San Francisco to Honolulu Car Shipping Guide

If you are planning a move or relocation from San Francisco to Hawaii, one of the first things you need to figure out is what to do with your vehicle. San Francisco to Honolulu car shipping is something we coordinate regularly, and this route has a few details worth knowing before you book. The Bay Area routes through the Port of Oakland, which sits about 20 miles from downtown San Francisco and serves as the primary departure point for Northern California. I have personally coordinated hundreds of shipments on this route, and the biggest thing I see customers overlook is the Oakland port height restriction. If you know what to check before you call, you will save yourself a lot of headache.

Every vehicle shipping from the Bay Area or Northern California departs from the Port of Oakland. We use Oakland for San Francisco, Sacramento, the surrounding Bay Area, Portland, and Seattle shipments. It is the right port for this region and it connects directly to Matson's Hawaii sailing schedule.

Here is what you need to know before anything else. Oakland has a strict 76 inch height clearance. That is 6 feet 4 inches. That measurement applies to your total vehicle height including any roof racks, cargo carriers, ski racks, or aftermarket additions. If your vehicle clears 76 inches with everything attached, you are fine. If it does not, Car Shipping Hawaii cannot ship it through our service. This is our company policy. Measure your vehicle before you call so we can move forward quickly on your quote.

Width clearance at Oakland is also 76 inches, mirrors included. Most standard vehicles clear this without any issue, but it is worth confirming if you are shipping a lifted truck or a wide-body vehicle.

Your vehicle arrives at Honolulu's Sand Island Terminal on Oahu. That is the primary destination port for all mainland-to-Hawaii shipments, and it is where the majority of our customers pick up their vehicles or we coordinate door delivery to their address.

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If you are doing port-to-port, you will drop your vehicle directly at the Port of Oakland. If you want door-to-port pickup from your San Francisco address or anywhere in the Bay Area, our land carrier picks up your vehicle and delivers it to the port for you. The overland leg from San Francisco to Oakland is short, roughly 20 miles, so door-to-port customers in the Bay Area see very little added time on that end.

Once your vehicle is on the vessel, ocean transit from Oakland to Honolulu runs approximately 12 to 14 days. That is the ocean portion alone. Your total door-to-delivery timeline depends on your specific pickup location, port cutoff timing, and which sailing your vehicle makes. Transit times are estimates and can vary by season and routing.

If you are shipping to a neighbor island instead of Oahu, plan for approximately 25 to 30 days total. The vehicle arrives in Honolulu first and is then transferred to a secondary vessel for Maui, Kauai, or the Big Island.

Missing the port cutoff is something I talk through with every customer because the consequences are real. If your vehicle does not make it to the port before cutoff, it does not sail that week. It waits for the next available departure, which can be two or more weeks out. That means renting a car you did not budget for, scrambling for transportation, or sitting in temporary housing longer than planned. Our team works through the calendar with you personally, looking at your move-out date, your flight, and your housing situation, to find the sailing that fits your actual timeline.

San Francisco to Honolulu car shipping is priced as a flat ocean freight rate regardless of vehicle type. As long as your vehicle fits within Oakland's size clearance, you pay the same rate whether you are shipping a compact sedan or a full-size SUV.

Port-to-port ocean freight from Oakland to Honolulu runs $1,300 to $1,600. That is the ocean portion of the cost.

If you are shipping to a neighbor island, Maui, Kauai, or the Big Island, port-to-port pricing runs $2,100 to $2,500 from Oakland.

For door-to-port service, where we arrange land pickup from your San Francisco address and deliver your vehicle to the port, there is an additional land transport cost. Because distance varies by exact pickup location, we do not publish a flat range for that portion. Call us or get a free quote online and we will give you a complete all-in price for your specific address.

A deposit is standard across all Hawaii auto transport brokers. It secures your vessel space and locks your rate. For port-to-port, the deposit is $200. For door-to-port service, it is $600. What you are quoted is what you pay. We offer guaranteed pricing with no hidden fees, and I always encourage anyone shopping brokers to ask specifically whether their quote is guaranteed before they book.

 Learn more about your options through our Port-to-Port Car Shipping service page or our Door-to-Port Car Shipping page.

 Peak summer months, roughly May through August, are when Matson vessels fill up fastest. If you are shipping during that window, I recommend booking 4 to 6 weeks ahead. Vessels do fill, and once a sailing is full it is full. Customers who wait often find themselves pushed to the next available departure and that can delay a move by weeks.

Before your vehicle gets to the port, there are a few requirements to meet. These are not optional, they are enforced at the terminal.

• Fuel level must be at a quarter tank or below. This is a fire safety regulation at all terminals.
• Your vehicle must be completely empty. No personal items, no cargo, nothing in the trunk or back seat. Carriers enforce this at drop-off.
• The vehicle must be fully operational. Steering, braking, and rolling must all work at 100 percent.
• No windshield chips or cracks are permitted.
• The exterior and interior must be clean. Hawaii has strict agricultural biosecurity requirements and the USDA requires vehicles to be free of mud, dirt, and debris before they can enter the state.

Car Shipping Hawaii does not ship non-running vehicles. That is our policy. And at this time, Matson has suspended acceptance of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids due to lithium-ion battery safety concerns, so we are not able to ship those either.

I always tell customers to photograph their vehicle thoroughly, every angle, every existing scratch or dent, before they drop it off. Do the same thing when you pick it up in Honolulu. That documentation protects you in any claim situation.

 Most brokers skip over this part entirely. I think it is one of the most important things to understand before you ship.

 There are two layers of coverage on a San Francisco to Honolulu shipment.

 The first is land transport coverage. The carrier moving your vehicle to the Port of Oakland carries up to $100,000 in cargo insurance. That covers your vehicle during the overland portion of the journey.

 The second is ocean transport coverage. Matson's carrier liability for transport damage is limited to the actual damage sustained, up to approximately $8,000 for an average-sized vehicle. If you want higher coverage, you can declare a higher value on your Dock Receipt and pay an additional freight rate to increase that liability limit up to the full value of your vehicle.

 I always recommend verifying with your personal auto insurance carrier whether your policy extends coverage during ocean transport. Some policies do. Some do not. It is worth a quick call to your agent before your vehicle leaves the Bay Area.

The booking process is straightforward. Tell us your pickup location, your destination island, and your timeline. We confirm your vehicle dimensions against Oakland's clearance requirements, walk through the calendar with you to identify the right sailing, and provide a guaranteed all-in price. Once you are ready to move forward, the deposit locks your spot and your rate.

I work with every customer personally from booking to delivery. You are never handed off to a dispatcher or a general customer service line after you book. That matters on a route like this where timing details can affect your entire move.

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 For more details on arrival ports and pickup procedures in Hawaii, visit our Hawaii Port Guide .

First, measure your vehicle's total height including roof racks before you call. Oakland's 76 inch clearance is firm and it applies to everything on top of the vehicle.

Second, work through your calendar before you book. Missing the port cutoff means missing the sailing, and the next available departure could be two or more weeks away. Those delays come with real costs that most people do not budget for.

Third, ask any broker you talk to whether their pricing is guaranteed. The number one complaint I hear from customers who have shipped with other companies before finding us is being asked for more money after booking, usually right before the sailing. What we quote is what you pay, every time.

Car Shipping Hawaii has an 18-year track record, a 4.9-star Google rating, and a team that works through your entire shipment personally. We are island-owned and operated out of Honolulu, and this route is one we know well.

 Call us at (808) 378-7540 , Monday through Friday, 8AM to 6PM HST. I answer personally and I will give you a guaranteed all-in price for your San Francisco to Honolulu car shipping with no surprises at the end.

 Get Your Free Hawaii Car Shipping Quote