The Complete Office Move Checklist

6+ months before the move

Set the destination, budget, and owners before vendors and lead times start driving the calendar.

Lease and space

• Write down why you are moving (growth, consolidation, cost, location, hybrid work, or lease end).
• Set a relocation budget and a 10–15% contingency.
• Appoint an internal move lead or small committee, and decide who can approve spend.
• Engage a commercial real estate broker and tour shortlisted spaces.
• Compare commute, parking, transit, accessibility, and building services—not just rent.
• Review and negotiate the new lease, including term, tenant-improvement allowance, and occupancy date.
• Map the new occupancy date against your current lease end so you are not paying for two spaces longer than necessary—or left with a gap.

Movers, furniture, IT, and other vendors

• Inventory current furniture and equipment: what will move, what will be replaced, and what can be sold or donated.
• Ask IT to assess network, servers, cabling, and the phone system, and to flag long-lead items such as a new fiber or dedicated internet circuit.
• Note current security, alarm, and access-control contracts and any early-termination dates.
• Start a running list of licenses, insurance, banking, payroll, and vendor accounts that will need an address change.
• Collect early budget ranges from commercial movers so relocation cost is not a late surprise.

Employee communication

• Brief leadership and department heads once a move is likely, even if the exact address is not final.
• Hold a company-wide announcement until the space is reasonably certain, then plan how and when you will share the news.

3–4 months before the move

This is when most vendors need to be selected and long-lead orders placed.

Lease and space

• Finalize a floor plan and seating approach for the new office.
• Confirm landlord work versus your own work, and schedule inspections.

Movers

• Get two or three bids from commercial movers experienced with office relocations.
• Select a mover; confirm insurance, certificates of insurance, elevator reservations, and loading-dock rules.
• Book the move date, including any after-hours or weekend access required by the building.

Furniture

• Decide what to reuse, refinish, or replace, including reception, conference, and common areas.
• Order new furniture now—lead times of 8–12 weeks or more are common.

IT, network, and phones

• Design the network for the new space and order the internet circuit (installation can take 30–90 days).
• Plan the phone-system move or VoIP cutover, including number porting if needed.
• Inventory workstations, printers, meeting-room technology, and backup or server-migration needs.

Security, printing, and utilities

• Design access control, badges, cameras, and alarm coverage, and coordinate with the landlord.
• Start interior and exterior signage design, plus any directory listings in the building.
• Begin utility and service accounts: electric, gas, water, trash, janitorial, and after-hours HVAC if needed.

Address changes and employee communication

• Build a master change-of-address list and notify insurance and legal counsel.
• Announce the location, target date, and what will change for employees (commute, parking, amenities).
• Name an internal point of contact and start collecting questions.

1–2 months before the move

Lock dates, start packing what you will not need, and get clients and vendors on notice.

• Confirm dates and access with the mover, IT, security, furniture, and building management.
• Begin packing non-essentials and archives; label furniture and equipment by room or desk.
• Order remaining signage, stationery, and any last furniture or fixtures.
• Schedule the internet install and a test window; schedule security installation.
• Arrange decommissioning, donation, sale, or disposal of items that will not move.
• Prepare website, email-signature, and business-listing updates to publish on move day.
• Notify key clients, vendors, and partners of the upcoming address change.
• Confirm insurance coverage at both locations during the overlap.
• Plan employee parking, first-week logistics, and cleaning at both the old and new sites.

Final weeks

Confirm every dependency, finish packing, and make sure the new space can actually open.

• Reconfirm mover logistics: elevator times, loading dock, certificates of insurance, and on-site contacts.
• Finish packing and issue a short department-by-department move-day checklist.
• Test internet, Wi-Fi, phones, and security in the new space if access allows.
• Confirm utilities are on and walk the new space with a punch list.
• Send employees move-day instructions: what to pack, what to leave, arrival time, and who to call.
• File mail forwarding (USPS or Canada Post) and update banking, payroll, licenses, and tax authorities.
• Share after-hours contacts for the move and the first week in the new office.

Move week

Protect uptime: get critical systems live first, and keep both sites secure until the old one is fully vacated.

• Assign floor or department leads to supervise movers and answer placement questions.
• Have IT bring up network, phones, and critical systems first, then test calling and internet.
• Issue access badges and set alarm codes; post temporary signage as needed.
• Walk the space to confirm furniture and equipment placement; document any damage or missing items.
• Give employees desk assignments, Wi-Fi/login help, and a short orientation.
• Keep the old site secure until it is fully vacated and the condition is documented.
• Arrange pickup of packing materials, pallets, and debris.

After the move

Close out the old location, fix what did not land cleanly, and make the new address official everywhere it matters.

• Collect employee feedback in the first one to two weeks and work a facilities and IT punch list.
• Update your website, invoices, contracts, Google Business Profile, and other directories.
• Notify any remaining customers and vendors of the new address and phone details.
• Complete the old-lease walkthrough, return keys and badges, and request deposit back.
• Cancel or transfer remaining utilities and services at the former site.
• Take a short debrief so the next transition—another floor, a second office, a consolidation—is easier.
• Thank the team and mark the move complete.