Moving house checklist
A straightforward UK timeline you can work through, from eight weeks out to your first week in the new place. Print it and tick things off.
Get organised
- Confirm your moving date and work back from it
- Get removal quotes — send a quick video for a fixed price
- Book a survey if you are buying, and chase your solicitor
- Start a moving folder for paperwork, quotes and receipts
- Have a clear-out: sell, donate or tip what you do not need
- Tell your landlord if you are renting, and check your notice period
- Start collecting boxes and packing materials
Make the bookings
- Book your removals company and confirm the fixed price in writing
- Tell utility companies you are moving and agree meter readings
- Book a broadband installation or transfer for the new place
- Arrange time off work for moving day
- Sort childcare or pet care for the day itself
- Start packing the things you use least — loft, garage, spare room
Paperwork and people
- Redirect your post with Royal Mail
- Tell your bank, employer and any benefits offices
- Tell your GP, dentist and optician you are moving
- Notify the council about council tax at both addresses
- Cancel or transfer the TV licence
- Back up and clear any devices you are selling or recycling
- Order any new furniture with delivery dates in mind
Pack and confirm
- Finish packing the rooms you have not done yet
- Label boxes clearly by room and keep essentials separate
- Defrost the freezer if you are taking it
- Confirm arrival time with your removals company
- Charge phones, power banks and any devices you need
- Put together a moving-day box: kettle, mugs, snacks, toilet roll, chargers, basic tools
- Check access and parking at both addresses
Final prep
- Take down curtains and blinds, and pack the final bits
- Disconnect washing machine and any plumbed appliances
- Empty and clean the fridge and freezer
- Pack an overnight bag for the first night
- Keep valuables, keys and documents with you
- Get an early night — tomorrow is a long day
Let us do the lifting
- Be ready for the crew arriving, with the kettle accessible
- Keep the moving-day box with you, not in the van
- Do a final walk-through of the old home, room by room
- Note meter readings at both properties
- Direct the crew on where things go at the new home
- Check nothing has been left in the van before it leaves
- Lock up and hand over keys if you are moving out
Settle in
- Register for council tax at the new address
- Update your driving licence and vehicle logbook with the DVLA
- Set up or transfer utilities and take first meter readings
- Update your address with the TV licence and Royal Mail redirection
- Register with a local GP, dentist and optician
- Update your address with banks, employers and online accounts
- Find your stopcock and fuse box, and note where they are
- Sort schools or childcare if you have children
How to use this moving house checklist
Treat the checklist as a timeline, not a test. Start at the stage that matches how far away your move is, and pick up anything you missed from the earlier stages first. If your completion date is only confirmed a fortnight out, that is normal, and you simply compress the first two stages into a few busy evenings.
Print it, stick it on the fridge and tick things off as you go. If you share the move with a partner or housemates, write initials next to each task so everyone knows who owns what. Jobs with no clear owner are the ones that get forgotten.
Keep a running note on your phone of anything that does not fit the list, such as a neighbour who needs warning about the van, or a parcel due after you leave.
What should you do in the last few days before moving?
The final few days are about reducing what is left, not starting new jobs. Eat down the freezer and cupboards, run the washing so nothing is damp when packed, and return anything borrowed. Pack a little each evening rather than leaving a whole room for the last night.
Walk through each room and decide what is staying behind, such as curtain poles, light fittings or a garden shed, and check this matches what you agreed with your buyer or landlord. Tell your removal crew in advance about anything that should not go on the van, so it can be left clearly to one side.
If you have not yet sent a video of each room for your quote, do it now, and mention anything that has changed since.
What order does moving day happen in?
Most moves follow the same rhythm. The crew walks round with you, protects floors and doorways, then loads the heaviest furniture and boxes first, with fragile and essential items last so they come off first. Stay around for the walk-round, because that is when you point out what is going and what is staying.
Once the van is loaded, do your final check of cupboards, the loft and the garden. At the new home, stand near the front door and tell the crew which room each box goes in. Clear labels make this quick, and our page on how our removals work explains the process in a little more detail.
Leave plugging in appliances and building beds until the van is empty, so you are never working around a moving crew.
What goes in a first night box?
Your first night box is different from the moving-day box. The moving-day box gets you through the day itself, while the first night box gets you to the next morning without opening twenty others. Pack it last, label it clearly and keep it in your car.
Put in bedding and pillows for each bed, a towel per person, toiletries, a change of clothes, phone chargers, a torch, any prescription medicines, pet food if you have pets, and something easy for breakfast. A roll of bin bags, a multi-plug adaptor and a pair of scissors for opening boxes are worth including too.
Make the beds first when you arrive. After a long day, a ready bed matters more than an unpacked kitchen.
What admin is easy to miss in the first week?
Beyond the obvious companies, a few changes catch people out. Register to vote at your new address through the official government website, because the electoral roll is used in credit checks. Tell your home and car insurers, as your postcode affects both policies, and update any parking permits.
Check that post redirection is working by watching what arrives in the first few days. Update your address with online shops, subscriptions and delivery services so parcels stop heading to the old house. Our guide on who to tell when you move house has a fuller list.
Finally, take dated photos of meter readings at the new property, and keep them with your moving paperwork in case a first bill looks wrong.
Questions about the checklist
About eight weeks before your move is a good starting point for most people. If you are buying or selling, your solicitor and removal company will usually be involved earlier.
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