San Jose Trash Pickup & Garbage Schedule 2026

San José residential service works a little differently from many cities. For single-family homes and mobile home parks, weekly garbage service also includes recycling, loose-in-the-street yard trimmings collection, and unlimited junk pickup by appointment. Residents should use the official Residential Services Lookup to confirm the right provider and exact service information for their address.

How to Find Your San José Trash Pickup Day

The easiest way to check your San José collection day is the official Utility Services Lookup. This tool shows your garbage, recycling, yard trimmings collection schedule, street sweeping day, and your assigned service company based on your street address.

1. Open the lookup tool. Go to Utility Services Lookup.
2. Enter your exact address. The city uses address-based service zones.
3. Check your provider. San José homes are served by different companies depending on location, including California Waste Solutions, Garden City Sanitation, GreenWaste Recovery, or GreenTeam in West San José.
4. Review all services. Confirm your garbage, recycling, yard trimmings, and free junk pickup details.
5. Save your company number. It helps for missed pickups, cart issues, and junk pickup appointments.

San José Trash Pickup Schedule: What Runs When

For residential homes, San José says collection for all materials happens once per week, Monday through Friday, between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Homes get garbage, recycling, and yard trimmings service as part of the regular residential program.

San José also processes residential garbage differently from many cities. Instead of using a separate home food-scraps cart, the city says food waste and other organics that residents place in garbage are later recovered for composting through the mixed-waste system.

San José Garbage, Recycling, Yard Trimmings, and Junk Pickup

San José homes use separate carts and curbside setups for different materials. Understanding which stream to use helps avoid contamination and missed service.

Rates for single-family homes include weekly garbage, recycling, yard trimmings collection, and unlimited junk pickup. If you regularly need more trash capacity, San José also sells extra garbage stickers for additional 32-gallon bags.

San José Set-Out Rules

San José’s residential set-out rules are clear, and spacing matters because collection is done by automated trucks.

• Set out all carts no later than 6:00 a.m. on your collection day, and no earlier than the day before.
• Place carts side-by-side in the street, 2 feet apart, with wheels against the curb.
• Keep carts 5 feet away from parked cars, yard trimmings piles, basketball hoops, and other obstacles.
• Do not overfill carts. Lids must close completely.
• Set out yard trimmings no later than 6:00 a.m. and no earlier than the day before.
• Loose yard trimmings piles must be no more than 5 feet by 5 feet, about 1 foot out from the curb, and at least 5 feet from carts, cars, or other piles.

San José Free Junk Pickup

San José residents in homes and mobile home parks can have large items or junk collected curbside for free by their recycling collection company. The city says residents can schedule unlimited junk pickups for free.

Common junk pickup items include:

• Mattresses
• Sofas
• Refrigerators
• Tires
• Other large household items accepted by your provider

1. Find your recycling company first. Use the Residential Services Lookup.
2. Call the correct company. Junk pickups are scheduled through your collection company, not a single citywide hauler.
3. Book the pickup. San José says junk pickup is free and unlimited for homes and mobile home parks.
4. Confirm accepted items. Large items are usually accepted, but unusual materials may need another disposal method.
5. Use 311 if you need help. San José 311 can help with company details, missed service, or cart issues.

San José 2026 Holiday Trash Schedule

San José collection occurs on all holidays except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. When one of those three holidays falls on a weekday, collection is one day later for the rest of that week.

That means holidays such as Memorial Day, Independence Day observance, Labor Day, and Veterans Day generally do not change your normal collection day under the city’s residential rules.

What to Do If San José Missed Your Pickup

San José says collection happens between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. on your collection day. If your garbage, recycling, or yard trimmings are not picked up by 6 p.m., you should report the missed collection.

1. Wait until after 6:00 p.m. Collection can happen any time during the day.
2. Check your set-out first. Carts must be out on time, spaced correctly, and not blocked.
3. Use 311 or call your company. The city directs residents to San José 311 and also provides company contacts through the lookup tool.
4. Report damaged carts too. The same channels can be used for lost, stolen, or broken carts.
5. If you put carts out late, wait for next week. The city says late set-outs are picked up on the next regular collection day.

San José Drop-Off and Recycling Options

San José residents who need disposal help beyond regular curbside service can use the city’s recycling and garbage resources, Santa Clara County household hazardous waste appointment system, and local hard-to-recycle search tools.

San José also directs residents with unusual or hard-to-recycle items to the local recycle search tools and hotline instead of placing those items in regular garbage or recycling containers.

Frequently Asked Questions About San José Trash Pickup

Official San José Trash Collection Resources

Reminder: Because San José uses different service companies by area, the most accurate way to confirm your pickup day is to search your exact address in the official lookup before placing anything at the curb.