Skip hire vs man and van
Pick a skip size and where it would go, and see how it compares to booking a RubbishSorted man-and-van collection for the same volume of waste.
Skip size
Where would the skip go?
A council permit is needed for a skip on a public road.
Skip hire
£220–£300
Typical hire cost, midi skip
- Council permit
- +£30–£110Varies by borough
- Permit lead time
- 3–5 working days
- On site for
- 7–14 days
- Loading
- You load it yourself
RubbishSorted man & van
£180–£250
Equivalent to a half load
- Permit needed
- No
- Availability
- Same day, often
- On site for
- One visit — no multi-day hire
- Loading
- We load it for you
Skip hire figures are typical London prices, updated July 2026— they vary by borough and supplier and aren't an exact quote. Our man-and-van figure is our own published guide price range, derived the same way as our load estimator.
The practical differences
We load it
Man-and-van pricing includes labour — you point, we lift and load. Skip hire is self-load by default.
No permit
A skip on a public road needs a council permit arranged in advance. Man-and-van collection never does.
Same day, often
Book a man-and-van collection for today or tomorrow. Skip hire runs on a delivery-and-collection schedule.
No multi-day hire
A skip sits on site for a week or two, taking up space the whole time. A man-and-van job is one visit.
Want the full breakdown — permits, space, suitability by waste type, and when a skip genuinely is the better option? Read our full skip hire vs man-and-van guide.
Need it gone today, not in a week?
No permit, no waiting for delivery — get an instant price and book a collection.
Get your man-and-van priceFAQ
Do I need a permit for a skip?+
Only if it's going on a public road, including outside your own house if there's no room on private land. If the skip sits entirely on a driveway or private land, no permit is needed. Permits are arranged through your local council in advance and usually take a few working days.
Is skip hire cheaper than man and van?+
It depends on the job. Skip hire is a flat fee for the container and disposal — you do the loading. Man-and-van pricing reflects both the waste volume and the labour of loading it, since the crew does that for you. For an ongoing project you can fill over several days, a skip is often more cost-effective. For a one-off clearance, man-and-van is usually simpler and comparably priced once you account for your own time and effort.
Does RubbishSorted offer skip hire?+
No — we're a man-and-van collection service. We don't deliver or collect skips. If your job suits an ongoing skip better than a one-off collection, this comparison should help you decide, and a local skip hire company is the right next step.
How long can I keep a skip on site?+
Typical hire periods run one to two weeks, though this varies by supplier and permit terms — check with your chosen skip company. A man-and-van collection, by contrast, is a single visit with nothing left behind.