Find out what a load of junk really costs to dump in your city — using the posted gate rates of nearly 300 landfills and transfer stations we've verified — and whether hauling it yourself beats hiring. Run a hauling business? Switch modes to price a job that covers your crew, your truck and your margin.
What actually sets the price of junk removal
A junk removal quote is built from four costs, and only one of them is fixed by someone else:
Disposal — the landfill or transfer station fee, set by the city or county. It is charged by weight, with a minimum for small loads, and it is the number this calculator gets from our verified fee schedules.
Labor — usually two people, for loading, driving and unloading.
The truck — fuel, wear and insurance, which most operators track as a cost per mile.
Item fees — mattresses, tires and appliances with refrigerant are often charged separately at the gate.
Overhead and profit go on top. The result is that disposal is usually a small part of what you pay a hauler — which is exactly why it pays to know what your own dump charges before you decide.
How we estimate the weight
Landfills weigh your load, but nobody knows the weight of a pile of junk in advance, so the calculator converts volume to weight using the EPA's published conversion factors:
A full-size pickup bed holds about 2 cubic yards, so a pickup load of household junk is roughly 500 to 600 pounds. Heavy single items change the picture: EPA puts a refrigerator at about 250 pounds and a washer or stove at about 150.
Why the minimum charge usually decides the price
Most small loads never reach a ton, so what you actually pay is often the site's minimum charge. A 500-pound load at $50 a ton is $12.50 by the math, but at a landfill with a $25 minimum it costs $25. The calculator applies each site's posted minimum, and for the handful of sites that charge in weight bands — like Murfreesboro's flat $50 under 1,000 pounds — it uses their bands exactly.
Many cities also let residents dump free up to an allowance. Those rules are on each city's page, linked from the result.
Pricing a job if you run a hauling business
Switch the calculator to I run a hauling business and enter your own numbers. It adds disposal for the load, your crew's time, truck miles and item fees, applies your overhead percentage, and then sets a quote that hits your target margin — profit as a share of the price, not of the cost.
The starting values are examples only. What you pay your crew, what your truck costs per mile and what your market will pay vary a lot, and the calculator is only as good as the numbers you give it. It doesn't estimate what customers in your area will pay; it tells you what you need to charge to cover your costs and hit your margin.
Just getting started? Our free guide to how to start a junk removal business covers the licensing lines, dump fees, what you can't haul, a one-page business plan and a 30-day launch checklist.
Common questions
How much does junk removal cost?
It depends mostly on how much you have and where it goes. The part we can measure is disposal: a pickup-truck load of household junk weighs roughly 500 to 600 pounds by EPA's conversion factors, so at the median landfill rate we track, about $65 a ton, the dump fee is around $16 to $19 before any minimum charge. A hauler's quote adds labor, the truck, fuel and profit on top, which is why the dump fee is usually a small share of the price.
How much does a truckload of junk weigh?
EPA's volume-to-weight factors put uncompacted household waste at 250 to 300 pounds per cubic yard, construction and demolition debris at about 417 pounds, and loose yard waste at about 250. A full-size pickup bed holds about 2 cubic yards, so a pickup load of household junk is roughly 500 to 600 pounds, and the same bed full of demolition debris is closer to 830.
Is it cheaper to haul junk to the dump yourself?
Often, if you have a truck. Many cities let residents dump household junk free or for a small minimum, so a DIY trip can cost little more than gas. Hiring makes sense for heavy items, stairs, multiple loads or a deadline. Use the calculator to see the dump fee for your city, then compare it with a quote.
How do junk removal companies price a job?
Most start from their cost per load: disposal (weight times the local per-ton rate, or the minimum), labor for the crew, truck and fuel, and item fees for things like mattresses, tires and appliances. Overhead and profit go on top. The business calculator above does that math with your own numbers.
What's the difference between margin and markup?
Margin is profit as a share of the price; markup is profit as a share of the cost. A job that costs $200 and sells for $300 has a 50% markup but a 33% margin. The calculator prices on margin, so a 35% target means 35 cents of every dollar you charge is profit before taxes.
