Running a moving company is demanding. Trucks need to be maintained, crews scheduled, jobs booked, and customers managed, all while keeping an eye on seasonal demand shifts. But one area that too many moving company owners overlook is their financial system.
Without accurate accounting, it’s easy to confuse revenue with profit, overlook expenses, or miss cash flow red flags. Accounting for moving companies is not just about compliance; it’s about having the data to make better decisions on pricing, staffing, and growth.
This guide explains the core accounting practices moving company owners should follow, from setting up bookkeeping systems to reviewing financial reports that reveal the true health of the business.
Accrual vs. Cash Basis: Which Works for Moving Businesses?
The first decision is accounting method.
Accrual vs cash (pick deliberately)
For day-to-day management, accrual accounting gives a truer view: you recognize revenue when the move is performed and match cost of goods sold (COGS) to that job (crew labor, payroll taxes/burden, fuel charged to the job, packing materials, subcontract carriers, claims). You can still file taxes on cash if eligible, but manage operations on accrual so pricing and job reviews are accurate.
Revenue categories (make P&L mirror your CRM)
Design your chart of accounts to mirror how you sell:
- Storage (recurring revenue)
- Accessorials (crating, specialty handling, stairs/long carry, shuttles)
- Other service fees (valuation coverage, deposits forfeited per policy)
This structure lets you compare estimate vs actual at the same granularity you sell.
COGS in Accounting for Moving Businesses: What Belongs There
Gross margin is only meaningful if costs are recorded consistently. COGS (cost of goods sold) should include only expenses tied directly to moves:
- Crew wages, overtime, payroll taxes, workers’ comp allocation
- Subcontract carrier/hauler fees
- Fuel allocated to jobs (actual receipts or standard burden rate)
- Packing materials used on jobs
- Claims expense net of recoveries
- Job-linked tips processed through payroll
Overhead such as rent, office salaries, insurance, and utilities should be recorded as operating expenses. This clear split keeps service-line profitability reports accurate.
Daily Closeout: Non-Negotiable for Moving Businesses
A daily closeout prevents end-of-month reconstruction. Assign an owner (dispatcher, ops coordinator, or back office) and use a checklist:
- Jobs completed today: mark as complete in the CRM.
- Collections: verify charges match final bills of lading; close out deposits, COD balances, tips.
- Crew time: capture hours by job; flag overtime; route to payroll.
- Materials: record cartons/packing used; post to the job.
- Fuel & tolls: attach receipts or apply standard burdens; post to the job.
- Exceptions: note damages/claims started; capture photos and statements.
This creates same-day data integrity and feeds accurate payroll, COGS, and A/R.
Automating Accounting Systems for Moving Businesses:
Manual entry slows down accounting and invites mistakes. The goal should be to connect systems so data flows automatically.
- CRM ↔ Accounting software (QuickBooks Online, Xero): Push invoices, receipts, and service line codes into the ledger mapped to the correct revenue accounts.
- Bank and card feeds: Import transactions daily. Use bank rules (fuel vendor → “Fuel COGS,” packing supplier → “Packing Materials—COGS”) to automate 70–80% of categorization.
- Payroll system: Export job-coded hours directly into payroll. Apply standard burden rates back into COGS.
- Document management: Store bills of lading, receipts, and claims documentation alongside the job record in your CRM.
Automation saves hours each week and ensures reporting is always up to date.
Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable in Moving Businesses
Accounts Payable (AP)
Unstructured bill payments drain cash and cause missed deadlines. A structured AP process helps maintain control:
- Run pay cycles twice monthly (e.g., 10th and 25th).
- Prepare an AP packet including unpaid bills, current cash balance, and forecast.
- Apply approval thresholds, smaller invoices approved by finance staff, larger amounts by the owner or CFO.
- Prefer ACH or corporate cards with controls, avoiding scattered one-off payments.
Accounts Receivable (AR)
Moving businesses often collect deposits upfront and balances upon delivery. The process must be standardized:
- Record deposits on booking; apply them when final invoices are issued.
- For COD balances, collect within 24 hours of delivery for local moves and at delivery for long-distance unless contract terms differ.
- Use a structured dunning cadence:
- Day 14: personal call to arrange payment
- Day 21: second call or escalation
- Day 30: hold future services until resolved
This cadence prevents overdue balances from slipping through the cracks.
KPIs to Track in Accounting for Moving Businesses
Track these monthly and trend them:
Profitability & pricing
- Gross margin—Local Moves: target 40–50% depending on market and labor mix
- Gross margin—Long-Distance: target 30–40% (higher carrier/subcontract share)
- Gross margin—Packing: target 50–60%
- Gross margin—Storage (recurring): target 60–70%
Labor & efficiency
- Direct labor % of revenue (by line)
- Overtime % of labor (watch seasonal spikes)
- Revenue per crew hour (quote accuracy + dispatch efficiency proxy)
- Unapplied time % (paid hours not billed to jobs)
Cost controls
- Packing materials % of revenue (watch shrinkage)
- Fuel % of revenue (or per-mile if tracked)
- Claims cost % of revenue and claims per 100 moves
- Subcontract/hauler cost % on long-distance
Cash & collections
- Operating Cash Flow (OCF) vs Net Income (OCF should generally exceed NI)
- Days Sales Outstanding (DSO)
- Deposit coverage (deposits collected ÷ scheduled moves next 14 days)
Example Workflow: From Job to Financials
Here’s how a well-structured system translates a busy day into reliable financials.
Scenario: Three local moves completed in one day, with one including packing services and a storage setup.
- Booking & Deposits
- Deposits collected upfront and recorded as customer prepayments.
- Operations Day
- Crews complete jobs. Foreman records hours, materials used, photos, and closes invoices in the CRM.
- One customer adds on-site packing, creating a new line item.
- Daily Closeout
- Operations coordinator verifies payments, applies deposits, logs crew hours, and posts materials used.
- A minor damage claim is logged with photos.
- System Sync
- CRM pushes three invoices to accounting software. Revenue maps to Local Moves, Packing, and Storage accounts.
- Deposits are applied; balances collected are posted.
- Bank feeds import fuel purchases and allocate them to Fuel—COGS.
- Supplier invoice for cartons is posted to Packing Materials—COGS.
- Payroll & Burden
- Crew hours exported to payroll; burden allocated to COGS at month-end.
- Month-End Review
- P&L shows Local Moves at 45% margin, Packing at 59%.
- Fuel costs at 5% of revenue (above 4% target) flagged for route review.
- Claims at 0.6% of revenue (above 0.5% goal) scheduled for crew retraining.
This workflow shows how daily accuracy rolls up into actionable month-end reporting.
Storage Operations: Deferred Revenue and Accurate Move-In/Move-Out Accounting
Many moving businesses also operate storage facilities. Storage can be a profitable recurring revenue stream, but only if it’s accounted for correctly.
- Bill monthly in advance and recognize revenue evenly over the billing period.
- Prorate cleanly when customers move in or out mid-cycle. Unearned revenue should remain on the balance sheet until earned.
- Separate accounts: record storage rent (recurring revenue) apart from handling fees or warehouse labor, which belong in COGS.
- Reconcile occupancy monthly: match occupied units against storage revenue to catch discrepancies early.
These practices ensure storage income is consistent, auditable, and aligned with actual usage.
Controls That Prevent Silent Losses in Moving Businesses
Accounting for moving businesses is not only about recording numbers but also about building controls that prevent profit from slipping away unnoticed. Key areas include:
- Fuel controls: assign fuel cards to specific vehicles, require odometer readings or job IDs, and audit unusual usage patterns.
- Materials controls: use bin locations for cartons and supplies, issue slips by job, and perform cycle counts on high-usage items (boxes, tape, wrap).
- Claims process: document every claim with photos, create a reserve estimate when incurred, and track recovery from insurers or vendors.
- Subcontractors: require signed rate sheets, proof of insurance, and job-level purchase orders before releasing payment.
- System permissions: apply least-privilege rules in CRM/accounting systems, set approval thresholds, and review audit logs regularly.
Strong controls don’t slow the business down, they protect margins and reduce preventable losses.
Getting Help: What to Outsource vs. What to Own
Not every financial task needs to stay in-house. For most moving businesses, the right split is:
- Outsource: bookkeeping (daily/weekly transaction posting), payroll, sales tax filings, and year-end tax returns.
- Own internally: pricing model, KPI targets, daily job closeout quality, month-end reviews, and leadership decisions based on numbers.
A fractional CFO can bridge the gap by setting up financial models, dashboards, KPI frameworks, and cash forecasts, then meeting monthly to keep accountability high and strategy aligned.
Conclusion
Accounting for moving businesses is more than recordkeeping. It’s a framework that creates clarity, prevents costly surprises, and supports profitable growth.
With a structured chart of accounts, consistent daily closeouts, automated system integrations, and disciplined AP/AR processes, owners gain visibility into margins, efficiency, and cash flow. Monthly KPI reviews then turn numbers into insights that drive smarter decisions on pricing, staffing, and expansion.
For moving business owners serious about scaling, accounting is not optional, it’s the foundation of profitability.
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