Packing materials · paper
Paper protects more of a house move than bubble wrap does, and almost everybody buys too little of it. Here is what to get, how much, and why the newspaper in the recycling is a false economy.
Packing paper is unprinted newsprint. Same stock, same weight, same feel, just taken off the reel before it reaches the press. That single difference is the whole argument, because printing ink does not stay on newspaper. It transfers onto china glaze, onto glass, onto pale wood, onto linen, and onto your hands, and then onto whatever you touch next. You find it again in June when you unpack the last box in the garage.
The counter-argument is that newspaper is free. It is, and if you are packing a shed full of plant pots then use it. For anything you would be sorry to ruin, a ream of clean newsprint costs less than one replacement plate.
Tissue looks like the premium option and is the worst thing on the shelf for a move. Protection in a box comes from two things: a layer between items so they cannot touch, and enough crumpled bulk filling the voids that nothing can shift when the box is carried. Tissue provides the first and none of the second. It compresses to nothing. A box packed with tissue rattles, and things that rattle for forty miles arrive chipped.
Around 20 inches by 30 inches is the size to look for. It matters more than it sounds. A dinner plate wrapped in a large sheet gets a full turn plus enough overhang to twist and crumple at the edges, which is what creates the cushion. On a small sheet the paper runs out at the rim, so you reach for a second sheet and end up using more paper for a worse result.
A ream of 200 large sheets does an average kitchen. That covers glasses, mugs, plates, bowls, the awkward pans and the contents of the cupboard above the kettle. Add roughly another 100 sheets for a dining room with china and glassware, and 50 more for ornaments, picture frames and the things on top of a bookcase.
People consistently buy half of what they need, run out on the Wednesday and finish the job with tea towels. Tea towels are actually not a bad packing material, but you will want them the following morning to make a cup of tea.
Lay a few crumpled sheets in the bottom of the box first. Wrap each item individually rather than in pairs, because two plates wrapped together are two plates that grind against each other. Plates go in on their edge, not stacked flat: on edge, the load runs through the strongest axis and the plate survives what would otherwise crack it. Glasses go upright, never on their side. Then fill every remaining gap with crumpled paper until nothing moves when you tilt the box.
The test is simple. Close the box, pick it up and give it a gentle shake. If you can hear anything at all, open it and add more paper.
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200 sheets, 20in x 30in (about 51cm x 76cm), clean unprinted newsprint
Big sheets, no ink, and enough of them to do a kitchen and a dining room without rationing. The sheet size matters more than people expect: a small sheet will not go round a dinner plate with enough overlap to crumple at the edges, so you end up using two and it costs you more.
View on Amazon →One ream does an average kitchen. Order two if you have a dining room with china in it, or a lot of glassware.
What size boxes a house move needs, double wall versus single, and how many.
Removal box sizes →Packing paper · good to know
You can, but the ink transfers onto china, glass, pale fabric and anything porous, and it comes off on your hands as you unpack. Plain newsprint is the same paper without the ink and costs very little.
Unprinted newsprint, the same stock a newspaper is printed on before it goes through the press. It is sold in reams of flat sheets or on a roll, and it is fully recyclable.
Around 200 large sheets covers an average kitchen. Add another 100 or so if you have a dining room with china and glassware, and a further 50 for ornaments and picture frames elsewhere in the house.
No. Tissue has no bulk, so it neither cushions an item nor fills the void around it. Most of the protection in a well packed box comes from crumpled paper filling the gaps, and tissue cannot do that job.
Large sheets, around 20 inches by 30 inches. A small sheet will not go round a dinner plate with enough overlap to twist and crumple at the edges, so you use two and it costs you more.
Not on a self-pack move. A full house removal includes some free boxes and some tape; paper is yours to buy. If you book our packing service we bring all the paper the job needs and take the spares away.
About these links. These are the sorts of materials we buy and use on real moves. Links to items we do not supply ourselves are Amazon affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission if you buy through them. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. You pay the same price either way.
We do not list prices here, because they change and a stale figure helps nobody. Nothing on this page is sold by us, and any order, delivery or return is between you and Amazon.
Our own crew can pack all of it, or just the kitchen and the china, with every material brought by us.