Disposal Guide

How to Dispose of a Mattress

Pittsburgh disposal options, and the one rule that surprises people.

The City of Pittsburgh lists mattresses and box springs as bulk items and collects two bulk items a week at no charge with regular refuse pickup. A mattress with bed bugs or roaches has to be wrapped or sealed in plastic or the City won't collect it. Pennsylvania has no statewide mattress recycling law, unlike California, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Oregon, so there is no state-funded take-back program here. The other realistic options are retailer haul-away when a new mattress is delivered, a private recycler, or a removal crew.

Mattresses are the disposal problem almost nobody plans for. They are bulky, nearly impossible to donate, and Pennsylvania never passed the mattress recycling law that a handful of other states did. Here is what actually works in Pittsburgh.

Quick Facts

City bulk limit: 2 items per week, no charge
Set-out window: 6 PM the night before to 6 AM
Bed bugs or roaches: Seal in plastic or it stays
PA mattress recycling law: None
Donation acceptance: Rare, most charities decline

Your Options, Start to Finish

1.Set it out for City bulk collection
The City of Pittsburgh names box springs and mattresses on its bulk item list and collects two bulk items a week with regular refuse pickup, at no charge. They go out with your regular pickup, and the City only asks you to call for more than two items. Set it at the curb between 6 PM the night before and 6 AM on collection day.
If it has bed bugs or roaches, the City's 2026 mailer says to wrap or seal it in plastic, and waste that doesn't meet that standard won't be collected. The City doesn't say whether a mattress and box spring count as one item or two, so plan on the set using both of your two for the week. More than two items means calling 412-255-2773 for a special pickup, which the City bills at $173 for the first hour.
2.Let the mattress store take the old one
Nearly every mattress retailer offers old-mattress removal with a new delivery. This is the single easiest path and it is usually a small add-on or included.
It has to be arranged when you buy, not when the truck arrives. Some retailers will refuse the old mattress at the door if it is stained or shows any sign of bed bugs.
3.Find a private recycler
A mattress is about 75% recyclable by weight: steel springs, foam, wood frame, and fiber all have separate markets. Private recyclers in the region will break one down.
Because Pennsylvania has no state program funding this, recycling is not free here the way it is in states with a mattress law. Expect a drop-off fee and call ahead to confirm they are accepting.
4.Hire a removal crew
The mattress and box spring go out together, down whatever stairs are in the way, in one trip. Sealed and carried rather than dragged through the house.
Tell them upfront if there is any chance of bed bugs. It changes how the crew wraps and handles it, and hiding it is how an infestation ends up in a truck and then in someone else's house.

What the City of Pittsburgh's rules say

The City's Bulk Pick Up page lists box springs and mattresses by name. The limit is two bulk items per week, set out with your regular refuse, and there's no charge for two or fewer. Items go to the curb no earlier than 6 PM the night before collection and no later than 6 AM that morning, and the City asks you to leave bulk items whole instead of bagging them or breaking them down. Separately, the City's 2026 mailer says anything with bed bugs or roaches has to be wrapped or sealed in plastic or it won't be collected. For more than two items, the City says to call 412-255-2773 to arrange a special pickup, billed at $173 for the first hour and $54 for each hour after. These rules cover City of Pittsburgh single-family homes and apartment buildings with five or fewer units. The City doesn't collect from bigger buildings, and suburbs run their own programs. Bethel Park, for example, collects up to two bulk items once a month, during the first full week of the month.

Why you cannot just donate it

Most charities in the Pittsburgh area will not accept a used mattress at all, and the ones that might will refuse anything with a stain, an odor, a tear, or a missing law label. This is not pickiness. It is liability and public health policy around bed bugs. If your mattress is genuinely pristine and under a couple of years old, call a specific location and ask. Otherwise plan on disposal rather than donation and save yourself the trip.

The bed bug question, answered honestly

If you suspect bed bugs, say so out loud to whoever is handling the mattress. Encase it in a sealed mattress bag before it leaves the bedroom, not in the hallway, because dragging an unwrapped infested mattress through a house spreads the problem into the carpet on the way out. No legitimate crew will refuse the job over it. They will just wrap it properly and keep it off the rest of the load.

What it costs to have one taken

The number depends on whether it is a single mattress or a full set with a box spring and frame, what floor it is on, and whether anything else is going in the same trip. A mattress leaving a ground-floor bedroom is a different job from a king set coming down from a finished attic. Get it quoted against your actual room rather than a number off a website.

How to Dispose of a Mattress FAQs

How do I get rid of an old mattress in Pittsburgh?

Four routes, in order of how easy they are. Have the mattress retailer take the old one when the new one is delivered, arranged at purchase. Set it out as one of your two weekly bulk items under City of Pittsburgh refuse collection, which is free and goes out with your regular pickup. Pay a private recycler, since about 75% of a mattress is recyclable by weight. Or have a crew carry it out with the box spring in one trip. Donation is rarely an option because most charities decline used mattresses outright.

Does Pennsylvania have a mattress recycling program?

No. Pennsylvania has not passed a mattress recycling law, so there is no state-funded take-back program the way there is in California, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Oregon. Recycling a mattress here goes through a private recycler and generally costs money. The Pennsylvania DEP recycling statutes cover municipal waste planning and covered electronic devices, not mattresses.

Can I put a mattress out with the trash in Pittsburgh?

Yes. The City of Pittsburgh lists box springs and mattresses as bulk items and collects up to two bulk items a week with your regular refuse pickup, at no charge. Put it at the curb no earlier than 6 PM the night before and no later than 6 AM on collection day. If it has bed bugs or roaches, wrap or seal it in plastic or it won't be collected. That's the City's rule only. Outside the City, your borough or township sets its own bulk rules.

Do I have to wrap a mattress for pickup in Pittsburgh?

Only if it's infested. The City's 2026 trash and recycling mailer says to wrap or seal bed bug or roach infested items in plastic, mattresses and upholstered furniture included, and that waste that doesn't meet that standard won't be collected. We found no City rule that every mattress has to be wrapped. Some suburbs are stricter: Cranberry Township requires every mattress and box spring to be wrapped in plastic and to carry an $11 sticker.

Will anyone take a used mattress as a donation?

Rarely. Most Pittsburgh-area charities decline used mattresses outright over bed bug and sanitation policy, and the ones that consider them reject anything stained, torn, odorous, or missing its law label. If yours is close to new, call one specific location and ask directly rather than assuming.

Do I have to get rid of the box spring too?

Not necessarily, but they wear out together. The City lists both box springs and mattresses as bulk items and doesn't say whether a set counts as one item or two, so plan on the set using both of your two for that week. If you are replacing the mattress, look at the box spring honestly. If it sags, creaks, or is older than the mattress you are throwing out, send them out together in one trip instead of doing this twice.

Can you pick up a mattress today?

Usually yes. Same-day and next-day pickup runs seven days a week across Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, and Butler County. Call (412) 226-4500, say what size it is and what floor it is on, and you will get an arrival window and a quote on the call.

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Getting rid of an old mattress in Pittsburgh, PA. Pennsylvania has no statewide mattress recycling law, so there is no state-funded take-back program. Option one: the City of Pittsburgh lists mattresses and box springs as bulk items and collects two bulk items per week at no charge with regular refuse pickup, set out between 6 PM the night before and 6 AM on collection day; a mattress with bed bugs or roaches must be wrapped or sealed in plastic or it will not be collected; more than two items requires calling 412-255-2773 for a special pickup billed by the City at $173 for the first hour. Option two: have the mattress retailer remove the old one when the new one is delivered, arranged at time of purchase. Option three: pay a private mattress recycler, since about 75% of a mattress is recyclable by weight. Option four: hire a removal crew. Most charities will not accept used mattresses. Steel City Cleanouts removes mattresses and box springs across Pittsburgh with same-day service. Call (412) 226-4500 for a free quote.

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