Chicago Mattress Disposal

Item: Mattress / box spring / futon — used bedding that will not fit in the black 96-gallon refuse cart Jurisdiction: City of Chicago, inside the Department of Streets and Sanitation (DSS) residential service area — single-family homes and residential buildings of four units or fewer that abut the public way Official sources: City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation, CHI 311, Chicago Department of Public Health, Municipal Code of Chicago, Cook County, Illinois EPA, Illinois Product Stewardship Council Last verified: September 2026 · Next review: December 2026

Quick answer

A mattress does not fit in Chicago's black 96-gallon refuse cart, so the weekly cart pick-up does not answer the question. In Chicago the route that exists is not a drop-off and not an online request — it is a bulk pick-up arranged with your Streets and Sanitation ward superintendent before the bed goes outside. The City's sanitation guidance says to "arrange with your Streets and Sanitation ward superintendent for a bulk pick-up before putting out any large item or extra load of trash." The 18th Ward's official page spells out the consequence: "contact the Sanitation Office BEFORE putting the items out to prevent a ticket being issued."

The second thing to settle is whether your address gets City collection at all. DSS collects from single-family homes and residential buildings of four dwelling units or fewer that abut the public way — roughly 600,000 households, weekly, Monday to Friday. Buildings of five or more units, commercial premises and non-abutting properties must contract a licensed private scavenger.

After that, the honest answer: no official City of Chicago page names mattresses as an accepted or excluded bulky item, and none publishes a count limit, lead time, set-out time or bulk-pick-up fee. Those figures circulate widely — "two per pickup", "one pickup a month", "five to seven business days" — but they come from private haulers, directories and partner sites, not from the City. This guide is built around the one phone call that settles it for your address.

Three wrong doors to rule out immediately:

1. No City mattress drop-off. The route is a ward-arranged bulk pick-up, or a private alternative.
2. Not the HCCRF and not the county CHaRM Center. The Household Chemicals & Computer Recycling Facility takes household chemicals and listed electronics only, and the Cook County CHaRM Center lists mattresses as not accepted.
3. Not the alley "to see if it goes." MCC 7-28-450 sets a fine of $750–$5,000 per offence, with each day counted separately.

Jurisdiction warning: everything below applies to addresses inside the City of Chicago that receive DSS refuse collection. Buildings of five or more units, commercial premises and non-abutting properties are outside City collection and run on a private hauler. Suburban and village addresses are served by their own municipal or contracted haulers. Cook County's CHaRM Center is a separate program with its own residency and material rules, and Illinois has no statewide mattress program.

Quick facts: Chicago mattress disposal at a glance

Who gets City collection: the four-unit rule

DSS collects from single-family homes and apartment buildings of four units or fewer that abut the public way — about 600,000 households, weekly Monday through Friday, on the citywide grid system across eight collection districts. The 311 system repeats the cut-off: DSS "handles garbage pick-up for single-family residences and buildings with four (4) units or fewer. Buildings with more than four (4) units must arrange pick-up services with a private hauler."

MCC 7-28-235 backs this up: the City is the exclusive refuse collector for dwelling units that directly abut the public way and place containers per MCC 7-28-230 — a single dwelling, a multiple dwelling of four or fewer units, a townhouse, or a bed-and-breakfast of four or fewer units. Where a property lacks suitable space, there is a petition route to the Commissioner of DSS, so unusual buildings should be verified rather than assumed.

Buildings of five or more units are not served. Roughly half of Chicago households fall into this group and pay a private provider, averaging about $10–$16 per unit per month. In a five-flat, courtyard building, high-rise or mixed-use building, the mattress route runs through your landlord or the building's hauler.

How to arrange a ward bulk pick-up (and why you call first)

Sanitation guidance says to arrange a bulk pick-up with your DSS ward superintendent before setting out any large item. The 18th Ward page lists "bulk pick up" among DSS duties and says to contact the Sanitation Office first to prevent a ticket. The 44th Ward's chicago.gov page lists "Refuse and bulk pick up" under Streets and Sanitation. The City's December 2024 Pollution Prevention Plan repeats the instruction: residents "can arrange with their streets and sanitation ward superintendent for a bulk pick-up if they have any large [items]."

Each ward has a superintendent coordinating local pick-up and sanitation enforcement, and the district and ward sanitation offices handle it. Reach yours via 311 (3-1-1 inside Chicago, 312.744.5000 from outside) or the ward office directly. Have your address, unit count and item ready, then ask:

• Is bulk pick-up currently provided at this address?
• Are mattresses and box springs accepted?
• Is there any count, size or weight limit?
• What is the set-out day, and where exactly should the item go?

Direct ward lines include the 18th Ward superintendent on 312.747.3655 and the 44th Ward yard at 1501 W. School Street, 312.744.5028. The DSS main line is 312.744.4611 at 121 N. LaSalle Street, Room 1107.

One practical point: bulk pick-up is not a published online 311 request type. The City's machine-readable catalogue of 124 service codes contains no bulk-item, large-item or mattress code — the closest are Garbage Cart Maintenance, Missed Garbage Pick-Up Complaint, Sanitation Code Violation and Yard Waste Pick-Up Request. Use the phone.

A conflict you should know about. The 44th Ward's own aldermanic site, 44thward.org — not chicago.gov — states that "the City no longer provides bulk pickup services" and advises leaving large items in the alley beside the cart. That contradicts chicago.gov ward pages advertising "Refuse and bulk pick up." Neither statement is final for your block; the ward office or 311 is.

What the City does and does not say about mattresses

Official: bulk pick-up is arranged per ward with the DSS ward superintendent before set-out; City refuse collection covers buildings of 1–4 units; the refuse fee is $9.50 per month per dwelling unit; and the bed-bug rule below is real law.

Not official: no chicago.gov page names mattresses, box springs or futons as accepted or excluded bulky items, and none publishes a per-item or per-pickup fee, a maximum count, a monthly limit, a size or weight limit, a scheduling window, a set-out time or a general bagging requirement.

Private and partner sites only: "up to 2 mattresses per pickup", "one bulk pickup per month per address", "scheduled within 5–7 business days", "out by 6 a.m." and "mattresses must be bagged" appear only on private hauler, directory and partner sites. Some of those sites claim the City will not take mattresses; one City-partner recycling education site claims the opposite, that the City collects them free via 3-1-1. Neither is a City policy page, so neither settles it.

Treat the question as open until one call closes it. If the answer is no, you still have three fallbacks: the building's private hauler (5+ unit buildings), a paid retailer haul-away tied to a new mattress, or a private self-haul recycling drop-off.

Which Chicago mattress route fits your situation?

Route comparison

For a 1–4 unit Chicago address abutting the public way, the only City route is a ward-arranged bulk pick-up set up by phone before the mattress goes outside. Because no mattress-specific acceptance, limit, lead time or charge is published by the City, one confirmable call beats any figure a commercial guide prints. For a 5+ unit building there is no City route at all — the landlord or the building's hauler carries it. Self-haul suits people with a vehicle. Retailer haul-away is convenient but tied to a purchase. Donation is the best outcome for a clean, pest-free bed, but acceptance must be phoned in.

Illinois has no statewide mattress programme, so there is no state drop-off network to fall back on. The Illinois Product Stewardship Council treats mattress recycling as a goal rather than an enacted program and notes that recyclers must charge roughly $5–$20 per piece to cover manual deconstruction. The Illinois EPA's disposal guidance covers tyres, yard waste, universal waste and construction debris, but no mattress programme. Roughly 2,000 mattresses are discarded in Illinois landfills daily — about 25,000 tons a year. None of that creates a free public route.

Drop-offs that will turn your mattress away

Household Chemicals & Computer Recycling Facility (HCCRF), 1150 N. North Branch Street, is open to Chicago residents Tuesday 7 a.m.–12 p.m., Thursday 2–7 p.m., and the first Saturday each month 8 a.m.–3 p.m. It is residential-only and takes household chemicals and listed electronics — pesticides, propane tanks, lead-acid batteries, aerosols, mercury items, small fire extinguishers, computers, cell phones, paints. Mattresses are not accepted, and materials must not be left outside operating hours.

Cook County CHaRM Center, run with South Suburban College at 15800 S. State Street, South Holland, is free to County residents with proof of residency and refuses commercial waste. Its official not-accepted list reads: "Furniture, electronics, paints, mattresses and cleaners/liquids." It does take bedspreads, blankets, sheets, pillows and curtains — the soft goods, not the mattress.

Preparing the mattress before it leaves the building

1. Call first — confirm bulk pick-up serves your address, that mattresses and box springs are accepted, the set-out day, and the set-out point (alley lot line or curb line).
2. Strip it. Sheets, covers and pillows go out separately; bedding is not recyclable and does not belong in the Blue Cart.
3. Break down the frame. A metal bed frame is scrap metal, routed separately.
4. Do not cut the mattress open. That releases foam, dust and any pest residue, and processors need the item intact.
5. Never use the black cart or the Blue Cart. It does not fit, and bedding is not recyclable.
6. If it was infested, bag and label it — this is a legal requirement, not a preference.
7. Set out only after the pick-up is confirmed, without blocking the alley, fire lane, alley gate or a neighbour's lot line.

Safety warnings

Do not set it out before the pick-up is confirmed. The City's ward page warns that items put out without contacting the sanitation office first can draw a ticket, and MCC 7-28-450 makes every day an unremoved item stays out a separate offence.

Bed bugs are mandatory handling. Under the 2013 bed bug ordinance, disposing of a bed-bug-infested item is prohibited unless it is totally enclosed in a plastic bag and labelled as infested with bed bugs, and recycling any infested item is prohibited. This is the only official wrapping or labelling rule for bedding in Chicago. In a rental, the abatement obligation sits with the landlord — notify them as well as disposing correctly.

Never dump it. A mattress in a vacant lot, on a parkway or in someone else's dumpster is fly dumping. MCC 7-28-450 sets a fine of $750–$5,000 per offence, each day separate; the fly-dumping provision carries $1,500 for a first load and $2,500–$3,500 for each subsequent load. The building owner can also be cited. Re-check amounts against the current online Municipal Code — the City's fine schedule PDF is dated 2012 and shows older figures.

Watch the lift. A mattress carried down stairs is a real injury risk. Get help, use the safe route, and confirm access and elevator limits when booking any hauler or retailer pickup.

Apartment and renter edge cases

The four-unit rule decides everything for renters. In a 1–4 unit building the City collects refuse and the ward bulk route may be available. In a building of five or more units the City does not collect, and the mattress goes through the building's private hauler or the landlord — as the City's own 311 article states.

Where the water or utility account is in the landlord's name, the owner carries the refuse-service obligation. Ask the leasing office how mattresses are removed at the building before moving anything. A renter in a 1–4 unit building may still be able to request a bulk pick-up for the address, but ask the landlord first, then call 311.

Do not use the building dumpster, compactor room or alley. Unremoved refuse is a public nuisance under MCC 7-28-450 with fines of $750–$5,000 per offence and each day counted separately; the owner can be cited alongside you, and fly dumping is $1,500–$3,500 per load. Nothing in Chicago's rules lets a renter leave a mattress in a shared alley while waiting.

Move-out timing is a trap. Renters cannot rely on the City bulk route to hit a lease deadline. Ask the building manager about the private haul or book a paid pickup in advance, and do not leave the mattress outside in the meantime. Fallbacks: the building hauler, paid retailer haul-away, a private drop-off such as GreenWay, a junk-removal firm, or donation for a genuinely clean, pest-free bed.

Donation and retailer haul-away — what is actually sourced

Donation. The Chicago Furniture Bank accepts furniture meeting strict criteria: clean, odour-free, structurally sound and must be pest-free. Drop-offs go to 4801 S. Whipple Street, Chicago IL 60632, Monday–Friday 9 a.m.–3 p.m.; call ahead on 312-752-0211. Pickups run through partner Honest Junk Company, typically within 48 hours, priced by truck space, with receipts for the items plus 80% of the removal fee. Items cannot be on the third floor or higher without a lift. Crucially, its published criteria do not name mattresses, so confirm by phone first. Most charity shops refuse mattresses outright.

Retailer haul-away. The only sourced retailer figure is Mattress Firm: "Mattress Setup and Haul Away" at $109.99, or $159.99 with an adjustable base. It covers new mattress and box spring setup, packaging removal and removal of the old set equal to the number of pieces purchased, with a maximum of three flights of stairs (five for the adjustable-base option), and it is tied to delivery of a new mattress — not a standalone pickup. The retailer's terms also state that the free within-30-days one-for-one programme applies only to purchases delivered in California, that crews refuse unsanitary beds (soiled, wet, insect or pest infested, or left outdoors), that only mattresses and box springs are removed, and that an authorised person aged 18 or over must be present. Re-verify price and terms on the retailer's own page before booking.

Private drop-off. GreenWay Recycling at 2100 S. Kilbourn Avenue, Chicago IL 60623, runs a drive-in weigh-in, weigh-out facility Monday–Friday 5 a.m.–6 p.m. and Saturday 5 a.m.–3 p.m., closed Sunday. It accepts mattresses and is open to the public, but publishes no mattress rate — call (773) 522-0025 to confirm that day's acceptance and pricing. It is a private facility, not a City programme.

What it costs

• City refuse fee: $9.50 per month per dwelling unit on the water/sewer/garbage bill. Metred accounts bill every two months at $19.00 single family, $38.00 two-unit, $57.00 three-unit and $76.00 four-unit; non-metred accounts bill every six months, $57.00 single family up to $228.00 four-unit. Late balances accrue 1.25% per month; Utility Billing Customer Service is 312.744.4426.
• Bulk pick-up charge: unknown from official sources. No chicago.gov page publishes a fee, and none states it is free. Do not treat "free" as City policy without confirming at 311.
• Private collection (5+ units): no mattress figure published; those households average $10–$16 per unit per month.
• Retailer haul-away: $109.99, or $159.99 with an adjustable base, tied to a new-mattress delivery.
• Private drop-off: no published rate; the Illinois Product Stewardship Council cites a general industry range of about $5–$20 per piece, not a Chicago price.
• Penalties: MCC 7-28-450, $750–$5,000 per offence, each day separate.

Mistakes to avoid

• Setting the mattress out before the pick-up is confirmed — exactly what the ward-level ticket warning targets.
• Assuming a 5+ unit building gets a City pick-up. Buildings of more than four units arrange private collection.
• Taking it to the HCCRF or the Cook County CHaRM Center. Both refuse mattresses.
• Bagging it because a website said so. Wrapping is required only for bed-bug-infested items — and is then mandatory, with recycling prohibited.
• Cutting the mattress open in the street, spreading dust and pest residue.
• Putting it in the black cart or the Blue Cart.
• Trusting a figure because several sites repeat it. Count limits, lead times and bagging rules trace back to private and partner content, not City rules.
• Leaving it in the alley "to see if it goes." That is the $750–$5,000-per-offence outcome, each day counted separately.

Official verification checklist

1. Count the dwelling units. 1–4 units abutting the public way = City service; 5+ units, commercial or non-abutting = private hauler or landlord.
2. Call 311 (312.744.5000 from outside Chicago) or your ward sanitation office: is bulk pick-up provided for this address, and are mattresses and box springs accepted?
3. In the same call, ask about any count or size limit, the set-out day and whether a charge applies.
4. Confirm the set-out point before placing anything outside.
5. If it was bed-bug infested, bag and label it and notify the landlord.
6. Do not take it to the HCCRF at 1150 N. North Branch Street or the Cook County CHaRM Center.
7. In a 5+ unit building, call the owner, manager or a licensed private hauler instead of 311.
8. Self-hauling to GreenWay Recycling? Phone (773) 522-0025 to confirm that day's acceptance and pricing.
9. Donating to the Chicago Furniture Bank? Confirm on 312-752-0211 that mattresses are accepted.
10. Relying on retailer haul-away? Re-verify terms and price. The free one-for-one programme is California-only.
11. Re-check any fine amount against the current online Municipal Code text.

Jurisdiction: what this guide covers

This guide covers the City of Chicago within the DSS residential service area — single-family homes and residential buildings of four units or fewer that abut the public way. Buildings of five or more units, commercial premises and non-abutting properties are outside City collection. Cook County's CHaRM Center is a separate programme with its own residency and material rules, and Illinois has no statewide mattress programme. Suburban and village addresses are served by their own municipal or contracted haulers. Within the city, building management, landlords, condo and co-op boards may impose their own set-out rules, programme terms change, and the City's ward-level pages do not fully agree with each other on bulk pick-up. Confirm with the official source — starting with 311 — before you move a mattress.

Frequently asked questions

Does Chicago pick up mattresses from the alley? There is a ward-arranged City bulk pick-up for single-family homes and buildings of four units or fewer, and the City instructs residents to arrange it with the DSS ward superintendent before setting anything out. But no chicago.gov page names mattresses as an accepted bulky item or publishes a count, lead time or fee. Call 311 and confirm for your address.

Is the City bulk pick-up free? Unknown from official sources. No chicago.gov page publishes a fee, and none states it is free. The only sourced City refuse charge is $9.50 per month per dwelling unit, which funds weekly collection. Ask 311.

How many mattresses can I put out, and how soon will they be collected? The City publishes neither. The counts and windows you see online — two per pickup, one pickup a month, five to seven business days — come from private haulers, directories and partner sites, not from the City. Get both numbers from 311 or the ward sanitation office in the same call.

I live in a high-rise or five-flat. Can I call 311? You can call, but the City does not collect from buildings of five or more units. Your route is the building's private hauler or your landlord.

Do I have to wrap the mattress in plastic? Only if it is bed-bug infested. The 2013 ordinance requires infested items to be totally enclosed in a plastic bag, labelled as infested, and never recycled. There is no general City mattress-wrapping requirement on the record, despite the advice circulating online.

Can I take it to the HCCRF or the Cook County CHaRM Center? No. The HCCRF at 1150 N. North Branch Street takes household chemicals and listed electronics only, and the CHaRM Center's not-accepted list explicitly names mattresses.

What happens if I just leave it in the alley? MCC 7-28-450 makes the owner responsible for removing refuse, declares unremoved material a public nuisance, and sets a fine of $750–$5,000 per offence, with each day of continuing violation a separate offence. Fly dumping carries $1,500 for a first load and $2,500–$3,500 for each subsequent load. The building owner can be cited too.

Does Illinois have a state mattress recycling programme? No — no Illinois mattress product-stewardship law or statewide landfill ban could be confirmed. Any recycling route in the Chicago area is private or municipal.

What if the City route turns out not to be available for my block? Three fallbacks: the building's private hauler or your landlord (5+ unit buildings), a paid retailer haul-away tied to a new-mattress purchase, or a private self-haul drop-off such as GreenWay Recycling. In all three cases, confirm acceptance and pricing before you move the bed.

Official sources

• City of Chicago — Sanitation Code Violation guidance (bulk pick-up via the ward superintendent before set-out): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/streets/provdrs/streets_san/svcs/sanitation_ordinance.html
• City of Chicago — Residential Garbage Collection (1–4 unit eligibility; ~600,000 households): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/streets/provdrs/streets_san/svcs/residential_garbagecollection.html
• City of Chicago — Grid Garbage Collection (eight districts; weekly Monday–Friday): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/streets/provdrs/streets_san/svcs/grid-garbage-collection.html
• City of Chicago — 18th Ward Streets and Sanitation Office (contact the office before setting items out): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/about/wards/18/serving_you/18th_ward_streetsandsanitationoffice.html
• City of Chicago — 44th Ward City Services ("Refuse and bulk pick up"): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/about/wards/44/serving_you/city_services.html
• City of Chicago — Division and Sanitation Offices (ward offices that arrange bulk pick-ups): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/streets/provdrs/streets_san/svcs/division_and_wardsanitationoffices.html
• City of Chicago — Garbage Fee ($9.50 monthly per dwelling unit; billing cycles; penalty): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/fin/provdrs/city-of-chicago-garbage-fee-webpage.html
• Chicago Department of Public Health — Bed Bugs (2013 ordinance: seal, label, do not recycle): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/cdph/provdrs/healthy_communities/svcs/bed-bugs.html
• CHI 311 — Recycling Pick Up (four-unit cut-off): https://311.chicago.gov/s/article/Recycling-Pick-Up?language=en_US
• City of Chicago — Open311 service catalogue (no bulk-item request code; 124 service codes): https://311api.cityofchicago.org/open311/v2/services.json
• City of Chicago — HCCRF flyer (address, hours, materials; no mattresses): https://chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/doe/general/PermittingAndEnforcement/HHW_Household-Chemicals-and-Computer-Recycling-Facility_051325.ax.4.9.26.pdf
• City of Chicago — Recycling "How It Works" (HCCRF hours and materials): https://chicago.gov/city/en/depts/streets/supp_info/how_it_works.html
• City of Chicago Dept. of Water — Pollution Prevention Plan, Dec 2024 (repeats the ward bulk pick-up instruction): https://chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/water/general/Engineering/CSO/PollutionPreventionPlan_20241220-1301.pdf
• Municipal Code of Chicago 7-28-235 — refuse collection and fee: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/chicago/latest/chicago_il/0-0-0-2641309
• Municipal Code of Chicago 7-28-220 / 7-28-230 — containers and placement: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/chicago/latest/chicago_il/0-0-0-2641280
• Municipal Code of Chicago 7-28-450 — unremoved refuse and penalty: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/chicago/latest/chicago_il/0-0-0-2641436
• City of Chicago — DSS code and fine schedule PDF (dated 2012; structure only): https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/bacp/Small%20Business%20Center/DSSletteraok.pdf
• Cook County — CHaRM Center (mattresses not accepted; residency rules): https://www.cookcountyil.gov/CHaRMCenter
• South Suburban College — CHaRM Services (operator page): https://www.ssc.edu/charm/charm-services
• Illinois Product Stewardship Council — Mattresses (no enacted Illinois programme): https://illinoispsc.org/mattresses/
• Illinois EPA — Proper Disposal Methods (no mattress programme): https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/waste-management/illegal-dumping/disposal-methods.html
• Mattress Firm — Mattress Setup and Haul Away pricing ($109.99 / $159.99): https://www.mattressfirm.com/900-adjustable-base/5637147203.p
• Mattress Firm — Mattress Removal Request Form (California-only free programme; limits): https://www.mattressfirm.com/haulawayrequestform
• Mattress Firm — How To Dispose of an Old Mattress (service limitations): https://www.mattressfirm.com/blog/mattress-obsessed/how-to-dispose-of-a-mattress
• GreenWay Recycling — Chicago mattress recycling drop-off (address, hours; pricing unpublished): https://greenwayrecycles.com/resources/how-to-recycle-mattresses-in-chicago-drop-off-locations-fees-what-happens-after-pickup
• GreenWay Recycling — Residential recycling and dumpster rental: https://www.greenwayrecycles.com/residential
• Chicago Furniture Bank — Schedule a Furniture Donation Pickup (criteria; truck-space pricing): https://chicagofurniturebank.org/pickups
• Recycle by City — Bulky Item Pick Up Services, Chicago (City recycling education partner; partner content): https://www.recyclebycity.com/chicago/notebook/bulky-oversized-large-items-pick-up
• 44th Ward aldermanic site — Streets and Sanitation (not chicago.gov; conflicting bulk pick-up claim): https://www.44thward.org/services/streets-sanitation

This guide covers the City of Chicago within the DSS residential service area only. Buildings of five or more units, commercial premises and non-abutting properties are outside City collection. Cook County's CHaRM Center is a separate programme with its own rules, and Illinois has no statewide mattress programme. Building management, landlords, condo and co-op boards may impose their own set-out rules. Programme terms, hours and exclusion lists change, and the City's ward-level pages do not fully agree on bulk pick-up — confirm with the official source before you move a mattress or plan a trip. Dial 3-1-1 inside Chicago, or 312.744.5000 from outside the city.