Standard porta potty
$125 to $250 a weekend
Do I need a permit for a dumpster in Memphis?
Permit placement rules are NOT VERIFIED in this write-up, so we tell every customer straight: confirm with the city before you set a delivery date. What we do know is this. If the roll-off dumpster rental sits on your own property, on a gravel pad, inside a fenced lot, or anywhere off the public street, most jobs move forward without a permit. The moment a container touches a curb, a sidewalk, or a lane of traffic, that is public right of way, and that is where cities start asking questions. Memphis has its own permitting office, and the rules there are not the same as a permit for dumpster on street placement in Jersey City, a Chicago dumpster permit, or a City of Pittsburgh dumpster permit. Every city writes its own code, and guessing costs you a fine or a delayed pickup. Before you book, walk your site and decide, honestly, whether the container fits on your property. If it does not, call the city planning or public works department directly and ask what a dumpster permit application requires there. We will hold your date while you check.
Where should the dumpster go if I want to skip the permit?
Skip the permit question entirely by keeping the container on private ground. A driveway, a side yard, a parking lot corner, a construction site behind the fence line, all of that usually needs zero city paperwork. What it does need is room. A roll-off delivery truck needs about 60 feet of straight clearance behind the truck to set the container down safely, so measure your driveway or lot before delivery day, not after the truck arrives. If your property does not have that clearance, street placement becomes the only option, and that is exactly when permit rules kick in. For construction sites already juggling temporary fence rental and portable toilet rental, it is worth checking dumpster placement at the same time you plan fencing and toilet layout, since all three often compete for the same strip of usable ground. Homeowners doing a garage clean-out or a renovation should look at home renovation porta potty planning the same way. One site walk, one measuring tape, saves a permit call later.
What size dumpster needs a permit versus what does not?
Size does not decide whether you need a permit. Placement does. A 10 yard dumpster rental sitting on the street needs the same right-of-way check as a 40 yard dumpster rental parked in the same spot. What size does affect is whether the container fits on your property in the first place, which sidesteps the permit question entirely. Check dumpster sizes and dimensions before you book so you know what footprint you are working with. Weight matters too, separate from permits: overloading a container is a dumpster weight limits problem, not a city code problem, and it is billed differently. If you are still deciding between a 20 yard and a 30 yard for a Memphis renovation or demolition job, our dumpster rental cost breakdown and 20 yard dumpster rental page both walk through sizing by project type. Get the size right first. Then figure out placement.
How much does dumpster placement cost, permit or no permit?
Permit fees themselves are not something we quote, since Memphis sets those separately and they are NOT VERIFIED here. What we can quote is the rental itself.
| unit | duration | low | typical | high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| dumpster | day | $51 | $75 | $112 |
| dumpster | week | $426 | $600 | $778 |
| dumpster | month | $91 | $108 | $500 |
A weekend rental runs separately from these, generally landing in the $390 to $497 range for a short two or three day pull. Delivery adds a separate line, and porta potty rental cost customers combining a toilet and a dumpster order often ask about that fee together. If your project also needs waste sorting guidance, what cannot go in a dumpster covers the materials that trigger extra charges regardless of where the container sits.
FAQ
Do you need a permit for a dumpster on private property in Memphis?
Usually not. Private property placement, driveways, lots, and fenced construction sites, typically skips city permitting altogether. The permit question comes up when a container touches a public street, curb, or sidewalk. Confirm with Memphis directly if you are unsure which category your site falls into before delivery.
Is a dumpster permit application different from a construction permit?
Yes. A dumpster placement permit, when required, covers only the container sitting in public right of way. It is separate from any building or demolition permit tied to your construction dumpster rental project. Check both separately with the city; one does not cover the other.
How long does a dumpster permit take to process in a city like Memphis?
Processing time is NOT VERIFIED for Memphis specifically, so we cannot quote a number here. Call the city department handling right-of-way permits directly and ask before your delivery date. Building in a buffer week is safer than assuming a fast turnaround.
Does every city handle dumpster permits the same way?
No, and this trips people up constantly. A Jersey City dumpster permit, a Chicago dumpster permit, and a Pittsburgh dumpster permit each follow different local codes with different fees and timelines. Memphis rules stand on their own. Never assume another city's process applies here.
Can Memphis Porta Pros help me figure out if I need a permit?
We can help you plan placement and measure clearance, and we always recommend confirming permit rules with the city before booking street placement. For full guidance across your project, our construction site services page and request a quote form are good starting points.
What we rent
Four units cover almost every job
Typical Memphis ranges, not a quote. Delivery is $50 to $150 and a weekly service visit $30 to $60. See the full cost breakdown.
Deluxe flushing
$200 to $350 a weekend
ADA accessible
$199 to $300 a weekend
Restroom trailer
Quoted by stall count
The rest of the yard
One mobilisation, not three
Roll off dumpsters10, 20, 30 and 40 yardTemporary fencingPanels 6 feet by 12 feetStorage containers20 foot and 40 footHandwashing stationsSinks and sanitiser standsSeptic and grease trapsPumping, cleaning, emergenciesSite power and lightLight towers, temporary poles
We deliver across Shelby County and the surrounding metro:
Next step
Get a delivery date
Tell us the address, the dates and the headcount. We size the order and confirm the route.