Chicago, IL Trash & Recycling: Pickup Rules & Schedules (2026)

For curb collections, city code sets the carts out at the curb line not earlier than the evening before your designated collection day, and requires removal from the public way no later than the evening of the collection day itself (an exception exists for occupational units not operating the day after collection). For alley collections, containers go at the public alley lot line on the property so they're immediately accessible to collection trucks: property owners have to keep suitable space there. A container left in the wrong spot, or placed so it becomes a nuisance to neighbors, puts the property owner on the hook for a code violation. The Department of Streets and Sanitation runs city collection for single dwellings, small multi-unit buildings (4 units or fewer), townhouses, and small licensed bed-and-breakfasts that directly abut the public way.