ABSTRACT We outline the methodology of implementing moving boundary conditions into the moving-mesh code manga. The motion of our boundaries is reactive to hydrodynamic and gravitational forces. We discuss the hydrodynamics of a moving boundary as well as the modifications to our hydrodynamic and gravity solvers. Appropriate initial conditions to accurately produce a boundary of arbitrary shape are also discussed. Our code is applied to several test cases, including a Sod shock tube, a Sedov–Taylor blast wave, and a supersonic wind on a sphere. We show the convergence of conserved quantities in our simulations. We demonstrate the use of moving boundaries in astrophysical settings by simulating a common envelope phase in a binary system, in which the companion object is modelled by a spherical boundary. We conclude that our methodology is suitable to simulate astrophysical systems using moving and reactive boundary conditions.