Recycling rules for Plymouth
Based on Plymouth published guidance · Last verified September 2026
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us
Here's what currently goes in each bin in Plymouth.
Search what goes in your bins →Quick answers for Plymouth
Polystyrene: Not accepted in Plymouth's recycling bin
Brown general waste bin or bags.
Cardboard: Goes in your recycling bin
Flatten boxes to make more room.
Glass bottles and jars: Goes in your recycling bin
Clear, brown, green or blue; rinse first.
Food waste: Plymouth has a separate food waste collection
Takes all uneaten food and plate scrapings, tea bags, coffee grounds and more.
Shredded paper: Goes in your recycling bin
Clothes: Needs specialist recycling, not your kerbside bins
Take to a recycling centre.
Your bins in Plymouth, by colour
Brown bin
General waste
Brown is the general rubbish colour in 1 of the 100 councils with a checked general rubbish colour.
Some homes use bags, a communal waste bin or community bins (colour not stated)
Green bin
Recycling
Green is the recycling colour in 26 of the 91 councils with a checked recycling colour.
Communal green bins take the same items; some homes use bags or community bins (colour not stated)
Black bin
Garden waste
Black is the garden waste colour in 2 of the 141 councils with a checked garden waste colour.
Paid permit (£58); black garden bags instead where a bin is impractical or unsafe
Black bag
Garden waste
Only where the council decides a bin is impractical or unsafe; 4 bags per permit
Grey caddy
Food waste
Some flats and HMOs get a communal external bin instead (colour not stated)
What goes in each bin
Recycling
Accepted
Glass
- Glass bottles and jars · Clear, brown, green or blue; rinse first · Symbol guide
Plastics
- Detergent bottles
- Plastic drink bottles · Flatten or crush, e.g. plastic milk bottles · Symbol guide
- Plastic food trays · Rinse first; black plastic trays too
- Fruit punnets
- Ice cream tubs · Rinse to remove any food waste
- Margarine tubs · Rinse to remove any food waste
- Shampoo bottles
- Yoghurt pots · Rinse to remove any food waste
Paper & Card
- Cardboard packaging · Flatten boxes to make more room · Symbol guide
- Catalogues
- Cereal packets
- Directories
- Envelopes
- Junk mail and cards · Not cards with glitter and glue
- Magazines
- Newspapers
- Office paper
- Shredded paper · UK basics
Metals
- Aerosols · UK basics
- Aluminium food trays and containers · Rinse to remove any food waste
- Biscuit and cake tins
- Clean sheet cooking foil · Dirty foil goes in the brown bin
- Food and drinks cans · Symbol guide
- Metal lids
Not accepted
- Black bagsInstead: Place recycling loose in the bin or bag
- Plastic bags · UK basicsInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
- Plastic film · UK basicsInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
- Broken glassInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
- MirrorsInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
- Sheet glassInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
- Polystyrene · UK basicsInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
- Coffee cups · UK basicsInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
- LightbulbsInstead: Brown general waste bin or bags
Common mistakes
- Batteries · Take to supermarkets or our recycling centre · UK basics
- Dirty foil → goes in General Waste · Brown bin; clean sheet cooking foil goes in the green bin
- Foil lined food packets → goes in General Waste · Brown general waste bin or bags
- Shiny foil gift wrap → goes in General Waste · Brown general waste bin or bags
- Cards with glitter and glue → goes in General Waste · Brown general waste bin or bags
- Nappies → goes in General Waste · These need to be put in your brown bin
- Electrical goods · Take to a recycling centre
- Textiles · Take to a recycling centre · UK basics
- Garden waste → goes in Garden Waste · Garden waste scheme, home compost or a recycling centre
Tips (19)
- • Collected every other week
- • Place recycling loose
- • No black bags in the green bin
- • Rinse pots, tubs and trays
- • Flatten or crush milk bottles
- • Flatten cardboard boxes
- • All glass bottles and jars
- • Shredded paper is accepted
- • Dirty foil goes in brown bin
- • No glitter or glue cards
- • No plastic bags or film
- • No polystyrene or coffee cups
- • No broken glass or mirrors
- • No batteries in the green bin
- • Lid must be fully closed
- • Nothing next to your bin
- • Out from 6.30pm night before
- • Communal green bins: same list
- • Bank holiday: one day later
Food Waste
Accepted
- All uneaten food and plate scrapings
- Tea bags · Biodegradable and non-biodegradable accepted
- Coffee grounds
- Out of date or mouldy food
- Raw and cooked meat · Including bones
- Raw and cooked fish · Including skin and bones
- Shellfish and seafood shells
- Dairy products · Such as cheese
- Eggs and eggshells
- Rice, pasta and beans
- Baked goods · Such as bread, cakes and pastries
- Fruit and vegetables · Raw and cooked, peelings, and cut flowers
- Pet food waste
Not accepted
- Packaging and wrappers
- Liquids and oils
- Pet waste, animal bedding and cat litter
- Garden wasteInstead: Black garden waste bin or bags (paid scheme)
- Glass, metal and general household rubbish
- Bags for life as linersInstead: Old carrier bags or newspaper
Common mistakes
- Cooking oil · Chelson Meadow recycling centre accepts cooking oil
- Vegetable peelings in the garden bin → goes in Food Waste · Garden waste excludes food and vegetable peelings
Tips (17)
- • Collected every week
- • Same day as brown/green bins
- • Caddy at usual collection spot
- • Liners are optional
- • Plastic bag liners are fine
- • Newspaper or paper bag liners
- • Not bags for life as liners
- • All tea bags accepted
- • Bones and shells accepted
- • Mouldy food is accepted
- • No liquids, oil or fat
- • No pet waste or cat litter
- • No packaging or wrappers
- • No amount is too small
- • Rinse the caddy occasionally
- • Caddy locks by its handle
- • Missed caddies not recollected
Garden Waste
Accepted
- Flowers
- Grass cuttings
- Shrub and hedge trimmings
- Plants
- Twigs and branches · Up to 7cm in width
- Weeds
- Loose leaves
Not accepted
- Invasive species
- Plant pots and trays
- Soil, compost or turf
- Bricks, stones or rubbleInstead: Chelson Meadow (DIY waste rules apply)
- Animal waste and pet litter
- Artificial grass
- Ash, charcoal or burned material
- Compostable packaging
- Garden furniture and toys
- Treated wood
- Wire netting
- Plastic bags or liners
- Commercial waste
- Other non-plant material
Common mistakes
- Food and vegetable peelings → goes in Food Waste · Use the weekly food waste caddy
- Excess garden waste · Recycling centre, or store it until the next collection
Tips (18)
- • Paid scheme: one permit a bin
- • Collected every other week
- • Runs 30 Mar to 22 Nov 2026
- • Stick permit on top of the bin
- • Put garden waste in loose
- • No plastic bags or liners
- • Lid must be fully closed
- • No waste beside or on the lid
- • Out after 6pm, by 6am
- • Twigs and branches up to 7cm
- • No soil, stones or rubble
- • No food or veg peelings
- • No Japanese Knotweed
- • No plant pots or trays
- • Up to 3 bins per household
- • Report misses within 48 hours
- • Loosen frozen contents
- • Swap bin size for free
Food waste in Plymouth
In Plymouth’s own words (checked September 2026): “Your food waste will be collected every week, on the same weekday as your brown and green bin collections.”
22 of the 181 councils whose food waste guidance we have checked say it is starting or being rolled out.
The government’s rule for England requires “weekly food waste collections for most homes, unless a transitional arrangement applies”. Read it on gov.uk
Which councils collect food waste weeklyAreas covered by Plymouth
- Postcode districts all or nearly all in Plymouth: PL1, PL2, PL3, PL4, PL5 and PL95.
- Postcode districts mostly in Plymouth: PL6, PL7 and PL9 (shared with South Hams).
Built-up area (ONS) with the most postcodes in Plymouth: Plymouth.
Shares count each district’s live postcodes; a district is listed where Plymouth has at least 5% of them or 50. Built-up areas are ONS statistical areas, not a list from the council.
Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2025. Contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2025. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Council homepages: GOV.UK, Open Government Licence v3.0.
Councils we have checked that border a neighbour of Plymouth: Teignbridge, West Devon.
When are bins collected in Plymouth?
Plymouth sets collection days by street: find your bin day, or browse neighbours’ schedules by postcode.
In Plymouth, a bank holiday pushes that week's collections back by a day: after a Monday holiday, Monday's bins go out on Tuesday, Tuesday's on Wednesday, and so on. BinBosh adjusts your dates automatically, and your neighbours can vote on the actual day if it differs.
Plymouth does not collect garden waste in December, January, February and March.
Garden waste collections pause from 23 November 2026 to 30 November 2026.
BinBosh reminders skip these weeks, and a missed check-in in them does not break your streak.
No Plymouth streets on BinBosh yet: add yours for neighbours to adopt.
How we checked this page
We checked this guidance against Plymouth’s website in September 2026.
Source: Plymouth council website, which has the latest updates. Bin colours are as the council publishes them; some homes get a different container.
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us
Every report goes to BinBosh’s owner, who checks it against the council’s own page.
Frequently asked questions
What colour are the bins in Plymouth?
In Plymouth the recycling bin is green, the garden waste bin is black and the general rubbish bin is brown. Plymouth also lists a black bag for garden waste, and a grey caddy for food waste. Green is the recycling colour in 26 of the 91 councils with a checked recycling colour.
Where does glass go in Plymouth?
Glass goes in the green recycling bin in Plymouth (“Glass bottles and jars”).
Does Plymouth collect food waste, and how often?
In Plymouth’s own words (checked September 2026): “Your food waste will be collected every week, on the same weekday as your brown and green bin collections.”
Is garden waste collected all year in Plymouth?
Plymouth does not collect garden waste in December, January, February and March. Garden waste collections pause from 23 November 2026 to 30 November 2026.
Do bin collections change on bank holidays in Plymouth?
In Plymouth, a bank holiday pushes that week's collections back by a day: after a Monday holiday, Monday's bins go out on Tuesday, Tuesday's on Wednesday, and so on. BinBosh adjusts your dates automatically, and your neighbours can vote on the actual day if it differs.
What goes in the recycling bin in Plymouth?
Plymouth’s recycling bin takes “Glass bottles and jars”, “Detergent bottles” and “Plastic drink bottles”, among other things.
See the full recycling listWork for Plymouth? See how BinBosh helps councils →
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