Memphis, TN Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Cart size
- 90-gallon recycle cart, minimum one per unit
- Standard set
- one garbage + one recycle cart
- Reduced fee
- $9.23/month for qualifying seniors/disabled
- Standard fee
- $41.96/month residential
- Interference
- unlawful under § 9-56-20
Summary
Every residential solid waste account in Memphis is assigned at least one 90-gallon recycle cart alongside its required 90-gallon garbage cart under City Code § 9-56-12, Note 1, and the city defines a 'recycling bin' at § 9-56-1 as any container it distributes for collecting recyclable materials curbside.
Recycling bin means any container distributed or designated by the city for use as a repository for recyclable materials, the materials to be collected by the city or its designee. ... Notes: 1. Residential customers will be assigned a minimum of one 90-gallon garbage cart and one 90-gallon recycle cart, for a total of two carts. Residential customers must have at least one 90-gallon garbage cart. Residential customers in this category will be eligible for a reduced fee in the amount of $9.23 if they meet the following criteria: Head of household, have an active utility account in their name, are at least 65 years of age or 100 percent disabled and have a gross household income of $25,000.00 per year or less.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 32 | Charter: Supplement 4).
Full Breakdown
City Code § 9-56-1 defines 'recycling bin' as any container distributed or designated by the city for use as a repository for recyclable materials, collected by the city or its designee, distinguishing it from the 'cart' used for regular refuse, defined in the same section as the wheeled, mechanically dumped plastic container over 90 gallons that the city distributes for refuse. Section 9-56-12's fee schedule, Note 1, makes recycling service standard rather than optional for residential customers: residential customers will be assigned a minimum of one 90-gallon garbage cart and one 90-gallon recycle cart, for a total of two carts, with the garbage cart mandatory.
96 residential fee; those same households can request an extra city cart through the cart lease program at the normal monthly rate if they generate more waste than one 90-gallon garbage cart holds per week. Container handling rules apply across both cart types: lids must stay closed except when waste is being deposited or removed, carts must be kept in good repair, and it is unlawful under § 9-56-20 for anyone other than an authorized city or licensed private collector to interfere with a container used for solid waste or recyclable materials or to remove its contents.
Violations & Fines
Interfering with a recycling bin or garbage cart, or removing its contents, is unlawful under § 9-56-20 for anyone other than the property's owner or occupant or an authorized city or licensed private collector. Households keeping an unregistered or unauthorized city-issued cart are subject to confiscation under § 9-56-7(E), and damage from failing to secure a cart is billed to the person in possession of the premises.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every Memphis home get a recycling cart automatically?
Who qualifies for Memphis's reduced solid waste fee?
Is it illegal to take items out of someone else's recycling bin in Memphis?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Memphis
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