Alabama to Texas Car Shipping
Door-to-door auto transport on both corridors — Birmingham, Huntsville and Tuscaloosa west on I-20 to Dallas–Fort Worth, Mobile and the Gulf Coast on I-10 to Houston. 2–4 day transit, pickup in 1–3 days.
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Shipping a car from Alabama to Texas runs $675 to $950 on open transport and takes 2 to 4 days in transit, with pickup usually 1 to 3 days after booking. The number that decides where you land in that range is not your mileage — it is which of the two corridors your pickup city sits on. North Alabama runs I-20 west to Dallas–Fort Worth. South Alabama runs I-10 along the Gulf to Houston. They use different trucks.
Shipping a car from Alabama to Texas
One lane on paper, two corridors in practice — and knowing which one you are on is worth more than any negotiation
Alabama to Texas is a 475 to 910 mile run for almost every booking we take, which makes it one of the shorter interstate lanes we quote and one of the faster ones: 2 to 4 days in transit. What it is not, despite how every quote form treats it, is a single lane. Alabama is 330 miles tall, and the two ends of it feed two completely separate corridors into Texas.
From Huntsville, Birmingham, Decatur and Tuscaloosa, your car goes west on I-20 through Meridian, Jackson and Shreveport into Dallas–Fort Worth, or up through Memphis on I-22 and down I-30. From Mobile, Baldwin County and the Wiregrass, it runs I-10 along the Gulf through Biloxi, Baton Rouge and Beaumont into Houston. Those are different roads, different terminals and largely different carriers. A driver working the I-20 Dallas loop is not the driver who works the Gulf, and quoting the state pair as one average price hides the only variable that matters.
Who is on this lane: contract engineers and suppliers moving between Alabama's assembly plants and the Texas truck plants, military PCS moves between Redstone Arsenal, Maxwell AFB and Fort Novosel and the Texas installations, families relocating to the Houston and DFW job markets, and students heading home to Texas each May. For statewide coverage either end, see Alabama auto transport and Texas auto transport.
Alabama to Texas shipping cost by vehicle
Open transport, running vehicle, door to door
| Vehicle Type | Est. Cost | Transit Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sedan / Coupe | $675–$950 | 2–4 days | Low end is Mobile → Houston |
| SUV / Crossover | $800–$1,075 | 2–4 days | +$125 vs sedan |
| Pickup Truck | $850–$1,125 | 2–4 days | +$175 vs sedan |
| Minivan / Full-size Van | $875–$1,150 | 2–4 days | Oversize may add cost |
| Luxury / Exotic (Enclosed) | $1,025–$1,600 | 2–4 days | Enclosed recommended |
Bands are for a standard running sedan on open transport. On this lane, enclosed transport typically runs 50–70% above open, depending on the season and carrier supply on your corridor. Non-running vehicles need a winch-equipped carrier, which on this lane typically adds $200–$350 depending on whether the vehicle rolls, steers and brakes — see inoperable vehicle shipping. For an exact figure on your two ZIP codes, use the car shipping calculator.
Alabama to Texas cost by city pair
Standard running sedan on open transport — the specific lanes we run most
| Route | Distance | Transit | Open Transport |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mobile → Houston | ~475 mi | 1–2 days | $675–$775 |
| Tuscaloosa → Dallas | ~600 mi | 2–3 days | $700–$800 |
| Montgomery → Houston | ~610 mi | 2–3 days | $700–$800 |
| Mobile → Dallas | ~640 mi | 2–3 days | $725–$825 |
| Birmingham → Dallas | ~650 mi | 2–3 days | $725–$825 |
| Huntsville → Dallas | ~660 mi | 2–3 days | $725–$825 |
| Birmingham → Houston | ~680 mi | 2–3 days | $750–$850 |
| Huntsville → Houston | ~740 mi | 3–4 days | $775–$875 |
| Birmingham → Austin | ~830 mi | 3–4 days | $800–$900 |
| Birmingham → San Antonio | ~910 mi | 3–4 days | $825–$950 |
Distances are approximate. One segment sits outside the band above: El Paso and far West Texas are 1,200 miles and more from any Alabama origin, and run $950–$1,100 at 4–5 days, because the load leaves the I-20 Dallas loop and crosses West Texas on its own. Everything inside the Texas Triangle — Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio — falls in the table.
How it works
Four steps, no upfront payment
Get Your Instant Quote
Enter pickup ZIP, delivery ZIP, and vehicle details. Real price in 60 seconds — no phone call required.
Schedule Pickup
We match you to a carrier already running your corridor — I-20 west out of north Alabama, or I-10 out of Mobile — typically within 1–3 days.
Track in Real Time
Follow every mile via Navi Track 360™, with updates at each checkpoint between Alabama and your Texas delivery city.
Delivery & Inspection
Driver calls ahead. Walk around together, confirm condition, sign the Bill of Lading. Done.
Top pickup & delivery cities
Door to door across both states, including base and campus addresses
📍 Alabama Pickup Cities
Plus every other Alabama address — we run the whole state, not just the metros.
📍 Texas Delivery Cities
Plus every other Texas address, including on-base and campus deliveries.
Which corridor is your city on?
Find your pickup city below — it tells you which road your car takes, which trucks are available, and why two Alabama cities 200 miles apart can quote differently to the same Texas address
🛣️ I-20 / I-22 — the Dallas corridor
West through Meridian, Jackson and Shreveport into Dallas–Fort Worth, or north through Memphis on I-22 and down I-30. High-frequency freight corridor, so pickup windows here are short — often the same 24 to 48 hours your Alabama hub quotes for metro pickups. Onward legs to Austin and San Antonio add a day.
🌊 I-10 — the Gulf corridor
West along the coast through Biloxi, Baton Rouge, Lafayette and Beaumont into Houston. The shortest and cheapest segment of the whole lane at ~475 miles — and the one exposed to Gulf storms between June and November. Wiregrass cities like Dothan and Enterprise cut down to I-10 first, which adds about 170 miles.
Montgomery and Auburn sit between the two and can go either way depending on which truck is loading that week — which is exactly why a real quote beats a table. Enter both ZIP codes in the car shipping calculator and it prices the corridor you are actually on.
What we know about this lane from running it
The things that actually change your price and your date
Both ends of this lane are hurricane-exposed, and the road between them is the evacuation route. That makes it different from every other Gulf lane we run, where only the delivery end is at risk. Mobile and Houston are both on the coast, and I-10 between them is the road the entire Gulf South leaves on. When a named storm enters the Gulf, three things happen at once: contraflow closes lanes, fuel runs short along the coast, and outbound demand spikes as residents move vehicles inland. The I-10 leg can be effectively unusable for two to four days. Loads then reroute north onto I-20 — about 150 extra miles and a day — which is a much better outcome than a truck waiting out a storm in Beaumont. Atlantic season runs June 1 to November 30 and peaks in August and September. Inside that window, plan two to three days of slack and expect us to reroute rather than sit.
Alabama builds cars and Texas builds trucks, and the traffic between the two plants has its own booking pattern. Mercedes-Benz assembles at Vance, Honda at Lincoln, Hyundai at Montgomery and Mazda Toyota at Huntsville; GM assembles at Arlington and Toyota at San Antonio. Contract engineers, tooling specialists and supplier staff move between these sites on fixed-length assignments, which produces bookings we can spot immediately: a one-way move timed to a hard project start date, often a second vehicle rather than a primary one, and frequently a request to hold delivery until an apartment lease begins. If that is your situation, say so at booking — a flexible delivery date on this corridor is worth real money, and a hard one needs a buffer we would rather build in than discover.
The hard delivery in Texas is not the city center — it is the master-planned suburb. Houston and Dallas are the easiest big-city deliveries in the country for a car carrier: wide roads, huge lots, freight infrastructure everywhere. What stops a 75-foot trailer is the gated community. The Woodlands, Sugar Land, Katy, Cinco Ranch, Frisco and much of Plano restrict commercial vehicles on residential streets, and many have gate arms a two-deck carrier physically cannot pass. The driver meets you at a nearby retail lot, usually within a few minutes' drive, at no extra charge. Worth knowing before delivery day rather than at the gate.
PCS moves on this pairing should be booked backwards from the report date. Redstone Arsenal sits in Huntsville, Maxwell AFB in Montgomery and Fort Novosel in the Wiregrass near Enterprise and Dothan; the Texas side is usually Fort Cavazos at Killeen, Joint Base San Antonio, Fort Bliss at El Paso, Sheppard AFB at Wichita Falls or Dyess at Abilene. The arithmetic is the same every time: report date, minus 2 to 4 days transit, minus a 1 to 3 day pickup window, is your booking date. Note the two exceptions — Fort Bliss is the El Paso run at 4 to 5 days, and Fort Novosel origins add about 170 miles reaching I-10. Give us the orders and the installation at booking, because base access rules differ and we would rather confirm it in advance than at the gate.
May is the student spike on this lane, not August. Texas is one of the largest out-of-state sources for the University of Alabama and Auburn, so the direction of the seasonal rush is the opposite of what most lanes see: the pressure on Alabama-to-Texas capacity comes in May, when students ship home, while August loads the reverse direction. Capacity does not run out, but the cheaper slots go in the first week. Two to three weeks of notice in May is worth more than any negotiation.
Summer adds 10 to 20% across the board, and it is not about the heat. June through August is peak relocation season nationally, and Texas takes the highest inbound vehicle volume of any state, which tightens carrier supply everywhere feeding into it. The same 10 to 20% seasonal band applies on this lane that applies on every Texas-inbound corridor. If your move can wait until late September, that is the single largest discount available to you on this route — larger than anything a broker can negotiate.
Ship your car from Alabama to Texas with Navi
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Get my quote →Alabama to Texas — common questions
The questions we get most on this corridor
How much does it cost to ship a car from Alabama to Texas?
Open transport runs $675 to $950 for a standard running sedan. Mobile to Houston is the cheapest segment at around $675 to $775, because it is only about 475 miles straight down I-10. Birmingham to San Antonio is the expensive end at $825 to $950. On this lane, enclosed transport typically runs 50 to 70% above open. Use our calculator for an exact figure on your two ZIP codes.
How long does it take to ship a car from Alabama to Texas?
Two to four days in transit once the vehicle is loaded, plus a pickup window of one to three days after booking. Mobile to Houston can be done in one to two days. Birmingham to Austin or San Antonio is three to four. El Paso is the exception at four to five days, because it sits 1,200 miles and more from any Alabama origin.
Which route does my car take from Alabama to Texas?
It depends which end of Alabama you are in, and this is the most useful thing to know about the lane. From Huntsville, Birmingham, Decatur or Tuscaloosa, your car runs west on I-20 through Meridian, Jackson and Shreveport into Dallas–Fort Worth, or north through Memphis on I-22 and down I-30. From Mobile, Baldwin County or the Wiregrass, it runs I-10 along the Gulf through Biloxi, Baton Rouge and Beaumont into Houston. Those two corridors use different carriers, so a Birmingham quote and a Mobile quote to the same Texas address can differ by more than the mileage explains.
How much does it cost to ship a car from Mobile to Houston?
$675 to $775 on open transport for a running sedan, in one to two days of transit. It is about 475 miles straight down I-10 and it is the shortest, fastest and cheapest segment of the whole Alabama to Texas lane. The one caveat is the season: this is the segment that Gulf storms interrupt between June and November, when loads get rerouted north onto I-20 instead.
Does hurricane season affect shipping a car from Alabama to Texas?
Yes, and more than on most Gulf lanes, because both ends of this one are exposed and I-10 between them is the evacuation route. Atlantic season runs June 1 to November 30 and peaks in August and September. When a named storm enters the Gulf, contraflow closes lanes, fuel runs short along the coast and outbound demand spikes at the same time, which can make the I-10 leg unusable for two to four days. We reroute north onto I-20 rather than wait it out, which adds roughly 150 miles and a day. Build two to three days of slack into any delivery date in that window.
Can you deliver to a gated community like The Woodlands or Sugar Land?
Yes, but usually by meeting nearby rather than at your door, and that is a physical constraint rather than a policy. The Woodlands, Sugar Land, Katy, Cinco Ranch, Frisco and much of Plano restrict commercial vehicles on residential streets, and many have gate arms a 75-foot two-deck carrier cannot pass. The driver arranges a meeting point at a larger lot close by, typically within a few minutes' drive. There is no extra charge for it. Houston and Dallas proper are straightforward door-to-door by comparison.
Do you handle military PCS moves from Redstone Arsenal or Fort Novosel to Texas?
Yes, and this is one of the higher-volume segments on the lane. Redstone Arsenal is in Huntsville, Maxwell AFB in Montgomery and Fort Novosel in the Wiregrass near Enterprise and Dothan. The Texas side is usually Fort Cavazos at Killeen, Joint Base San Antonio, Fort Bliss at El Paso, Sheppard AFB at Wichita Falls or Dyess at Abilene. Work backwards from your report date: minus two to four days transit, minus a one to three day pickup window, is your booking date. Fort Bliss is the exception at four to five days. Give us the orders and the installation at booking so we can confirm base access in advance.
Is it cheaper to ship Alabama to Texas or Texas to Alabama?
Alabama to Texas is usually slightly cheaper, and the schedule difference is larger than the price difference. Texas takes the highest inbound vehicle volume of any state, so trucks run into it constantly and a westbound pickup out of Alabama is easy to fill. Coming back the other way, a carrier has to drop in a thinner reload market, which stretches the pickup window rather than the transit time. If your move is flexible on direction, quote both ways before you book.
When is the cheapest time to ship a car from Alabama to Texas?
Late September through early spring. June to August is peak national relocation season and Texas is the biggest inbound market in the country, which adds roughly 10 to 20% to rates on every corridor feeding into it. May carries a second, smaller spike on this specific lane because Texas is a large out-of-state source for the University of Alabama and Auburn, so student vehicles ship home in the same fortnight. Avoiding both windows saves more than any negotiation will.
Can you ship a non-running vehicle from Alabama to Texas?
Yes. Non-running vehicles need a winch-equipped carrier, which on this lane typically adds $200 to $350 depending on whether the vehicle rolls, steers and brakes. Tell us the condition honestly at booking so we assign a truck that can actually load it, rather than discovering the problem in your driveway.
Is Navi Auto Transport licensed and insured?
Yes. Navi is a fully licensed and bonded broker (MC 1646663, USDOT 4248916) and works only with FMCSA-licensed carriers that carry cargo insurance. Proof of coverage is available on request, and every shipment is tracked door to door.
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