Methodology & Data Sources

Data Sources

• BLS OES 2023 (SOC 53-7062): U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics for "Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand." National median hourly wage of $17.88, with regional adjustments: Northeast +15%, West +20%, South -10%, Midwest -5%. Full national wage tables: BLS OES program.
• Haversine Formula: Great-circle distance calculations between city coordinate pairs across the 50-city route matrix (32 states, not all 50), using a 50 mph average travel speed for drive time estimation. City coordinates sourced from the U.S. Census cartographic boundary files.

Cost Model

Each route estimate uses the formula: (hourly_rate × crew_size × total_hours) + (distance_miles × $0.50/mile) + materials_cost

Home size parameters:

• Studio: 2 loading hours, 2-person crew, $50 materials
• 1 Bedroom: 3 loading hours, 2-person crew, $75 materials
• 2 Bedroom: 5 loading hours, 3-person crew, $125 materials
• 3 Bedroom: 7 loading hours, 3-person crew, $175 materials
• 4 Bedroom: 9 loading hours, 4-person crew, $250 materials

Total hours = home-size labor hours + drive time (distance ÷ 50 mph). The home-size labor hours above are a single combined load-and-unload band used by the published route calculator (they are not doubled again for unloading). Regional hourly rates apply the BLS regional adjustments to the national median.

Route Coverage

PlainMove covers 2,450 routes across 50 major US metropolitan areas in 32 states (every origin-destination combination of those cities; not a 50-state inventory). Each route is computed for all 5 home sizes, yielding 12,250 individual estimate records.

Processing Pipeline

1. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) data for SOC code 53-7062 (Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand) is extracted from the most recent annual BLS publication, providing the national median hourly wage and regional wage distributions.
2. Regional wage adjustments are computed based on the BLS regional wage differential data: Northeast (+15%), West (+20%), South (-10%), and Midwest (-5%) relative to the national median.
3. The 50-city route matrix is constructed using geographic coordinates for each metropolitan area. Haversine great-circle distances are calculated for all 2,450 origin-destination pairs (50 × (49) unique combinations).
4. Drive times are estimated using the calculated distance divided by a 50 mph average highway travel speed, a conservative estimate that accounts for urban driving segments and rest stops.
5. The cost formula is applied to each route for all five home sizes, producing 12,250 individual estimate records with itemized breakdowns of labor cost, mileage cost, and materials cost.
6. All data is loaded into a structured SQLite database serving route pages, city profiles, and cost comparison tools.

Corpus placement (#N of M)

City, popular-route, and state pages state where that entity sits in PlainMove's live modeled corpus. Two independent ladders are published on each class so a single headline figure cannot masquerade as the whole story:

• Cities: base hourly vs mean outbound 2BR cost: BLS-modeled mover hourly rate among tracked metros (highest = #1), paired with the mean outbound 2-bedroom modeled total from that city (highest = #1). Miami sits mid/low on wage but high on average corridor cost; Albuquerque leads wage while sitting mid-pack on average cost.
• Popular corridors: absolute 2BR total vs dollars-per-mile: among the curated popular_route = 1 shortlist only (the indexable route surface), highest modeled 2-bedroom total = #1, paired with highest cost_2br / distance_miles = #1. Short Northeast hops lead $/mile while trailing on absolute total; coast-to-coast lanes reverse that.
• States: average 2BR cost vs tracked-metro coverage: statewide modeled average 2-bedroom cost (highest = #1), paired with the count of metros from that state in the PlainMove city matrix (most tracked cities = #1). Regional wage bands make cost and hourly nearly identical, so coverage is the honest second ladder.

Ties break alphabetically by slug. Non-popular routes stay noindex and are excluded from the corridor ladder. These ranks are corpus placement inside PlainMove's model, not carrier quotes or FMCSA ratings.

Data Vintage and Update Frequency

BLS OES wage data is published annually, typically in the spring for the prior year's survey period.

Three populations (do not mix denominators): (1) Cost model uses BLS OES 2023 national median wages for SOC 53-7062 plus the four-region wage indexes (Northeast 1.15x, West 1.20x, South 0.90x, Midwest 0.95x). Those indexes are BLS regional wage differentials, not CPI cost-of-living series. (2) City population figures are U.S. Census estimates, a separate vintage from the BLS wage survey year. (3) Popular-corridor flag is a curated shortlist on the modeled route matrix (and a sparse illustrative migration_flow column that is zero on almost every row); it is not Census ACS migration counts. Dataset temporalCoverage is stamped 2023/… to identify the wage baseline and should not be read as a carrier-data or migration-flow vintage.

Accuracy Commitment

PlainMove's cost estimates are derived transparently from published federal labor data using the documented formula above. The BLS wage baseline, regional adjustments, distance calculations, and per-mile rates are all reproducible from the stated inputs. No proprietary black-box pricing model is used.

Carrier records withdrawn entirely (correction, 2026-08-09): PlainMove previously published per-company pages carrying USDOT numbers, operating-authority status, safety ratings, insurance figures and consumer-complaint counts, described as FMCSA carrier records. That data was never sourced from FMCSA. It has been removed in full, along with every page, ranking and summary built on it. PlainMove now holds no carrier records of any kind and rates no moving company. Look any carrier up yourself at FMCSA SAFER, which is the authoritative source and is free.

Limitations

• Estimates reflect mid-market pricing based on federal labor data averages. Premium full-service movers and budget options will be priced differently based on their service level, insurance coverage, and business model.
• Seasonal demand (summer months typically cost 20–30% more), elevator or stair access, specialty items (pianos, antiques, artwork), and long-carry situations all add cost not captured in the base model.
• BLS regional wage data is based on annual survey averages and may not reflect the most current local labor rates in specific metropolitan areas.
• The Haversine formula calculates straight-line distance. Actual driving distances are typically 15–30% longer than great-circle distance, though our mileage rate accounts for this differential.
• Always obtain at least 3 binding written quotes from FMCSA-registered carriers before booking a move. PlainMove estimates are a planning and budgeting tool, not a substitute for actual carrier quotes.
• PlainMove is not affiliated with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, FMCSA, or any moving company. We do not earn referral fees and do not sell leads.