Whether you’re moving to Alaska or already live there and you need to get a car shipped to Alaska, your obvious question is, how much does it cost to ship a car to Alaska? As you’ll soon discover, shipping a car to Alaska isn’t overly complicating but it isn’t cheap either.
How Do I Transport a Car to Alaska?
The quickest and most convenient way to transport a car from the lower 48 states to Alaska is to transport it by ship.
One of the many things that our customers like about our service in the lower 48 states is that we provide door-to-door car shipping. Unfortunately, we currently don’t provide door-to-door shipping in Alaska. We only ship vehicles to and from the Port of Alaska in Anchorage.
With door-to-door shipping, we can pick up your car at a dealership in Texas, for example, and deliver it to you at your home in Seattle. Door-to-door shipping is easy when there are roads involved! When you’re shipping a car to Alaska, however, you’re not dealing with roads, you have the Gulf of Alaska to contend with! And when oceans and boats are involved, you have ports.
When we ship a car to Alaska, we ship from the Port of Tacoma to the Port of Alaska in Anchorage. There is also the Port of Seattle but we don’t ship out of there. If a customer must ship their vehicle from Seattle we refer them to another company that ports there. They are a bit slower and more expensive than us, but it is an option for Seattle to Anchorage transports. Most of our customers are perfectly fine with Tacoma, however, since it’s only 33 miles south of Seattle.
The City & Borough of Juneau Docks & Harbors is another popular shipping port in Alaska but at this time we do not ship cars to Juneau. Any auto transports to or from Juneau are referred to another company.
How Much Does it Cost to Ship a Car from Seattle to Anchorage?
It currently costs $2135 to ship a car from Seattle, WA to Anchorage, AK, and $2605 to ship a standard size truck or SUV.
We get a lot of calls from people that want to ship a car from Seattle to Alaska. This is a simple transport as there is no trucking involved. You drop your car off at the Port of Seattle in Washington and then it is transported by ship to the Port of Alaska in Anchorage. You then pick up your car at the port.
How Long Does it Take to Ship a Car from Seattle to Anchorage?
It takes approximately 6-7 days to ship a car or truck from Seattle, WA to Anchorage, AK.
If you are shipping your car from any other city other than Seattle, you have to add the time it takes to transport the car from your location to Seattle. The easiest way to do that is to take the total miles from your location to Seattle, and divide by 500, which is the approximate number of miles a truck driver can drive in one day.
For example, if you’re shipping your car from Dallas, TX, it’s about 2,100 miles to Seattle, WA. If you divide that by 500, you get 4.2, or 5 days. The total transit time, then, from Dallas, TX to Anchorage, AK, would be approximately 12 days (5 days on a truck from Dallas, TX to Seattle, WA and then 7 days on a ship from Seattle, WA to Anchorage, AK).
How Much Does it Cost to Ship a Car from Florida to Alaska?
It currently costs approximately $4270 to ship a car from Florida to Alaska.
Of course that rate will vary a little depending on what specific city in Florida you are shipping from. Here are some sample costs to ship a car from Florida to Alaska:
Miami, FL to Anchorage, AK: $4298
Tampa, FL to Anchorage, AK: $4286
Orlando, FL to Anchorage, AK: $4277
Jacksonville, FL to Anchorage, AK: $4293
Pensacola, FL to Anchorage, AK: $4197
The rates above include the trucking transport fee from their respective cities in Florida to the Port of Tacoma, plus the shipping rate from Tacoma, WA to Anchorage, AK.
How Much Does it Cost to Ship a Car from Alaska to California?
It currently costs approximately $2622 to ship a car from Alaska to California.
Of course that rate will vary a little depending on what specific city in California you are shipping to. Here are some sample costs to ship a car from Alaska to California:
Anchorage, AK to Sacramento, CA: $2413
Anchorage, AK to San Francisco, CA: $2516
Anchorage, AK to San Jose, CA: $2575
Anchorage, AK to Los Angeles, CA: $2754
Anchorage, AK to San Diego, CA: $2851
The rates above include the shipping rate from Anchorage, AK to Tacoma, WA, plus the trucking transport fee from Tacoma, WA to their respective cities in California.
How Long Does it Take to Ship a Car from Alaska to Washington?
It takes approximately 6-7 days to ship a car or truck from Alaska to Washington.
Shipping a car from Alaska to Washington usually includes two ports -the Port of Alaska in Anchorage and the Port of Tacoma in Washington.
How Much Does it Cost to Ship a Car to Anchorage?
It currently costs $2,135 to ship a car from Tacoma, WA to Anchorage, AK, and $2,605 to ship an SUV or standard size truck.
How Much Does it Cost to Ship a Car from Anchorage, AK to Tacoma, WA?
It currently costs $1,605 to ship a car from Anchorage, AK to Tacoma, WA, and it’s the same price to ship an SUV or standard size truck.
How Much Does it Cost to Ship a Car to Fairbanks Alaska?
It currently costs $2,560 to ship a car from Tacoma, WA to Fairbanks, AK, and $3,030 to ship an SUV or standard size truck.
While Anchorage is the busiest and most popular car shipping port in Alaska, Fairbanks is another popular city that cars are shipped to and from. When vehicles are being shipped from the lower 48 states to Fairbanks, they go to Anchorage first and then from there they are trucked to Fairbanks.
Shipping rates fluctuate occasionally so these numbers may be a little more or a little less when you get an Alaska transport quote from us.
Keep in mind, the shipping costs outlined here are only for the ship ride over to Alaska. If your car is being shipped to Alaska from any city other than Tacoma, WA, there will be an additional transport fee to get your vehicle trucked from your city to the Port of Tacoma.
Get an instant quote for your Alaska transport today!
Can I Ship My Car to Alaska with Personal Belongings?
You can ship your vehicle with personal belongings but they are not covered by insurance. You ship them at your own risk. There are also additional charges. It’s $95 per 100 pounds of personal belongings when shipping vehicles to Alaska, and it’s $85 per 100 pounds of personal belongings when shipping vehicles from Alaska.
In addition, you’ll be required to have your vehicle officially weighed at a weigh station if you’re shipping personal belongings with your vehicle. We will provide detailed instructions when you place your Alaska transport order with us.
How Do I Prepare a Car to Ship to Alaska?
There is a small checklist of things you need to do to properly prepare your vehicle to be transported to Alaska. Those things include:
- Have a copy of keys for all locking compartments, including the gas tank and glove box, and keys for the ignition and trunk.
- Vehicle must have a minimum of 5″ ground clearance
- Vehicle must have less than 1/4 tank of gas or it will be refused (electric vehicles must have a full charge)
- Vehicle must be clean on the outside for inspection
- Vehicle must be empty of personal items
- Vehicle must be a running vehicle that steers and stops
- Firearms, ammunition, flammable, and hazardous materials are not allowed
- October 1 – April 1 antifreeze must be good to -40
Taking care of these things before your vehicle is picked up will help to create a more efficient and trouble-free shipping experience! Also keep in mind that the ships leave the Port of Tacoma every Wednesday and Friday. If your vehicle arrives at the port on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday morning it will ship out on Wednesday. If it arrives at the port on Thursday or Friday morning, it will ship out on Friday.
Why You Can Trust J&S Transportation to Ship Your Car to Alaska
J&S has been transporting cars for over 20 years now, and we’ve had to ship more than a few to Alaska. We have the experience and know-how to make this as stress-free as possible for our customers who need to ship a car to Alaska.
Don’t take our word for it either. Read our online reviews on Google and TransportReviews.com and check out our BBB rating & reviews too. You’ll see we excel in providing our customers constant communication throughout the car shipping process, and we strive for safe and prompt delivery of their vehicles!
Get an instant quote today to see how much it will cost to ship your car to Alaska with J&S Transportation!