Two ways to price it
If you know what is leaving, count items. If the apartment is full and you do not want to inventory it, buy volume. Both prices are published, and for most jobs one is clearly cheaper than the other — take whichever that is.
The volume ladder: a quarter truck is $241, three-eighths is $338, a half is $431, five-eighths is $513, three-quarters is $587, seven-eighths is $661 and a full truck is $732. Smaller unquantified loads have their own prices — a small junk pile is $82, a medium is $129, a large is $208. The visit minimum is $75.
A studio, itemized
LA has an enormous stock of 1920s and 1930s singles and studios, especially in Koreatown, East Hollywood, Hollywood and along Wilshire. They clear fast because there is not much in them.
A typical one: a sofa, a full mattress and a nightstand is $126 + $94 + $57 = $277. Add the usual extras and it grows in predictable steps — a large area rug is $68, a coffee table is $67, a TV between 42 and 65 inches is $68, a floor lamp is $36.
Most studios land somewhere between a large junk pile at $208 and a quarter truck at $241 if you price them by volume instead, which is often the simpler call.
A one-bedroom, itemized
The standard end-of-lease clear in a Silver Lake or Mar Vista one-bedroom: sofa, queen mattress, box spring, standard dresser, coffee table and a small dining table.
That is $126 + $103 + $92 + $126 + $67 + $103 = $617. Priced by volume, the same apartment is usually a half truck at $431 to five-eighths at $513, so volume wins on that list — which is exactly why both prices are published side by side.
A two-bedroom
Two bedrooms with furniture in both is generally three-quarters of a truck at $587 up to a full truck at $732, depending on how much is in the closets and whether there is a storage locker in the garage that also has to go.
The things that push a two-bedroom to a full truck are consistent in LA: a converted second bedroom used as an office with a desk and bookcases, a balcony with patio furniture that has been sun-baked to the point of crumbling, and the boxes from the last two moves that never got unpacked.
What LA buildings do to the timeline
Price does not change with access, but time does, and time is why you want the details right when you book.
Elevators are the exception in this city, not the rule. Dingbats across Palms, Van Nuys and East Hollywood have tuck-under parking and an exterior stair. The 1920s courtyard buildings in Los Feliz, Miracle Mile and West Adams have a beautiful arched entry and a stair that turns ninety degrees on a half-landing — which is where king mattresses and assembled sofas stop. Spanish fourplexes have a narrow interior run with a handrail that costs four inches of width.
Where there is an elevator — Downtown lofts, Marina del Rey, Century City, the Wilshire Corridor — there is usually a building office that wants a freight elevator reservation and a certificate of insurance first. Ask for that when you book so it is in place before the day.
Parking is the other clock
Street-sweeping signs, permit districts across Santa Monica and West Hollywood, two-hour meters on Larchmont, and alleys behind Hollywood and Koreatown buildings that are blocked by dumpsters all decide where a truck can legally sit while the unit empties.
The single most useful thing you can tell a crew when booking is which side of your street is clear on your day and when. A crew that parks at the door instead of circling the block finishes materially faster, and in a county seventy miles across that is the difference between one window and two.
The rent-stabilized case
A meaningful share of LA's rental stock is rent-stabilized, and those units turn over rarely. When one does, you are frequently not clearing a year of living — you are clearing twenty or thirty. A one-bedroom that has had the same tenant since the eighties has furniture layered on furniture, closets packed to the rod, and a storage cage in the garage nobody has opened in a decade.
Those jobs price as volume, not items, and they run a full truck at $732 or more than one load. They also take longer than anyone expects, so book early in the day and give the crew the full picture in advance rather than on arrival.
What is included
The published number covers the labor, the carry from any floor, disassembly when a bed or a bookcase has to come apart to clear a doorway, transport, and disposal or recycling. There is no stair charge, no long-carry fee, no hillside surcharge and no same-day surcharge.
What is separate is anything with special handling: a one-gallon paint can is $30, a five-gallon bucket is $52, a 20-pound propane tank is $33. Mention those when you book so they ride correctly.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an apartment cleanout cost in Los Angeles?
A studio usually lands between a large junk pile at $208 and a quarter truck at $241. A one-bedroom is typically a half truck at $431 to five-eighths at $513. A furnished two-bedroom runs three-quarters at $587 up to a full truck at $732.
Is it cheaper to price by item or by volume?
Whichever is lower — both are published. A one-bedroom list of sofa, queen mattress, box spring, dresser, coffee table and dining table is $126 + $103 + $92 + $126 + $67 + $103 = $617, while the same apartment as a half truck is $431.
My building has no elevator. Does that cost more?
No. Most pre-1980 LA rental stock has no elevator and carry-out from any floor is included in the price. It affects how long the job takes, not what it costs.
Can you provide a COI for my building management?
Yes. Downtown, Marina del Rey, Century City and Wilshire Corridor buildings commonly require one before releasing a freight elevator. Request it at booking so the reservation can be made in advance.
How long does a one-bedroom take?
Usually a couple of hours, but stairs and parking drive it. A third-floor walk-up in a courtyard building with a half-landing turn takes noticeably longer than a ground-floor unit with an alley door.