Moving boxes, properly

A move is mostly boxes, and a bad box is the reason a shelf of glasses arrives as a bag of glass. This is the working knowledge our crews use: the sizes that matter, the weight that a carton actually takes, and the taping that holds. If you book us, the 60 × 40 × 40 cm cartons and the packing are included; read on to count them and to pack ahead if you like.

Updated September 2026

Tủ Mây crew with boxes in front of the open van

The short answer

One size does most of the work: the medium carton, 60 × 40 × 40 cm, about 96 litres. It is the box our plans are counted in.
Heavy things in small boxes, light things in big boxes. Twenty kilograms is the most a carton and a back should take.
Tape in an H, bottom and top: one strip along the seam, one across each end.
A studio is about 10 to 15 boxes, a one-bedroom 20 to 30, a two-bedroom family home 40 to 60, before furniture.
Label the side, not the top, with the room in the new home and a word about what is inside. Stacked boxes hide their tops.

Sizes, and what each is for

Carton sizes
Size	About	Use it for	Do not use it for
Small	40 × 30 × 30 cm, 36 litres	Books, files, tools, tins, bottles, anything dense	Bedding, lampshades, anything that will rattle
Medium	60 × 40 × 40 cm, 96 litres	Kitchenware, folded clothes, toys, shoes, electronics in their own boxes, most of a home	Books alone, which will exceed 20 kg
Large	60 × 50 × 50 cm, 150 litres	Bedding, pillows, cushions, coats, plastic tubs, lampshades	Anything heavy; a full large box of kitchenware cannot be lifted safely
Wardrobe box	About 50 × 50 × 120 cm with a rail	Hanging clothes that would crease if folded	Anything but clothes
Picture or mirror box	Flat, adjustable	Framed art, mirrors, glass table tops	Stacking anything on top

Double-wall cartons, the ones with two layers of corrugation, take stacking without bulging; single-wall cartons from a supermarket are fine on top of a stack but not at the bottom. If you can push a thumb through the side easily, it goes on top or it goes in the recycling.

How many

Boxes by room, before furniture
Room	Medium boxes	Notes
Kitchen	6 to 10	The most boxes and the heaviest; wrap every plate; glasses in cells or paper
Bedroom, one adult	5 to 8	Plus a wardrobe box or two if suits and dresses matter
Bedroom, child	4 to 6	Toys fill space fast; books go in small boxes
Living room	5 to 8	Books, decor, electronics, cables bagged and labelled
Bathroom	1 to 2	Liquids upright, lids taped, in a bag inside the box
Study or home office	4 to 8	Files in small boxes; the printer in its own box if you kept it
Balcony, storage cupboard	2 to 4	Tools, cleaning gear, the things you forgot you had

Add the totals and you land at roughly 10 to 15 for a studio, 20 to 30 for a one-bedroom, 40 to 60 for a two-bedroom family home. Our Small, Medium and Large plans hold 12, 24 and 48 boxes with furniture counted as box equivalents, which is why a whole one-bedroom is usually Medium or Large, not Small.

Where to get cartons in Ho Chi Minh City

Booked with us: nowhere. The crew brings double-wall cartons, tape, paper, bubble wrap and blankets, packs what you have not packed, and takes the material away at delivery.
Packaging shops and the packaging streets in Districts 5, 6 and 11 sell new double-wall cartons by the piece or the bundle, cut to standard sizes; a new carton costs about the price of a coffee.
Online marketplaces deliver bundles of ten or twenty to your door within a day or two; search for "thùng carton chuyển nhà" and check the wall type.
Supermarkets, phone shops and electronics stores give away used cartons if you ask on delivery days; the appliance boxes are the strongest, the fruit boxes the weakest.
Do not use bin bags for anything you care about. They tear, they cannot be stacked, and they trap damp.

Packing a box that arrives intact

Tape the bottom in an H: one strip along the centre seam, one across each end, each strip running up the sides by a hand's width.
Line the bottom with crumpled paper or a folded towel.
Heavy items first, wrapped individually. Plates on their edge, never flat; glasses wrapped and standing up; a layer of paper between layers.
Fill every gap. A box that rattles is a box that breaks. Crumpled paper, socks, tea towels, cushions all work.
Stop at 20 kg. Lift it once; if you hesitate, take something out.
Close the flaps flat, tape the top in an H, and write the room and a summary on two sides: "Kitchen, glasses, fragile, this way up".
Fragile boxes go on top of the stack in the truck and in the storage bay. Tell the crew, and mark them on more than one side.

Things that do not go in a box

Mattresses: a mattress bag, stored flat or on edge, never folded.
Sofas and armchairs: stretch film over a blanket, legs off if they unscrew.
Televisions: the original box if you have it, otherwise a flat box with foam corners and a blanket, carried upright.
Mirrors and framed art: a picture box or two flat cartons taped around a blanket, "X" of tape across the glass.
Bicycles: pedals off, handlebars turned, a blanket around the frame; they travel upright.
Plants, food, fuel and anything alive or perishable: not on the truck and not in storage. Give them away the day before.

After the move

Flatten boxes the day you empty them and stack them by size; a flattened carton stores in a wardrobe and is worth having for the next move or for anything going into storage later. Packaging shops and the scrap collectors who ride the alleys will take a bundle. If we delivered, the crew takes the material with it.

Three sizes, counted in boxes
Size	Boxes	Roughly	Valet / month	Self storage / month
Small	12	a studio, seasonal things	1,250,000 VND / 1,550,000 VND	1,550,000 VND / 1,950,000 VND
Medium	24	a one-bedroom home	2,450,000 VND / 3,050,000 VND	3,050,000 VND / 3,800,000 VND
Large	48	a two to three bedroom home	4,900,000 VND / 6,150,000 VND	6,150,000 VND / 7,700,000 VND

Tủ Mây price list · standard / air-conditioned

Valet · Small · 12 boxes1,250,000 VND / 1,550,000 VND

Valet · Medium · 24 boxes2,450,000 VND / 3,050,000 VND

Valet · Large · 48 boxes4,900,000 VND / 6,150,000 VND

Self storage · Small1,550,000 VND / 1,950,000 VND

Self storage · Medium3,050,000 VND / 3,800,000 VND

Self storage · Large6,150,000 VND / 7,700,000 VND

Collection only, paid oncefrom 3,300,000 VND

Collection and return, paid oncefrom 5,100,000 VND

A delivery in between, per trip500,000 VND, 5 boxes included

Store 3 / 6 / 12 months5% / 10% / 15% off

Frequently asked

Do I need to buy boxes if I book Tủ Mây?

No. 60 × 40 × 40 cm cartons, tape, paper, bubble wrap and blankets come with the crew and are included in the collection fee.

Can I pack my own boxes for storage?

Yes. Pack what you like, leave them open, and the crew checks, tops up the padding, seals, labels and photographs each one. Sealed boxes are opened to be listed, so leave them open.

How heavy can a box be?

Twenty kilograms is the working limit for a carton and for the person carrying it up four floors. Books fill a small box to that weight; a medium box of books is too heavy.

Which boxes are counted in a plan?

The medium carton, 60 × 40 × 40 cm. Other carton sizes and furniture are converted to medium-box equivalents by the crew on the day, by volume.

Will the crew pack everything?

Everything you have not packed, including the kitchen and the wardrobe. The only things you must do yourself are defrost the fridge and gather your documents and valuables to keep with you.

Store it, get it back when you need it

We come to you, pack, photograph every item and keep it in climate-controlled storage. One message brings any of it back.

Book a pickup See pricing