Moving etiquette in Quebec
Do You Tip Movers in Quebec?
How Much, and When
Tipping movers in Quebec is optional; most people who tip give $20 to $50 per mover, in cash, at the end.
| Move | Bill | Typical tip |
|---|---|---|
| 3½ apartment, 2 movers, 4 h | $500 to $625 | $20 to $30 each |
| 4½, 2 movers, 6 h | $750 to $875 | $30 to $40 each |
| House, 3 movers, 8 h | $1,200 to $1,350 | $40 to $60 each |
| Long distance, 2 days | Fixed price | $50 to $100 each |
The number
How much do you tip movers in Montreal?
$20 to $50 per mover for a local move, more for a full day or a hard one. Quebec sources give three ways to get there and they land in the same place: about $5 per hour per mover, 5 to 10% of the bill split across the crew, or a flat $20 to $40 per mover for a half day and $40 to $60 for a full day. Long distance and multi-day moves run $50 to $100 per mover per day. No law requires any of it.
Three ways to land on the same number
Three methods circulate in Quebec and they are worth knowing, because the one you pick matters less than being consistent across the crew. Quebec media citing the moving industry put the norm at 5 to 10% of the total bill, or $20 per mover for a big job. Movers quoted in those same pieces say $5 per hour per mover is the average, and that plenty of customers give $20 and plenty give nothing, which is fine. Our crews would tell you the same.
By the hour
About $5 per hour, per mover. A six-hour move with two movers is $30 each. This is the method movers themselves cite most often, because it scales with the day the crew actually had.
By the bill
5 to 10% of the total, split evenly. On a $1,400 three-mover house move that is $70 to $140, so $25 to $45 each. Use the pre-tax amount; that is also how Quebec now requires tip prompts on card terminals to be calculated.
Flat per mover
$20 to $30 each for a short move, $40 to $60 for a full day, $50 to $100 per day on a long-distance job. The simplest method when you want to hand each person the same bill at the truck.
What all three agree on: Quebec tips lower than the United States, nobody on a professional crew expects a tip, and a sincere thank-you with cold water on a July afternoon is remembered longer than you think. One Montreal mover put it plainly in a 2024 interview: a $20 is honourable.
When and how
Cash at the end, each mover separately
The mechanics matter more than people think, because a tip handed to the wrong person at the wrong moment can miss the crew entirely. Here is what works.
Water, coffee, lunch
On a hot day, cold water is worth more than you think. Lunch on a full-day job is a real gesture. Skip beer and wine; crews cannot drink on shift and most companies, ours included, will not allow it.
Cash is simplest, the terminal works too
Cash goes straight into the right pocket with no accounting. Interac e-transfer to the individual works too. If you add a tip on a card terminal, Quebec law requires the employer to pass it on in full, so it still reaches the crew.
A named review
A Google review that names the movers and the city is the tip that keeps paying. It is how the next customer finds the crew, and companies read them. Our 4.9 across 187 reviews is built on exactly that.
At the end, not the start
Tip once the last piece is placed and you have walked the rooms. A tip at the start buys nothing a professional crew was not already going to do, and it makes the end of the day awkward if something went wrong.Each mover, the same amount
Hand it to each person, not to the lead to "split later." Crews are built on equal effort; equal tips keep it that way. If a second crew took over at the destination on a long-distance move, tip the two crews separately.What not to do
Do not withhold a tip to signal a complaint; a complaint goes to the company, in writing, with photos. Do not tip to make up for a bad quote; the price is the price in the contract. We handle the complexity.The rules
What Quebec law says about tipping movers
Three pieces of Quebec law touch a mover's tip, and none of them obliges you to give one. They do decide who keeps it, how it is taxed, and what a card terminal is allowed to suggest.
The tip belongs to the mover
Section 50 of the Act respecting labour standards: a tip paid by a customer "belongs to the employee of right," cannot be mixed with wages, and if the employer collects it, for example on a terminal, it must be "remitted in full" to the worker. An employer cannot impose tip-sharing. Movers are not "tipped employees" under the regulation, so they are owed the full general minimum wage with any tip on top.
Tips are income, but the 8% rule is not for movers
Cash tips are taxable income for the mover, reported on the Quebec return at line 107 and federally at line 10400. The 8% attribution rule and the pay-period declaration that restaurant and bar staff know do not apply outside hospitality. That is the mover's bookkeeping, not yours.
Terminal tip prompts, since May 7, 2025
Quebec's Bill 72 changed the Consumer Protection Act: any merchant that suggests tip amounts on a terminal must calculate percentages on the price before GST and QST, offer only the suggested amounts plus a "set my own" option, and present them uniformly without nudging you toward one. That applies to a mover's terminal as much as a restaurant's.
Official sources: CNESST: tips and tip-sharing agreements · Act respecting labour standards, section 50 · Revenu Québec: tipped employees · OPC: tip suggestions on terminals · Quebec notice, tips calculated before tax (May 2025)
Reading the day
When the move earned the top of the range
The ranges above assume a normal day. Some days are not normal, and the crew knows it before you do.
Days that earn the top of the range
A third-floor walk-up in the Plateau with the truck around the corner because the curb was full. A piano down an interior staircase. A July 1 move in 30-degree heat, or a January move with the walkway unsalted and a snow-loading operation on the street. Antiques, glass, a wine fridge, a 300-pound safe. A customer who was not packed when the crew arrived and had the crew pack. If any of those were your move, the top of the range is fair, and a bit above it is not unusual.
Days that do not
If the crew was late, careless or short-handed, the tip is not where you register that; the company is, and it should be in writing the same day.
What a tip is not
A tip is a thank-you. The price is the contract.
Quebec's consumer protection office is clear that a mover cannot charge more than the price in the contract, and that a written contract should state the hourly rate, the date and time, the number of movers, the truck size and how the total is calculated. A tip never replaces any of that, and a crew asking for a "tip" to finish the job is not asking for a tip.
Get the quote in writing
The Office de la protection du consommateur recommends a written contract for every move, and requires one within 15 days for a move booked by phone or online. AKA quotes the real hours in writing before the truck leaves.No deposit games
The OPC says to give no deposit, or a very small one. Anything paid more than two months ahead should go into a trust account. A tip is never due in advance either."Extra" at the door
If the bill at the end is higher than the contract, you can refuse the extra, pay under protest and send a formal notice, or complain to the OPC. In 2025 the OPC inspected 101 moving companies and sent warnings to 89 of them. Pick a company that quotes the hours.What we do
Our crews are paid a full wage, never a tipped-employee wage. Tips are theirs, cash or terminal. The quote is the quote. If you want to thank the crew, they will appreciate it; if you do not, nothing changes.Official sources: OPC: advice before you move · OPC: billing of unplanned fees · OPC moving-company inspections, June 2025
About the crews you would be tipping
Our own movers, paid properly, the real hours in writing
AKA Moving was founded in 2019 and runs its own trucks and crews from a warehouse at 10500 Côte-de-Liesse in Lachine. We do not broker your move to day labour, which is why the same faces show up year after year and why a tip to our crew goes to someone who will remember your address. Pricing starts at $125 an hour for two movers with a 3-hour minimum plus transport, laid out on the Montreal moving cost guide and the calculator. Who we are is on the about page.
AKA Moving
Questions
Tipping movers in Quebec, answered
Q Do you tip movers in Quebec?
It is optional and appreciated, never required. No Quebec law obliges a customer to tip, and professional movers are paid a full wage, not a tipped-employee wage. Most customers who tip give $20 to $50 per mover for a local move, or 5 to 10% of the bill split across the crew.
Q How much should I tip movers in Montreal?
About $5 per hour per mover, or 5 to 10% of the pre-tax bill, or a flat $20 to $30 per mover for a short move and $40 to $60 for a full day. On a typical 4½ move with two movers over six hours, that is $30 to $40 each. Long-distance or multi-day moves run $50 to $100 per mover per day. Give more for stairs, pianos, heat, snow or fragile high-value items.
Q Should I tip movers in cash or on the card?
Cash handed to each mover at the end is simplest and goes straight to the right person. A tip added on a card terminal still reaches the crew: section 50 of Quebec's Act respecting labour standards requires an employer who collects a tip to remit it in full to the worker and forbids imposing tip-sharing. E-transfer to the individual works too.
Q When do I give the tip?
At the end, after the last piece is placed and you have walked the rooms. Tip each mover the same amount directly rather than giving a lump sum to one person. On a long-distance move with a second crew at the destination, tip each crew separately.
Q Are tips taxable for movers in Quebec?
Yes, tips are taxable income for the mover, reported at line 107 of the Quebec return and line 10400 federally. The 8% attribution rule and pay-period tip declarations apply only to restaurants, bars and hotels, not to moving companies. None of this changes anything for the customer.
Q Is a mover allowed to suggest a tip on the payment terminal?
Yes, within Quebec's rules in force since May 7, 2025. Suggested percentages must be calculated on the price before GST and QST, the screen may show only the suggested amounts plus an option to enter your own, and the options must be presented uniformly without steering you toward one. You can always choose zero.
Q Can a mover charge more than the quote and call it a tip?
No. The Office de la protection du consommateur states a mover cannot charge a price higher than the one in the contract. A tip is voluntary and separate. If the final bill exceeds the written quote, you can refuse the extra, pay under protest and send a formal notice, or file a complaint with the OPC.
Get the real hours in writing first
Tell us the address, the floors and the date. The quote is the contract; what you give the crew afterwards is up to you.
