State guide · September 2026
Florida Car Shipping
What it costs to ship a car to or from Florida, which lanes the trucks actually run, and the two calendars that decide your price: snowbird season and hurricane season.
Written by Adam Scott, Coordinator at Broadway Auto Transport · September 16, 2026 · Prices updated September 16, 2026
The short answer
Shipping a running sedan between the Northeast and Florida on an open carrier runs about $900 to $1,100 in September 2026, and around $1,650 from Los Angeles. The price moves with the snowbird calendar: southbound is busiest October to November, northbound March to April. Book two to three weeks ahead of those windows and it is calmer.
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What it costs
What it costs to ship a car to or from Florida
Florida is the one state where a shipping quote depends more on the week than on the miles. The same New York to Miami lane that runs comfortably in July gets crowded in the first two weeks of November, when the snowbirds head south together, and again in April when they go back. Carriers know this and price it. Everything else about a Florida move is ordinary: interstate lanes, door-to-door pickup, an open carrier for most cars.
This page is built from lanes we priced into and out of Florida this month, and it is refreshed every month. The numbers are approximate: what a running sedan on an open carrier costs on each lane right now. The rest of the page tells you what moves them: the season, the weather, where in the state the car is going, and the handful of Florida rules that catch people who arrive with a car from somewhere else.
These are September 2026 figures for the state. Your exact lane, vehicle, and week take about 30 seconds.
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Approximate prices, September 2026 · open carrier · running sedan · 44 Florida lanes
Approximate prices for a running sedan on an open carrier, from the Florida lanes we priced this month. They are planning figures, not quotes. The band widens in the snowbird weeks; your exact ZIP pair, vehicle size, and pickup week decide where in it you land, and the calculator gives you the exact number in about 30 seconds.
What moves the number
- Southbound in Oct–Nov, northbound in Mar–Apr
- up to +20%
- Sedan → large SUV or pickup
- up to +40%
- Enclosed instead of open
- +30–50%
- The Florida Keys, islands, gated addresses
- a transfer or a meet-up
- Storm watch on either end (Jun–Nov)
- days of slip, not dollars
Approximate September 2026 prices for a running sedan on an open carrier. Larger vehicles, enclosed trailers, and peak weeks cost more; the calculator prices your exact shipment.
Lanes · September 2026
Florida lanes, priced this month
Approximate prices for a running sedan on an open carrier, with the range most trucks on the lane land in. “Truck assigned in” is how long it usually takes to find a carrier. Transit is what one driver covers at 400 to 500 miles a day after that.
| Lane | Miles | Approx. price | Most trucks | Truck assigned in | Transit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nashville, TN → Pensacola, FL | 442 | $660 | $460–$865 | 1–3 days | 1–2 days |
| Atlanta, GA → Miami, FL | 662 | $480 | $320–$635 | 1–47 hours | 2 days |
| Washington, DC → Jacksonville, FL | 712 | $810 | $640–$980 | 1–2 days | 2 days |
| Columbus, OH → Jacksonville, FL | 811 | $860 | $625–$1,090 | 1–15 hours | 2–3 days |
| Philadelphia, PA → Jacksonville, FL | 860 | $1,020 | $805–$1,230 | 1–14 hours | 2–3 days |
| Houston, TX → Orlando, FL | 963 | $665 | $470–$855 | 1–40 hours | 2–3 days |
| Chicago, IL → Tallahassee, FL | 966 | $1,110 | $825–$1,390 | 1 hour | 2–3 days |
| Washington, DC → West Palm Beach, FL | 994 | $960 | $695–$1,230 | 1–45 hours | 2–3 days |
| Newark, NJ → Orlando, FL | 1,078 | $1,040 | $795–$1,285 | 1–3 days | 3 days |
| New York, NY → Orlando, FL | 1,087 | $1,030 | $780–$1,275 | 1–3 days | 3 days |
| Dallas, TX → Tampa, FL | 1,102 | $745 | $640–$850 | 1–19 hours | 3 days |
| Chicago, IL → Orlando, FL | 1,130 | $760 | $590–$930 | 1–20 hours | 3 days |
| New York, NY → Tampa, FL | 1,143 | $985 | $685–$1,280 | 1–5 days | 3 days |
| Newark, NJ → Fort Lauderdale, FL | 1,264 | $1,060 | $790–$1,330 | 1–3 days | 3–4 days |
| New York, NY → Miami, FL | 1,291 | $1,070 | $740–$1,400 | 1–18 hours | 3–4 days |
| Detroit, MI → Fort Myers, FL | 1,303 | $895 | $610–$1,180 | 1–5 days | 3–4 days |
| Hartford, CT → Sarasota, FL | 1,311 | $1,050 | $835–$1,265 | 1–3 days | 3–4 days |
| Detroit, MI → Fort Lauderdale, FL | 1,343 | $985 | $775–$1,190 | 1–3 hours | 3–4 days |
| Boston, MA → Tampa, FL | 1,354 | $1,035 | $780–$1,310 | 1–3 days | 3–4 days |
| New York, NY → Key West, FL | 1,447 | $1,020 | $715–$1,325 | 1–3 days | 3–4 days |
| Boston, MA → Naples, FL | 1,514 | $1,030 | $820–$1,235 | 1–7 days | 4 days |
| Minneapolis, MN → Naples, FL | 1,757 | $900 | $715–$1,080 | 1–6 hours | 4–5 days |
| Denver, CO → Orlando, FL | 1,847 | $1,125 | $865–$1,385 | 1–17 hours | 4–5 days |
| Phoenix, AZ → Tampa, FL | 2,154 | $1,315 | $1,055–$1,575 | 1–3 days | 5–6 days |
| Yuma, AZ → Miami, FL | 2,482 | $1,545 | $1,185–$1,900 | 1–5 hours | 5–7 days |
| Los Angeles, CA → Miami, FL | 2,731 | $1,660 | $1,400–$1,925 | 1–2 days | 6–7 days |
| Seattle, WA → Miami, FL | 3,331 | $1,775 | $1,545–$2,005 | 1–7 days | 7–9 days |
| Lane | Miles | Approx. price | Most trucks | Truck assigned in | Transit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville, FL → Charlotte, NC | 384 | $670 | $520–$820 | 1–2 hours | 1 days |
| Tampa, FL → Atlanta, GA | 456 | $550 | $450–$645 | 1–28 hours | 1–2 days |
| Jacksonville, FL → Washington, DC | 712 | $870 | $675–$1,065 | 1 hour | 2 days |
| Cape Coral, FL → Charlottesville, VA | 950 | $1,190 | $910–$1,475 | 1–19 hours | 2–3 days |
| Gainesville, FL → New York, NY | 1,016 | $1,070 | $775–$1,365 | 1–26 hours | 3 days |
| Orlando, FL → Dallas, TX | 1,087 | $940 | $835–$1,045 | 1–3 days | 3 days |
| Fort Lauderdale, FL → Philadelphia, PA | 1,179 | $1,010 | $715–$1,305 | 1–22 hours | 3 days |
| Miami, FL → Houston, TX | 1,187 | $1,050 | $880–$1,220 | 1–3 days | 3 days |
| Jacksonville, FL → Madison, WI | 1,231 | $1,370 | $1,150–$1,585 | 1–25 hours | 3–4 days |
| Miami, FL → New York, NY | 1,291 | $985 | $720–$1,255 | 1–21 hours | 3–4 days |
| Fort Myers, FL → Detroit, MI | 1,303 | $1,110 | $890–$1,330 | 1–19 hours | 3–4 days |
| Naples, FL → Chicago, IL | 1,306 | $1,155 | $965–$1,340 | 1–17 hours | 3–4 days |
| West Palm Beach, FL → Hartford, CT | 1,344 | $990 | $550–$1,425 | 1 hour | 3–4 days |
| Tampa, FL → Boston, MA | 1,354 | $1,110 | $885–$1,335 | 1–16 hours | 3–4 days |
| Sarasota, FL → Minneapolis, MN | 1,653 | $1,425 | $1,105–$1,745 | 1 hour | 4–5 days |
| Orlando, FL → Denver, CO | 1,847 | $1,190 | $915–$1,465 | 1–16 hours | 4–5 days |
| Miami, FL → Los Angeles, CA | 2,730 | $1,360 | $1,220–$1,500 | 1–43 hours | 6–7 days |
| Lane | Miles | Approx. price | Most trucks | Truck assigned in | Transit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago, IL → Orlando, FL | 1,130 | $1,075 | $855–$1,290 | 1–20 hours | 3 days |
| New York, NY → Miami, FL | 1,291 | $1,765 | $1,400–$2,125 | 1–23 hours | 3–4 days |
| Miami, FL → New York, NY | 1,291 | $1,535 | $1,225–$1,845 | 1–20 hours | 3–4 days |
| Boston, MA → Naples, FL | 1,514 | $1,435 | $1,180–$1,690 | 1–7 days | 4 days |
| Los Angeles, CA → Miami, FL | 2,730 | $2,265 | $1,915–$2,610 | 1–5 days | 6–7 days |
Your lane is not in the table? Every ZIP pair in Florida prices the same way, in about 30 seconds.
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Shipping a car to Florida
Three kinds of people ship a car into Florida, and they arrive on three different calendars. Seasonal residents come south from October through November; the University of Florida's population researchers estimate the state's temporary population near a million in January against roughly a hundred thousand in August, and most of those people want a car waiting. Relocations run all year but bunch around the end of school in June and the end of leases in December. Online buyers pick up whenever the auction closes, and Florida's rust-free used market means a steady flow of cars bought sight unseen from up north.
For a southbound move the practical advice is the same regardless of why you are coming. Give the car a pickup window of a few days rather than one date. The Northeast to Florida corridor is one of the busiest car-hauler routes in the country, so a flexible window almost always gets a truck within a couple of days, and a fixed date in early November is the one thing that reliably costs more. If the delivery address is in a gated community, and in Florida it often is, arrange the gate code or plan to meet the driver at the entrance; a 75-foot rig does not come through a resident gate.
Shipping a car from Florida
Northbound has its own peak: March and April, when the same seasonal residents go home. It is a shorter, sharper rush than the fall one, and rates on Florida to New York, New Jersey, and New England lanes tighten for about six weeks. May adds the campus move-out from Gainesville, Tallahassee, Orlando, and Tampa, and summer adds the PCS season for the big installations: Jacksonville, Pensacola, MacDill, Eglin, and Patrick among them.
Dealers and auction buyers move the other direction all year. Manheim's Orlando and Tampa sales and the Copart and IAA lots around the state feed a constant stream of cars north and west, which is why a Florida outbound lane in the off-season is one of the better-priced runs in the country: trucks that came south full want a load home. If your timing is flexible, the calm months for leaving Florida are June through September, storm watches aside.
Where the trucks actually go in Florida
Almost every car hauler entering Florida comes down I-95 to the Atlantic side or I-75 to the Gulf side, with I-4 joining them through Orlando. Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa, and the stretch from West Palm Beach to Miami are on the way to everything, so they price at the low end of the band and get picked up fastest. Naples, Fort Myers, and the Sarasota coast are a short detour off I-75 and price about the same. The Panhandle is a different lane entirely: Pensacola and Tallahassee sit on I-10 and price like Alabama or Georgia, not like South Florida.
The Florida Keys, the island chain from Key Largo down to Key West, are the exception everyone asks about. Full-size carriers often do not run the Overseas Highway, so a Keys delivery may be transferred to a smaller truck near Florida City; your coordinator confirms how yours will work, and any difference in price, before you book. Islands with bridges rated for lighter traffic, and older neighborhoods with tight streets in places like Coral Gables or St. Augustine, work the same way: the driver will ask to meet at a nearby lot with room to load. All of it is easy to plan for and awkward to discover on delivery day.
Hurricane season and what it does to a pickup date
Florida's hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, with most of the storms that matter landing between August and October, which overlaps the start of the snowbird rush. When a watch or warning covers the pickup or delivery area, carriers hold. They will not load a car into an evacuation zone, and they will not sit in one waiting. What you should expect in that case is a slip of three to seven days and a text from your coordinator with the new window, not a surcharge. The price you were quoted is the price.
The practical move is to book with the season in mind rather than around it. A pickup window that spans a weekend gives a driver room to route around weather. If you are leaving a car in Florida for the summer and shipping it later, tell us the earliest date it can go and we will move it before a storm closes the week rather than after.
- Take the SunPass transponder out of the car. It reads on the carrier and you pay the truck's tolls.
- Fuel at a quarter tank or less, no personal items in the car, photos of every panel in daylight.
- Gate code, or a meet-up spot with room for a 75-foot rig, if the address is gated or on a tight street.
- A phone number that works while you travel. The driver calls at least 24 hours ahead to set a time, and again when close.
Your coordinator confirms the pickup window by text the day before.
Calendar
The Florida calendar
When the same lanes get busy, and what that does to your pickup week.
Florida rules
What Florida expects once the car arrives
The rules that catch people who bring a car in from another state.
Rules as of the review date below. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is the source, and the one to check before you register.
Questions
What people ask about Florida
How much does it cost to ship a car from New York to Florida?
In September 2026, New York to Miami runs about $1,070 for a running sedan on an open carrier, with most trucks landing between roughly $740 and $1,400, and New York to Orlando about $1,030. The first two weeks of November and most of April push prices up to 20% higher. The lane tables above are this month's numbers; the calculator prices your exact ZIP pair and the figure holds for 14 days.
How long does it take to ship a car to Florida?
Count a day or two to assign a carrier on the busy corridors, then transit at roughly 400 to 500 miles a day: two to four days from the Northeast, two to three from Texas, six to seven from California. Storm watches in hurricane season can add three to seven days at either end.
When is the cheapest time to ship a car to Florida?
Outside the two snowbird windows. December through February and June through September are the calm months for southbound lanes. Northbound, avoid March and April. If you have to move in a peak, book two to three weeks ahead and give a pickup window of a few days rather than one date.
Do you deliver to the Florida Keys?
Yes. Full-size carriers often do not run the Overseas Highway, so a Key West or Marathon delivery may be transferred to a smaller truck near Florida City. Your coordinator confirms how your delivery will work, and the price, before you book, not on delivery day.
Does Florida require a vehicle inspection when I register my car?
No safety or emissions inspection. What Florida does require for a car titled in another state is a VIN verification, form HSMV 82042, signed by a law enforcement officer, a DMV or tax collector employee, or a Florida notary. You have 10 days from establishing residency to register, and you need Florida PIP and property damage insurance first.
What happens to my pickup if a hurricane is coming?
The carrier holds until the watch or warning lifts, then picks up in the next available window. Expect three to seven days of slip and a text from your coordinator with the new dates. The quoted price does not change.
The data
Where these numbers come from
The numbers are rebuilt from our own pricing each month and published with the page, so the dates above are the real ones.
How much does it cost to ship your car to or from Florida?
- Price locked 14 days
- $0 until a carrier is assigned
- One coordinator, direct line
or call (917) 594-5566. A person answers.