Here is what owners ask about most: the way a flat by-instrument price gets locked in, what sits under that $1M of cargo protection, and how the handlers manage switchback flights, conservatory docks, and a brutal New England winter. Work your way down and the answer you need is most likely already below.
Come up empty? No trouble — type the specifics into our quote form, or get in touch through the contact page. Someone at the shop sends a clear reply the same day you write, almost always within the hour.
What does a local piano move run?
Pricing follows the instrument, not a clock. For a standard ground-level local job, expect roughly $220 to $400 on a spinet or upright, $280 to $480 for a console or studio, $420 to $720 on a baby grand, $580 to $980 for a grand, and $850 to $1,500 on a concert grand. Flights of stairs, a long carry, or a crane add to it. After we size up the instrument and the access path, the price goes on paper, and whatever is written there is precisely what you owe.
Do you hold Massachusetts licensing and insurance?
We do. A Massachusetts DPU household-goods carrier license covers us in-state, while transport across state lines runs on our USDOT and MC authority, both backed by $1M of cargo coverage. Ask to look over the documents whenever you wish, and we will also issue whatever insurance certificate a building, a school, or a parish requires before the move.
Do you move anything other than pianos?
A tight roster of heavy, fragile companions, yes: organs, player and antique square pianos, harpsichords, gun safes, billiard and pool tables, plus large antiques and statuary. General household moving is not on the menu — no sofas, beds, or cartons. The shop is engineered around the keyboard, and that single focus is exactly why the difficult pieces go smoothly.
What is the lead time for booking?
Roughly two weeks works well for a weekend or the end of a month. Slots in the middle of the week or the month frequently open with only a few days' warning, and any time a rig would sit idle otherwise we are happy to squeeze in a last-minute piano job — one ring to (617) 924-3180 takes care of it.
Is a deposit required?
Most local piano jobs ask for nothing up front; a brief phone confirmation the day before covers it. Bigger work, plus anything crossing state lines, holds the date with a modest refundable deposit we credit back against the balance later on.
What is your coverage area?
Watertown is the base, and the trucks reach right across Greater Boston — Cambridge, Somerville, Boston, Beacon Hill, Back Bay, Newton, Brookline, Belmont, Lexington, Wellesley, and out beyond — along with steady long hauls down I-95 toward New York and across the six New England states into Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine.
Will you take a grand apart for the move?
Yes, and it is part of the price. The grand is laid onto a skid board while the legs, the lyre, and the pedals are removed; the body is wrapped and lashed to the board, then everything is reassembled in the new room. Carrying a grand through a doorway or down a flight that way protects the soundboard and the case far better than rolling it whole.
Can you manage a liftless building or a tight stairway?
All the time. The steep walk-ups of Somerville and Cambridge triple-deckers, the switchback brownstone flights of Beacon Hill and Back Bay, the rear staircases inside Newton Victorians — that is the bread and butter. The handlers walk the path first, settle on a carry plan, and load whatever boards and straps the stairwell demands. Let us know the floor and the stair type when booking, and the proper equipment rides along.
When is a crane needed for a piano?
When no staircase will accept the instrument — an upper Back Bay or Beacon Hill flat, a switchback too tight for a grand to round, or a move that has to go in through a window. A crane lift typically runs $650 to $1,800 depending on reach and the piano. We scope it before booking so nothing surprises you, and we line up the lift and any permit when one is called for.
How does the local weather factor in?
Pianos resent abrupt shifts in temperature and humidity, and our winters and muggy summers are each tough on a soundboard. We run padded, climate-aware trucks, never park an instrument out in the cold, and time the carry to cut exposure on a hard-freeze morning. Should a piano have to wait between rooms, our climate-controlled room keeps it steady instead of letting it weather a garage.
How soon can the piano be tuned afterward?
Give it two to four weeks. An instrument needs to settle and adjust to the new room's temperature and humidity before a tuning will hold steady. We can arrange a technician once it has rested — figure $150 to $250, paid straight to the tuner — or bring in your own. Tune it too early and you will usually be tuning again before long.
Will you move an organ, a pool table, or a safe?
Yes. Sanctuary and electronic organs, billiard and pool tables, gun safes, and large antiques all ride on stout boards, four-wheel dollies, and the right strapping — the same heavy-piece craft that carries a grand. A church organ or a slate table comes apart in the right order and reassembles in the new room. Mention the piece when you book so the crew arrives carrying the correct rigging.
Can you supply an insurance certificate for my building or venue?
Of course — we do it constantly for condo boards, downtown high-rises, conservatories, and the churches and concert halls across Greater Boston. Pass along whatever management or the venue asks for at booking, and a certificate naming them specifically lands with you in good time, free of charge.
Will you crate a piano for storage or shipping abroad?
We build export and long-haul piano crates, generally $300 to $700 per instrument depending on the piano. The crate is framed around the soundboard, the case, and the action so the instrument travels braced and shielded, whether it is going into deep storage, onto a container, or across the country. Request crating at booking and we will spec it to your piano.
Is piano storage available?
It is. Climate-controlled piano storage runs about $60 to $130 per instrument each month, held at steady temperature and humidity so the soundboard stays sound through a long New England winter. It earns its keep when the new room is not ready or a closing slides. The instrument sits padded and secured while timing gets worked out, and we deliver the moment you give the word.
How does a move out of state work?
Transport across state lines runs under our USDOT authority, written up as a by-instrument base plus mileage, and the very handlers who load the piano in Watertown ride with it through to the final address. Nothing changes hands, gets listed on a load board, or shifts between trailers at some terminal mid-route. Many of these trips deliver a family grand, a conservatory instrument, or an inherited piano to wherever it now belongs.
Do you move pianos for schools, churches, or venues?
Regularly. Conservatory practice grands, sanctuary pianos and organs, and concert-hall instruments make up a steady part of our calendar across Boston, and we will often schedule them around a rehearsal, a service, or a recital so the room keeps working. We coordinate dock access, the certificate, and the timing with your facilities staff.
Which payment methods do you take?
Bank transfers are fine, as are debit cards and every major credit card. Payment is not due until the piano sits in its new room and you have looked it over — the complete by-instrument figure is spelled out clearly ahead of any closeout.
What if I have to cancel?
Give us a couple of days' notice to scrap or shift a date and the deposit returns in full. Plans move, and nobody is penalized for it here; the sooner you flag it, the faster we can free the slot for another owner.
Should I tip the crew?
A tip never gets baked into our charge, and the by-instrument quote stands complete on its own, yet easing a grand down four flights of switchback brownstone has been known to earn one. Many owners land near 10 to 20 percent of the total split among the handlers, or a fixed sum per person — entirely your call.