Categories and how weight is estimated
The nine item categories, the per-category density Van Line Pro uses to turn cubic feet into pounds, and how to override a weight by hand.
Every item in Van Line Pro belongs to one of nine categories. The category does two things: it groups the item, and it sets the density the app uses to turn the item's cube (cubic feet) into a weight (pounds).
Van Line Pro works in US units only, cubic feet and pounds.
How weight is derived
You do not type a weight. The app calculates it:
weight (lbs) = cube (ft³) × the category's density (lbs/ft³)
For example, a 30 ft³ dresser in the Bedroom category (6 lbs/ft³) derives to 180 lbs. Change the cube and the weight follows automatically.
Note: The moving industry's quick rule of thumb is cube × 7 across a whole shipment. Van Line Pro is more precise: it weights each item by its own category, so a shipment full of bulky-but-light bedroom goods and light decor comes out lighter than a flat cube × 7 would suggest, and a garage full of appliances comes out heavier. If someone asks for a billed or tariff weight figured the old way, that is the cube × 7 whole-shipment number, not what this app derives per item.
Density by category
| Category | Density (lbs/ft³) |
|---|---|
| Appliance | 10 |
| Outdoor | 8 |
| Furniture | 7 |
| Kitchen | 7 |
| Boxes | 7 |
| Other | 7 |
| Bedroom | 6 |
| Electronics | 6 |
| Decor | 4 |
The heavier categories (appliances, outdoor and garage gear) are dense for their size. The lighter ones (bedroom because of bulky mattresses, electronics, and decor like lamps and art) are light for their size.
Catalog overrides for outliers
A few catalog items are so far from their category's average that the catalog gives them their own density. This keeps a mattress from printing as a 400 lb slab and a safe from printing as if it were light electronics. Examples from the catalog:
| Item | Category | Density used (lbs/ft³) |
|---|---|---|
| Mattress and box sets | Bedroom | 3 |
| Mattress cartons | Boxes | 3 |
| Safe, Small and Safe, Large | Electronics | 25 |
When an item has a catalog override, the app uses that density instead of the category default. Items without an override use the category density from the table above.
Overriding a weight by hand
If a specific piece is unusual, for example a gun safe or a marble-topped table, you can type the weight yourself in the Item Editor's Size, weight & details drawer. Once you do, the app stops deriving it from cube. To go back to the automatic calculation, tap Auto.
Note: The manual weight is a per-item override. The cube stays the durable source of truth, so if you clear the manual value the app resumes deriving weight from cube and category.
Where the cube comes from
An item's cube depends on how it was captured:
- Scanned (LiDAR): a real measured cube from the scan.
- Catalog: the catalog's typical cube for that item type, an industry cube-sheet average, not a measurement.
- Photo: a typical estimate from AI or vision, not a measurement.
- Manual: whatever you enter.