Skip bin sizesWhich size skip do you need?
Skip sizes from 2 to 10 m³ compared, with each one’s dimensions, weight limits and what it usually suits, plus a size finder for your job.
- Dimensions and weight limits
- Wheelie bin and trailer maths shown
- A size finder by job
Send an enquiry
Skip sizes compared
Skips are named by volume, in cubic metres (m³), from 2 m³ mini skips to 10 m³ builder’s skips. Each card shows the job it usually suits, its size and roughly how many wheelie bins it holds.
2 m³
Mini skip
A bathroom strip-out, a shed or a small garden tidy-up
- Size 1.6 × 1.6 × 0.9 m
- Holds about 8 wheelie bins
3 m³
Large mini skip
A bathroom or laundry renovation, a spare-room clear-out
- Size 2.5 × 1.6 × 0.9 m
- Holds about 12 wheelie bins
4 m³
Small skip
A garage or shed clean-out, a big garden clean-up
- Size 3.2 × 1.6 × 1.0 m
- Holds about 16 wheelie bins
6 m³
Medium skip
A kitchen renovation, a house clean-out before a move
- Size 3.6 × 1.6 × 1.2 m
- Holds about 25 wheelie bins
8 m³
Large skip
A whole-house clear-out, a bigger renovation
- Size 4.2 × 1.6 × 1.5 m
- Holds about 33 wheelie bins
10 m³
Builder’s skip
Renovations and building jobs with bulky, light waste
- Size varies by fleet
- Holds about 41 wheelie bins
Sizes are as Yarra Valley Skip Bins publishes them, measured at the top edge and drawn to scale. Skips taper towards the base and other fleets differ a little, so tell your chosen contractor the width of your space and a suitable contractor can check the fit. Wheelie bins are our arithmetic (the volume divided by a 240-litre bin), and “usually suits” is our rule of thumb. Checked 1 October 2026.
Size finder
Pick your job for a suggested size, or work it out from wheelie bins and trailer loads.
Or by volume
Suggested size
Pick a job
Choose a job, or enter wheelie bins and trailer loads, and the suggestion appears here.
Send an enquiry for this sizeThe job suggestions are our rule of thumb. The volume maths is ours too: a wheelie bin holds 0.24 m³, and a 6 x 4 box trailer loaded level to 0.4 m holds 1.8 x 1.2 x 0.4 = 0.86 m³. We suggest the next size up from your total.
For a closer estimate by project, with the weight of tiles, concrete and soil worked out, try the skip bin size calculator.
Weight limits by size
Every skip has a weight limit as well as a volume, and weight is what catches people out. Heavy waste reaches the limit long before the skip looks full, so soil, concrete and bricks go in 2 to 4 m³ skips, filled level with the top edge. See soil and concrete skips.
Published skip weight limits
| Skip size | Light mixed load | Heavy mixed load |
|---|---|---|
| 2 m³ | 0.6 t | 0.9 t |
| 3 m³ | 0.8 t | 1.0 t |
| 4 m³ | 1.0 t | 1.3 t |
| 6 m³ | 1.2 t | 1.5 t |
| 8 m³ | 1.5 t | 1.8 t |
| 10 m³ | 1.6 t | 2.0 t |
| 12 m³ | 1.7 t | 2.2 t |
Weight limits as Yarra Valley Skip Bins publishes them; other companies set their own. Yarra Valley says an overweight light load moves to its heavy price, and an overweight heavy load carries an extra charge. Checked 1 October 2026.
Common questions about skip sizes
Is it better to get a bigger skip just in case?
For light waste, a size up can save hiring a second skip. For heavy waste, no: soil, concrete and tiles reach the weight limit before a bigger skip is full, so you’d pay for space you can’t use.
Will a skip fit on my driveway?
Usually, if there’s room for the skip and for the truck to set it down. Yarra Valley Skip Bins, for one, asks for a driveway 3 metres wide with 3.5 metres of overhead clearance. Tell your chosen contractor the width of your space and anything overhead, and a suitable contractor can check the size fits.
Do skips have a door?
Most bigger skips do. Yarra Valley Skip Bins says all its bins except the 2-metre bins have doors, and ASAP Bin Hire describes its 3 m³ skips and up as walk-in. A door makes it easier to wheel a barrow in.
Where the sizes come from
The dimensions and weight limits on this page come from these published pages, checked on 1 October 2026.
- Yarra Valley Skip Bins: skip bin hire prices · Skip hire business, Dixons Creek (Yarra Ranges); price table by size, waste and weight limit, no visible date, GST not stated
- ASAP Bin Hire: Bayswater skip bins · Skip hire business, Kilsyth; main “Our skip bins” table (the page also shows a second, different price guide), GST not stated
More guides
Send an enquiry
Choose a size, tell us what’s going in it and where, and we can review your enquiry. A supplier and booking are not arranged by this form.