date: quotes from movers and rental companies replace them.

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Moving truck sizes chart

Every truck and van class the calculator knows, with the load volume the rental company publishes and the homes it lists the truck for. The last column is the calculator’s own check: the largest home whose belongings (150 to 200 cu ft per furnished room plus 20%, high end) fit in one trip. Where the two columns differ, the rule is the cautious one, because it counts every room as fully furnished.

Moving truck sizes: U-Haul, Penske and UK van hire classes
Truck or vanCompanyLoad, cu ftLoad, m³Listed forOne trip by the rule
10 ft truckU-Haul40211.4studio or 1 bedroomStudio
15 ft truckU-Haul76421.61-2 bedroom homeUp to 1 bedroom
20 ft truckU-Haul1,01628.82-3 bedroom homeUp to 2 bedrooms
26 ft truckU-Haul1,68247.63-4 bedroom homeUp to 5 bedrooms
Penske 12 ftPenske45012.71-2 roomsStudio
Penske 16 ftPenske80022.72-3 roomsUp to 1 bedroom
Penske 22 ftPenske1,200343-5 roomsUp to 3 bedrooms
Penske 26 ftPenske1,70048.15-7 roomsUp to 5 bedrooms
Medium wheelbase vanUK van hire3008.51-2 bedroom flat or smaller householdStudio
3.5 t Luton vanUK van hire60017one and two-bedroom flatStudio
7.5 t Luton lorryUK van hire1,48342large house or small officeUp to 4 bedrooms
12-18 t removals lorryUK van hire1,97856long-distance moves or substantial volumesUp to 5 bedrooms

Sources: moveBuddha, U-Haul Truck Rental Sizes and Prices, read 2026-09-20; Penske Truck Rental, Moving Truck Sizes and Features, read 2026-09-20; helpmemove.co.uk, Guide to Removal Van Sizes, read 2026-09-20; Storage Scholars, What Size Moving Truck Do I Need? Complete Guide, read 2026-09-20. A 3-bedroom house in detail, with the trips each class takes: what size moving truck for a 3-bedroom house. The full moving truck size chart, with the UK vans, every home size and the truck for 300 to 1,600 cu ft: moving truck size chart.

How it works

Belongings = furnished rooms x 150 to 200 cu ft per room (Storage Scholars, What Size Moving Truck Do I Need? Complete Guide, read 2026-09-20), plus 20% for the gaps a real load leaves (Storage Scholars, What Size Moving Truck Do I Need? Complete Guide, read 2026-09-20). The rooms start from the home size (bedrooms plus a living room and a kitchen; a studio is one room) and you change them for a dining room, an office, a garage or a basement.

The recommended truck is the smallest class whose published load volume takes the high end of that range in one trip; if none does, the largest class with the number of trips. US classes are U-Haul’s 10 ft truck (402 cu ft), 15 ft truck (764 cu ft), 20 ft truck (1,016 cu ft), 26 ft truck (1,682 cu ft), with Penske’s 12 ft, 16 ft, 22 ft, 26 ft trucks in the chart; UK classes are the Medium wheelbase van (8.5 m³), the 3.5 t Luton van (17 m³), the 7.5 t Luton lorry (42 m³), the 12-18 t removals lorry (56 m³).

The rule is more cautious than the rental companies: U-Haul suggests a 20 ft truck for a 2-3 bedroom home and the rule agrees, but for a 1-bedroom it picks the 15 ft where U-Haul says the 10 ft may do. In the UK the same 2-bedroom home comes to 20.4 to 27.2 m³, more than one Luton load (17 m³), so the tool says two trips or a 7.5 t lorry, which needs a C1 licence; the hire guides say a Luton moves a modest 2-bedroom flat in one run if it is lightly furnished.

Weight matters as much as volume for a full house: books and a piano can reach a truck’s payload before its walls. The Pro plan keeps the chosen truck with the checklist and the inventory.

Sources of the US starting values

Frequently asked questions

What size moving truck do I need for a 2 or 3 bedroom home?
For a 2-bedroom home, a 20 ft truck: 4 furnished rooms come to 720 to 960 cu ft with the 20% loading margin, and it holds 1,016 cu ft. For a 3-bedroom house, a 26 ft truck: 5 rooms, 900 to 1,200 cu ft, against 1,682 cu ft. U-Haul's own picks are the 20 ft truck and the 26 ft truck (moveBuddha, U-Haul Truck Rental Sizes and Prices, read 2026-09-20); Penske sizes by rooms: 12 ft (450 cu ft) for 1-2 rooms, 16 ft (800 cu ft) for 2-3 rooms, 22 ft (1,200 cu ft) for 3-5 rooms, 26 ft (1,700 cu ft) for 5-7 rooms. In the UK: a 7.5 t Luton lorry for 2 or 3 bedrooms, or 2 loads of a 3.5 t Luton van self-drive.
How many cubic feet is a 2-bedroom apartment?
720 to 960 cu ft with the 20% loading margin, from 4 furnished rooms at 150 to 200 cu ft each (Storage Scholars, What Size Moving Truck Do I Need? Complete Guide, read 2026-09-20). That is a 20 ft truck in one trip. A lightly furnished apartment sits at the low end (720 cu ft) and fits a 15 ft truck (764 cu ft).
Can I drive a moving truck on a normal licence?
In the UK, a category B (car) licence covers vehicles up to 3,500 kg gross, which takes in the 3.5 t Luton van; a 7.5 t lorry falls in category C1, 3,500 to 7,500 kg (GOV.UK, Driving licence categories, read 2026-10-04). Without C1, a home too big for one Luton load means more Luton trips or a removal firm. US licence rules for rental trucks are not covered here; ask the rental desk.
What if the truck is too small on the day?
A second trip on a local move costs another round of mileage and fuel (the cost calculator counts trips); on a one-way move it is a second rental. U-Haul's published day rates are 10 ft $19.95, 15 ft $19.95, 20 ft $39.95, 26 ft $39.95 (moveBuddha, U-Haul Truck Rental Sizes and Prices, read 2026-09-20), mileage on top, so one class up often costs the same day rate. When the range straddles two sizes, take the bigger one.
Does a full truck weigh too much?
It can. Penske publishes a payload for each size (12 ft 3,100 lb, 16 ft 4,300 lb, 22 ft 10,000 lb, 26 ft 10,000 lb; Penske Truck Rental, Moving Truck Sizes and Features, read 2026-09-20), and a 3-bedroom house is 6,000-8,800 lb (mygoodmovers, Long-Distance Moving Cost in 2026, read 2026-09-20). Books, tools, a piano and a full garage push weight up faster than volume: load the heavy things over the axle and ask the rental desk about the payload.

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