Waste removal in Houston: heavy trash schedule, drop-off centers and dumpster permits

Quick answer: Houston’s Solid Waste Management Department collects heavy trash every other month from homes on city curbside service, up to 8 cubic yards a time and 6 times a year, at no extra charge. Between collections, residents can take items free to the city’s Neighborhood Depositories and Recycling Centers. Dumpsters over 50 cubic feet, or any dumpster kept more than 60 days, need a Combustible Waste Storage permit.

How waste removal works in Houston

The City of Houston collects from homes that receive city curbside service. Businesses, and many apartment complexes and strip centres, use private dumpster service. Heavy trash is the city’s bulk service: you put items at the curb in your scheduled week, and the city collects them. Your collection week is in the HTX Collects app or the city’s online lookup.

Heavy trash rules

We read the Solid Waste Management Department’s pages in September 2026.

Rule	What the city says
How often	Every other month, for addresses with city curbside service; up to 6 collections a calendar year
Set-out window	From 6 pm on the Friday before to 7 am on your collection day
Size limit	8 cubic yards per set-out (about the size of a minivan)
Building materials	Up to 4 cubic yards, but no shingles, brick, plaster or concrete
Accepted	Furniture, carpet, mattresses, appliances, toilets, bicycles, up to 4 passenger tyres
Tree waste	Limbs no more than 8 inches across or 10 feet long
Not accepted	Contractor debris, electronics, hazardous materials, dirt and sod, roofing, ordinary household garbage

The city warns that if accepted and refused items are mixed in one pile, the whole pile may be left. Keep renovation debris and electronics separate; our guides to household hazardous waste in the US and recycling used electronics cover the alternatives.

Neighborhood Depositories and Recycling Centers

Houston’s six Neighborhood Depositories are free for city residents with proof of residency, such as a Texas driver’s licence or ID, or a current water bill or city tax receipt. Since 3 November 2024 they have opened 9 am to 6 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, except city holidays, and the city asks you to arrive at least 30 minutes before closing. Residents can use the drop-off centres up to four times a month, which is useful for anything over the 8-yard limit or between heavy trash months.

Dumpster permits

The Solid Waste Management Department issues a Combustible Waste Storage (Dumpster) Permit to businesses, apartment complexes, strip centres and other properties where a dumpster or roll-off exceeds 50 cubic feet, or where any size of dumpster stays on site for more than 60 days. Permits run for 1 to 3 years, are not transferable between property owners, and must be kept on site. The page we read does not publish the fee; the department can be reached on 832-393-0459. A roll-off placed in the street is a separate question for Houston Public Works, so ask your dumpster company how it handles street placement.

Typical private prices in Houston

For typical private prices, use the national ranges in our US waste removal costs guide. HomeGuide’s junk removal guide puts a minimum load at $70 to $100, a half truck at $200 to $300 and a full truck at $400 to $450, and Fixr’s dumpster guide gives $250 to $400 a week for a 10-yard dumpster and $275 to $450 for a 20-yard one, with $40 to $100 a ton if you go over the weight allowance. We did not find a sourced, checkable Houston figure, so we have not added a local adjustment.

Request a waste removal quote

Free and no obligation. Tell us what needs to go and where, and we will look for a licensed waste carrier that covers your area.

What do you need? * Country * ZIP code * Town or city Property type How soon? *

Anything else we should know? (optional)

Your name * Email * Phone (optional) Best way to contact you

I agree that Compare Waste Removal may pass my details to a waste removal company covering my area so they can contact me about this request. Privacy policy.

We are a comparison and referral service, not a waste removal company. We do not guarantee a quote, a price or a response time. In the UK, always check the carrier's waste carrier registration before handing over waste.

How to choose a provider in Houston

Houston’s rules focus on the dumpster rather than the hauler: for a long-term or large container at a business or apartment complex, ask who holds the Combustible Waste Storage permit. Before you book anyone:

Ask for the price in writing and what it includes: labour, the number of hours or the share of a truck, dump fees, and extra charges for mattresses, fridges, tyres or electronics.
For a dumpster, ask about the weight allowance, the charge per ton over it, how many days are included, and what cannot go in (paint, batteries, tyres and appliances are common exclusions).
If it will sit on the street, ask the company to confirm it will get the city permit and whether the fee is in the price.
Ask where the waste goes and get a receipt that names the company.
Check the city service first. For a few bulky items, the city pickup described above may cost nothing.

Our checklist on comparing waste removal quotes works just as well for US quotes.

Waste removal businesses in Houston

These firms appear in public business listings for Houston. We have not checked their work, prices, licences or insurance, and they have not paid to appear. Ask each one how it handles permits for your address.