International Movers in Pasadena: 5 Companies Worth Calling Before You Move Overseas

Who are the best international movers in Pasadena?

For most Pasadena households, the strongest options are one long-established local mover that partners with forwarders, and one dedicated international specialist that runs the whole overseas move itself. The five below cover both types.

I ranked them on what actually matters when you’re moving overseas from Pasadena, CA: licensing, how much of the job they do themselves, local knowledge of the San Gabriel Valley, and how clearly they price.

Not on ad spend. Not on who shouts loudest on page one.

Our verdict on Sunset International Shipping

Sunset ranks second overall behind Pink Transfer on local history, and first for anyone who wants a single FMC-licensed company to own the entire overseas move, from packing in Pasadena to customs clearance and delivery at destination.

Pasadena international movers compared

Details are from each company’s own published materials as of September 2026. Verify any license on the FMC’s OTI database before you sign.

What about the other movers I keep seeing in Pasadena searches?

Many well-reviewed Southern California movers don’t do international moves at all, and some that advertise nationally are domestic-only. Always check before you request a quote.

A few examples, based on what each company publishes:

• Safeway Moving describes itself as an interstate carrier across the 48 contiguous states, with flat-rate domestic pricing. Good for long distance, not for moving overseas.
• Colonial Van Lines (Florida) and Sterling Van Lines (Los Angeles) both list service across the contiguous U.S. Sterling has a long track record with piano moves and antiques moving.
• Prodigy Moving & Storage, Royal Moving & Storage, and Pure Moving Company are Los Angeles-based residential and commercial movers whose published service areas are domestic.
• Excalibur Moving & Storage (Chatsworth) focuses on antiques, fine art, pianos, and custom crating for local and long-distance jobs.
• Roadway Moving, NorthStar Moving Company, and Shepherd International Movers all publish FMC licensing and offer international service, so they’re worth a look if the five above don’t fit.

None of that makes them bad movers. It just means the right company for a move to Pasadena from Denver may be the wrong one for a move from Pasadena to Tokyo.

Types of international moving services

Most overseas moves from Pasadena fall into one of four setups: full container load, shared container, air freight, or a mix. Which one fits depends on how much you’re taking and how fast you need it.

Full container load (FCL)

Your belongings get a 20ft or 40ft container to themselves. It’s sealed at your home and not opened until customs at destination.

Sunset’s sizing guidance puts a 20ft container at about 1,150 cubic feet and a 40ft at about 2,400 cubic feet. Check the shipping container sizes guide before you commit, because people routinely underestimate furniture volume.

Pick FCL if: you’re moving a whole house, shipping a piano or antiques, or want the lowest handling risk.

Shared container (LCL)

You pay for your slice of a container that’s consolidated with other shipments. Cheaper for small moves, but it waits to fill, which can add a week or two.

Pick LCL if: you’re a student, on a temporary work assignment, or shipping fewer than a few rooms of goods.

Air freight

Fast (typically 1 to 2 weeks door to door) and expensive. Best for the essentials: work gear, kids’ things, a few boxes of kitchen basics.

Pick air freight if: you need items before the ocean shipment lands. Many families do a small air shipment plus a full sea shipment.

Door to door international moving

This is the full package: packing at your Pasadena home, export customs documentation, ocean or air freight, customs clearance at destination, delivery, and unpacking.

It costs more than door-to-port. But door-to-port means you’re on your own at a foreign port, dealing with a customs broker in a language you may not speak. For a first overseas move, I’d pay for door to door almost every time.

Transit ranges from Sunset’s published Pasadena guidance. Customs clearance can extend them.

Key factors when choosing international movers in Pasadena

Check four things before anything else: the FMC license, who actually performs each leg, what the quote leaves out, and how the valuation coverage works. Price comes after those.

1. The FMC license

The FMC’s consumer guidance is blunt: work with a licensed and registered moving company, get quotes after an in-person inspection, and read the contract.

The FMC also lists red flags: no physical business address on the website, unwillingness to do in-person estimates, prices far below everyone else, and cancellation fees over 30%. I’d add one more. If the company can’t tell you in one sentence who holds your bill of lading, keep looking.

2. Who does the work

There are three ways a Pasadena mover handles an overseas job:

1. It holds the FMC license and manages the whole move (Sunset, SDC, Schumacher)
2. It’s a van line agent and books through the van line’s international division (Andy’s Transfer via NAVL)
3. It packs locally and hands off to International Forwarders (Pink Transfer)

All three can work. The risk is in the handoffs. Every time your shipment changes hands, ask whose insurance applies.

3. What the quote includes

A cheap quote is usually a quote that left something out. Ask for these as separate lines, in writing:

• Packing services and materials
• Custom crating for art, glass, or antiques
• Origin trucking and export customs documentation
• Ocean freight or air freight
• Destination port fees, customs clearance, and delivery
• Unpacking and debris removal
• Storage at origin or destination

4. Valuation and insurance

This is where people lose real money.

Mandatory liability coverage is the basic tier, and at Sunset it covers 60 cents per pound. A 10-pound lamp worth $400 gets you $6.

Full Value Replacement costs extra but pays to repair or replace items at their actual value. The FMC warns that some marine policies only cover total loss of a vessel, not routine transit damage. Read the policy, not the brochure. Sunset’s moving insurance page explains both tiers.

What moving overseas from Pasadena, CA actually costs

A typical 2 to 3 bedroom Pasadena home costs roughly $4,500 to $12,000+ to move overseas. Destination, method, container size, and add-ons drive the number.

What pushes it up:

• Distance and route. Europe and Asia are well-served lanes from Southern California. Smaller ports cost more.
• Container size. A 40ft FCL costs more than a 20ft, but less per cubic foot.
• Specialty items. Piano moves, antiques moving, and custom crating add cost fast.
• Season. May through August is peak moving season. Book 2 to 3 months ahead.
• Destination fees. Port handling, customs clearance, and delivery can surprise you if they’re not quoted upfront.

For a deeper breakdown of ocean freight pricing, see the guide to international moving costs by ocean freight.

Benefits of hiring a dedicated international mover

A specialist handles the parts that go wrong on overseas moves: customs, paperwork, and the handoff at the foreign port. A local mover is often great at the loading. The ocean is a different job.

1. One point of contact. One consultant who knows your file, instead of three companies blaming each other.
2. Customs requirements handled correctly. Every country has its own rules. Japan wants a detailed list of goods, Australia’s biosecurity inspections are famously strict about soil on garden tools and outdoor furniture, and the Middle East has its own restrictions. A mover that clears customs every week knows what trips people up.
3. Proper export packing. Overseas packing is not the same as packing for a drive to San Diego. Goods sit in a container for weeks through humidity and temperature swings.
4. Integrated vehicle shipping. The car, the furniture, and the air shipment on one coordinated timeline. Good freight and shipping coordination is most of the job, more than the lifting.
5. Storage that bridges the gap. Long-term storage or short-term staging when your dates don’t line up.

Pasadena-specific things nobody warns you about

In Pasadena, California, parking rules, hillside streets, and older homes add real logistics to an overseas move. Plan for them early.

The moving truck permit

The City of Pasadena requires a moving vehicle parking permit filed 10 days before your move. The permit for vehicles 26 feet or longer is $84 and includes up to four Temporary No Parking signs, which have to be posted at least 24 hours in advance.

And this is the one that catches people: moving vehicles are allowed from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and a moving truck parked on a city street after 10 p.m. can be cited. If your load runs long, it can’t sit out front overnight.

A good local mover files this for you. Ask.

Hillside neighborhoods

Linda Vista, San Rafael, and the upper Arroyo have narrow, winding streets where a 40ft container truck simply won’t fit. Your mover may need to shuttle goods in a smaller truck to a staging point.

That costs extra. It should be in the quote, not a surprise on moving day.

Old Town and condo buildings

Old Town condos and lofts usually need an elevator reservation and a certificate of insurance from the mover. Many buildings also limit move hours. Get your HOA’s rules in writing a few weeks out.

Historic homes and heirlooms

Pasadena has a lot of antiques, original art, and old pianos. These are exactly the items that need custom crating for an ocean crossing. If you’ve got a baby grand, read up on how to move a piano before you get quotes, so you know what to ask.

Safety considerations for overseas moves

Most damage on international moves comes from poor packing, not the ocean. Here’s how to protect your goods and your family.

Packing and crating

• Use export-grade packing materials. Standard moving boxes collapse under weeks of container humidity.
• Get custom crates for anything irreplaceable: art, marble, glass, antiques.
• Consider fragile-only packing if you want to pack the rest yourself. Most movers, Sunset included, offer partial packing for a limited number of boxes. The guide to packing for moving overseas covers what to pack yourself and what to leave to pros.
• Photograph valuables and their condition before pickup. Every claim turns on those photos.

Inventory and paperwork

The FMC’s international moving checklist recommends an inventory of everything shipped, a packing list with box numbers, and a pickup receipt. Inspect everything at delivery and report damage with photos right away.

What you can’t ship

Most movers won’t ship flammables, aerosols, propane tanks, ammunition, perishable food, or plants. Some countries restrict certain medications, food items, or wood products. Check your destination’s customs requirements early.

Pets

Pets don’t go in the container. Contact a USDA-accredited veterinarian as soon as you decide to move. The USDA APHIS pet travel page explains that meeting a destination country’s entry rules takes time, and some countries need months of prep.

Paperwork for you, not just your stuff

The U.S. State Department’s Living Abroad resources cover federal benefits, taxes, voting, and reporting a birth abroad. Worth an hour before you go.

Where Pasadena families are moving

The most common overseas moves from Southern California go to Europe, Asia, Canada, and Australia and New Zealand. Each has its own quirks.

• Europe: Italy and Spain are big for retirees and remote workers. Read the guides on moving to Italy from the US and moving to Spain.
• Asia: Japan and Singapore draw a lot of Pasadena’s tech, research, and university families. Singapore apartments are small, so ship less than you think. See moving to Japan and moving to Singapore.
• Australia and New Zealand: long transit, strict biosecurity. Clean everything that’s been outdoors. See moving to Australia and moving to New Zealand.
• Canada: often shipped overland rather than by ocean freight, which changes both price and timing. Read what to know about moving to Canada.
• Middle East: Dubai and the wider Gulf are growing destinations, with specific rules on imported goods and documents.

From the Port of Los Angeles, which has been the No. 1 container port in the Western Hemisphere for 26 straight years, Southern California has some of the best ocean freight connections in the country, especially to Asia.

Top reasons to choose Sunset International Shipping for moving overseas from Pasadena

Sunset is a strong fit for Pasadena households that want a single FMC-licensed company running the entire overseas move at a fixed price. Here’s why it earns a spot at the top of the shortlist.

1. Flat-rate, binding pricing. Transparent, flat-rate pricing with no hidden fees or surprises for international moves. You know the number before you sign.
2. Everything under one roof. Sea and air freight, packing services, custom crating, storage, and vehicle shipping. No hand-offs to a stranger at the port.
3. A real person on your file. A dedicated consultant as your single point of contact from the first survey to delivery.
4. Global reach. A network of 150+ agents handling customs clearance and delivery at destination.
5. 30 days of free storage. Secure, climate-controlled storage facilities that buy you breathing room when dates slip.
6. Specialty item transport. Pianos, antiques, art, and oversized pieces with custom crating and full value coverage options.

Sunset also has dedicated pages for Los Angeles international moving and California international shipping if you’re comparing across Southern California.

When you’re ready, request a free moving estimate. It’s the only way to see a real, itemized number for your home.

How to plan your overseas move: a 12-week timeline

Start 12 weeks out. Book your mover by week 8. Everything after that is packing and paperwork.

1. 12 weeks out: Get three written quotes after in-home or video surveys. Verify each FMC license.
2. 10 weeks out: Choose FCL, LCL, or air plus sea. Decide on vehicle shipping.
3. 8 weeks out: Book the mover. Confirm valuation coverage in writing. Start pet travel prep.
4. 6 weeks out: Declutter hard. Sell or donate what isn’t worth shipping.
5. 4 weeks out: Gather customs documentation: passport copies, visa, valued inventory.
6. 2 weeks out: File (or confirm your mover filed) the Pasadena moving vehicle permit. Reserve building elevators.
7. Moving week: Packing, loading, pickup receipt, photos.
8. Arrival: Customs clearance, delivery, unpacking, inspect everything.

Use the full moving abroad checklist to track the details.

Frequently asked questions

The bottom line

Pasadena has good movers. Fewer of them are true international movers.

If you want a trusted local crew and don’t mind a forwarding partner handling the ocean, Pink Transfer’s century of San Gabriel Valley experience is hard to beat. If you’d rather have one FMC-licensed company own the entire move at a fixed price, Sunset International Shipping is the specialist pick.

Either way, verify the license, get everything in writing, and upgrade your coverage. Those three steps prevent most of the horror stories.

For more on choosing across the region, see our roundup of the best international movers in Los Angeles.