Finding Your Trash and Recycling Collection Day in San Antonio

Knowing your garbage and recycling pickup schedule is key to successful curbside collection in San Antonio. This guide explains how to look up your collection day and prepare for service interruptions on holidays.

The City of San Antonio provides trash and recycling collection for single-family homes. Multi-family complexes and businesses must arrange private haulers.

How to Find Your Collection Day

Use the City’s My Collection Day tool to look up your personalized pickup schedule:

1. Enter your San Antonio address.

2. Select your address from the dropdown list.

3. Your collection days for trash, recycling, and organics will display.

Collection frequencies:

• Trash – Once per week
• Recycling – Every other week
• Organics – Once per week

Write down your collection days or take a screenshot to remember the schedule.

Download the Solid Waste Management App

You can also get your collection days right on your phone by downloading the City of San Antonio Solid Waste Management mobile app.

The app provides pickup reminders, service alerts, and recycling tips. It’s available for both iPhone and Android.

Holiday Collection Schedules

Trash and recycling pickup may shift due to holidays. The City provides an annual holiday collection schedule so you can plan accordingly.

Here are the observed holidays that alter pickup:

• Thanksgiving (Thursday)
• Christmas Day
• New Year’s Day
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• Memorial Day
• Independence Day
• Labor Day

When a holiday falls on your normal collection day, pickup slides to one day later that week.

For example, if you normally have Monday collection, expect it to occur on Tuesday after a holiday. At the end of a holiday week, Friday collection would slide to Saturday.

Check the City’s holiday collection schedule each year for exact impacts to trash and recycling pickup.

Bag and Cart Limits

The City of San Antonio allows each household to place up to 10 bags or cans of garbage on the curb each week.

Make sure to flatten boxes and do not jam items to allow the lid to close. Any extra bags or overflow trash outside the cart may be subject to extra fees.

There are no limits on your blue recycling cart – all accepted materials can be placed loosely inside for collection. Make sure recyclables are clean and empty.

Bulk and Brush Collection

If you have large bulk items like furniture or brush trimmings that cannot fit in your carts, San Antonio offers special collection:

Brush Collection

• Twice per year on your second collection day
• Accepted: branches, limbs, leaves, grass clippings
• Must be bundled or bagged; 4-foot length limit

Check the brush collection schedule for pickup weeks in your area.

Bulk Collection

• Once per year on your second collection day
• Accepted: furniture, appliances, mattresses, scrap metal
• Schedule pickup on the SWMD Request Form

Drop-Off Options

You can also bring brush and bulky items to one of the City’s 17 drop-off centers. Most locations accept both brush and bulk for free.

Recycling Center Drop-Offs

San Antonio has 14 recycling centers across the city that accept paper, cardboard, aluminum, tin, plastic, and glass bottles.

Recyclables can be dropped off loose – no need to bag. This is a handy option for removing recyclables between your biweekly curbside pickup.

Hazardous Waste Disposal

Household hazardous waste like chemicals, batteries, propane tanks, and electronics cannot go in your normal trash.

The City of San Antonio provides drop-off locations for proper hazardous waste disposal at the HHW Recycling Center and Bitters Brush Recycling Center.

Accepted materials include:

• Paint and paint-related products
• Pesticides and fertilizers
• Batteries
• Fluorescent light bulbs
• Sharps in approved containers
• Used motor oil and filters
• Antifreeze
• Household cleaners
• Pool chemicals
• Propane tanks

Be sure to check accepted items and hours before visiting. Fees may apply for some business or commercial loads.

Missed Collection

If your garbage or recycling was missed on your pickup day, report it right away:

• Call 210-207-URBN (8726)
• Submit a report on the San Antonio 311 website or mobile app

The City will send a truck to collect your missed pickup within 1 business day. Service is provided 8am – 5pm, Monday through Friday.

Double check your pickup day and collection limits before reporting a miss. Ensure bins were accessible to the truck and not blocked by vehicles.

Large Events and Roll-Offs

For a big event, renovation, or major cleanup, you can request a temporary roll-off dumpster from the City of San Antonio by calling 210-207-URBN (8726).

Pricing depends on the size and pickup frequency. Dumpsters can be kept from one day up to two weeks.

This is a convenient option for managing large volumes of waste that won’t fit in your curbside bins. Just make sure to only place acceptable materials inside – no hazardous waste.

Moving or Starting Service

If you are moving to a new home in San Antonio, you will need to set up new solid waste collection services:

1. Look up your collection days at the new address.

2. Request cart delivery by calling 210-207-URBN (8726) at least one week before your move-in date.

3. Service automatically begins on the next collection day after cart delivery.

New homeowners can also use this process to start trash and recycling collection. Carts are provided by the City of San Antonio at no extra cost.

For seamless service, be sure to cancel collection at your old address once you move.

Apartments and Businesses

The City only handles waste collection for single-family homes.

If you live in an apartment, duplex, condo, or other multi-family housing, your property manager arranges pickup through a private hauler. Contact them to learn your schedule.

Businesses, non-profits, schools, and other organizations must also hire a permitted hauler for garbage and recycling services. The City provides resources for commercial collection.

Knowing your personalized collection schedule helps you properly set out waste and recycling in San Antonio. Check the calendar annually and use the online lookup or app for easy access anytime. Consistent preparation results in smooth service.