Check the Address, Then Follow the Blue–Orange–Black Three-Week Rota
Aberdeenshire runs one main wheelie-bin collection each week: blue-lid paper/card, orange-lid containers and black refuse each return every three weeks. Food caddies and household battery bags are weekly.
Your exact address remains the final check. Have the correct container at the kerbside or agreed collection point by 7am and check live disruption information if it remains unemptied.
Aberdeenshire Bin Collection 2026: Quick Answer
Search the exact property before relying on a colour or weekday.
Blue-lid, orange-lid and black refuse bins are each collected every three weeks. Food caddies and correctly presented household battery bags are collected every week.
| Service | Purpose | Normal frequency | Resident action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue-lid bin | Paper, card and cardboard | Every 3 weeks | Keep container recycling out. |
| Orange-lid bin | Plastic bottles/pots/tubs/trays, cans, foil and cartons | Every 3 weeks | Keep paper, glass and film out. |
| Black refuse bin | Non-recyclable household waste | Every 3 weeks | No routine side waste. |
| Food caddy | Accepted food waste | Weekly | Lock outdoor caddy with handle. |
| Pink battery bag | Suitable household batteries | Weekly when presented | Seal and leave on top of the bin due that week. |
No kerbside glass or garden-waste service: ordinary bottles/jars and garden waste need separate recycling routes.
What Bin Is Collected Today or Tomorrow in Aberdeenshire?
There is no safe Aberdeenshire-wide answer such as “orange bins tomorrow”. The correct colour depends on the exact property.
-
Open the official address checker.
Use the property receiving the collection. -
Read the full date.
Do not rely only on remembering the normal weekday. -
Read the colour beside that date.
Confirm blue, orange or black. -
Include weekly services.
Food and a correctly filled battery bag can be presented every week. -
Have everything ready by 7am.
The vehicle’s usual arrival time is not guaranteed.
Check my Aberdeenshire bin dates
How the Aberdeenshire Three-Week Bin Rota Works
Blue-lid collection
Clean paper, card and cardboard only.
Orange-lid collection
Accepted plastic containers, tins, cans, foil, aerosols and cartons.
Black-bin collection
Non-recyclable household rubbish.
Every week
Food caddy and household battery-bag services continue while the main wheelie-bin colour rotates.
Aberdeenshire describes this as a weekly kerbside service because one main waste stream is collected each week.
That does not mean each wheelie bin is weekly: each blue, orange and black container normally returns once every three weeks.
Blue-Lid Bin: Paper, Card and Cardboard
Keep the blue-lid recycling stream fibre-only.
Put these in
- Newspapers and magazines
- Catalogues and directories
- Junk mail
- Letters and envelopes
- Office paper
- Shredded paper
- Paperback books
- Clean cardboard
- Cardboard tubes
- Suitable greeting cards
Prepare cardboard
- Flatten boxes.
- Keep material clean and dry.
- Remove polystyrene and other non-paper packing.
- Keep heavily food-stained cardboard out.
Do not put these in
- Plastic bottles or containers
- Tins or cans
- Foil
- Glass
- Tissues and napkins
- Padded envelopes
- Wallpaper
- Nappies
- General rubbish
Orange-Lid Bin: Plastics, Cans, Foil and Cartons
The orange-lid bin is for container recycling—not paper/card.
Accepted plastics
- Plastic bottles
- Plastic pots
- Plastic tubs
- Plastic food trays
- Suitable plastic tops and lids
Accepted metal
- Food tins
- Drink cans
- Empty suitable aerosols
- Clean aluminium foil
- Clean foil trays
- Metal lids
Cartons
- Food cartons
- Drink cartons
Before recycling
- Empty containers.
- Rinse away food residue.
- Put accepted material loose in the bin.
Keep out glass bottles/jars, paper/card, carrier bags, cling film, bubble wrap, polystyrene and ordinary refuse.
Black Refuse Bin: Three-Weekly General Waste
Use the black bin for household material that cannot use the blue, orange, food, glass, battery, electrical or other specialist recycling routes.
One refuse bin policy
Aberdeenshire normally operates one black refuse bin per household.
An unauthorised second refuse container is not simply treated as extra capacity.
No ordinary side waste
Do not leave additional bags beside or on top of the black bin under normal service conditions.
Heavy waste
Rubble, soil and other very dense material can make a bin unsafe to move or mechanically lift. Use the correct recycling-centre or specialist route instead.
Recycling still matters
Aberdeenshire’s 2025 waste analysis found that a large proportion of material still being put into black refuse bins could have used recycling services, with food waste remaining a major component.
Food Caddy: Weekly Household Food-Waste Collection
The household food caddy is collected every week.
Accepted examples
- Tea bags and coffee grounds
- Out-of-date food
- Meat and fish
- Bones
- Plate scrapings
- Leftovers
- Meal-preparation waste
- Suitable compostable food packaging
- Suitable compostable coffee cups
- Suitable compostable cutlery
Lock the outdoor caddy
Close the lid and leave the black handle upright or fully forward to lock the container.
Need a food caddy?
Indoor and outdoor food caddies can currently be collected free from Aberdeenshire recycling centres and council service points.
Food-caddy liners
Free liners are available from collection crews, libraries, recycling centres, council service points and the Waste office.
How to ask the crew for more liners
Tie an empty food-waste bag to one of the household bins and the crew can leave more where stock is available.
Liners keep splitting?
Stop using that roll and collect another.
The council says its liners have a limited shelf life; check the printed date if a recently supplied roll repeatedly splits.
Missed food collection: Aberdeenshire does not normally make a special return solely for a missed household food caddy.
Check free waste and recycling equipment
Pink Battery Bags: Weekly Kerbside Battery Recycling
Never put loose batteries inside a blue, orange or black wheelie bin.
How to present batteries
- Put suitable household batteries into the council’s pink battery bag.
- Seal the bag.
- Place it on top of whichever wheelie bin is due that week.
- The crew collects the battery bag separately.
Suitable batteries
The council procedure includes ordinary household batteries and suitable laptop/mobile-phone batteries.
Where to get bags
- Libraries
- Household recycling centres
- Council service points
- Collection crew
Need another roll?
Attach an empty battery bag to one of the household bins and the crew can leave a new roll where stock permits.
Vapes are different
Never put a vape or e-cigarette into a household bin or pink battery bag.
Aberdeenshire provides specialist vape containers at its household recycling centres. Retailer take-back may also be available.
Where Do Glass Bottles and Jars Go?
Ordinary glass bottles and jars are not collected through Aberdeenshire’s household blue or orange wheelie bins.
Use a local glass recycling point or an appropriate Household Waste Recycling Centre.
Neighbourhood glass points
Aberdeenshire provides a large network of local recycling points. Some separate bottles/jars into clear, brown and green glass streams.
Other types of glass
Drinking glasses, mirrors, Pyrex, window glass and bulbs do not necessarily use the bottle-and-jar bank.
Use the council’s A–Z or the selected recycling centre’s accepted-material list for these items.
Find an Aberdeenshire recycling point
Aberdeenshire Garden Waste 2026: No Paid Kerbside Green Bin
Aberdeenshire does not currently operate a household kerbside garden-waste collection.
There is therefore no Aberdeenshire garden-bin subscription or annual green-bin permit to buy.
Your garden-waste options
- Home composting
- Household recycling centre
- Community composting
- 2026 seasonal Saturday garden-waste points
2026 seasonal service dates
Saturday 4 April through Saturday 31 October 2026.
How much can you take?
Seasonal points accept no more than approximately the amount that fits inside one 240-litre wheelie bin.
Take larger domestic loads to a Household Waste Recycling Centre.
Vehicle rules
Trailers and ordinary vans are not permitted at the seasonal points. Car-derived vans are the exception stated by the council.
Bag it for transport, then empty it
Bring garden material in bags or containers so it can be quickly decanted into the site’s container.
Never leave garden material when the staffed seasonal service is absent. The council treats this as fly-tipping.
Invasive plants
Do not put invasive/problem species such as Japanese knotweed, giant hogweed, Himalayan balsam, ragwort, hemlock, yew or New Zealand pygmy weed into the garden-compost stream.
Newtonhill: upcoming 2026 location changes
The seasonal Newtonhill service is currently scheduled to move from its normal Bettridge Centre location to Newtonhill Primary School on 19 September and 10 October 2026 because of local events.
Check the council page again immediately before travelling.
Home composter alternative
| Composter | Capacity | Current price including VAT/delivery |
|---|---|---|
| Small square | 310L | £47.31 |
| Large hexagonal | 700L | £72.88 |
Aberdeenshire allows one council composter per household. Normal delivery is around four weeks and can extend to six weeks if parts are unavailable.
Check 2026 garden-waste points
Aberdeenshire Missed Bin: 4:45pm → Disruption Check → Report
Earliest normal report: after 4:45pm on collection day.
Latest normal report: within two working days after the scheduled collection day.
-
Confirm the colour was due.
Use the exact household address result. -
Confirm it was at the correct point by 7am.
Late presentation is not a council miss. -
Look for a tag.
A tagged recycling or unsafe bin may have been deliberately rejected. -
Check live disruptions.
If your road is already listed, you normally do not need another report. -
Wait until after 4:45pm.
Collection times can change during the day. -
Report within two working days.
Have your address, name and telephone number ready.
What happens after a genuine operational miss?
Aberdeenshire’s published procedure says crews seek to return within five working days where resources permit.
If the council cannot recover within five working days
The next scheduled collection of that same material can accept authorised excess generated because of the genuine missed service.
| Stream affected by genuine miss | Next matching collection exception |
|---|---|
| Black refuse | Up to two additional black bags may be authorised. |
| Blue paper/card | Matching excess paper/card can be presented in suitable cardboard boxes. |
| Orange recycling | Matching accepted recycling can be presented in non-black bags for crew handling. |
This does not create a permanent side-waste allowance.
It applies after qualifying council service failures or other specifically announced disruption arrangements.
Cases where a return is normally refused
- Bin was not out by 7am
- Wrong collection position
- Severe recycling contamination
- Bin too heavy to move safely
- Unauthorised additional black bin
- Contents frozen or jammed inside
Missed food caddy
Aberdeenshire specifically states that it will not make a special return solely for a missed food-waste collection.
Check live collection disruptions
Report a missed bin
Bin Full? Routine Side Waste vs Approved Extra Capacity
One-off overflow
Do not leave normal excess refuse beside the black bin.
Use the appropriate recycling stream, recycling centre or bulky service.
Regular recycling overflow
Request an additional blue-lid or orange-lid recycling bin.
Extra household recycling capacity is currently free.
Regular food overflow
Additional food caddies can also be obtained without charge.
Regular refuse overflow
A second refuse bin requires an assessment rather than simply ordering another black bin.
Who can qualify for extra refuse capacity?
The official collection procedure lists these circumstances after the household demonstrates full use of available recycling, including food waste:
- A medical issue creates additional non-recyclable waste.
- A coal fire is the property’s only source of heating.
- Six or more people live full-time at the same address.
- The customer is an eligible registered volunteer litter picker.
- Two or more babies in nappies live in the household at the same time.
Waste audit
A Community Waste Officer may inspect the household waste stream or ask for a waste diary before approval.
Approved extra refuse bin
There is currently no fee for an approved additional refuse bin, but eligibility is reviewed rather than automatically permanent.
New, Missing and Damaged Aberdeenshire Bins
| Request | Current position |
|---|---|
| New-home refuse bin | £33.20 delivery/admin fee |
| Eligible reduced refuse-bin fee | £12.83 |
| Blue-lid recycling bin | Free for new-home setup / approved extra capacity |
| Orange-lid recycling bin | Free for new-home setup / approved extra capacity |
| Food caddy | Free |
| Current wheelie-bin delivery estimate | Around 4–6 weeks |
Reduced new-home charge
The reduced £12.83 refuse-bin delivery/admin fee currently applies to residents receiving Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction.
Damaged bin
Do not submit a normal new-bin request.
Report the damage so the council can assess whether the container should be repaired or replaced. Some damage can be chargeable depending on cause.
Missing bin
Contact the Recycling and Waste team if a council container disappears.
Moving home
The wheelie bins belong to Aberdeenshire Council.
Leave them at the property when you move rather than taking them to the new address.
Check Aberdeenshire bin requests
No Space for Wheelie Bins? Alternative Collection Bags
Aberdeenshire can provide a bag service where there is insufficient bin storage or where standard collection vehicles cannot access the property.
| Bag | Use | Collection rule |
|---|---|---|
| Blue refuse bag | Non-recyclable waste | Up to 2 every 3 weeks on the scheduled day |
| Clear recycling bag | Orange-stream plastics/cans/cartons | Use for accepted container recycling |
| Paper recycling bag | Blue-stream paper/card | Paper, card and cardboard only |
Food waste stays separate
The alternative bag service covers refuse and dry recycling. Use the household food caddy for food waste.
The two-blue-bag allowance applies only to properties formally on the council’s bag service. It is not an allowance for an ordinary black-bin household.
Check alternative collection bags
Flats and Communal Bin Collections
Do not automatically apply the individual blue-lid/orange-lid setup to a communal property.
Typical communal arrangement
- Large shared black refuse bin
- Large shared blue mixed-recycling bin
- Individual green food caddy taken to the communal collection area
- Shared glass container at some sites
Follow the labels on the actual shared containers serving the development.
Communal bin full?
Use another available shared bin where possible.
Do not leave waste or large items beside the communal bins. Material left beside them is not collected as part of the normal communal service.
Assisted Bin Collection
The council can provide a collection-and-return service from an agreed point where the resident cannot move the wheelie bin.
Core eligibility
- The resident is unable to move a wheeled bin to the collection point; and
- No person over age 16 living at the property can put the bins out.
Short or long term
Assistance can be temporary or longer term and is reviewed periodically.
Check assisted collection
Rural Homes and Private Roads: Where Should the Bin Go?
Aberdeenshire’s published collection procedure explains when a collection vehicle can travel along a private or unadopted road.
Key access criteria include
- Normally at least five households on the private road
- Road at least 3 metres wide
- At least 3.75 metres of overhead clearance
- Road surface safe for repeated heavy-vehicle access
- No dangerous potholes or obstructions
- Safe visibility and no serious flood/embankment risk
- Enough space for a roughly 10.5-metre collection vehicle to turn safely
Fewer than five households?
An exception can be considered where road-end collection would itself be unsafe or unsuitable and the other vehicle-access conditions are met.
Access becomes unsafe
The council can temporarily or permanently move the designated collection point if the private road no longer meets safe access requirements.
For a rural property, the correct collection point may therefore be at a road end rather than directly outside the home.
Aberdeenshire Bulky Waste Uplift 2026
| Booking | Standard price | Qualifying benefit price |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 4 standard household items | £34.86 | £13.94 |
| Up to 8 standard household items | £69.71 | £27.89 |
| Certain individually priced items | £44.77 each | No standard discount listed |
Who can receive the discounted standard price?
Residents receiving Council Tax Benefit or Housing Benefit can use the published discounted rate after providing the relevant benefit number.
Common standard items
- Bed base
- Mattress
- Bicycle
- Furniture
- Household white goods
- Small and large electrical items
- Internal/external door
- Lawnmower
- Small carpet within the council size limit
- Strimmer
Some large items are individually priced
Bathroom suites, larger carpets, some greenhouses/sheds, kitchen units, patio doors and similar items can use the individually priced or assessment route.
Not accepted through normal bulky uplift
- Ordinary refuse bags
- Garden-waste bags
- Gas bottles
- Fluorescent tubes
- Asbestos
- Tyres
- Trees
- Rubble
- Paint tins
- Car batteries
- Fire-damaged items
Collection-day preparation
Leave booked items at the front of the house/end of the driveway by 7am.
- Tell the council the exact item location.
- Only booked items are collected.
- Crews do not collect from inside the house.
- Crews do not collect from garages/outbuildings.
Fridge or freezer
Remove food, remove the door seal as instructed and secure the door closed before collection.
Cancellation deadline
Call Wasteline by 1pm on the Friday before the uplift date if you need to cancel and want the normal refund.
Festive restrictions
The council does not arrange bulky uplifts on Good Friday, May Day or during the Christmas period.
Check/book bulky waste uplift
Aberdeenshire Recycling Centres: Do You Need to Book?
Booking depends on the site and vehicle—not every household car visit needs one.
Inverurie and Westhill
Every vehicle must have a booking before visiting these two centres.
Other Aberdeenshire recycling centres
Ordinary household cars generally do not require an appointment.
Vehicles with trailers and commercial-type vehicles must book.
How far ahead can you book?
Bookings open up to seven days in advance.
One booking = one visit
Make a separate booking for every visit that requires an appointment.
Inverurie and Westhill arrival window
Bookings are for a specific 15-minute arrival slot.
Arriving too early or late can mean entry is refused when the site cannot safely accommodate you.
Other booked centres
For trailer/commercial-type vehicles at other centres, the booking generally covers opening hours on the selected day rather than a 15-minute arrival slot.
Annual vehicle limit
| Vehicle category | Current household rule |
|---|---|
| Cars, car-derived vans and pick-ups | Unlimited visits, subject to site-specific booking requirements |
| Commercial-type vehicles and trailers | Maximum 24 visits in a rolling 12-month period |
Hire van
If you do not yet know its registration, enter HIRE VAN when booking and take the hire agreement to the site.
Pedestrian entry
Some centres provide pedestrian-only access at specified times without booking.
Do not park outside a centre and walk in simply to bypass a vehicle-booking rule.
Before travelling
- Check the exact site’s opening hours.
- Check whether your vehicle needs booking.
- Check whether the material is accepted there.
- Sort waste before leaving home.
- Be prepared to unload it yourself.
- Keep children and animals inside the vehicle.
Find Aberdeenshire recycling centres
Book a recycling-centre visit
Asbestos, Upholstered Furniture, Paint, Tyres and Other Special Waste
Some household materials need a specialist route and should not be loaded for an ordinary recycling-centre trip without checking first.
Household asbestos
Do not take asbestos to an ordinary Household Waste Recycling Centre.
Aberdeenshire’s current council household service accepts only cement-bonded asbestos through the booked Macduff waste-transfer-station route.
Current asbestos charge
| Basis | Charge |
|---|---|
| Weight | £458.51 per tonne / about £0.46 per kg |
| Minimum charge | £20 per load |
Asbestos preparation
- Book before travelling.
- Double-wrap or double-bag it in heavy-duty plastic.
- Use the council’s minimum 1000-gauge specification.
- Seal securely with industrial tape.
- Do not cut or break large sheets merely to fit a bag.
- Make each package light enough for you to unload yourself.
Check household asbestos disposal
Upholstered seating / POPs
Waste sofas, sofa beds, armchairs, upholstered dining chairs, office chairs, futons, bean bags, stools, cushions and similar seating must be separated because they may contain Persistent Organic Pollutants.
Tape rips or tears before taking the item to an accepting recycling centre.
Alford, Insch and Portsoy recycling centres currently do not accept POP-containing upholstered seating. Check another site’s accepted-material list before travelling.
Mattresses are different
The council’s POP upholstered-seating rules specifically say beds and mattresses are not part of this seating classification.
Liquid paint and tyres
Standard household recycling-centre rules also exclude liquid paint and tyres from the ordinary site route. Use the council A–Z/specialist disposal guidance for these items.
myAberdeenshire App: Bin-Day Reminders Without Guessing
The free council app is useful because a three-week rota is easy to forget.
Waste features include
- Check bin collection days
- See what goes in each bin
- Receive bin-day push notifications
- Get waste-service updates
- Check disposal routes
- Find recycling centres
- Report missed bins
Enable notifications
Allow push notifications in the device settings if you want automatic bin reminders.
Location permission is not your bin calendar
Location access supports genuinely location-based app features such as maps.
For the household bin day itself, the saved exact property/address is more important than phone GPS location.
Wrong property?
Review the saved address instead of trying to infer the correct rota from a neighbouring location.
Open myAberdeenshire app information
Bank Holidays, Christmas 2026 and New Year 2027
Ordinary holidays
Do not automatically move your collection one day later because of a local or bank holiday.
Check the household address result and any current council notice.
Christmas 2026 / New Year 2027
The exact 2026/27 festive replacement timetable was not verified as published when this guide was refreshed on 20 August 2026.
Do not reuse Christmas 2025/New Year 2026 dates.
Why last year’s timetable is unsafe
Aberdeenshire has previously used special Sunday and Monday festive collections, meaning the ordinary weekly pattern cannot safely be extrapolated across Christmas.
When the new timetable appears
- Check your exact address.
- Check the council festive notice.
- Check myAberdeenshire notifications.
- Check disruptions before reporting anything missed.
Aberdeenshire Bin Collection Contact Details
| Route | Current detail |
|---|---|
| Wasteline | 03456 081207 |
| Wasteline hours | Monday–Friday, 8:45am–5pm |
| Household waste email | waste@aberdeenshire.gov.uk |
| App technical support | mobileapps@aberdeenshire.gov.uk |
Use the task-specific online service first
The council says a general Recycling and Waste enquiry can take up to five working days to process.
For collection dates, missed bins and recycling-centre bookings, use the dedicated online service when available.
Include your household address
When emailing about a household waste issue, include the full property address so the team can identify the correct collection record.
Before contacting Wasteline about a missed bin
- Check the actual collection date and colour.
- Confirm it was out by 7am.
- Look for a rejection tag.
- Wait until after 4:45pm.
- Check live disruption information.
- Keep any existing report reference.
Contact Aberdeenshire Recycling and Waste
Related Scottish Bin Collection Guides
Collection colours and rules change at council boundaries, so use the authority serving the actual address.
Aberdeenshire Bin Collection FAQs
How do I check my Aberdeenshire bin collection day?
Use Aberdeenshire Council’s household address checker. Select the exact property and read both the collection date and bin colour shown.
How often are blue, orange and black bins collected?
Each of the three main wheelie bins is normally collected every three weeks. One main bin is generally emptied each week on the property’s regular weekday.
What time should Aberdeenshire bins be out?
Place the correct container at the kerbside or designated collection point no later than 7am.
What goes in the blue-lid bin?
The blue-lid bin is for clean paper, card and cardboard such as newspapers, magazines, office paper, envelopes and flattened cardboard.
What goes in the orange-lid bin?
Use it for accepted plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, metal tins and cans, suitable aerosols, clean foil and food/drink cartons.
How often is food waste collected?
Household food caddies are normally collected every week.
How do Aberdeenshire pink battery bags work?
Put suitable household batteries into the council’s pink bag, seal it and place it on top of the wheelie bin being emptied that week. Never put vapes into the battery bag.
When can I report a missed Aberdeenshire bin?
Check disruptions first. If the correctly presented bin is still full, the earliest normal reporting time is after 4:45pm and the deadline is within two working days after the scheduled collection day.
Will the council return for a missed food caddy?
No special return is normally provided solely for a missed household food-waste caddy. Use the next weekly service unless the council publishes another instruction.
Can I leave extra bags beside my black bin?
Not routinely. Extra side waste is accepted only in specific council-authorised circumstances, such as after certain genuine missed or disrupted collections.
Does Aberdeenshire have a paid garden-waste bin?
No. There is currently no household kerbside garden-bin subscription. Use home composting, a recycling centre, community composting or the seasonal Saturday points.
How much is Aberdeenshire bulky waste collection?
Current standard charges are £34.86 for up to four standard items and £69.71 for up to eight. Qualifying Council Tax or Housing Benefit households have lower published rates.
Can I get an additional black refuse bin?
Only after assessment. Qualifying circumstances include certain medical waste, six or more full-time residents, two or more babies in nappies, a coal fire as the only heating source and eligible volunteer litter-picking arrangements. The household must be fully using available recycling services.
Do I need to book an Aberdeenshire recycling centre?
All vehicles need a booking at Inverurie and Westhill. At other centres, ordinary household cars generally do not need a booking, while commercial-type vehicles and vehicles with trailers do.