Michigan to Florida car shipping
Shipping a car from Michigan to Florida costs roughly $1,160–$1,320 and takes 4–5 days over 1,146 road miles (Detroit to Orlando). Below is what moves that number, and how to get real quotes for this lane.
| Vehicle & trailer | Price | Transit |
|---|---|---|
| Sedan, open trailer | $1,160–$1,320 | 4–5 days |
| SUV or crossover, open | $1,250–$1,420 | 4–5 days |
| Any vehicle, enclosed | $1,560–$1,780 | 4–5 days |
Estimates from distance and vehicle type. Actual price depends on how busy the lane is the week you ship.
The model prices each leg of this corridor on its own, and the one you are here for is cheaper. Southbound out of Michigan carries the deeper markdown. The run back north out of Orlando carries the higher factor, and hardly anyone asks for it. Whatever is thin about the Michigan end of this lane is charged to that quiet return, not to the trip you are buying.
Detroit and Orlando are the points the road distance was measured between: not addresses, not a claim about where a truck sits. The measured length puts this in the long band without reaching coast width, so the driving dominates the estimate and the handling at each end fades into it. It is also flagged as snowbird traffic pointed south.
This corridor, measured
| Michigan → Florida | back | |
|---|---|---|
| Measured between | Detroit → Orlando | Orlando → Detroit |
| Road miles | 1,146 | 1,145 |
| Transit | 4–5 days | 4–5 days |
| Open carrier, sedan | $1,160–$1,320 | $1,170–$1,330 |
| Direction multiplier | 0.984 | 0.992 |
| Carrier reloads at the far end | 0.87 — with some hunting | 0.82 |
| Licensed companies based there | 69 | 609 |
Distance is measured between Detroit and Orlando by a routing engine, not as a straight line. Registered companies at the Michigan end cluster in Macomb, Davison, Dearborn; at the Florida end, in Miami, Hialeah, Kissimmee. A register counts businesses filed at an address, not trucks on this road today.
The other direction has its own page: Florida to Michigan.
The direction nobody asks for is the dearer one
Each leg carries its own multiplier, and on this pair they do not mirror each other. The southbound run, the one people actually search, sits lower. The return out of Orlando sits higher, while still landing under the neutral line. So demand and price point opposite ways here: the busy direction is the discounted direction, and the quiet one is dearer. It also means a round trip is not symmetrical arithmetic. If the car has to come back north later, ask for that leg on its own terms and read its own figure rather than assuming this page covers it.
The season pushes against the direction discount
The lane runs almost straight down the map. The car finishes far south of where it started, at much the same longitude, and the seasonal term in the model is directional. Southbound is the way the autumn flow points, so the estimate lifts through those months and gives ground again once the migration turns around. The direction discount does not move with it; that sits on the driving all year. The terms pull against each other, and the month you enter decides which one you feel. If your dates are open, price the months against each other before you commit.
When to ship it
This lane runs with the retiree migration, and that migration is one-way at a time: Florida fills up from October and empties from March. Whichever way the trucks are scarce is the way that costs more, so a month of flexibility is worth more here than any amount of negotiating.
| Month | Sedan, open trailer | vs year-round |
|---|---|---|
| January | $1,280–$1,460 | +10% |
| March | $1,020–$1,170 | -12% |
| May | $1,160–$1,320 | level |
| July | $1,300–$1,480 | +12% |
| October | $1,400–$1,590 | +21% |
Indicative only. Fuel is indexed to the U.S. weekly retail diesel average, last read 2026-09-07.
What drives the price on this lane
- Distance. 1,146 miles puts this lane at about $1.08 a mile. Past 1,200 miles the per-mile rate keeps dropping but driver hours start to bind — the run needs rest stops, and a carrier will hold for a second or third car before rolling.
- Season. This is a snowbird lane. Southbound fills from October and northbound from April, and in those windows a week of lead time is worth more than any amount of haggling. Running south, this lane competes with everyone else heading for warmer weather in autumn.
- Direction. Florida is a dense freight market, so a carrier delivering here can reload quickly and does not need the trip to pay for the run back. This direction usually prices a little under Florida to Michigan.
- Trailer. Enclosed protects from weather and road debris and costs about 35% more here ($1,560–$1,780). The premium grows with distance — an enclosed trailer carries fewer cars, so the longer the run the more deck revenue the carrier gives up. Worth it for low-clearance, classic or high-value cars; rarely worth it otherwise.
- Condition. A car that does not run needs a winch at both ends and adds about $200. Tell the broker up front — a driver who finds out at pickup can refuse the load.
Pickup and delivery on this lane
The companies that run Michigan to Florida are registered in these cities. A carrier based near either end is the one most likely to already be heading your way, which is what makes the difference between a quote and a quote you can actually book.
Picking up around Michigan
- Macomb4
- Davison3
- Dearborn3
- Lansing3
- Troy3
- Van Buren Twp3
- Dearborn Heights2
- Detroit2
- Owosso2
- Taylor2
Delivering around Florida
- Miami103
- Hialeah28
- Kissimmee27
- Homestead26
- Orlando22
- Jacksonville20
- Cape Coral19
- Boca Raton16
- Coral Springs12
- Lehigh Acres12
Counts are companies with active FMCSA authority registered in each city.
Licensed companies based in Michigan
69 companies with active FMCSA authority are registered in Michigan.
- PIGEON AUTO LOGISTICSNORTHVILLE, MI · broker · bonded
- ABRAMS AUTO TRANSPORT INCDAVISBURG, MI · broker · bonded
- ACTION AUTO CARRIERS, CORP.WYANDOTTE, MI · broker · bonded
- ADVANCED AUTO TRANSPORT LLCMACOMB, MI · broker · bonded
- AWESOME AUTO TRANSPORTERS LLCDETROIT, MI · broker · bonded
- CROSS ROADS AUTO TRANSPORT LLCMUSKEGON, MI · broker · bonded
All Michigan auto transport companies →
Michigan to Florida: common questions
Why does the direction almost nobody searches — Florida back up to Michigan — carry the higher multiplier?+
Because the multiplier follows the truck rather than the search box. The model rates each leg on what the work looks like in that direction, and the northbound leg rates harder here, even though it is the leg almost nobody asks about. Demand runs the other way. That is why the direction you came for is the marked-down one, and why the return has to be priced on its own.
My car is not in Detroit and is not going to Orlando. Does this page still apply?+
As a starting point. Detroit is the point the road distance was measured from and Orlando the point it was measured to. Neither is an address, and neither says where a truck happens to be. A pickup well away from that measured line is a different road, and the figure beside this text will move once you enter it. Give the real addresses at each end.
Will a Michigan company be the one that carries my car?+
The federal register is much deeper at the Florida end of this lane than at the Michigan end. That is a fact about who is licensed where. It predicts nothing about which company answers your request or what it quotes. This site passes the request to licensed companies and shows you what comes back; it holds no operating authority, owns no trucks and is never party to your contract.
How much does it cost to ship a car from Michigan to Florida?+
Expect $1,160 to $1,320 for a running sedan on an open trailer. An SUV on the same lane runs about $1,250–$1,420, and an enclosed trailer about $1,560–$1,780.
How long does it take to ship a car from Michigan to Florida?+
About 4 to 5 days in transit over 1,146 miles, plus one to three days to schedule pickup after you book.
Can the carrier pick up and deliver to my door?+
Yes on almost every lane. The truck gets as close as it legally and physically can — on a narrow residential street the driver will ask you to meet at a nearby lot.
How do I ship my car from Michigan to Florida?+
Give the two ZIP codes and what you drive, and the request goes to a panel of licensed companies at once instead of you calling down a list. They quote, you compare side by side, and you deal directly with whoever you pick — we take no commission and nobody gets your number until you hand it over. You do not travel with the car: the driver collects it, you both sign an inspection report, and the same happens at the far end.
More lanes from Michigan
More lanes to Florida
Where is the car going?
Two ZIP codes. No account, no obligation.
Shipping somewhere else in Florida? Florida car transport →