Sending a sedan from Wilmington down to Miami by open trailer costs $750 to $1,200 for most bookings. Delivery usually takes 2 to 5 days over 769 to 1,164 road miles, with I-95 the main road. Fall pickups call for two to three weeks of notice, and a Florida policy should be in force before titling.
How Car Shipping From Delaware to Florida Works
Delaware to Florida car shipping leans on I-95 for the long middle stretch, but the first few hours depend on where in the state the car is picked up. From Wilmington and Newark, the shortest road path runs southwest on I-95 past Elkton, Baltimore and Washington. Cars from Middletown, Dover and Milford take a more direct line west across Maryland past Annapolis and reach the same corridor at Washington. In Sussex County, loads from Georgetown, Seaford and Rehoboth Beach run down the Delmarva Peninsula on US 13, pass Norfolk, Virginia, and join I-95 at Emporia. From there, every route we measured passes Rocky Mount and Fayetteville in North Carolina, Florence, South Carolina and Brunswick, Georgia before it crosses into Florida north of Jacksonville. A Wilmington to Miami run reaches its halfway mark in central South Carolina. Jacksonville is the first Florida stop, Orlando loads turn onto I-4 at Daytona Beach, Tampa and Fort Myers runs pick up US 301 and then I-75, Tallahassee runs head west on I-10, and loads for Miami, Fort Lauderdale or West Palm Beach keep to the Atlantic side of the state.
How Much Does It Cost to Ship a Car From Delaware to Florida?
Your quote depends on your vehicle, the exact pickup and delivery addresses, the season and the trailer type, so run the calculator for a figure on your dates.
Mileage drives most of the quote, and on this route the Florida end moves it far more than the Delaware end. We measured 64 pairs between eight Delaware towns and eight Florida cities and checked a sample of them against a second routing source. Seaford to Jacksonville came out shortest at about 770 road miles, and Wilmington to Miami longest at about 1,164.
From Wilmington, Jacksonville sits about 820 miles away, Orlando and Tallahassee come in near 960 to 980, Tampa near 1,015, and West Palm Beach, Fort Myers, Fort Lauderdale and Miami between about 1,100 and 1,165. Our Florida car shipping page covers delivery across the rest of the state.
Moving the pickup elsewhere in Delaware changes the mileage to any one Florida city by less than 50 miles, since the Sussex County towns start a little farther south.
Vehicle size and the season matter as well. A full-size pickup or long van takes up more deck space than a small sedan, and fall loads heading south usually price above spring and summer ones. A starting number for your exact pickup and delivery points comes from our car shipping calculator.
Expect a running sedan going from Wilmington to Miami on an open carrier to cost $750 to $1,200. Runs that end in Jacksonville, from Seaford or Georgetown for example, tend to land below the middle of that range, and Wilmington or Newark cars headed for Fort Lauderdale or Miami closer to the top.
Plan on another $100 to $200 for a full-size SUV, pickup or van. Going enclosed adds something on the order of 40 to 60 percent over open.
Within the range, the quote mostly turns on three things:
- The snowbird calendar. From October into early December, Delaware retirees and other Mid-Atlantic snowbirds book southbound at the same time, so trailers fill and rates rise. Spring and summer usually leave more room on trucks heading south.
- Access at the pickup address. An address a few minutes from I-95 or US 13 is easy for a southbound driver to fit in. A narrow Wilmington rowhouse block or a long lane between Sussex County farm fields can add time to the pickup.
- The Florida delivery city. Every Delaware town is closest to Jacksonville and farthest from the southeast coast. Gated communities and condo towers can also push the handover out to a public street nearby.
A very low quote deserves a closer look before any carrier signs on for the car.
What Factors Actually
Influence Pricing on This Route?
Five things move the price on any lane: the vehicle's size, whether it runs, how easy each end is to reach, the season and the trailer type. Booking early protects your timeline, keeps pricing steady and reduces the risk of last-minute carrier changes.
Type
Size decides how much deck space your vehicle takes and how many other cars fit alongside it. A standard sedan is the cheapest thing to move because it slots almost anywhere on the trailer. SUVs, pickups and vans take more room and usually cost more on the same lane.
Is It Cheaper to Drive or Ship a Car From Delaware to Florida?
When Shipping Makes Sense
Shipping fits snowbirds who would sooner fly south and collect the car on arrival, retirees relocating for good, and households moving two cars with a single available driver.
It also removes the trip home. Driving Wilmington to Miami leaves you about 1,164 miles from Delaware, usually after two or three long days on I-95, still needing a flight north.
Driving It Yourself
For two people going south together with luggage, driving can still be the cheaper choice, and we are glad to tell you if it is. The routing estimate for Wilmington to Miami comes to about 22 hours behind the wheel, which usually means two nights in hotels on top of fuel and meals.
Shipping earns its cost when no one needs to ride along. Even from Sussex County the run to Jacksonville is about 770 miles, and someone still has to get back to Delaware.
How Long Does It Take to Ship a Car From Delaware to Florida?
Once a Delaware car is on the trailer, it typically spends 2 to 5 days on the road. Sussex County loads going to Jacksonville tend to arrive at the short end, Wilmington to Miami usually sits near the middle, and Fort Lauderdale or Miami deliveries with several stops ahead of them may need the full window.
Getting a truck assigned often takes longer than the drive. Expect dispatch to need one to three working days to pair the car with a carrier, sometimes a bit more in the fall.
Because a loaded hauler unloads in route order, a Miami delivery may follow stops in Georgia or north Florida. A pickup window of several days, instead of one fixed date, generally gets the car loaded faster.
When Is the Best Time to Book Auto Transport From Delaware to Florida?
Southbound demand climbs every fall as Delaware retirees and other Mid-Atlantic snowbirds move their cars down for the season. Our snowbird shipping guide explains how that season plays out.
If you need a pickup between October and early December, reach out two to three weeks before your target date. At other times of year, about ten days to two weeks ahead normally works, and a few days of flexibility let dispatch grab whichever southbound truck has space first.
Delaware winters are milder than those farther north, but a coastal storm or a snowfall around Wilmington can still push a January or February pickup back by a day or two.
Open vs Enclosed Auto Transport on a Delaware to Florida Route
Open transport carries most Delaware cars to Florida, on two-level trailers working the I-95 corridor. Over the 1,164 or so miles from Wilmington to Miami, the paint sees about what it would on a long drive of your own, and a car picked up after a winter storm may arrive with some road salt on it.
With enclosed transport, the car rides inside a covered trailer from the Delaware driveway to the Florida curb, out of the rain, sun, salt and grit. Those trailers hold only a few cars, so the space costs more and can be booked up early in the fall.
Covered transport earns its price on collectibles, exotics, show vehicles and freshly repainted cars. Most daily drivers, crossovers and snowbird sedans travel open.
Enclosed Car Transport
Enclosed demand rises for high-value, specialty and seasonal vehicles, and enclosed trailers protect against road debris and weather, which matters most on longer hauls. Enclosed rigs are a small fraction of the trailers working any given lane, and that scarcity is what drives both the higher price and the longer booking lead time.
Open Car Transport
Most vehicles move on open trailers, and for most routes that is the more cost-effective way to ship a car.
Open transport works well for standard vehicles and keeps costs predictable. It also offers the widest carrier availability.
What Florida Requires When Your Car Arrives
These steps apply once FLHSMV treats you as a Florida resident. It lists five things that can make you one: holding a job or working in a trade, profession or occupation in Florida; having a child enrolled in one of its public schools; registering as a Florida voter; claiming a homestead exemption on Florida property; or spending over six consecutive months in the state. Wintering in Florida without any of those ties does not set them in motion.
Gather the title packet before the service center visit:
- Identity. Proof of identity for every owner of the vehicle.
- Insurance. Proof of a Florida policy, bought through an agent licensed in Florida.
- Title. The original Delaware title. When a lender has the title, contact it and request a transfer to Florida.
- Application. Form HSMV 82040, signed by all owners.
- VIN check. Someone FLHSMV authorizes must check the VIN and enter it on HSMV 82040 or HSMV 82042: a police or military police officer, a dealer licensed in Florida, a staff member of the county tax collector, or a Motorist Services compliance examiner. Who can do the check, and how to book one, is covered in our Florida VIN verification guide.
Registration comes at the same appointment as the title, in person at a local service center. Without a plate of your own to transfer, expect the $225 initial registration fee. The steps of that visit are laid out in our article on registering an out-of-state car in Florida. The Florida driver license must follow within 30 days of residency starting, and you apply for it in person too.
On the Delaware side, the Division of Motor Vehicles wants the plates surrendered before the Delaware insurance is canceled. They can be handed in at a DMV office or mailed in with a short note explaining why.
Sources: two FLHSMV pages, the new resident page and the motor vehicle registrations page, plus the general FAQ from the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles. Requirements change, so confirm the current rules before the car ships.
What to Expect at Pickup and Delivery
Agree on the two handover points well before the pickup date. A full hauler is a long rig, so the driver needs a wide, straight piece of road to pull over and enough room to get rolling again.
In Delaware, suburban streets around Newark, Middletown and Dover usually leave space near the driveway. Tight Wilmington rowhouse blocks, crowded summer streets in the beach towns and long farm lanes in Sussex County often mean meeting the truck in a store lot or on a broader street instead.
In Florida, gated communities and condo towers often keep big trucks out, so the car is handed over on a public street or lot close by. Most neighborhoods in Jacksonville, Orlando and Tampa have room at the curb.
Before you sign at pickup, read every note the driver adds to the condition report, since that report is the record the car is compared with at delivery. Take dated photos of the front, back and both sides before the truck leaves Delaware, then hold the car up against those photos in Florida before you sign the delivery paperwork.
Key Things to Know Before Shipping a Car From Delaware to Florida
From its base in Melville, New York, Rivalane places each Delaware car with a Florida-bound carrier that has an open spot, and real-time tracking lets you see its progress all the way to delivery. If the car keeps its Delaware plates for the winter, remember that Delaware lets you inspect and renew a registration up to 90 days before it expires, and confirm the insurance before the car leaves.
Frequently Asked Questions
