Packing is usually done badly, then blamed on the volume of stuff. In practice most packing inefficiency comes from four decisions: the order of rooms, the size of boxes, the labelling system, and whether you pack things you should have discarded.
Get those four right and a 40 m² flat packs in about a day, and unpacks in about half a day.
The order to pack rooms
Pack in reverse order of importance, and leave the essentials until last.
| Order | Room | Why this position |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Storage, cupboards, under-bed | Lowest emotional attachment, easiest decisions |
| 2 | Books, media, decor | Heavy, fragile, no daily use |
| 3 | Living room | Not needed until day 2 in the new flat |
| 4 | Bedroom (except bedding) | Needed for sleeping, so bedding stays |
| 5 | Bathroom (except daily items) | Daily items stay in a wash bag |
| 6 | Kitchen (except essentials) | Last because it is the hardest |
| 7 | Essentials box | Packed last, opened first |
The essentials box is the most important box you will pack. It contains what you need for the first night and the first morning, and it goes in the car, not the van.
Essentials box contents:
- Bedding for each person
- Towels
- Toiletries and a change of clothes
- Phone chargers
- Kettle, two mugs, tea or coffee
- Toilet roll
- Basic tools (screwdriver, knife, tape measure)
- Cleaning cloths and surface spray
- Snacks and water
Box sizing: the rule of weight
The most common packing injury and the most common box failure are both caused by putting heavy things in large boxes.
The rule: the heavier the contents, the smaller the box.
| Box size | Max weight | Contents |
|---|---|---|
| Small (30 × 30 × 30) | 15 kg | Books, tools, tins, heavy items |
| Medium (40 × 40 × 40) | 12 kg | Kitchenware, small appliances |
| Large (50 × 50 × 50) | 8 kg | Clothing, bedding, soft items |
| Wardrobe box | 10 kg | Hanging clothes |
A box you cannot lift with one hand is packed wrong. That is the practical test, and it prevents both injury and box collapse.
Where to get boxes free: supermarkets (ask for banana boxes — strong, uniform, and free), local shops, and online marketplaces. Banana boxes are actually excellent: double-walled and stackable. Their only flaw is the ventilation holes, which matter for nothing except small parts.
The labelling system
A box labelled "Misc" is a box that will be opened last and unpacked never.
The system that works: label on three faces.
| Face | Content |
|---|---|
| Long side (facing out in the stack) | Room + box number |
| Short end (facing the walkway) | Room + contents summary |
| Top | Fragile marker, or "open first" |
Use the format: KITCHEN 3 — pans, lids.
Why three faces: in a stack you can only see one or two sides. In a van, the labels face a different way than in the flat. Labelling three faces means the label is always visible.
The number matters. Number boxes per room (KITCHEN 1, 2, 3). When you unpack, you can find any box without opening others, and you will know immediately if one is missing.
What not to pack
The cheapest packing is the stuff you do not move.
The declutter decision point: packing is the best time to discard, because you are handling every item anyway. Apply one rule: if you would not pay to move it, do not move it.
| Category | Decision |
|---|---|
| Clothing not worn in a year | Donate |
| Books not opened in two years | Donate or sell |
| Kitchen equipment used less than monthly | Donate |
| Broken items "to fix one day" | Bin |
| Expired food, old cosmetics, half-used bottles | Bin |
| Furniture that will not fit the new flat | Sell before moving |
| Duplicates (third scissors, fifth mug) | Keep the best |
The realistic saving: most households discard 15–25% of their volume when packing properly. That is a fifth less to move, a fifth less to unpack, and a fifth less to store in the new place.
Packing techniques that prevent damage
Plates: on edge, in a box, with a plate standing vertically between each — not stacked flat. Vertical plates resist impact; stacked plates crack.
Glasses: inside socks, or wrapped, packed rim-down (never rim-up, because weight on the rim cracks it).
Books: flat, spine down, in small boxes only. Never upright (spines bend) and never in large boxes (too heavy).
Electronics: original boxes if you have them, otherwise bubble wrap and a box with 5 cm of packing on every side. Take a photo of the cable connections before disconnecting.
Screws and fixings: every piece of furniture that is dismantled gets its screws in a labelled bag taped to the item. This one habit saves hours.
Liquids: in a sealed bag, upright, marked, and never in a box with anything absorbent.
The van-loading order
Load in reverse order of when you will need things.
- Last out: essentials box, in the car
- First in the van: large furniture, storage boxes (least needed)
- Middle: room boxes in reverse room order (kitchen last packed, so first out)
- Last in the van: bedding, bathroom, essentials that went in the van
The principle: whatever you need first should be nearest the van doors.
The unpacking sequence
The unpacking order is not the reverse of packing. It is ordered by need.
| Day 1 | Beds, bedding, bathroom, kitchen essentials, essentials box | | Day 2 | Kitchen fully, wardrobe, living seating | | Day 3 | Everything else, one room at a time | | Day 4–7 | Pictures, decor, the "nowhere" box |
The "nowhere" box: as you unpack, anything without an obvious home goes into one box. At the end of week one, deal with that box in one sitting. This prevents small items scattering across the flat and never being resolved.
The cost of packing materials
| Item | Cost | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Boxes (20–30) | $40–90 | Free from shops |
| Bubble wrap | $15–25 | Newspaper, clothes |
| Packing tape | $8–12 | — |
| Marker pens | $4 | — |
| Mattress bags | $10–15 | — |
| Total | $25–60 with free boxes |
Packing materials do not need to cost much. The one thing worth buying is tape — cheap tape fails at the worst moment, and a box that opens in the van is worse than any other packing problem.
The honest summary
Packing takes about a day for a 40 m² flat if you work in the right order, use the right box sizes, and discard as you go.
It takes two days if you pack by whatever box is nearest, label things "misc", and move items you do not need.
The single highest-value decision is the discard: 15–25% of what most people pack is stuff they will not use in the new flat either. Deciding that while packing, rather than while unpacking, saves both time and the cost of moving it twice.