How much does house clearance cost in Dublin?
House clearance in Dublin is priced by volume, so the honest answer is that it depends on how many van loads leave the property. As a rough guide, typical Dublin market prices run from around €60 to €100 for a single item up to somewhere between €600 and €1,500 for a full three-bed house, with most jobs landing in between. The only accurate figure is a quote based on photos of what actually has to go.
Those ranges are what we see across the Dublin market generally. They are not our price list, and we would rather you sent us a few photos than guessed from a blog post.
What drives the price of a house clearance?
Six things, roughly in order of how much they matter.
Volume. A clearance crew thinks in van loads. A two-person box van is the standard unit, and a quote is really an estimate of how many times that van has to fill, drive to a transfer station and come back. Half a van, one van, two vans: that is the first question any clearance company is working out when it looks at your photos.
Access. A bungalow with a driveway in Raheny is a quicker job than a third-floor flat over a shop on Camden Street with no lift. Stairs, narrow return staircases in converted redbricks, long carries from the door to where the van can legally stop, and streets where the van cannot park at all each add labour time, and labour time is money.
Type of waste. Disposal is charged at the gate of a licensed waste transfer station, and the rate depends on what is being tipped. Mattresses, upholstered sofas, carpets and mixed general waste cost more to dispose of than scrap metal or flattened cardboard. A house full of old magazines is heavy and slow; a house full of light furniture is bulky but quick.
Distance. We are Dublin-based. A job in Dundrum involves less fuel and travel time than one in Newbridge or Bray, and the distance from the property to the nearest suitable transfer station matters too.
Time on site. A tidy house where everything is already in rooms is loaded fast. A hoarded house, a property where every drawer is still full, or a job where the family wants to go through things while we work all take longer. None of that is a problem, but it does affect the price.
Resale or reuse value. Where a house holds furniture or goods in genuinely good condition, some of it can be set aside for reuse or resale rather than paid for at the tip. That can take the edge off a quote, but only when items are clean, intact and wanted; a worn three-piece suite is not an asset, however much it was loved.
What are typical house clearance prices in Dublin?
The table below is a guide to the ranges people in Dublin tend to be quoted. Treat every figure as indicative and expect your own quote to sit above or below it depending on the points above.
| Job size | Typical Dublin market range |
|---|---|
| Single item (a sofa, a fridge, a mattress) | from around €60 to €100 |
| Half a van load (a bedsit, a shed, a couple of rooms of odds and ends) | roughly €150 to €250 |
| A full two-person van load | roughly €300 to €450 |
| A full three-bed house | commonly €600 to €1,500 depending on contents |
A three-bed semi-d that has been lived in for forty years can run to several van loads once the attic, the hot press and the garage are included, which is why the top end of that last range is so wide. A sparsely furnished apartment can come in well under it.
Why can no one give an exact price over the phone?
Because “a few bits” and “a full house” mean different things to every caller. One person’s half van load is another person’s two full loads once the wardrobes are opened.
Photos solve this. Walk through each room, including the attic, shed and garden, and send the pictures by WhatsApp to 085 202 1222. A clearance company can see the volume, the stairs and the kind of waste in a couple of minutes and give you a real figure rather than a hopeful one.
Is skip hire cheaper than a house clearance?
On paper a skip can look cheaper, and for some jobs it is. For a typical house clearance it is usually not, for three reasons.
First, you do all the lifting. The skip arrives empty and leaves when you have filled it, and everything in between is you, your back and whoever you can persuade to help on a Saturday.
Second, if the skip has to sit on the public road or footpath, you need a skip permit from Dublin City Council or the relevant county council, which is an extra cost and a form to fill. Skips on a private driveway do not need one, but plenty of Dublin houses have no driveway.
Third, skips are restricted. Most skip companies will not take fridges, freezers, televisions, tyres or paint in a general skip, and many charge extra for mattresses, so the awkward items still need another plan. Our full comparison of house clearance against skip hire goes through this in more detail.
How can you keep the cost down?
A few things genuinely help. Set aside anything you are keeping before the crew arrives, so nobody is pulling items back off the van, and clear the attic, shed and garage on the same visit rather than booking two trips. Tell the company about stairs, parking and anything heavy in the photos so the quote is right first time and there are no surprises on the day.
What does not help is bagging and sorting everything in advance. A good crew sorts as it loads, separating what can be reused or recycled from what goes to the transfer station, so your weekend of sorting mostly saves them nothing. Our guide to what a house clearance service will remove explains what goes where.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay for a quote?
No. Quotes are free and there is no obligation to go ahead. Send photos on WhatsApp or through the form on the contact page and you will get a figure back without anyone needing to visit first.
Will stairs or a lack of parking add to the price?
A little, because they add time. A third-floor flat with no lift takes longer to carry out than a ground-floor house, and a van that has to sit two streets away means longer walks with every item. Mention these things when you ask for a quote and they will be built into the price rather than argued about afterwards.
Is it cheaper to clear a house myself over a few weekends?
Sometimes, if you have a van, a driveway and a lot of free Saturdays. Count the gate fees at the recycling centre, the fuel, van hire if you need it, and your own time before you decide. For a full house, most people find that a crew who do it in a day for a known price is the easier and often the cheaper option.
Will it be cheaper if I bring everything down to the hall first?
Only slightly, and rarely by enough to be worth it. On a big job with a lot of stairs, boxes and bags already downstairs save some carrying time, but most of the work is the heavy furniture, the loading and the sorting. Do not risk your back on a wardrobe or a mattress to save a little; that is exactly what the crew is there for.
Can I get a quote before we have decided what is staying?
Yes. Send photos of everything and we will price the lot, which gives the family a figure to work with while the decisions are made. Once you know what is staying, tell us, and the quote can be revised to match what is really going.
Why do quotes from different clearance companies vary so much?
Mostly because they are not quoting for the same thing. Ask each one whether the price includes disposal at a licensed facility, whether the crew carries everything out and sorts it, and whether the company holds a Waste Collection Permit. A price far below the rest often means the transfer station fee is being avoided, and the householder can be held responsible if the waste is dumped.
Will giving furniture away before the clearance lower the price?
Yes, as long as it actually leaves before the day. Anything collected by a neighbour, a relative or someone from a free-to-collector website is volume that is not going on our van, and that can bring the number of loads down. Just tell us what is going, so the quote is for what will really be there on the day.
Are mattresses charged separately?
Often, yes, and they appear as their own line on the quote so you can see them. Mattresses have to go to a licensed facility for processing rather than into general waste, and that costs more at the gate than most household items. If there are several, say how many when you send photos.
Does a bereavement or hoarder clearance cost more than an ordinary one?
Not because of the circumstances. These jobs are priced the same way as any other, by volume, access and the kind of waste. What can add time is the searching, going through drawers, pockets and boxes for documents, cash and photographs, and that is built into the quote rather than added on the day.
Will lifting fitted carpets add to the cost?
A little, because it adds both labour and disposal. Carpet and underlay have to be cut, rolled and carried out, and carpet is one of the dearer things to dispose of at a transfer station. Show the carpeted rooms in your photos and say whether the carpets are going, and they will be in the quote.
Next step
If you have a house, flat or single room to clear anywhere in Dublin, Kildare or North Wicklow, take a few photos of each room and send them for a free quote. You can read more about how our house clearance service works, or see what we take on smaller jobs on the junk removal page.
