Missed Trash, Recycling or Yard Waste Pickup in San Diego

This section is for homes that get City of San Diego collection. If your building uses a private hauler, see who collects your trash below.

• 1. Check for a route delay. The City's collection status page lists any delays. In a March 2021 Get It Done article, the City said: "If your address has been identified as being delayed, we will return the following day to provide your service."
• 2. If your address is not delayed, report it on Get It Done: the Missed Collection form or the Get It Done San Diego app. It covers black or gray trash, blue recycling and green organics containers.
• Or call Environmental Services at 858-694-7000. The City also lists the email trash@sandiego.gov for collection questions.

The Missed Collection form asks for:

• Your primary residential service address. If the property has several addresses, pick the primary service address; the form links to a parcel lookup tool to check it.
• Which container was missed: trash, recycling or green organics.
• A description of the issue and where the containers were, plus photos of the surrounding area.
• Your name, email and phone number, and the property type.

As of October 29, 2026, the form shows an estimated resolution time of 5 days for a missed collection that is not associated with a known route delay. It says the estimate is calculated from data from the last six weeks as well as seasonal trends and staff knowledge.

Find your collection day by entering your address in the City's Find Your Collection Schedule tool. The City's schedule:

From the City's collection schedule and General Refuse Collection Information and Rules pages, as of October 29, 2026.

In its missed collections article, the City adds that its sanitation drivers are in neighborhoods as early as 6:15 a.m. San Diego Municipal Code section 66.0105 makes it unlawful to leave solid waste or containers on public streets, curbs or sidewalks before 6 p.m. the day before collection, or after 6 p.m. on collection day. The City says that failing to remove containers violates that section.

Placement. The City's rules for setting out bins:

• Set the bin on the street or alley with the wheels against the curb and the handle facing your home.
• Keep at least three feet between each bin and other containers, parked cars, lamp posts, trees, mailboxes and other obstructions, and avoid tree branches and overhead wires.
• Do not overfill. Customers must use City-approved automated containers to receive service.
• Between collections, store bins out of sight, for example behind a fence, in the backyard or in a garage.

If you cannot move your bins to the curb because of a disability, the City takes requests for ADA-assisted collection on Get It Done. Neighbors' bins left out after collection hours can be reported with the Get It Done Containers Left Out Beyond Collection Hours form.

• Get It Done: choose Repair or Replace Damaged Container.
• Or call 858-694-7000.
• No green bin? The City's containers page says to call 858-694-7000 to request a green organic waste container if you don't have one.

Changing sizes or adding bins. Trash, recycling and organic waste bins come in 35-, 65- and 95-gallon sizes, and the City says every property must have at least one trash, blue recycling and green organic waste bin. Changes go through the Residential Waste Collection Services Portal, or call 858-694-7000. The City's flyer notes the monthly fee may be higher for larger or additional bins.

Old bins not picked up after a swap. The City's FAQ says that if your old dark blue recycling bin was not removed on the day the new one arrived, leave it out an additional day, up to 48 hours; after 48 hours, pull it in and submit a Container Removal Request.

Not every San Diego address gets City trash service. San Diego Municipal Code section 66.0127 defines the residential property the City collects from as a single-family property, or a multi-family property with up to four residences on a single lot, that meets City requirements for collection by City forces. A March 2026 City letter to property owners lists the criteria: one to four residences on a single lot, not mixed-use or commercial, located on and serviceable from a public street, and with enough space to store the containers needed between collections.

The same letter says properties whose access requires crossing a private street are also ineligible even if the address is on a public street, and that in a housing complex, all properties must be eligible for any of them to get City service.

Property owners told their property is not eligible are asked to enroll with a franchise hauler within 60 days of the City's letter. Owners who believe they meet all the criteria can file an Eligibility Appeal at sandiego.gov/trash. For help, the letter lists Environmental Services at 619-533-4440 or wasteservice@sandiego.gov.

There is no City collection of trash, recyclables or organic waste on City-observed holidays: New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. The City says that starting on the day of the holiday, waste is collected one day later for the remainder of that week. The City's 2026 list:

From the City's collection schedule page, as of October 29, 2026. Independence Day does not appear on the City's 2026 list.

The City's trash service FAQ says the planned bulky item pickup service is paused until further notice. For couches, mattresses and other large items, see our illegal dumping and bulky items guide. For anything else you need to report to the City, see our guide to reporting a problem to the City of San Diego.