Military Car Shipping For PCS: What You Need To Know

Military Car Shipping for a PCS Military car shipping for a PCS comes down to one rule most people get wrong: inside the lower 48, the government expects you to drive; to Alaska, Hawaii, or overseas, it ships one car per family. Everything else — a second car, a car nobody can drive — you ship privately. Here's who pays, what it costs, and the base-gate problem nobody warns you about. For service members and spouses holding PCS orders and working out what to do with the car: the rule, the mileage math, the overseas process, real private-shipping quotes, PCS-season timing, and the installation-gate problem that trips people up at pickup. Inside the lower forty-eight, the military expects you to drive and pays you mileage for it. To or from Alaska, Hawaii, or overseas, it ships one car per family. Anything beyond that — a second car, or a car nobody's around to drive — you ship privately. And with Rivalane, service members get up to twenty percent off that. CONUS PCS: MALT Mileage vs Shipping at Your Expense Between two CONUS duty stations, the Joint Travel Regulations expect you to drive. The mileage allowance is MALT-Monetary Allowance in Lieu of Transportation, currently $0.235 per mile per authorized vehicle (DTMO, effective 1 July 2026), payable on up to two cars, plus per diem for your travel days. On a 1,200-mile move, that's roughly $282 per car. Private shipping on that distance runs well over $1,000, so on cost alone, driving wins. When Shipping Still Makes Sense on a CONUS Move The reasons to ship anyway are time and people, not money: two cars and one driver, a spouse flying with the kids, a report date with no room for a four-day drive. There are narrow exceptions where the government covers a CONUS shipment, a homeport change, a medical reason — but that's your Transportation Office's call, not the shipping company's. OCONUS PCS: One Car Through the Vehicle Processing Center For orders to, from, or between Alaska, Hawaii, and overseas, the government ships one privately owned vehicle per family through a Vehicle Processing Center, by sea, at no cost. You drop the car at the VPC and collect it at the other end; your Transportation Office books it through PCSmyPOV. A second car is yours to ship, sell, or store. Dual-military couples on separate orders each get one. If your destination doesn't allow personal vehicles, government storage may be an option. Military Car Shipping Cost: Real Quotes When you do ship privately, most shipments land between $500 and $1,500; a true coast-to-coast can run above that. From our own calculator this fall, open transport, door to door: New York to Dallas, 1,543 miles, $1,690. Chicago to Los Angeles, 2,045 miles, $1,510. Longer routes cost more in total but less per mile. Timing Your Car Around PCS Season Peak PCS season runs May through August, when a huge share of the military moves at once: more cars competing for the same trucks, higher prices, tighter pickup windows. Book two to three weeks before your pickup date if you can. And plan for the gap: your car takes one to seven days in transit while your travel days are set by your orders, so sort out a ride at whichever end the car isn't. Can a Car Carrier Drive Onto Base? Usually not. Most carriers can't bring a 75-foot rig through an installation gate without a sponsor or a pass. Plan to meet the driver just outside the gate at a lot with room: a shopping center, a park-and-ride, a large gas station. Give the driver your cell number, and do the condition report together at pickup and again at delivery. PCS Orders, Prep and the Military Discount Have a copy of your orders ready when you book; that's what unlocks the military rate. Leave about a quarter tank, take the toll tag out, and clear personal items from the car; they generally aren't covered by cargo insurance. Payment is nothing until a carrier is assigned, then a small deposit, and the balance at delivery. Rivalane takes up to 20% off for service members shipping privately for any part of a PCS. Rivalane is a licensed and insured, family-operated auto transport company based in Melville, New York, with 100+ carriers in network and 2,500+ vehicles shipped. Chapters 0:00 Who Pays to Ship Your Car on a PCS? 0:43 CONUS PCS: MALT Mileage vs Shipping at Your Expense 1:13 When Shipping Still Makes Sense on a CONUS Move 1:33 OCONUS PCS: One Car Through the Vehicle Processing Center 2:06 Military Car Shipping Cost: Real Quotes 2:29 Timing Your Car Around PCS Season 3:01 Can a Car Carrier Drive Onto Base? 3:29 PCS Orders, Prep and the Military Discount → Get a military quote (up to 20% off): https://rivalane.com → OCONUS POV shipping appointments: https://www.pcsmypov.com → Current MALT and mileage rates: https://www.travel.dod.mil/Travel-Tra... → How much does it cost to ship a car:    • Car Shipping Cost: How Much Does It Cost T...   → Call us: +1 855-748-2526 #MilitaryCarShipping #PCS #CarShipping #MilitaryMove #Rivalane