Piano Removal Cost in Sussex: From £100 to £500+

Piano removal cost in Sussex generally starts a little over £100 for an upright going ground floor to ground floor within about 20 miles, and climbs past £500 once you add a grand, a staircase or a long drive. It is priced separately from the rest of your move because it is a separate job: most general removal crews will not take a piano at all, and the ones who do usually subcontract it. This page sets out the published price bands, the six things that actually move the number, and what to do with the instrument once it lands.

Why a piano is quoted on its own

The Pianoforte Tuners' Association, the UK trade body for piano technicians, is blunt about it: "Pianos can suffer very serious damage if not moved in the correct way and the PTA recommends that the services of a professional piano mover are engaged." Two specific hazards sit behind that advice.

The first is the upright. The PTA warns that "an upright piano can be dangerously unbalanced and can tip over easily because its heavy iron frame places the centre of gravity very near the back". The second is the castors most uprights sit on. Those "small dress castors on many uprights are not designed for these instruments to be wheeled; they should be lifted and moved on a trolley". Rolling a piano across a room to get it near the door is the single most common way a domestic move ends in a cracked leg or a gouged floor.

Grands are a different problem again. The PTA says they "ought to be lifted and supported as they are moved", and that "this should not be attempted with fewer than three people". A grand normally comes apart for transport: lyre, pedals and legs off, the case onto a padded skid board, then upright on the board into the van. That is a skill, not a strength contest, and it is what you are paying for.

What a piano move actually costs

There is no single national rate, so the honest answer is a set of bands drawn from published price lists rather than one number. A1 Piano Removals publishes a full list, and it is a useful shape for what specialists charge:

Those are one firm's rates, in one part of the country, and Sussex quotes will not match them line for line. Treat them as the structure of a piano quote rather than the price of yours. Airtasker's 2026 UK cost data puts a straightforward local upright move in the £80 to £150 range and grands at £150 to £500 depending on access, stairs and distance, which brackets the same territory from the other direction.

The practical read: budget around £120 to £200 for a local upright with easy access, £250 to £450 for a grand, and expect to be well past £500 once a staircase, a long carry from the van or a hoist is involved.

The six things that change your quote

1. Stairs, and which direction they go

Stairs are the biggest single variable, and going down is often harder than going up because the crew is fighting the instrument's weight rather than working with a controlled lift. A quarter-turn landing in a Victorian terrace can add more than a full straight flight in a 1960s semi. Count the flights at both ends when you ask for a price.

2. The carry from van to door

Movers price the distance the piano travels on the trolley, not just the miles it travels in the van. A parking space directly outside is worth real money on a piano job. In central Brighton, Hove and the older parts of Lewes and Chichester, that usually means arranging a suspended parking bay at both ends in advance through the relevant council, and it is worth doing.

3. Doorways, corners and bannisters

A standard upright is roughly 150cm wide and needs a clear route with room to turn. If a door has to come off its hinges, a bannister has to be unbolted or a window has to be used, say so when you request the quote. Movers hate discovering it on the day, and last-minute problems are where surcharges appear.

4. Upright, baby grand or concert grand

A baby grand under about 6ft with a clean ground-floor route sits near the bottom of the grand band. A 7ft-plus instrument up a flight of stairs sits at the top, and can need four or five people plus a hoist.

5. Distance

Most specialists include a local radius, then charge per mile beyond it. A Brighton-to-Crawley move is likely to fall inside or just outside that radius; a Sussex-to-Yorkshire move is a different quote entirely and may be combined with other work to keep the price down.

6. Timing

Evening, weekend and short-notice jobs carry surcharges, commonly around 15% and up. A piano move booked a fortnight ahead on a Tuesday is the cheapest version of the same job.

Moving a piano as part of a whole house move

If the piano is going with the rest of your furniture, you have two sensible routes.

• Ask your removal firm to arrange it. Many Sussex removers have a piano specialist they subcontract to. You get one point of contact and one invoice, with the specialist's fee inside it.
• Book the specialist yourself. Usually cheaper, because you are not paying a margin on the subcontract, but you own the co-ordination. Schedule the piano to load last at the old house and unload first at the new one, so it is never sitting in a van waiting for space to be cleared.

Either way, tell your remover about the piano when you request quotes, not after. It changes the crew size, the van and sometimes the date. Our guide to getting an accurate removal quote covers what else to declare up front, and the Sussex removal cost guide sets the piano against the rest of your budget.

Insurance: check what is actually covered

Goods-in-transit cover on a general removals policy usually has per-item limits and specific exclusions, and a piano can fall outside them. Before the job, ask the firm in writing for the sum insured on the instrument, what the excess is, and whether cover applies during the carry as well as in the van. If the piano is worth more than the stated per-item limit, ask for it to be declared separately. Our page on removals insurance explains the standard policy structures; the piano is the classic case where the standard policy is not enough.

It is also worth photographing the case, the lid, the pedals and the legs before the crew arrives. Damage claims turn on evidence of the condition beforehand.

After the move: leave it alone, then tune it

A piano does not usually go out of tune because it was carried. It goes out of tune because the new room has a different temperature and humidity, and the soundboard and strings respond to that over weeks, not hours. The standard trade advice is to let the instrument settle for about two to four weeks in its final position before booking a tuner. Tune it on day one and you will be paying for a second tuning within the month.

Where you put it matters more than most people expect. Keep the piano off an outside wall if you can, away from a radiator, and out of direct sun through a south-facing window. In a Sussex coastal property, damp is the more likely enemy than dryness, so a room that is heated consistently rather than in short bursts will keep the instrument more stable.

When it is worth not moving it at all

Old uprights are the awkward case. A piano that needs restringing, has a cracked soundboard or has not held a tuning for years can cost more to move and re-tune than it is worth. Specialists publish disposal and recycling prices for exactly this reason, from around £100. If you are unsure, pay a PTA-registered tuner for an assessment before the move rather than after: it is a small fee against a four-figure decision, and a piano that is genuinely worth keeping is worth moving properly.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to move a piano in Sussex?

Budget roughly £120 to £200 for an upright moving ground floor to ground floor within about 20 miles, £250 to £450 for a grand, and more than £500 once stairs, a long carry or a hoist are involved. Published specialist price lists start uprights from around £100 and grands from around £250, with stairs charged per flight.

Will a normal removal company move my piano?

Often not, and if they do it is usually subcontracted to a piano specialist. Declare the piano when you request quotes so the firm can either price the specialist in or tell you to book one separately. Turning up on moving day with an undeclared piano is how dates get missed.

Can I move a piano myself?

The Pianoforte Tuners' Association advises against it and recommends engaging a professional piano mover. An upright's centre of gravity sits near the back so it tips easily, and the small dress castors are not designed for wheeling. A grand should not be attempted with fewer than three people.

How much extra do stairs add to a piano move?

Published rates run around £30 to £50 per flight for an upright and £50 to £80 per flight for a grand. Going down can cost as much as going up, and a turn on the landing can add more than an extra straight flight.

How long should I wait to tune a piano after moving?

About two to four weeks. The move itself rarely knocks a piano out of tune; the change of room temperature and humidity does, and that plays out over weeks. Tuning too early usually means paying for a second tuning soon after.

Is it worth moving an old piano?

Not always. If the instrument needs restringing or will not hold a tuning, the move plus the tuning can exceed its value. A pre-move assessment from a registered tuner is cheap next to that decision, and specialists will dispose of and recycle an unwanted piano from around £100.

Sources

• Piano moving advice and safety guidance: Pianoforte Tuners' Association
• Published UK piano moving price list: A1 Piano Removals
• 2026 UK piano moving cost data: Airtasker UK

Prices checked on 5 September 2026. Published rates are one firm's list and one national dataset, not a Sussex quote; always get the job priced on your own access.