Houston, TX car shipping
Car Shipping in Houston, TX
- Estimates clearly labeled
- Independent company rankings
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$615 – $2,305
Typical price
Sedan, open transport
1–5 days
Transit time
Most major cities
Los Angeles, Oklahoma City
Top destinations
$240 – $660
Trips within Texas
Published range for an in-state trip
Free · No obligation · About a minute
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About car shipping in Houston
Houston is one of the few big cities where door-to-door usually means the actual door. The street grid is flat and wide, the suburbs were built around cars, and a full-size carrier can get down most residential roads without anyone negotiating a meeting point. The complication here is the calendar: this is the Gulf Coast, and half the year has a weather season attached to it.
- I-10 and I-45 put Houston on two national corridors at once
- Wide, flat streets mean genuine door pickup in most of the metro
- Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30
- Port Houston handles cars leaving the country
- Main highways
- I-10, I-45, I-69
- Typical transit
- 1–5 days
- In-state trips
- $240 – $660
Car shipping rates from Houston
Estimated from published industry figures for a standard car. Your quote depends on season, vehicle and exact addresses.
| Destination | Distance | Open transport | Enclosed transport | Transit time | Route page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles, CA | 1,640 mi | $655 – $3,100 | $855 – $4,960 | 4–7 days | Texas to California |
| Oklahoma City, OK | 500 mi | $365 – $945 | $465 – $1,510 | 1–2 days | Texas to Oklahoma |
| Jacksonville, FL | 980 mi | $715 – $1,850 | $915 – $2,965 | 2–4 days | Texas to Florida |
| New York City, NY | 1,700 mi | $680 – $3,215 | $885 – $5,140 | 4–7 days | Texas to New York |
| New Orleans, LA | 380 mi | $305 – $835 | $370 – $1,340 | 1–2 days | Texas to Louisiana |
| Chicago, IL | 1,130 mi | $790 – $2,135 | $1,030 – $3,415 | 3–5 days | Texas to Illinois |
Snowbird season moves prices
No source publishes monthly prices by city, so this is what the studies say about timing.
Demand runs heavily southbound from October to December and northbound from March to May. Booking three to six weeks ahead of those windows gives carriers room to schedule the pickup.
Direct Connect Auto Transport reports snowbird routes running 5% to 8% higher.
Published price adjustments
- Pickup truckPickups cost about 38% more to ship than standard cars.Source: Move.org
- SUVAt 500 miles, an SUV averaged $743 against $696 for a car.Source: Move.org
- Non-running vehicleAdd $150 to $300 for a vehicle that does not run.Source: Direct Connect Auto Transport
Transit times from Houston
Typical days on the road after pickup.
- New Orleans, LA · 380 mi1–2 days
- Oklahoma City, OK · 500 mi1–2 days
- Atlanta, GA · 840 mi2–4 days
- Albuquerque, NM · 900 mi2–4 days
- Jacksonville, FL · 980 mi2–4 days
- Charlotte, NC · 1,110 mi3–5 days
- Chicago, IL · 1,130 mi3–5 days
Popular routes from Houston
Car shipping companies serving Houston
Researched companies ordered by Trustpilot rating, adjusted for review count. Not ranked by city data.
Pickup areas around Houston
Where trucks reach easily, and where a meeting point helps.
- Katy, Sugar Land, The WoodlandsWide streets and easy freeway access. Straightforward door pickup.
- Inner Loop (Montrose, Heights, Rice Village)Older narrow blocks with street parking; a nearby lot often works better.
- Ship channel and east sideHeavy truck traffic all day; carriers are familiar with it.
Good to know in Houston
- Hurricane season is a scheduling fact, not a scareNOAA puts the Atlantic hurricane season at June 1 to November 30. In practice that means a named storm in the Gulf can pause pickups for a few days, and carriers will not load into an evacuation route. If your move falls in that window, build slack into the delivery date rather than the pickup date.
- Two national corridors cross hereI-10 runs coast to coast through Houston and I-45 links it to Dallas and Galveston. A carrier heading to Phoenix, Los Angeles, Jacksonville or Atlanta is already on your road, which is why Houston has better carrier supply than its distance from the coasts would suggest.
- Port Houston is where an overseas move beginsIf the car is going abroad rather than across the country, it is trucked to the port complex on the ship channel and handed to an ocean carrier. That is a different service from auto transport, and it is quoted separately.
- Summer heat, not cold, is the vehicle riskCars sit on open decks in full sun through a Houston August. Check tire pressures before pickup and do not leave anything in the car that warps, melts or bursts. It is the local version of the salt problem northern cities have.
- Moving to HoustonIf you're moving from another state, you'll generally need to register your vehicle in Texas. Check Texas's motor vehicle agency for deadlines and inspection rules.
Other Texas cities
Starting prices on popular routes.
Helpful guides for Houston
Why ship from Houston?
- Carriers already serving Texas
- Door-to-door pickup where trucks can reach
- Open and enclosed transport options
- Published price ranges you can compare before booking
- Common for relocations, students, military moves and car purchases
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to ship a car from Houston?
Published figures put a standard car on an open carrier at about $615 – $2,305 from Houston to other major cities, depending on distance, season and vehicle. Shorter trips, such as to New Orleans, run about $305 – $835.
Car shipping cost calculatorHow long does it take to ship a car from Houston?
About 1–2 days to New Orleans and 4–7 days to New York City, plus the pickup window before the car is loaded.
How long car shipping takesCan the truck pick up at my home in Houston?
Often, yes. On narrow, busy or restricted streets, the driver may ask to meet at a nearby open lot where a full-size carrier can load safely.
Door-to-door car shipping
Should I ship open or enclosed from Houston?
Open transport suits most everyday cars and costs less. Consider enclosed for luxury, classic or exotic cars, or anything with fresh paint.
Open vs. enclosed shippingIs my car insured when shipping from Houston?
Licensed carriers must carry liability insurance, and most carry cargo coverage for the cars they haul. Ask for the certificate of insurance before pickup.
Car shipping insuranceWhat's the cheapest way to ship a car from Houston?
Choose open transport, be flexible with dates, book one to three weeks ahead and meet the truck near a main highway if your street is hard to reach.
Cheapest way to ship a car
Where these figures come from
Published industry studies, not Haulwide shipments. Checked Sep 16, 2026.
- SGT Auto Transport(opens in a new tab)
Published Sep 9, 2026. 30 months of the company's own shipping data (January 2024 to June 2026) across all 50 states and 1,581 state-to-state lanes, limited to completed single-vehicle open transport deliveries and mix-adjusted for distance.
- Move.org(opens in a new tab)
Published Mar 4, 2026. Nearly 800 broker quotes analyzed, priced for a running 2025 Toyota Camry with a one-week lead time using October 2025 quotes.
- Kelley Blue Book(opens in a new tab)
Published Jan 12, 2026. Quotes requested from eight transport companies for a 2025 Honda Accord on three routes from Orlando, on standard open carriers.
- Direct Connect Auto Transport(opens in a new tab)
No publication date given. The company's own carrier data for an operable sedan on open transport; the page states no publication date.
- RoadRunner Auto Transport(opens in a new tab)
Published Sep 1, 2026. The company's completed shipment history, which it describes as over 1 million vehicles delivered across 30+ years, updated September 2026. Its nationwide average is $1,215 at a median distance of 987 miles and a median $1.23 per mile.
The sources disagree, so figures are shown as the span across them rather than a single price. Pricing methodology
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