Piano Guidance
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How heavy is a upright piano?

Upright piano – 300 to 500 pounds. Baby grand piano – 500 to 650 pounds. Grand piano – 700 to 1,200 pounds.

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Moving is a big job and often quite literally. Some items in your home will inherently be tougher—and heavier—to move than others, and pianos are definitely in that group. If you’ve got one to move, then it’s important to factor questions like “how much does piano weigh?” into your planning, particularly if you’re going back and forth on whether you should move it yourself or hire a professional moving company to do the job. You can’t just stick your piano on a scale, but you can get a general idea of how much a piano weighs by looking at the average weights for popular piano styles and brands. Here’s what to know, including helpful tips for getting your piano from point A to point B as safely as possible.

How much does a piano weigh?

The average piano weighs just over 750 pounds, with some larger models coming in around 1,400 pounds and some smaller models at around 300 pounds. All that weight is partly attributable to a piano’s size and the fact that a piano has about 12,000 parts, including not just interior strings (of which there are usually 220 to 240) but heavier parts like a lid, rim, prop stick, and pedals. And since you can’t exactly take a piano apart and put it back together again just for your move, you’ll have to figure out a way to move everything at once. With such a huge variance in size, it might be helpful to delve a bit deeper into piano weights by style and brand. Here’s how different varieties compare, according to data pulled from Keyboard Kraze.

Average piano weight by style:

Upright piano – 300 to 500 pounds Baby grand piano – 500 to 650 pounds Grand piano – 700 to 1,200 pounds

Average piano weight by brand:

Upright

Steinway & Sons Model 1098 – 480 pounds Yamaha P22 – 490 pounds Young Chang 121 – 496 pounds Kawai K300 – 500 pounds Baldwin BH-122 – 542 pounds Bösendorfer 130 – 582 pounds Steinway & Sons Model K-52 – 600 pounds

Grand and Baby Grand

Steinway Model S – 540 pounds Young Chang Y185 – 671 pounds Yamaha C3 Studio – 705 pounds Steinway & Sons Model B – 760 pounds Steinway Model D Concert Grand Piano – 990 pounds Mason & Hamlin Artist Grand Piano BB – 1,090 pounds Mason & Hamlin CC – 1,399 pounds When it comes to answering the question of “how much does a piano weigh?” it’s a good idea to factor in the specifics above instead of just making an assumption based on your piano’s appearance. You may also want to research the weight of your specific piano brand and style, including taking a look through the manufacturer’s booklet if you have it available.

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Tips for moving a piano

One major takeaway from the information above on how much a piano weighs: pianos are incredibly heavy—even the smallest ones. Our best advice for moving a piano safely is to call in the pros, particularly a company that has experience moving large and expensive musical instruments. If your piano is an antique, this goes double since you definitely wouldn’t want to risk any damage in packing or transport. However, if you prefer to move a piano without movers, you’re not totally out of luck. Follow these tips to make it as easy on yourself as possible.

Ask for help

Don’t try to move a piano on your own. Even if you think you’re up for the task, a piano’s weight and size can pose a serious risk of injury, and you’re unlikely to be able to tackle this job without plenty of extra hands on deck. Ideally, you’ll want at least two to three additional people to help you out, and they’re going to need to be able in relatively good shape so that you can move the piano steadily and with as much ease as possible. Gather the right supplies and materials Moving blankets—and lots of them—are key when you’re relocating a piano. This will provide some much-needed cushioning for protection and help keep your piano from getting scratched or nicked. For smaller parts of the piano, like the legs, you can use thick towels or blankets, be sure to wrap them securely in place using plenty of packing tape. Other crucial materials you’ll need are a heavy-duty dolly for an upright piano and a piano board (also called a piano skid board) for a baby grand or grand piano. Measure before you move If your piano needs to pass through it, you need to measure it. This includes hallways, doorways, and staircases, all of which can be tricky to maneuver with a piano in tow. Plan your route out ahead of time so that you know exactly how you’re going to get your piano to the moving truck and what you need to navigate through to do so. You may need to line certain areas with towels to protect floors and baseboards from getting scratched.

What if you need to move a piano on stairs?

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We’ve written a guide to how to move a piano up or downstairs, which we recommend you check out if your move is going to require that you do so. While it’s not impossible to do on your own (so long as you have enough helpers by your side), it does require additional equipment, planning, and techniques, and the more that you know ahead of time, the better off you should be.

Consider calling in the pros

So, how much does a piano weigh? Enough to warrant some professional help. With the largest pianos weighing in at upwards of 1,000 pounds, you may be better off hiring movers to do the job—even if you have them move your piano and you take care o everything else. If it’s in the budget, look to luxury movers who have dedicated experience handling specialty items like pianos and other large-scale musical instruments. Otherwise, any reputable moving company should do. Just let them know ahead of time that you have a piano to be moved and any additional details regarding its size and any obstacles (i.e., staircases, narrow hallways, etc.). To make it easy, use Moving.com to quickly and easily search reputable movers in your area and then compare at least three companies based on price, availability, and reviews.

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