In recent years, dumpster bags have become a popular option for junk removal. From spring cleaning projects to renovations and roofing jobs to landscaping overhauls, customers are relying on dumpster bags for a range of applications. The question is whether a dumpster bag service can measure up to renting a dumpster.

On the surface, dumpster bags and rental dumpsters have a lot in common. You place them on your property, fill them with junk, and have them picked up so your garbage can be hauled away. Both save you from having to figure out how to transport unwanted refuse to the nearest trash center (or recycling center). Both cost less than full-service junk removal. Both offer efficiency and convenience for cleaning, building, or landscaping projects.

What Are the Differences Between Dumpster Bags and Dumpster Rentals?

Of course, a dumpster bag service is distinctly different from what you’d get with a dumpster rental company. First, the product is a “dumpster in a bag.” A dumpster bag is essentially a big tarp bag with a rectangular shape. When filled, the bag looks a bit like a dumpster but is still a bag. As such, it also has the disadvantages of a bag—namely; the sides are not rigid or particularly durable.

These factors inherently limit the potential uses of a dumpster in a bag. Stuff is a lot more likely to fall out of a dumpster bag than a true dumpster. Failing to stack items carefully in the bag could also result in an avalanche of debris if the bag tips over or becomes lopsided in the loading process.

Size is also a concern with dumpster bags. While they are crafted to be heavy duty, but they are still just plastic. They don’t have the strength of metal as a dumpster does. As such, they can only support so much bulk or so much weight.

Compare a dumpster bag to a 12-cubic yard dumpster. 12 cubic yards is smaller than the average rental dumpster (usually between 15 and 20 cubic yards) but typically proves sufficient for most residential or small business cleanout projects. Still, even a 12-cubic yard dumpster is significantly bigger than a dumpster bag, which has a capacity of 3 cubic yards. In other words, if you decide to go with the 12-cubic yard dumpster, you will have four times as much space.

In most cases, three cubic yards won’t be enough to handle a full cleanout project. If you only have three cubic yards of junk to get rid of, you could probably just get away with filling garbage bags and hauling them to the dump in your car. Also, keep in mind that the average residential wheeled garbage bin has a capacity of about half a cubic yard. Suffice to say, three cubic yards is not very much space.

It is worth noting, of course, that many people who use dumpster bags buy multiple bags, instead of just one. They aren’t expecting to fit all the trash or debris from their project into a single bag. This option is indeed a workable one. Typically, when you rent a dumpster—even a relatively small 12 cubic yard bin—you aren’t going to rent more than one. Your driveway space is limited, and it makes a lot more sense to fill the dumpster and then decide later if you need more capacity. With dumpster bags, each is around $30, which means buying four of them—to get 12 cubic yards of capacity—is not cost prohibitive.

Combining multiple dumpster bags to achieve the same potential volume as a dumpster rental is one way to get around the space limitation. However, it only goes so far in solving that problem. Having four or five separate bags might work if you have a lot of smaller debris to get rid of, such as roofing shingles or drywall debris. However, if you plan on throwing away bigger items, that combined space isn’t going to do you any good. For things like appliances or furniture, you really need the space (and rigid design) that dumpsters provide.

Calculating the Costs of the Rental Process

The point you should be taking away—at least so far—is that dumpster bags can be a workable option for smaller jobs but aren’t insufficient to handle larger projects. What remains to be seen, though, is whether dumpster bags are better for smaller jobs or just an (inferior) alternative.

Dumpster rental costs vary depending on numerous factors, including the size of your bin, how much you fill the container, where you are, and which dumpster rental company you choose. For a full 12 cubic yard dumpster rental and pickup, you can find prices as low as $250 or $300.

The cost of using dumpster bags is similarly varied. First, if you go this route, you will own the bags. You can purchase bags from numerous outlets, including Home Depot and Lowes, usually for around $30 apiece. If you wish to have the bags picked up, you will need to set up a pickup service. The cost of this service varies depending on where you live—and may not be available everywhere—but averages $140.

Here’s the catch: typically, the pick up service doesn’t average $140 for your entire load. It averages $140 per bag. If you only fill one dumpster bag and that’s all you need to complete your project, you’ll spend about $170. If you fill another bag, though, you are looking at a total cost of $340.

As you can see, the dumpster bag approach quickly becomes more expensive than renting a dumpster—and for less trash removal. Assuming the $140 average holds, you would need to spend $560 in removal costs (in addition to $120 for four bags) to have 12 cubic yards of trash or debris hauled away from your property. That’s a grand total of $680, which is more than double what you would likely spend to get a 12-cubic yard dumpster rental.

Deciding Between Dumpster Rentals and Dumpster Bags

So which option is best? In the vast majority of instances, getting a 12-cubic yard dumpster is your smartest bet. You will get more space, more flexibility in the types and sizes of items you can throw away, and better pricing.

There are some situations where you might choose the dumpster bag service. For instance, if your neighborhood homeowners association bans dumpsters in driveways or the street, you might be able to find a loophole by using a dumpster bag instead. Since you own the bags, you also don’t have any time limit or deadline to be conscious of as you work through your project. And if you are doing a garage cleanout, a dumpster bag can be useful in that you can put it right there in your garage.

Ultimately, though, you should ask yourself what types of junk you are planning to get rid of and how much garbage your project is likely to produce. If you are going to need more than cubic yards of space to work with, you’ll save money and headache by going for a 12-cubic yard dumpster rental instead.

At Junk King, we are proud to have had so many repeat customers over the years. Many people rely on us whenever they need junk removal services. In addition to our self-service dumpster rental offerings, we also offer a service where we handle the junk removal for you. If you are interested in either of these services and want to learn more, you can always give us a call at 1-888-888-JUNK. You can also book a rental via our homepage.