Vocations · Professional Development · Job offers

The job is in
another city.
Price the move.

Type the truck or movers’ quote, the drive and the new lease. The calculator adds it up, takes off the employer’s help after tax and shows what you cover yourself.

Price my moveWhat you get

The relocation cost calculator

The worked example moves a new graduate from Columbus to Denver. Nothing you type leaves this browser.

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What you get

Vocations · Professional DevelopmentFree

What you finish with
The cost of the move line by line, the employer’s help after tax, what is out of pocket and its share of the first month’s pay. It prints as a summary and downloads as a spreadsheet.
Who it is for
New graduates moving for a first job, job seekers weighing an offer in another city, and anyone relocating for work.
Format
Browser calculator for a phone, tablet or computer, by touch or keyboard. Prints a summary; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); export and import a file.
Access
Free. No account, no sign-in and nothing to install. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Professional Development space in Caveat Vocations.
Support
Questions, a correction or a request: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Get two truck or movers’ quotes.
  2. Map the drive and the nights on the road.
  3. Add the deposit, first month and old lease.
  4. Ask the employer what relocation covers.
  5. Use the gap to negotiate or to save.

Price my move

How the move is priced

Four piles of cost, then the help after tax.

The worked example: a first job, Columbus to DenverMove$1,888truck + 125 gal fuelRoad$3552 nights, 3 days of mealsNew place$4,750deposit, rent, old lease, setupOut of pocket$5,118$2,500 less 25% taxThe worked example: a first job, Columbus to DenverMove$1,888truck + 125 gal fuelRoad$3552 nights, 3 days of mealsNew place$4,750deposit, rent, old lease, setupOut of pocket$5,118$2,500 less 25% tax
Moving the things, getting there, the new place, then the employer’s help after tax.

The four piles

Moving the things is the truck or movers plus the truck’s fuel. The road is lodging for every night but the last and meals for every day. The new place is the deposit and first month, and the old place is any rent still owed. Setup covers utilities, a license and furniture.

The employer’s help

A relocation payment is generally taxed as wages, so it arrives smaller than the offer letter says. The calculator takes the withholding off before setting it against the cost. Most people cannot deduct moving costs on a federal return.

Sources

  1. Internal Revenue Service. Publication 3, Armed Forces’ Tax Guide, and Topic 455, Moving expenses (irs.gov).
  2. Internal Revenue Service. Publication 15-B, Employer’s Tax Guide to Fringe Benefits: moving expense reimbursements (irs.gov).
  3. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Protect Your Move: estimates and your rights (fmcsa.dot.gov).
  4. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Renting and security deposits (consumerfinance.gov).

The worked example’s quote, prices and employer money are examples. This is a planning estimate, not tax advice. Your entries stay in this browser. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.