Portland Bulk Item Pickup: What’s Free, What’s Not, and Oregon’s Recycling Laws

Portland recycles more per capita than almost any other American city, has a state law requiring free mattress recycling, and offers free electronics drop-off at two transfer stations open seven days a week. It also has no free curbside bulk pickup program at all. If you need a sofa hauled from the curb, you have to pay someone for that.

What Oregon does well, it does exceptionally well. Mattresses, electronics, and household hazardous waste all have free disposal paths here because state law requires manufacturers and producers to fund them. For these categories, the cost at the door is zero. Portland has more of those doors than most cities.

For everything else (furniture, appliances, a garage full of accumulated stuff), you’re either paying your City-franchised hauler to pick it up from the curb or hauling it yourself to a Metro transfer station. Here’s how each option works and what it costs.

Before anything goes to the curb or a transfer station, start with Oregon Metro’s Find a Recycler tool. Search any item and you’ll get a list of nearby options: donation first, recycling second, disposal last.

For most items in Portland, the search will return a free option. Furniture that can’t be donated, damaged appliances, and mixed renovation debris are where the paid options in this guide come in.

Oregon launched free statewide mattress recycling on January 1, 2025 under the Oregon Mattress Stewardship Act. The Bye Bye Mattress program, run by the Mattress Recycling Council, accepts mattresses and box springs at no charge at participating locations regardless of condition or age. What you probably didn’t realize is that you already paid a $22.50 fee when you purchased the mattress, which funds the program, so drop-off costs you nothing.

How to use it

• Find the nearest drop-off location at byebyemattress.com/find-a-facility/
• Both Metro transfer stations (Metro Central and Metro South) participate in the program. Free drop-off, no appointment needed
• Oregon retailers are required to offer take-back when delivering a new mattress. Worth asking before going anywhere else
• If your mattress is in good condition, Community Warehouse (see donation section below) accepts them for reuse

For a mattress that needs to come out of a tight space, second floor, or storage area, the Bye Bye Mattress program handles disposal once it’s outside. LoadUp handles getting it there.

Oregon’s E-Cycles program (funded by electronics manufacturers) makes TV, computer, monitor, printer, keyboard, tablet, and mouse recycling free statewide.

The most convenient drop-off in Portland is the Metro transfer stations. Both Metro Central and Metro South are authorized E-Cycles sites with free drop-off, limit 7 items per person per day, and no appointment needed.

Find more locations across Portland at ecyclesoregon.org. For electronics that need to come out of a home office, basement, or closet before getting to a drop-off site, LoadUp carries items from wherever they are and routes covered electronics to the E-Cycles program.

Free Geek in Portland is an additional option, especially for older or non-standard electronics. They accept working and non-working items for refurbishment, donation, or responsible recycling, and handle more categories than E-Cycles alone. Visit freegeek.org for current accepted items and hours.

Portland has an unusually strong network of donation and reuse organizations. If something can still be used, it’s worth seeing if someone here wants it before it goes anywhere else.

Community Warehouse

Accepts furniture and household goods for families transitioning out of homelessness and housing crises. Items must be clean and functional. Free donation pickup is available for larger items; call ahead to check availability.

Habitat for Humanity ReStore

Accepts furniture, appliances, and building materials, with free donation pickup available. Worth calling if you have kitchen or bathroom fixtures left over from a renovation.

The Rebuilding Center

Portland’s primary building materials reuse organization. Accepts doors, windows, lumber, cabinets, and plumbing fixtures from renovation projects. Items that would otherwise cost money to drop at a transfer station sometimes end up here for free instead.

Resourceful PDX

Resourceful PDX maps community-based reuse, swap, repair, and share organizations across Portland. Good for neighborhood-specific options when mainstream donation programs don’t take what you have. Visit resourcefulpdx.com.

For furniture and household items still in usable condition, LoadUp routes eligible pieces to Community Warehouse, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, and other Portland-area partners before anything goes to disposal.

Portland’s six City-franchised private haulers are assigned by neighborhood, all charging the same City-set rates updated every July 1. Your bill is the same no matter which hauler serves your address.

Curbside bulk item pickup costs a flat $18 trip fee plus a per-item charge based on size and type. Use the City’s bulky waste cost calculator to estimate your total before calling. Send photos of your items to your hauler for the most accurate quote.

How to schedule

• Contact your garbage company directly to schedule and get a cost estimate
• Your hauler is required to pick up within 7 days of your request per City rules
• Your pickup day may differ from your regular collection day
• Set items at the curb by 6 AM on the scheduled day
• Do not set items out more than 24 hours early. Portland rain is a real hazard. Items left outside get waterlogged, become too heavy for collectors to lift safely, and can attract illegal dumping around them
• If items aren’t out in time, you’re still charged the pickup fee plus an additional trip fee
• Renters: your landlord is the garbage account holder and must make the request on your behalf

Don’t know which hauler serves your address? Look up your collection day and hauler at portland.gov.

Metro’s two transfer stations are the self-haul option when your volume is too large for a hauler trip, you can’t wait 7 days, or you want to drop off something that qualifies for one of the free programs. Both are open seven days a week.

Both stations are closed on July 4, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. Open truck beds and trailers must be covered with a tarp. Oregon law requires it, and uncovered loads can result in additional fees.

What’s free at both stations

• Electronics (TVs, computers, monitors, printers, keyboards, tablets, mice): free through E-Cycles Oregon, limit 7 items per person per day
• Mattresses and box springs: free through the Bye Bye Mattress program
• Household hazardous waste: free for households, up to 35 gallons per day. HHW facility hours at both stations: 9 AM to 4 PM daily. Accepted: paint, batteries, motor oil, chemicals, pesticides, fluorescent bulbs

What costs money

Furniture, appliances, yard debris, and general garbage are charged by weight. Approximate 2026 rates: $37–51 minimum per load; $125–145 per ton for mixed solid waste. Appliances with refrigerant (refrigerators, air conditioners, dehumidifiers) are accepted for a fee. Payment by cash, credit, or debit only. No checks. Call (503) 234-3000 or visit oregonmetro.gov for current rate information before your trip.

Portland’s free programs and Metro transfer stations handle a lot. A private hauler fills the gap when the logistics don’t line up.

Booking with a private hauler might be a better fit if:

• Items need to come from inside the home, garage, or storage area. Neither the curbside program nor Metro stations handle interior removal.
• You’re doing a full garage or estate cleanout with a mix of donable, recyclable, and non-recyclable items in a single visit
• You have construction or renovation debris from a larger project
• You can’t wait for your hauler’s 7-day pickup window or don’t have a vehicle for the transfer station
• Items are too heavy or awkward to move safely on your own
• You’re in Beaverton, Lake Oswego, or another suburb and want one service covering everything without navigating each city’s separate hauler

When none of Portland’s programs fit the job, LoadUp provides junk removal and bulk item pickup across Portland and the surrounding metro with same-day and next-day availability. No 7-day wait, no weight minimums, no requirement that items be at the curb first. Loaders handle the carrying from inside your home, whether it’s a basement full of furniture, a garage cleanout, or a full renovation debris situation.

LoadUp routes eligible items to Portland-area donation partners before anything goes to disposal: Community Warehouse, Free Geek, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, and others. Through the Plant with Purpose program, every LoadUp pickup contributes to reforestation efforts nationwide.

LoadUp runs 20-30% below what most junk removal companies charge for comparable work in Portland, and offers a price match guarantee for any written quote for the same service.