AnyVan has become one of the most recognisable names in UK removals, with claims of prices up to 40% cheaper than competitors and over 150,000 reviews on Trustpilot. But how do their prices actually compare to booking directly with a local man and van service? And is the cheapest option always the best value?
This guide examines how platforms like AnyVan work, when they offer genuine savings, and when you might be better off going direct.
How AnyVan Works
AnyVan operates as a logistics platform rather than a traditional removal company. They don’t own vans or employ drivers directly. Instead, they connect customers with a network of over 5,000 transport providers across the UK.
Their pricing model is built around efficiency. When a driver is already making a journey—say, delivering furniture from London to Manchester—AnyVan can match them with another customer who needs items moved along the same route. Because the journey is happening anyway, they can offer lower prices for that additional load.
This “shared capacity” approach works well for certain types of moves, particularly single items or part-loads that can slot into existing journeys. For full house moves, however, the model is different—you’re essentially booking a dedicated service through their platform rather than benefiting from spare van space.
When AnyVan Can Be Cheaper
AnyVan’s pricing structure genuinely delivers savings in specific situations.
Single Items and Part-Loads
For moving individual items like sofas, fridges, or washing machines, particularly over longer distances, AnyVan often undercuts local services significantly. Forum users report quotes of £68 for jobs that local drivers quoted £220 for—a 70% saving. This is where their shared-capacity model works exactly as intended.
If you’ve bought furniture on Gumtree or Facebook Marketplace and need it delivered from 50 miles away, platforms like AnyVan can be dramatically cheaper than hiring a local driver who would need to travel there, collect your item, deliver it, and return home—effectively paying for the journey four times.
Long-Distance Deliveries
For items moving significant distances across the UK, the platform’s ability to find drivers already heading in that direction creates genuine value. A piano going from Bristol to Edinburgh costs less when it shares space with other items heading north than when a local driver makes a dedicated round trip.
Flexible Timing
If you’re flexible about exactly when your items arrive, you can often access better prices. AnyVan and similar platforms can wait for an optimal match—a driver with spare capacity already making that journey—rather than dispatching someone specifically for your job.
When Local Drivers Can Be Cheaper
Despite their marketing claims, AnyVan isn’t always the cheapest option. Local drivers frequently match or beat platform prices for certain moves.
Local House Moves
For a full house move within the same city or across a short distance, local man and van services often provide better value. They’re not paying platform fees, and they know their area—parking restrictions, building access, traffic patterns. That local knowledge translates into efficiency that offsets any platform-driven savings.
A local driver charging £45 per hour for a four-hour move costs £180. AnyVan’s quote for the same move might be similar or higher once you’ve itemised everything—and you lose the relationship with someone who knows your neighbourhood.
Full House Moves
This is where reviews of platforms like AnyVan become more mixed. Because they subcontract to various providers, you don’t know who will turn up on moving day. Some customers report excellent service; others describe inexperienced teams, inadequate vehicles, and poor care of belongings.
When you book directly with a local removal service, you can check their specific reviews, speak to them beforehand, and know exactly who’s handling your move. That accountability is worth something, particularly for larger moves where more can go wrong.
Same-Day and Urgent Moves
While AnyVan advertises same-day availability, local drivers are often more responsive for genuinely urgent jobs. A local operator can sometimes accommodate a last-minute request more easily than a platform that needs to find an available match in their network.
The Pricing Model Differences
Understanding how pricing works helps explain when each option makes sense.
Platform Pricing (AnyVan, Shiply, Compare the Man and Van)
Platforms typically quote based on an itemised inventory. You list exactly what you’re moving—two sofas, a bed, ten boxes—and receive a price for those specific items. Additional items discovered on moving day incur extra charges, sometimes paid directly to the driver in cash.
This model works well when you have a clear, fixed inventory. It becomes problematic when you’ve underestimated or forgotten items—a common occurrence during the chaos of moving.
Local Driver Pricing
Local man and van services typically charge by time: an hourly rate with a minimum booking period. This means you’re paying for the van and driver for a set duration, regardless of exactly how many items you move. If you’ve packed efficiently and the job takes less time, you save money. If it takes longer, you pay for the additional hours.
The time-based model is often more forgiving when your inventory isn’t perfectly catalogued. Everything that fits in the van during your booked time goes, without item-by-item negotiation.
Quality and Consistency Considerations
Price is only one factor. The quality of service matters too, and here the comparison becomes more nuanced.
The Subcontracting Question
When you book through AnyVan, you’re not actually hiring AnyVan—you’re hiring whichever driver in their network takes your job. This creates variability. Some drivers are excellent professionals; others are less experienced or well-equipped.
Reviews reflect this inconsistency. The same platform has glowing five-star reviews praising punctual, careful movers and detailed one-star accounts of damaged items, inadequate vehicles, and poor communication. The difference isn’t the platform—it’s which driver you happen to get.
When you book directly with a local service, you can research that specific company’s track record. Their reviews reflect their work, not a random selection from a network of thousands.
Accountability When Things Go Wrong
If items are damaged during a move booked through a platform, the claims process can become complicated. You’re dealing with the platform, which then deals with the driver. Some customers report slow resolution and frustrating communication.
With a direct booking, you have a clear relationship with the company responsible. If something goes wrong, you know exactly who to contact and there’s no intermediary complicating the conversation.
Insurance Coverage
AnyVan includes £50,000 fire and theft cover on bookings, with additional protection available. Local drivers should also carry goods-in-transit insurance, though coverage levels vary. Always confirm what insurance is included before booking either option.
Making a Fair Comparison
To genuinely compare prices, you need to ensure you’re comparing like with like.
Get quotes from both options for your specific move. Be accurate and complete about what you’re moving—underestimating your inventory to get a lower platform quote creates problems on moving day. Include all the extras: helpers, packing materials, furniture assembly, and anything else you might need. Check what’s included in each quote, particularly insurance coverage and any potential additional charges.
Platform quotes can appear cheaper when you’re comparing their itemised price against a local driver’s day rate. But if the local driver’s time-based pricing actually works out cheaper for your specific move, or if it offers more flexibility and fewer potential surprises, the headline comparison is misleading.
The Best of Both Worlds
For different types of moves, different options make sense.
Platforms like AnyVan excel at single-item deliveries, particularly over longer distances. They’re also good for part-loads where you can benefit from shared capacity pricing, and flexible deliveries where exact timing isn’t critical.
Local direct booking tends to work better for full house moves where consistency matters, local moves where driver familiarity with the area adds value, and situations where you want accountability with a specific, reviewable company.
For furniture deliveries and single items, comparing platform quotes against local options makes sense—platforms often win on price for these jobs. For comprehensive moves, the reliability and accountability of a direct relationship often outweighs modest price differences.
The Bottom Line
Is AnyVan cheaper than local drivers? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Their shared-capacity model delivers genuine savings for single items and part-loads, particularly over longer distances. For full house moves, the price difference is often smaller, and the variability in service quality makes the comparison more complex.
The cheapest quote isn’t always the best value. A slightly higher price from a local service with consistent reviews and direct accountability may prove better value than a platform quote that comes with uncertainty about who will actually turn up.
If you’d like to compare prices for your move, you can get an instant quote and see how local service pricing compares to platform options for your specific requirements.
