Start with the thing that trips most people up: Mesa bulk item pickup does not take appliances. Not refrigerators, not washers, not water heaters, not even microwaves. They are on the do-not-collect list, and a fridge sitting out on your bulk pickup day means the crew leaves the entire pile and bills you a trip charge. Appliances go through a separate city program, or to the landfill, or out with a hauler.
| Option | Cost | You have to | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| City appliance program | $19 per appliance, plus $11 if it holds freon | Book it, empty it, strip the doors off a fridge, get it to the curb | $28.42 if you are not a Mesa trash customer. Past-due balance blocks booking. |
| Salt River Landfill | Weight rate, plus a $30 freon surcharge per appliance | Own a truck, load it alone, tie it down | $30 minimum per transaction, and $20 more if the load is not secured. |
| Hauler | From $60 for a single appliance | Unplug it and unhook it | Costs more than doing it yourself, and you do not touch it. |
The city program: $19, or $30 with freon
Mesa runs appliance pickup separately from bulk trash, and it covers most of what you would expect: refrigerators, freezers, stoves, dishwashers, washers and dryers, water heaters, microwaves, evaporative coolers, and air compressors.
- $19.00 per appliance if you are a Mesa trash and recycling customer. $28.42 if you are not.
- Add $11.00 for anything holding refrigerant. A fridge is $30.00 all in for a Mesa customer.
- The fee goes on your monthly utility bill, so nothing changes hands at the curb.
- Book it with the online Appliance Recycling Request, and staff call back within three business days to schedule, or call (480) 644-6789, Monday to Thursday 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- A past-due balance on your city account has to be cleared before they will book you.
What gets a pickup refused
The prep is where this goes wrong, and the penalty is a $19.00 trip charge for a crew that showed up to nothing it could take.
- Empty it completely. All food and containers out. A fridge with anything left in it does not go.
- On a fridge or freezer, strip it. Doors, hinges, lids, glass shelves and latches come off first.
- Have it at the curb when the crew arrives, not in the garage and not behind a gate.
- Cancel at least one business day ahead if plans change, or the trip charge lands anyway.
- In an HOA or a multi-unit building, the property manager may have to be the one to call it in.
You do not need to hire anyone to pull the refrigerant first. That $11.00 line is the city handling it, and it has to come out by a certified technician before the appliance can be recycled at all.
Hauling it yourself: the freon surcharge
If you own a truck, the Salt River Landfill takes appliances at the weight rate, which is $60 a ton with a $30 minimum per transaction. Anything still holding refrigerant adds a $30 freon extraction surcharge per appliance on top of the weight. An unsecured load is another $20, so tie it down.
One thing worth knowing before you drive: the Republic Services transfer station on Mountain Road will not take a refrigerant appliance at all. For a fridge, a freezer or an A/C unit, the landfill is the one of the two that works. The East Valley dump locations guide has hours and rules for the rest of them.
Which one fits
- One appliance, already in the garage or at the curb, and you are not in a hurry: the city program at $19, or $30 with freon. Cheapest route there is.
- You own a truck and it is not a fridge: the landfill, at the weight rate.
- It is upstairs, it is a water heater, there are three of them, or the city already refused the load: a hauler. Starts at $60 with us and we carry it from wherever it sits.
Honest version: if the appliance is sitting at your curb and you can wait a week, the city program beats us on price and we would rather you use it. Where our Mesa junk removal is worth the money is weight, stairs, a tight gate, or a deadline. More on how we price it is on the appliance removal page.
Appliance disposal in Mesa: quick answers
- Does Mesa bulk trash pickup take appliances?
- No, and this is the part that catches people. Appliances are on the city's do-not-collect list for bulk pickup, microwaves and air compressors included. They go through a separate Appliance Recycling Program with its own fee and its own appointment. Putting a fridge out on a bulk pickup day gets the whole load left behind and a trip charge added to your bill.
- How much does Mesa charge to pick up an appliance?
- $19.00 per appliance if you are a Mesa trash and recycling customer, or $28.42 if you are not. Anything holding refrigerant adds an $11.00 freon removal fee on top, so a fridge is $30.00 for Mesa customers. It goes on your monthly utility bill rather than being paid at the curb.
- Do I have to get the freon removed myself before Mesa will take it?
- No. The $11.00 freon removal fee on the city program is the city handling it, and refrigerant has to come out by a certified technician before an appliance can be recycled. What you do have to do is empty the appliance and, on a fridge or freezer, take off the doors, hinges, lids, glass shelves and latches before pickup day.
- Can I take a refrigerator to the dump in Mesa?
- The Salt River Landfill takes appliances, including ones with refrigerant still in them, at the weight rate plus a $30 freon extraction surcharge per appliance. The Republic Services transfer station on Mountain Road will not take a refrigerant appliance at all, so for a fridge the landfill is the one of the two that works.
- What does appliance removal cost with you?
- A single appliance starts at $60, carried from wherever it sits. No disconnecting on our end, so have it unplugged and unhooked when we arrive. Metal gets recycled. Text a photo and you get the whole number before we load anything.
City fees change. The appliance program figures above were checked against the City of Mesa's own appliance pickup page in October 2026, and the landfill rates against our Salt River Landfill guide. Confirm the number when you book. An appliance left at the curb with no pickup scheduled can turn into a notice, and our Mesa code violation guide covers how that goes.