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Free local delivery & pickup

Rent moving boxes in Santa Cruz County

Delivered to your door, picked up when you're done. Zero hassle, zero waste.

Two blue Cruz Totes packed with books in a living room, a stuffed fox riding along
Moving to or from Santa Cruz County? We offer tote delivery or pickup across 7 neighboring counties, from $49 each way.

Service Area

Free delivery and pickup anywhere in Santa Cruz County. Moving to or from a neighboring county? We'll add the appropriate county fee at checkout.

  • Santa Cruz CountyFree
  • Northern Monterey County$49
  • Santa Clara$49
  • San Mateo$69
  • Alameda$79
  • San Francisco$89
  • Contra Costa$99
  • Marin$99

Fees are per direction: delivery, pickup, or both, depending on your move.

How it works

Cruz Totes delivering totes

We deliver totes & supplies

Everything you need shows up at your door. No store runs, no hunting for boxes.

Items packed into a tote

You pack & move

Stack, load, roll. No tape, no assembly, no wondering if the bottom holds.

Empty totes stacked and ready for pickup

We pick up

After your move, we come get the totes. Nothing to break down or throw away.

Why totes beat cardboard

One tote, hundreds of moves

Every tote in our fleet gets washed, inspected, and sent back out, 400+ times over its life. That's about 360 cardboard boxes per tote that never get made, taped up, or dragged to the curb.

1 tree
Left standing every other move
A 2-bedroom move in totes replaces about 43 cardboard boxes, roughly 86 lbs of cardboard. Two moves is a tree's worth.
80%
Less water than cardboard
Making cardboard is thirsty work. About 300 gallons of water saved on a 2-bedroom move.
64%
Less energy than cardboard
About 175 kWh on a 2-bedroom move. About 6 days of household electricity.
31%
Less carbon than cardboard
A box is manufactured for every move. A tote gets reused hundreds of times over its lifetime.

The savings don't stop at cardboard. Zero single-use plastic in our packages. No bubble wrap, no shrink wrap. Every supply is reusable or compostable.

Sustainability Stats

  1. 1. Franklin Associates comparative LCA, 2017 update.

    The one big study: reusable containers vs. cardboard boxes, measured on water, energy, and carbon. Outside scientists checked the work; the reuse industry paid for it.

  2. 2. Per-ton paper equivalencies.

    Making a ton of paper takes 17 trees, 7,000 gallons of water, and about 4,100 kWh of electricity.

  3. 3. EIA, average household electricity use.

    The average home uses about 30 kWh of electricity a day.

  4. 4. EPA WARM model, Paper Products chapter.

    EPA's model for the carbon cost of manufacturing cardboard.

  5. 5. Operator lifespan figures (400+ uses).

    400+ uses per tote is what companies that have rented totes for years report.

Read the full sustainability report →

The Cruz Totes founders with the delivery van

About us

Family owned, Santa Cruz grown

We're a two-adult, two-kid operation, planted right here in Santa Cruz. We started Cruz Totes because moving can be stressful enough without chasing down supplies and tearing it all down at the end.

When you reserve Cruz Totes, you'll hear from us directly. No call center, no franchise, no warehouse over the hill. Just a Santa Cruz family trying to make your next move a little easier on you, and on Mother Nature too.

Common questions

Booking and scheduling

How far in advance should I book?

Book as soon as you have your dates. A few days of notice is usually plenty, and because we're local we can often pull off next-day delivery. End-of-month weekends fill up first.

What days do you deliver?

Monday through Saturday. We don't deliver or pick up on Sundays.

Do I need to be home for delivery and pickup?

We'll confirm a time window with you after you book. If you won't be home, we can usually arrange a porch or garage handoff. Just leave the totes stacked where we can reach them for pickup.

How long can I keep the totes?

You choose 1, 2, 3, or 4 weeks when you book. Your pickup date is set automatically from your delivery date and rental length. Most people find 2 weeks comfortable: one week to pack, one week to unpack.

What if I need more time?

Email hello@cruztotes.com at least 24 hours before your scheduled pickup and we'll extend your rental. An extension costs the difference between your package at the longer rental length and what you already paid, so it never costs more than booking the longer rental would have. Beyond 4 weeks, each extra week is 10% of your package's 4-week price.

Can I change my delivery or pickup dates?

Yes. Email us as soon as you know and we'll move things around.

Can you pick up the totes early?

Sure. Email us and we'll schedule an earlier pickup at no charge. We don't refund unused rental days, but you get your space back sooner.

The totes

How big are the totes?

Every tote is the same size: about 27 x 17 x 13 inches outside, 25 x 15.5 x 11 inside, 2.5 cu ft of packing space. All have attached hinged lids, so there's nothing to assemble and no tape.

How much fits in one tote?

Think of each tote as a well-packed suitcase, about 50 lbs when full. Pack the dense stuff low and the light stuff on top. Loaded totes stack 4 high and roll on the included dollies.

What comes with my package?

Totes with attached lids, dollies, room labels, and zip ties. Delivery and pickup are included everywhere in Santa Cruz County. You don't need tape, box cutters, or a run to the hardware store.

How do I label my totes?

Every tote has a label sleeve on the front. Write the room on an included card, slide it in, done. Please don't tape, sticker, or write on the totes themselves.

Are the totes cleaned between rentals?

Yes. Every tote is washed, sanitized, and inspected before it goes back out. Just empty yours before pickup and we handle the rest.

What if I run out of totes?

Email us and we'll bring more, usually next day. If you're between two package sizes when booking, size up. Extra empty totes are a lot less annoying than running short mid-pack.

Are totes actually better for the environment than cardboard?

Yes, and we cite our sources. A peer-reviewed life cycle study found reusable containers use 80% less water and 64% less energy than cardboard, with 31% less carbon impact (Franklin Associates, 2017). An average move's worth of cardboard also costs about 0.7 trees. Recycling doesn't close the gap: a new box gets manufactured for every move, and recycling one back still takes about half the energy of making it new. A tote just gets used again.

What happens to worn-out totes?

Each tote gets used more than 400 times before it retires. When one finally wears out, the HDPE gets recycled into new plastic products. Nothing in our catalog is single-use.

Pricing and policies

How much does it cost?

Packages run from $99 for a Studio to $229 for a 4 Bedroom, each with a 1-week rental, dollies, labels, and free delivery and pickup. Longer rentals cost a little more per week. See the full breakdown on our Packages page.

Is delivery really free?

Yes. Delivery and pickup are free everywhere in Santa Cruz County, from Davenport to Watsonville.

How does this compare to buying cardboard?

New cardboard boxes, tape, and paper for a 2-bedroom run $110 to $145 at U-Haul prices. Our 2 Bedroom package is $169 for a week or $189 for two, so renting costs a little more and skips the tape and the pile of flattened boxes afterward. Free cardboard boxes are cheaper than either.

Do you require a deposit?

No deposit. You pay for your package when you book and that's it, unless something goes missing or you keep the totes longer. Checkout securely saves your card with Stripe, and the Rental Agreement spells out the only charges it can be used for.

What's your cancellation policy?

Plans change, especially during a move. Cancel more than 48 hours before your delivery window for a full refund. Inside 48 hours, we refund everything except a cancellation fee: 50% of your order total, capped at $100. Once delivery has happened, rental fees aren't refundable. The Rental Agreement has the full policy.

Is there a cleaning fee?

No. Every tote gets washed between rentals and that's on us, not you.

What if a tote is lost or damaged?

Normal wear is expected and never charged. Scuffs and scratches are part of a tote's life. If something's lost or truly broken, replacement fees are $50 per tote and $100 per dolly.

Service area and regional moves

Where do you deliver?

We deliver and pick up across Santa Cruz County: Santa Cruz, Aptos, Capitola, Scotts Valley, Watsonville, Bonny Doon, Davenport, Soquel, Live Oak, Ben Lomond, Felton, and Boulder Creek. Delivery and pickup are free everywhere in the county.

I'm moving out of Santa Cruz County. Can I still rent?

Yes. We deliver to your Santa Cruz County address for free. Once you've moved and unpacked, we collect the totes at your new place for a flat per-county fee: Northern Monterey County $49, Santa Clara $49, San Mateo $69, Alameda $79, San Francisco $89, Contra Costa $99, Marin $99.

I'm moving into Santa Cruz County from outside. Does that work?

Yes, it's the same flat per-county fee in reverse. We deliver totes to your current address so you can pack, then pick them up locally for free once you're settled here.

Ready for a cardboard-free move?

Book today and lock in your delivery date.

Reserve your totes now