Weekly Collection Schedule
Official municipal pickup timing for Raleigh
North Carolina residential routes run Monday through Friday. Please refer to your city or county zoning map for your specific curbside collection day.
State Mandate
NC DEQ strictly bans aluminum cans, plastic bottles, and electronics from landfill disposal.
Dark Rollout Cart Bin (Trash)
All household waste must be bagged inside the dark cart. The cart lid must not be open more than 12 inches. Place at the curb by 6:00 a.m. with handles facing your property.
Accepted Items
- ✓All household garbage
- ✓Non-recyclable plastic packaging
- ✓Disposed food scraps
- ✓Double-bagged pet waste
Blue Cart Bin (Recycling)
All recyclable items must be clean, dry, empty, and placed completely loose inside the blue cart—never use plastic bags. Collected bi-weekly on Schedule A or B.
Accepted Items
- ✓Flattened cardboard and paper
- ✓Aluminum and steel cans
- ✓Rigid plastic bottles, jugs, and tubs
- ✓Glass bottles and jars
Do NOT Include
- ✕Plastic bags or plastic film wrap
- ✕Food-soiled containers or greasy pizza boxes
- ✕Styrofoam and foam packaging
- ✕Shredded paper
Yard Waste Bin
Place organic debris in the lime-green yard waste cart or approved paper lawn bags during designated alternate weeks. Never mix plastic bags, dirt, or rocks into organic loads.
Accepted Items
- ✓Grass clippings and leaves
- ✓Small brush and shrub trimmings
- ✓Tree limbs under 5 feet long
Bulky Item Pickup
Frequency
Once every 90 days per address (by appointment)
Placement
Place items neatly at the curbside within 5 feet of the road edge prior to your scheduled day, ensuring they do not block sidewalks, mailboxes, or traffic.
Accepted
- ✓ Furniture (sofas, desks, wooden tables)
- ✓ Mattresses and box springs
- ✓ Large household appliances (mark clearly if containing Freon)
- ✓ Push lawnmowers and bicycles
- ✓ Up to 4 electronic items per week
Not Accepted
- ✕ Automobile tires and parts
- ✕ Construction and demolition debris or contractor materials
- ✕ Loose leaves or standard yard waste piles
- ✕ Concrete, bricks, dirt, and rocks
- ✕ Propane tanks
A $35 fee applies to each standard 4-cubic-yard bulky load collection, billed directly to your City utility account. E-waste collection remains free up to 4 items weekly.
Holiday Schedule
General Rule
Raleigh observes only Thanksgiving Day as a collection-altering holiday. When Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, Thursday routes shift to Friday, and Friday routes shift to Saturday.
Yard Waste Exception
Yard waste and recycling routes impacted by Thanksgiving week follow the exact same one-day downstream shift.
All other major US holidays (New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Christmas Day) do not interrupt Tuesday–Friday curbside collection routines.
Observed Holidays
!Contamination Tips
Never Bag Your Blue Cart Recyclables
Placing recyclables inside plastic grocery or trash bags causes entire loads to be rejected at the sorting facility. Always toss clean containers and flattened cardboard loosely into your blue cart.
Keep Plastic Film and Bags Out
Retail shopping bags, dry cleaning wrap, and flexible plastic pouches jam the mechanical sorting screens. Take clean plastic film back to local grocery store drop-off bins instead.
Check Your Alternate Week Correctly
Setting out your lime-green yard waste cart on a recycling week (or vice versa) leads to missed service. Use the Raleigh Reuse Web Tool to sync your device and prevent collection mix-ups.
Seasonal Information
Fall 2026
September to NovemberThe Raleigh City Council has approved expanding yard waste collection from bi-weekly service to weekly service starting in Fall 2026 to better handle heavy seasonal leaf drops.
Summer Peak
June to AugustHigh temperatures cause organic waste and food scraps in dark carts to generate intense odors and attract pests. Always ensure your dark cart lid is tightly closed (not propped open past 12 inches).
Winter Holidays
November and DecemberBecause Raleigh only shifts collections for Thanksgiving Day, Christmas and New Year's weeks run entirely on a normal Tuesday–Friday schedule unless falling on a weekend, keeping holiday cleanups predictable.
About Raleigh Waste Management
The Tuesday-through-Friday Operating Rhythm
The City of Raleigh Solid Waste Services manages residential collections strictly across four weekdays, from Tuesday through Friday, with no routes running on Mondays. All three municipal collection streams—garbage, recycling, and yard waste—happen on the exact same designated weekday for your neighborhood. To master your weekly routine, you must track whether your address falls into Schedule A or Schedule B for alternating services.
Alternating Bi-Weekly Recycling and Yard Waste
While household trash is collected every single week, recycling and yard waste operate on an interlocking, bi-weekly alternating schedule. When it is your designated recycling week, yard waste is not collected, and vice versa. This ensures that every household receives weekly trash pickup paired with either a blue recycling cart or a lime-green yard waste cart on a predictable rotational basis.
The Updated 2026 Bulky Load Fee Structure
For large household goods that cannot fit inside standard dark rollout carts, Raleigh provides specialized bulky load collections. Residents are entitled to one load of up to 4 cubic yards every 90 days. Please note that a $35 administrative fee applies to each scheduled bulky load collection, which is billed directly to your municipal utility account.
Free Weekly Curbside E-Waste Pickups
To combat electronic waste and keep hazardous components out of landfills, Raleigh offers dedicated curbside e-waste collections every Tuesday. Residents can place up to four electronic items—such as old televisions, computers, or monitors—at the curb for free pickup, provided an advance appointment has been logged through customer service.
Uniquely Minimal Holiday Disruptions
Unlike most municipalities that scramble routes for nearly every national holiday, Raleigh observes only one holiday that alters curbside collections: Thanksgiving Day. Major holidays like New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day experience completely normal collection schedules if they fall mid-week, reducing missed-pickup confusion for residents.
Drop-off Facilities
City of Raleigh Deponie Drive Site
9037 Deponie Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614
Materials Accepted
Wake County Multi-Material Recycling Facility
6130 Old Smithfield Road, Apex, NC 27539
Materials Accepted
Frequently Asked Questions
Why didn't the truck pick up my recycling and yard waste on the same day?
In Raleigh, recycling and yard waste are collected on your regular trash day, but they run on alternating bi-weekly schedules (Schedule A vs Schedule B). When it is your recycling week, it is not your yard waste week, and vice versa.
How do I schedule a bulky item pickup and is there a fee?
You must call SWS Customer Care at 919-996-3245 to schedule a bulky load collection. Effective April 1, 2026, a $35 fee applies to each 4-cubic-yard bulky load, which is automatically charged to your city utility account.
Does Memorial Day or Labor Day delay my trash collection in Raleigh?
No. Raleigh operates one of the most consistent holiday schedules in the country, observing only Thanksgiving Day as a disruption. Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Independence Day do not affect mid-week collections.
What is the proper way to set out my rollout carts at the curb?
Carts must be placed at the curb by 6:00 a.m. on your collection day, staying within 5 feet of the curb with the handles turned toward your property. Lids must remain completely closed (not open past 12 inches) and kept clear of cars, mailboxes, and power lines.