Packing Checklist by Room

Packing goes faster when you work through your home in a deliberate order rather than bouncing between rooms. Here’s a practical room-by-room plan.

Start here: storage, garage, guest rooms

Pack the rooms and spaces you use least first — storage closets, the garage, guest bedrooms. Nothing here is needed day-to-day, so there’s no downside to boxing it up weeks ahead of your move.

Living room

• Books and media go in small boxes — they’re heavier than they look.
• Wrap lamps, frames, and electronics individually in packing paper or bubble wrap.
• Disassemble large furniture where possible; keep hardware in a labeled bag taped to the piece.

Kitchen

• Dishes pack vertically (like records), wrapped individually, in small-to-medium boxes — never large boxes, which get too heavy.
• Wrap glassware and stemware separately with extra padding.
• Pack a clearly labeled “first night” box with basics you’ll need before everything else is unpacked.

Bedrooms

• Dressers can often stay loaded with clothing (check with your moving crew) — remove anything fragile or valuable first.
• Use wardrobe boxes for hanging clothes to avoid re-folding and re-hanging everything.
• Strip and bag bedding; pack linens in medium boxes.

Bathroom

• Pack liquids in sealed bags to prevent leaks.
• This room is usually packed last since it’s used until moving day.

Kids’ rooms

• Let kids help pack a small “first day” box of favorite toys and comfort items — it helps with the transition. See our Moving With Kids guide for more on that.

Supplies to have on hand

Not sure how much to buy? Our packing supplies calculator gives a planning quantity by home size for small, medium, large, and wardrobe boxes, tape, and packing paper.

When to call in help

If packing is eating into time you don’t have, our packing services can handle full or partial packing so moving day starts with boxes, not chaos. See also How to Prepare for Movers for what to have ready even if you’re packing yourself.