Brown bin collection

What the brown bin is usually for

In most councils the brown bin is the garden waste bin. Some use it for food waste, and a few use it for mixed or commingled recycling.

This is the most common use, not a rule. UK councils choose their own bin colours, so the brown bin can collect something different where you live. Your council page lists what it actually collects, and the lookup above shows your next date.

How UK councils use the brown bin

Bin Day has seen a brown bin at addresses in 159 councils. Here is what it collects in each, which is the clearest proof that the colour alone does not tell you the waste type.

• 110 councils use the brown bin for food waste

  Arun, Ashford, Babergh, Barnet, Basingstoke and Deane, Bedford, Bexley, Blaby, Bracknell Forest, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, City of, Broadland and 98 more

• 38 councils use the brown bin for garden waste

  Angus, Ashfield, Barnsley, Bury, Derby, Dundee City, East Riding of Yorkshire, East Staffordshire, Fenland, Glasgow City, Horsham, Kingston upon Hull, City of and 26 more

• 7 councils use the brown bin for other collection

  Antrim and Newtownabbey, Broxtowe, Carmarthenshire, Fermanagh and Omagh, Pendle, Peterborough, Renfrewshire

• 3 councils use the brown bin for mixed recycling

  Hyndburn, Lincoln, Salford

• 1 council uses the brown bin for general waste

  Plymouth

Find your council's brown bin

Search for your council to see what its brown bin collects, then open the council page for the postcode lookup and your next collection date.

Common questions about the brown bin

What goes in the brown bin?

Usually garden waste: grass cuttings, leaves, hedge trimmings, plants and small branches. Where the brown bin is for food, it takes cooked and raw food scraps. Where it is recycling, it takes plastics, cans and cartons. Look up your address to see which your council runs.

How often is the brown bin collected?

Garden waste brown bins are collected every two weeks through the growing season, often March to November, and most councils charge an annual subscription. Food and recycling brown bins follow their own schedule. The lookup above shows your next brown bin date.

Is the brown bin for garden or food waste?

It depends on the council. Brown is the most common colour for garden waste, but a number of councils use it for food waste, and some use it for mixed recycling. There is no national rule, so your council page is the authority.

Do I have to pay for the brown bin?

Where the brown bin is garden waste, most councils run it as a paid annual subscription with fortnightly collection in the growing season. Food and recycling collections are normally free. The sign-up and fee live on your council's site.

Other bin colours

Bin colours are not standard across the UK. See what the other common colours usually mean, or check the full guide.

• Green bin collection →
• Black bin collection →
• Blue bin collection →
• UK bin colours explained →
• Browse all UK councils →