Skip sizes
What size skip do I need?
Most domestic jobs in Britain take a 4-yard or a 6-yard skip. Size up for a house clearance. Size down, not up, if the load is soil, rubble or concrete.
Start here
Pick the job and the weight of the waste. You will get a starting size, not a booking.
The short version
- UK skip sizes are sold in cubic yards. One cubic yard is about 0.76 cubic metres – a cube roughly 3 feet on a side.
- The everyday domestic sizes are 2, 4, 6 and 8 yard. See the 2-yard, 4-yard, 6-yard and 8-yard pages. 10- and 12-yard skips exist for bulky light waste. Roll-on/roll-off skips (20 yard and up) are a different product for sites, not driveways.
- The 6-yard is the size most hire firms treat as the standard “builder’s skip”.
- If the waste is dense, the limit is weight, not volume. Many operators will not hire larger than a 6-yard for soil, hardcore or concrete.
- If you are torn between two sizes and the waste is light, take the larger one. A second drop costs more than the step between adjacent sizes.
Typical UK skip sizes
Exact length, width and height vary by manufacturer and by operator. Bag counts are a rough visual, not a weighbridge. Treat the table as a comparison, then confirm the footprint with whoever is delivering – a 6-yard that will not fit through the gate is the wrong 6-yard.
| Size | Also called | About (m³) | Typical load (bin bags) | Usually right for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2-yard | Mini | ~1.5 | about 20–30 | A small tidy, a few bulky items, a very small garden job |
| 4-yard | Midi | ~3.1 | about 30–50 | Bathroom refit, single room, modest garden |
| 6-yard | Builder’s | ~4.6 | about 50–70 | Kitchen refit, larger garden, mixed domestic building waste, heavy waste (often the maximum) |
| 8-yard | Large builder’s | ~6.1 | about 60–90 | More than one room, light house clearance, trade waste that is not rubble |
| 10-yard | Maxi | ~7.6 | about 80–110 | Whole-house bulky waste – furniture, carpets, packaging. Not for soil |
| 12-yard | Large maxi | ~9.2 | about 100–140 | A full light strip-out. Same weight warning as the 10-yard |
Cubic metres are converted from cubic yards (× 0.7646) and rounded. Bin-bag ranges overlap because operators publish different numbers for the same nominal size. A “bin bag” here means a standard UK refuse sack, not a 240-litre wheelie bin. A 240-litre wheelie bin is roughly a third of a cubic yard, so a 2-yard skip is in the region of six wheelie bins – another comparison firms use, and equally approximate.
Match the skip to the job
| Job | Usual starting size | When to change it |
|---|---|---|
| Bathroom refit | 4-yard | Two bathrooms, or a lot of screed and tiles → 6-yard. Keep plasterboard separate if the operator asks. |
| Kitchen refit | 6-yard | Kitchen plus utility, or you already have a pile in the garden → 8-yard. Appliances out of the skip. |
| Garden clearance | 4-yard or 6-yard | Mostly green waste: 4-yard may do. Fencing and a shed: 6-yard. Mostly soil: stay at 6-yard or smaller. |
| One room or garage | 4-yard | Fitted furniture plus carpet plus boxes → 6-yard. Sofas: ask before you book. |
| House clearance | 8-yard | A full empty of a 3-bed with soft furnishings → 10- or 12-yard, if the operator will take that waste type. |
| Loft / small conversion | 6-yard | Masonry or a chimney breast → treat as heavy waste, 6-yard max. |
| Soil, brick, concrete | 4-yard or 6-yard | Do not book an 8-yard and above for a dense load. Two small skips if you have more than one 6-yard of rubble. |
Heavy waste changes the answer
A skip lorry lifts the skip onto the truck. The limit that matters for soil, hardcore, brick and concrete is that lift, not how much air is left at the top. That is why hire firms routinely refuse an 8-yard, 10-yard or 12-yard of rubble even though the skip is “bigger”.
If most of the load is soil, turf, brick, block, tiles or concrete, treat 6-yard as the ceiling unless the operator explicitly offers a larger heavy-waste skip. Fill below the rim. Level, do not peak.
Light waste (furniture, timber, packaging, dry mixed household) can use the larger open-backed sizes. Mixed waste sits in the middle: a 6- or 8-yard is typical, and you still should not heap it.
Will it fit on the drive?
Before you fall in love with an 8-yard, measure the space the lorry has to use:
- A clear, reasonably level hardstanding the skip can sit on entirely. Soft lawn will sink; a gravel drive can rut.
- Headroom and width for the lorry, not just the skip. Overhead cables, hanging baskets and a narrow side return are the usual surprises.
- If any part of the skip will sit on the public road, pavement or verge, that is a different problem – a permit.
Operators quote different footprints for the same yardage. Ask for the length and the drop-off method when you book. Do not assume a 6-yard is “about the size of a parking space” without checking.
Do you need a permit?
This is a placement question, not a size question. The longer version is Do I need a skip permit?.
- Entirely on private land you control (your driveway, garden, private parking): GOV.UK says you do not need a skip licence.
- On a public road: you or the hire company need a skip licence from the highway authority. In England and Wales this sits on section 139 of the Highways Act 1980 – a builder’s skip must not be deposited on a highway without permission. GOV.UK’s working page is Skip licence (England and Wales).
- On the pavement: GOV.UK is blunt – you cannot put a skip on the pavement.
- The same GOV.UK page says hippo bags and other skip bags on the public road also need a licence. See Skip vs skip bag.
In most areas the hire company applies for the permit and adds the council’s fee to the invoice. In some areas you apply yourself. Fees and notice periods are set by each council; there is no single national price, which is why this page does not quote one. Use the postcode box on the GOV.UK page above to find your council.
GOV.UK also says a skip on the road may need reflective markings, cones, night-time lamps, and the hire company’s name and telephone number. Missing the required lights and markings can mean a fine of up to £1,000.
If you have a driveway the lorry can reach, use it. You avoid the licence, the wait, and the lighting conditions. Same-day drops are much more realistic off the highway than on it.
What usually cannot go in a mixed skip
Operator lists are not identical, but a mixed domestic skip is not a hole for anything. These categories are widely refused or must travel separately. Always read the hire firm’s list before you load:
- Asbestos
- Clinical or medical waste
- Gas cylinders and pressurised containers
- Paint, solvents, oils, fuels and other liquid chemicals
- Batteries
- Fluorescent tubes and other mercury lamps
- Fridges, freezers and most other electricals (WEEE)
- Tyres
- Plasterboard – often allowed only in a dedicated plasterboard skip, because gypsum can create hydrogen sulphide if it is mixed into ordinary landfill
- Upholstered domestic seating that may contain persistent organic pollutants (POPs) – sofas, armchairs, upholstered stools, bean bags. GOV.UK guidance says this waste should not be mixed with other waste in a skip
The longer list, with the usual alternative route for each item, is What you cannot put in a skip. The working rule: if it is hazardous, electrical, a tyre, a sofa or a sheet of plasterboard, ask before it goes in.
Hire someone who is allowed to take the waste
If you are a householder and a private firm (skip hire, clearance) is taking waste from your property, the government’s waste duty of care code of practice says you should check they are an authorised carrier with a valid upper-tier registration. The number starts CBDU followed by digits.
The walkthrough is How to check a skip company’s waste carrier licence. Check it on the Environment Agency public register in England (or the equivalent register in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland). Keep a note of the number. If a tradesperson produces the waste as part of their job, that waste is theirs to dispose of – unless you add your own waste to their skip, in which case the duty of care applies to what you added.
A sensible order of decisions
- What is actually going in – light, mixed or heavy?
- Where can the skip sit – private land or the road?
- Pick the size from the tables above. If heavy, cap at 6-yard.
- Ask the operator about plasterboard, sofas, appliances and anything on the banned list.
- Check the carrier’s CBDU number – how to check a waste carrier licence.
- If it is going on the road, confirm who applies for the licence and how many working days they need. See Do I need a skip permit?.
Skip Clerk has no hire partners yet and no prices on this page. When we add a booking link it will be marked as an affiliate link. Until then, use a licensed local operator and the checks above.
Sources
- Highways Act 1980, section 139 – permission needed to deposit a builder’s skip on a highway (England and Wales).
- GOV.UK: Skip licence (England and Wales) – road vs private land, pavement ban, bags on the road, lights and markings, fine up to £1,000.
- GOV.UK: Waste duty of care code of practice – householders hiring skip firms should check an upper-tier CBDU registration.
- Environment Agency public register – waste carriers, brokers and dealers (England).
- GOV.UK: waste upholstered domestic seating containing POPs – do not mix this seating into other skip waste.
- Size nicknames, bag ranges and the 6-yard heavy-waste cap: consistent practice across UK hire-firm guides (they disagree on exact millimetres, which is why this page does not publish a single dimension sheet).