As a rough guide from our own sizing, a one-bedroom flat needs around 25 to 40 boxes, a two-bedroom flat around 40 to 60, and a furnished three-bedroom house around 60 to 80. That's on top of the furniture. Our Student Moving Kit has 10 boxes, the Standard Moving Kit 25 and the Large Moving Kit 40, so most homes need one kit plus a few packs of ten extra boxes.
Boxes by home size
| Your home | Roughly how many boxes | Storage unit it usually fits |
|---|---|---|
| A room, or student halls | 10 to 20 | 25 sq ft |
| One-bedroom flat | 25 to 40, or up to 60 in a fuller flat | 50 to 75 sq ft |
| Two-bedroom flat | 40 to 60 | 75 sq ft |
| Three-bedroom house | 60 to 80 | 100 sq ft |
| Three-bed plus loft and garage, or four-bed | more than 80 | 150 sq ft |
These come from our room-by-room size guide. They're indicative, not guaranteed. The unit column assumes the whole home is going into storage; if only part of it is, you'll need a smaller unit. A home with a lot of books, a big kitchen or a full loft will need more.
Which kit fits your home
| Kit | What's in it | Suits | Price (September 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Student Moving Kit | 5 medium and 5 large double-walled boxes, tape, marker pen | a room, halls or a studio | £35 |
| Standard Moving Kit | 10 medium, 10 large and 5 tall double-walled boxes, tape, marker pen, bubble wrap | a one-bed flat | £99.99 |
| Large Moving Kit | 15 medium, 15 large and 10 tall double-walled boxes, tape, marker pen, bubble wrap | a two-bed flat, plus a pack or two of extra boxes for a fuller one | £195 |
For a three-bedroom house (60 to 80 boxes), that's the Large Moving Kit plus two to four packs of ten. If the loft or garage is full as well, plan for more than 80 and add packs to match.
Packs of ten are sold separately: medium £25, large £35 and extra-large £45 (listed September 2026). The extra-large box is the same 450 × 450 × 750mm tall box that comes in the kits.
Which size box for what
- Medium boxes (457 × 330 × 330mm) for anything heavy: books, kitchenware, tins, tools and electronics. A smaller box stays light enough to lift when it's full of heavy things.
- Large boxes (450 × 450 × 500mm) for clothes, bedding, towels, cushions and bulky but light things.
- Tall, or extra-large, boxes (450 × 450 × 750mm) for lamps, rolled rugs, curtains, linen and awkward shapes.
- Wardrobe boxes for hanging clothes, so they go straight from the wardrobe to the rail.
A useful rule is to keep any box light enough for one person to carry comfortably. If you have to strain, repack it into a smaller box.
Where people run short
The rooms that tend to take more than expected are the kitchen, with its crockery, glasses, pans and cupboard contents, and the loft, garage and shed, which often aren't counted at all. The last day's bits catch people out too: bathroom things, cleaning supplies and the contents of drawers. Keep a handful of spare boxes back for packing day.
Buying or finding boxes
If you can, mix and match: free boxes for light things, and strong double-walled boxes for anything heavy or anything going into storage for a while. Our page on whether free moving boxes are good enough for storage explains which free boxes are worth taking.
Get your boxes
Our online Box Shop has the moving kits, packs of ten, tape, bubble wrap and wardrobe boxes, delivered to your door. If some of it is going into storage, you can get a price for a unit online at the same time. Our guide to packing a storage unit for a house move covers how to stack the boxes once they're full.
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