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Junk removal cost calculator

Angi’s September 2026 table puts a full 13–17 cubic yard junk load at $600–$800 and a quarter load at $125–$200, checked October 15, 2026. Don’t price a small load as a straight fraction of a full one. The drive out and the stop at the transfer station take as long for one dresser as for a packed box, so cover them in every price and set a minimum.

Price a junk load

Starting point: $700.00 per load. Full load, 13–17 cubic yards (US guide): $600.00–$800.00 per load. Our midpoint of that range, rounded to cents. Removal by load volume; difficult access and special items can add labor. Angi: junk removal prices by load volume, checked 2026-10-15.

Extras, travel and minimum

Use 0.25 for a quarter load and 0.5 for half. Enter your full-truck rate and state the truck's capacity in the quote. Account for heavy items separately.

Job price before tax—

Enter truck-load fraction.

Should a quarter load cost a quarter of a full load?

No, and the published cards show it. Orange Crew in Chicagoland charges $280 for a quarter truck, 43% of its $650 full truck; Clear Waste Solutions in South Florida charges $314, 48% of $649. Their half trucks land at 66% and 63% of the full price. Both build the fixed part of every job into the small loads.

Split your own costs the same way. The fixed part, the drive out, the run to the transfer station and any minimum tipping charge, goes on every job. The variable part, loading time and the dump fee by weight or volume, grows with the share of the truck. Price a quarter load as the fixed part plus a quarter of the variable, and small loads stop losing money.

What should a cubic yard of junk cost?

Angi’s full-load band works out to about $46–$47 a yard: $600 ÷ 13 = $46.15 and $800 ÷ 17 = $47.06. That per-yard figure only holds for full loads, because smaller loads spread the fixed costs over fewer yards. Use it to check your full-truck price against your own box size, then build the smaller shares up from your costs.

The same math sizes a dump trailer. A full 7-yard trailer comes to about $323–$329 at Angi’s rate (7 × $46.15 and 7 × $47.06). Quote it as a full trailer with its yards written down, and let your own costs, not a box truck’s price card, set the steps below it.

When should you price junk removal by the hour instead of the load?

When the work is more than carrying things out. Sorting a house for donation, bagging loose clutter, taking down a shed or a playset, or clearing a hoarded room all take crew hours a load price never assumed. Price those hours on top of the load from your real crew cost: start from $24.62 an hour, the BLS May 2024 mean for refuse and recyclable material collectors, then add payroll taxes and insurance.

The job that goes wrong is the one quoted from a photo as “two loads” that turns out to need a day of sorting first. Ask what has to happen before anything goes on the truck: boxing, separating keepsakes for the family, setting aside donations. If the answer is yes, quote the hours and the loads as two lines so the customer sees why the price moved.

Example: a half load from your own costs

Loading a full truck costs you $300 in crew time and truck wear, so half a load is $150. Add $70 to tip this pile and $40 for the trip: $260. At a 35% margin, $260 ÷ 0.65 = $400. That’s the top of Angi’s $200–$400 half-load band and just under the $412 and $430 half-truck cards in South Florida and Chicagoland.

Frequently asked questions

Should I charge to come out and quote?

Not inside your usual area. A free quote is normal in junk removal, and an on-site quote closes best when the truck is there to load straight away. Quote from photos where you can. For a far address, add a trip charge and credit it against the job if they book, so the drive pays either way.

Should same-day pickup cost more?

Charge for what it displaces. If a same-day call fills a gap in a slow afternoon, take it at your normal price. If it means bumping a booked job, sending a second truck or working late, add a rush charge you’ve set in advance and tell the customer before you confirm the time.

What do I say when another hauler quoted less?

Ask what the other price covers, line by line: how many yards, disposal, mattress or appliance fees, stairs. If the scope truly matches, decide what you’d change to get closer, such as the customer bringing everything into the garage first. A cut with nothing changed in the job comes straight out of your margin.

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