Chappelle Movers, Edmonton

Two movers and one truck, and a median of 4.5 hours on site across the southwest Edmonton communities. Half of the 46 one-bedroom jobs cost between $527 and $1,348 and half ran between 3.06 and 7.19 hours, which is a lot of variation for a fixed set of contents, a bedroom, a living room and the kitchen. What varies is the route: the number of flights, whether a lift is available, and how close the truck can get to the door.

The crew grows to three at two bedrooms, still on one truck, and the median day is 5.75 hours on site. Half of the 43 jobs at this size ran between 3.25 and 7.5 hours and half cost between $589 and $1,729, the widest price band of any of the four cards relative to its midpoint. That is what happens when one label covers a compact condo and most of a townhouse. The third mover is what keeps the hours from rising with the load.

Three movers, one truck and a median of 8 hours on site, which is the point where a move takes the whole working day. Half of the 27 jobs at this size ran between 6 and 10 hours and half cost between $1,015 and $2,218. At three bedrooms the rooms stop being the whole job, since the garage and the basement carry as much of it, so the hour the crew finishes depends more on how much is boxed and staged than on the floor plan.

Four movers and one truck, at a median of 8.13 hours on site. Twelve moves in the southwest Edmonton communities have been graded this size, so $2,232 is the middle of a thin sample rather than a rate: half of them fell between $1,249 and $2,877 and half ran between 5.13 and 11 hours. The hourly rate is the same one a one-bedroom is billed at; the fourth mover and the length of the day are what separate the two.