Resources
Everything on this site that explains rather than sells. Three things decide whether a dumpster rental goes well or badly — the size, the weight, and where the container is allowed to sit — and all three are covered here, along with where to take a load yourself.
Start here
Sizes and what fits
6 roll-off sizes from 5 to 40 yards with real dimensions and weight allowances, 6 front-load sizes, and the specialty equipment for jobs a roll-off suits badly.
Dump site directory
6,620 permitted landfills, transfer stations and C&D sites across 50 states. Search by ZIP and what you are hauling — free, no account.
Help me pick a size
Four questions, about twenty seconds. We suggest a size and say why, which beats guessing and paying for the guess.
Guides
The writing, newest first.
Do you need a permit to put a dumpster on the street?
On your own driveway, no. In the public right-of-way, almost always. How the permit works, what skipping it costs, and who pulls it.
What size dumpster do you need for a garage cleanout?
Most single-car garages fit in a 10 or 15 yard. Two-car garages that have not been touched in a decade usually need the 20.
What can't go in a dumpster?
Tires, batteries, paint, fuel, and anything with freon are out everywhere. Mattresses and electronics depend on the yard.
How much weight fits in a 20 yard dumpster?
Most 20 yard rentals include 2 tons. Household junk almost never reaches it; shingles, plaster, and wet debris do.
Plain-language glossary
The terms that show up on a quote, answered as "what does this cost me" rather than "what does this word mean".
- Tipping fee
- What the landfill charges the hauler to take your load, per ton. It is the single biggest variable in a dumpster price and it is set by the landfill, not the hauler. Two companies ten miles apart can pay different rates at different gates.
- Included tonnage
- The weight built into the flat price. Go over it and you pay per ton for the rest. A 20 yard usually includes 2 tons; a full load of shingles or plaster will pass that before the container is full.
- Overage
- The per-ton charge for weight above the included tonnage. Ask the number before you book, not after — it is the line that turns a $400 rental into a $700 one.
- Dry run
- A charge for sending a truck that could not deliver or collect: a car in the way, a locked gate, a container loaded above the rails. Avoidable, and every hauler charges for it.
- Rental period
- How many days the container sits before daily rent starts. Seven to fourteen days is typical. If the job might run long, ask the daily rate up front rather than assuming it is small.
- Roll-off
- The open-top container on a truck with rails and a hook or cable. Delivered for a project, taken away when you are done.
- Front-load
- The steel container with lift pockets and a lid that stays at a property permanently and gets emptied on a schedule. Sized 1 to 8 yards, billed monthly.
- Level load
- Filled no higher than the container walls. Anything above the rails cannot legally be tarped, so the driver will refuse it — and usually charge a dry run.
- Clean load
- One material only: concrete, clean wood, metal, or yard waste with nothing mixed in. Clean loads tip cheaper, sometimes free, and separating them on site is the easiest money on a job.
- Right-of-way permit
- What a city requires to put a container on the street or sidewalk rather than on private property. Cheap, slow to issue, and expensive to skip.
- Transfer station
- Where a hauler takes a load to be consolidated for the long haul to a landfill. Closer than the landfill, so a shorter round trip, but the tipping fee is usually higher.
- C&D
- Construction and demolition debris — wood, drywall, roofing, concrete, siding. It goes to its own class of landfill, generally at a lower rate per ton than household waste.
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