How to get rid of stuff in Seattle

From the editor

André Ribeirinho Editor, JunkSpots Seattle Updated 19 August 2026

What residents need to know

Where things go in Seattle

Every option in this guide, arranged by the thing you are getting rid of. A missing name is not a refusal. It means nobody has told us either way, which is worth asking about before you make the trip.

Both official routes cost money here, so giving it away or donating is not only the better outcome. It is the cheaper one. A Special Item Pickup must be booked, and a sofa on the kerb without a booking is a violation rather than a collection.

Special Item Pickup or a transfer station, both charged. Items must be out by 7am on your collection day, on a flat surface with no stairs, where your rubbish normally goes.

If you rent an apartment you cannot book a Special Item Pickup yourself, the utility account belongs to the building owner or manager, which catches a lot of people out.

Electronics and televisions are NOT accepted at the transfer stations. They go to E-Cycle Washington, which is free, or on a Special Item Pickup.

Clothes and textiles are the one category here where nothing is run by the city and nothing costs anything. Evergreen Goodwill and The Salvation Army both want things clean and still usable, and both give you a receipt you can claim against tax. Buy Nothing is the third route, neighbour to neighbour, and you have to be in your local group to post.

Latex paint is NOT accepted at King County hazardous waste sites. It goes to a PaintCare drop-off, free, because the fee was already paid when the paint was bought. Oil-based paint is the opposite way round.

The words Seattle uses

These are the terms on the city's own pages. They stay in the local language here for the same reason they do on a form: the English version will not get you to the right page.

transfer station

The city's word for the dump. Two of them, open seven days a week and charged by the load, and worth knowing what they refuse: no electronics, no TVs or monitors, no oil paint or household chemicals, no asbestos, nothing over 8 feet or 200 pounds, and no construction and demolition waste.

Special Item Pickup

Seattle Public Utilities' kerbside collection of large furniture, appliances, TVs and computers. It is charged, and it goes on the utility bill, which is why a renter in an apartment cannot book one: the account belongs to the building owner or manager.

Special Item Box

A box of small awkward things collected alongside a Special Item Pickup. Since 1 April 2026 every SPU customer gets one free box and one free battery pickup a year; after that it is $20 a box and $5 for batteries.

household hazardous waste

Automotive fluids, pesticides, propane tanks, fluorescent tubes and batteries. The transfer stations refuse all of it, and King County takes it free instead, year round, no appointment, at fixed sites in north and south Seattle.

Wastemobile

King County's travelling hazardous-waste collection, touring the county from February to October, free for households and small businesses. Oil-based paint is accepted here; latex paint is refused by the county scheme altogether and goes to PaintCare.

E-Cycle Washington

The free statewide take-back for televisions, computers, laptops, monitors, tablets and e-readers, the electronics the transfer stations will not take. Keyboards, mice and printers are not part of it.

PaintCare

The state-mandated paint take-back, with 291 drop-off sites across Washington, mostly at paint and hardware shops. It is where latex paint goes, and it is free because the fee was already added to the price of the tin.

construction and demolition waste

Banned by city code from the garbage and from the transfer stations alike. It has to reach a qualified recycling facility, which is why 'we will take care of it' is not an answer from a hauler.

Things that catch people out

• Try the free routes first. Both official options cost money, so giving it away or donating is not just the better outcome. It is the cheaper one.
• Electronics and TVs are NOT accepted at the transfer stations. They go to E-Cycle Washington, which is free, or on a Special Item Pickup.
• Latex paint is NOT accepted at King County hazardous waste sites. It goes to a PaintCare drop-off. Oil-based paint is accepted at the travelling Wastemobile.
• Do not put anything out before your pickup is confirmed. SPU are explicit about this, and a sofa on the kerb without a booking is a problem rather than a collection.
• Items must be out by 7:00am on your collection day, on a flat surface with no stairs, where your rubbish normally goes.
• If you rent an apartment you cannot book a Special Item Pickup yourself, the utility account belongs to the building owner or manager, so ask them.
• Construction and demolition waste is banned from the garbage and the transfer stations by city code, and has to reach a qualified recycling facility.

What it costs in Seattle

What each option charges, in its own words, with the date we last read it. We publish no price of our own: a number we typed would go stale before the sentence it came from did.

• Charlotte 5 options·4 free·Checked 18 Aug 2026
• Cleveland 5 options·4 free·Checked 18 Aug 2026
• Dallas 5 options·5 free·Checked 18 Aug 2026