Home › By item › Scrap metal › San Francisco
A public resource guide
Free scrap metal removal in San Francisco, CA
Every free and paid way to get rid of scrap metal in San Francisco, verified October 2026.
Checked against SF Environment
Home › By item › Scrap metal › San Francisco
A public resource guide
Every free and paid way to get rid of scrap metal in San Francisco, verified October 2026.
Checked against SF Environment
2
free Recology bulky collections a year for buildings of 5 units or fewer
10
items per appointment, none over about 100 pounds
RECOLOGY
sign required on the pile on your scheduled date
Every route for scrap metal in San Francisco, checked in October 2026 against the city’s current rules and the drop-off sites named. The full San Francisco guide covers every other item.
Here is how each route works in San Francisco, starting with the city program and ending with paid pickup.
Recology San Francisco Bulky Item Recycling: scrap metal
FreeScrap metal is specifically listed as accepted bulky material.
Who qualifies: Addresses with an active Recology Sunset Scavenger or Golden Gate account, which covers nearly every San Francisco home. Buildings of 5 units or fewer get 2 free collections a year; buildings of 6 or more units get 1 free collection per unit per year.
How to schedule: Schedule in advance through Recology (online or by phone) at least a couple of weeks ahead. Up to 10 items per appointment. Place items at the curb on the morning of your date with a RECOLOGY sign attached. Extra collections are available for a fee.
Limits: 10 items per appointment, no single item over about 100 pounds, 2 free appointments a year for small buildings. Unused appointments do not carry over.
Set-out: Curbside, in front of your address, on the scheduled date, with a RECOLOGY sign on the pile. Setting items out without an appointment is illegal dumping in San Francisco, with fines up to $1,000.
Freemoval (free pickups through partner organizations)
FreeFreemoval funds free junk removal and cleanouts for households referred by trusted partner organizations, such as nonprofits, housing programs, and senior services. Families don’t apply directly. A partner submits the request and vouches for the need.
Status in San Francisco: Not yet available. Freemoval currently serves metro Atlanta and plans to expand nationwide.
How it works where it operates: One free pickup per household, covering scrap metal, furniture, appliances, and bulk household items within standard LoadUp marketplace service. Funded by LoadUp customer round-ups and direct contributions, spent at standard LoadUp rates.
If you run a nonprofit or housing program in San Francisco: you can start the conversation now through the For partners page.
San Francisco runs a uniquely structured Recology system: free curbside Bulky Item Recycling by appointment via Recology, 2 pickups per year for residential customers (buildings with 5 units or fewer), 1 pickup per year per unit for apartment dwellers in 6+ unit buildings. Up to 10 items per appointment, no item over 100 lbs. The crucial detail: each item must be tagged with a sign that reads "RECOLOGY", without the sign, crews don’t know what to take. Schedule at least 2 weeks in advance via (415) 330-1300, customerservice@recologysf.com, or the online Bulky Item Recycling Form. Tenants in apartments can schedule directly without going through landlords. SF’s recycling is collected WEEKLY, unusual nationally where biweekly is standard. Composting has been mandatory since 2009 (one of the most successful urban organics programs in the U.S.). NO Styrofoam in any cart, drop off at Recology SF Transfer Station for densifier processing. This page walks through every legitimate option in order from free to paid.
The San Francisco rule for scrap metal: Scrap metal is specifically listed as accepted bulky material.
Program basics: 10 items per appointment, no single item over about 100 pounds, 2 free appointments a year for small buildings. Unused appointments do not carry over. Curbside, in front of your address, on the scheduled date, with a RECOLOGY sign on the pile. Setting items out without an appointment is illegal dumping in San Francisco, with fines up to $1,000.
What the city will not take: Hazardous waste, construction and demolition debris, auto parts, and tires. Recology runs a separate free household hazardous waste pickup for residents.
How we checked this. The rules on this page were verified in October 2026 against: SF Environment: Get rid of bulky items (Recology free bulky item pickup), Recology San Francisco: Bulky Item Recycling program. Programs change; confirm fees and limits before you go.
Hazardous and regulated components in San Francisco. San Francisco residents have free hazardous waste disposal at the Recology SF Transfer Station HHW Facility at 501 Tunnel Avenue. Free for SF residents with proof of residency. Drop off paint, motor oil, pesticides, household cleaners, batteries, fluorescent bulbs, propane tanks, and electronics. Same facility processes large blocks of clean white Styrofoam through a densifier, converting it into ingots re-manufactured into moldings and boards. Several retailers also offer ongoing free recycling: Home Depot for batteries and CFL bulbs, AutoZone for motor oil and car batteries, Best Buy for electronics, most pharmacies for unused medications.
Why scrap metal are different from ordinary bulk. Most household scrap is mixed. An appliance is a steel shell around a copper motor and aluminum fins; a bike is a steel or aluminum frame with rubber and plastic. Yards accept mixed items at the steel rate, so sorting pays only if you have enough non-ferrous metal to make it worth the time. A magnet and ten minutes usually tells you.
Three mistakes that get scrap metal left at the curb:
Paid options barely exist for metal, except when the metal is attached to things that are not metal.
Mixed loads to a transfer station
$20 to $60If metal is mixed into a larger cleanout, transfer stations charge by weight for the whole load. Pull the metal out first and give it to a scrapper; it reduces the fee and keeps metal out of the landfill.
Most transfer stations have a free metal pile. Ask before you tip.
LoadUp paid scrap metal pickup
$80+For households who need same-day or in-home pickup, exceed the 10-item or 100-lb limits, can’t wait for the 2-week appointment lead time, have already used their annual allotment, or want full-service hauling without managing the RECOLOGY-sign requirement, LoadUp offers professional removal in San Francisco with upfront pricing. Independent loaders in the marketplace handle pickup, loading, and licensed disposal.
What’s included: Loading, hauling, and licensed disposal of your scrap metal. No prep needed beyond pointing out what goes.
Pricing: Starts around $80 for a single item; full-truck pickups range from $300 to $600 depending on volume.
If you can pay for a pickup, your booking helps fund free pickups for someone else. Every paid LoadUp customer can opt in to round up at checkout, and 100% of round-ups go directly to Freemoval’s subsidized jobs.
Book scrap metal pickup in San Francisco with LoadUp → Round-up option appears at checkout. Optional, opt-in only.
Rules change at city limits. If you are outside San Francisco proper, start with the guide for your own city:
Related guides: the complete San Francisco junk removal guide (every item type, city services, hazardous waste, and how to report dumping) and the national scrap metal disposal guide with rules for all 117 cities we cover.
Other free removal guides for San Francisco: mattress, couch, refrigerator, washer and dryer, furniture, tv and electronics, dresser, bed frame and box spring.
Does San Francisco pick up scrap metal for free?
Yes, with a scheduled Recology bulky collection.
How much does paid scrap metal removal cost in San Francisco?
Through the LoadUp marketplace, a single scrap metal pickup in San Francisco starts around $80 to $100 with upfront pricing, and full-truck loads run $300 to $600 depending on volume. For households who need same-day or in-home pickup, exceed the 10-item or 100-lb limits, can’t wait for the 2-week appointment lead time, have already used their annual allotment, or want full-service hauling without managing the RECOLOGY-sign requirement, LoadUp offers professional removal in San Francisco with upfront pricing. Independent loaders in the marketplace handle pickup, loading, and licensed disposal.
Will someone pick up scrap metal for free?
Yes. Independent scrappers in every metro collect appliances, grills, frames, and other metal from the curb free, usually the same day you post it, because they sell it by weight. Many city bulk programs also collect metal.
How much does a scrap yard pay?
Steel pays a few cents per pound; a washer or water heater might bring a few dollars. Aluminum pays several times more, and copper and brass pay the most, often a few dollars per pound. Prices change weekly with commodity markets.
How do I tell what kind of metal I have?
Use a magnet. If it sticks, the metal is ferrous (steel or iron) and pays the base rate. If it does not, it is aluminum, copper, brass, or stainless and worth sorting out. Copper is reddish, brass is yellow, aluminum is light and silver, stainless is heavy and silver.
Can I scrap a refrigerator or air conditioner?
Yes, but the refrigerant must be recovered first by a certified technician or by the yard if it has recovery equipment. Do not cut the lines. Many yards accept sealed units and recover the gas themselves; call first.
Is this San Francisco page maintained?
Yes. Freemoval maintains this page as a public resource alongside the full San Francisco guide. We update it when programs change rules, fees, or contact methods. Last updated October 2026. If you find outdated information, let us know.