How to dispose of a mattress in Texas
A mattress is the classic awkward item: too big for the bin, too floppy for the car, and priced completely differently depending on where you live. Houston takes them free as a recyclable. Tyler charges roughly $63 each. Lufkin only accepts them three days a week. Before you wrestle one onto a truck, here's what your city actually does with it — and why curbside pickup is often the smarter move.
Mattress rules and costs, city by city
| City | Cost | The rule |
|---|---|---|
| Houston | Free | Listed as a recyclable at all six Neighborhood Depositories. Free for residents with proof of address, up to 4 visits a month. |
| Tyler | ~$63 each | Accepted at Greenwood Farms Landfill for a per-item fee. Confirm the current rate on (903) 566-5024 — our figure is from 2025 listings. |
| Lufkin | Call | Accepted only on restricted days — Tuesday, Wednesday and certain others. Gates close 10 minutes before posted time. |
| Arlington | Free (3/yr) | Bulky materials are covered by your three free resident drop-offs per year at the Arlington Landfill. |
| Dallas | Free for residents | Goes in as furniture/bulky waste at McCommas Bluff. Free for residents in a qualifying vehicle with proof of residency. |
| San Antonio | Free | Counts toward the 4 cubic yard bulky limit at the city's drop-off centers. CPS Energy bill plus photo ID required. |
| Denton | Per ton | Accepted as bulky waste at the city landfill — charged by weight, not per item. Remember: cards only, no cash. |
| Longview | Free (4/yr) | The city collects bulky items including mattresses from the curb up to four times a year — a $20 fee applies to mattresses and appliances. |
| Laredo | Free Saturdays | Fits inside the resident free-ton allowance on Saturdays; $2 for the first ton other days. |
Verified from official city sources, July 2026 — except Tyler's fee, which is from 2025 listings and worth confirming by phone. Fees change; call before you haul.
Find a landfill near you
Enter your ZIP for the nearest disposal sites. Mattress fees vary by facility — call ahead to confirm the per-item charge.
Check curbside pickup before you rent a truck
Most Texas cities will collect a mattress from your curb as part of the bulky waste service you already pay for in your utility bill. Longview does it up to four times a year (with a $20 fee for mattresses and appliances). Austin, Denton, Arlington, San Angelo and Laredo all run scheduled bulky collection.
The catch is timing — it's usually on a set week or by appointment, so it takes patience rather than money. If you can wait, it's free and you never lift the thing into a truck. If you can't, the landfill or a junk-removal service is the fast route.
Why some places charge and others don't
Mattresses are mostly air, and they don't compact. They take up landfill space out of all proportion to their weight, which is why sites that charge by the ton often add a flat per-item fee instead — you'd otherwise pay almost nothing for something that eats a lot of cell.
Houston takes the opposite approach and treats them as a recyclable, because the steel springs and foam can be separated and sold. That's why Houston is free and Tyler is $63 for the same object.
- Never leave a mattress at the curb outside your pickup window — most cities will cite you for illegal dumping.
- Bed bugs? Bag it before you move it. Some facilities refuse visibly infested mattresses.
- A mattress and box spring usually count as two items for fee purposes.
- If it's genuinely in good shape, a shelter or reuse charity may take it — call first, most have strict rules.