240L vs 660L vs 1100L Bins: Which Size Is Right for Your Business?

Choose bin capacity together with weight, access and the interval between collections. The largest bin that fits is not automatically the right option.

The facts behind the comparison

SULO lists approximate dimensions and weights for its models as follows. These are manufacturer examples, not universal dimensions and not a collection provider's weight allowance. Source: SULO — 240 Litre Container ; SULO — 660 Litre Commercial Bin ; SULO — 1100 Litre Commercial Bin.

What to compare

Decision	240L model	660L model	1100L model
SULO total height × width × depth	1060 × 585 × 730 mm	1210 × 1205 × 770 mm	1330 × 1240 × 1070 mm
SULO empty weight	12.5 kg	43 kg	approx. 65 kg
SULO maximum filling weight	96 kg	265 kg	440 kg
Storage assessment	Measure room for each separated stream.	Check doorway, manoeuvring and wheel access.	Check turning space and the full collection route.
Load assessment	Compare waste density with permitted fill weight.	Confirm maximum load with the supplier.	Confirm maximum load and movement method.
Collection proposal	Price the required number of bins and lifts.	Price the same weekly waste quantity.	Compare lower frequency with storage and hygiene needs.

What the dimensions mean on site

Exact size matters more than nominal capacity once the bin has to live in a laneway, a loading dock or a bin room. Working from the SULO figures above:

Doorways. The 240L model is 585 mm wide and passes any standard door. The 660L model is 1,205 mm wide but only 770 mm deep, so it can be wheeled end-on through a wider commercial doorway. The 1100L model is 1,240 mm wide and 1,070 mm deep, so it needs a double door or an open dock.
Footprint. As an illustration from the published width and depth, one 1100L bin occupies about 1.3 m² of floor and holds the nominal volume of roughly 4.6 × 240L bins, which would take about 2 m² between them before any walking space. That arithmetic is an example, not a site assessment.
Weight limits. SULO lists a maximum filling weight of 96 kg for the 240L model, 265 kg for the 660L and 440 kg for the 1100L. Wet food waste and glass reach those limits well before the bin looks full, and a collection provider may set a lower allowance of its own. Heavy streams usually belong in a smaller bin collected more often.

The 240L bin in practice

The two-wheel 240L bin is the size most people picture, and the only one of the three a single person can normally move without help.

Where it works: it fits in tight spaces, passes any standard doorway, is simple to clean, and makes it affordable to separate a low-volume stream — secure paper or food organics at a small site — into its own bin rather than sending it to general waste.

Where it does not: capacity runs out quickly, bulky items will not fit, and several 240L bins take more floor space and more lifts than one larger bin holding the same volume. An empty bin is also light enough to blow over in an exposed yard.

The 660L bin in practice

The four-wheel 660L bin is the usual middle ground: noticeably more capacity than a 240L without the access problems of an 1100L.

Where it works: at 770 mm deep it still passes a wider commercial doorway end-on, it rolls on four wheels, and it holds the equivalent of nearly three 240L bins in a single footprint.

Where it does not: at the 265 kg rated filling weight it is not something to shift by hand up a gradient, it is wider than a 240L so a narrow bin room may not take two of them side by side, and for a genuinely high-volume site it still means more lifts than an 1100L would.

The 1100L bin in practice

The 1100L bin is the largest of the three wheeled containers and the one most sensitive to how your site is laid out.

Where it works: it holds the nominal volume of roughly 4.6 × 240L bins in about 1.3 m², so where the waste genuinely exists it is the least space-hungry and the least lift-hungry way to hold it.

Where it does not: at 1,240 mm wide and 1,070 mm deep it will not go through a single doorway, it needs turning space along the whole route to the collection point, and if it is only half full on collection day you are paying a lift to move air.

Before you decide

Record how full each bin becomes immediately before collection over representative weeks.
Measure doors, gates, corners, gradients and collection clearance; ask for a site assessment.
Obtain the exact supplied model and permitted contents and weight in writing.
Compare the total service quote, including rental, lifts, excess weight and GST treatment.

When to choose each size

Choose 240L where the volume is genuinely small, where access is too tight for anything larger, or where a separated stream is small enough that its own 240L bin is cheaper than contaminating a bigger one.
Choose 660L where a 240L bin is full before collection day but the route to the kerb will not take an 1100L, which covers most small and mid-sized sites.
Choose 1100L where the waste is bulky rather than heavy, the collection point takes the footprint, and the alternative is a second weekly lift.

The short version: pick the largest bin you will actually fill, and let weight and access rule sizes out before cost rules them in.

What this comparison cannot tell you

Nominal litres do not predict how many kilograms your waste will weigh. Do not infer a safe manual handling task from a bin's capacity; have the movement route assessed. No model-specific price is established here.

Frequently asked questions

How do I work out what bin size my business needs?

Fill your current bins for a week without changing any habits, then check how full each one is immediately before collection. A bin that is overflowing means the next size up or an extra collection is worth pricing; a bin that is half empty means you are paying for space you are not using. Roughly three-quarters full at collection leaves room for a busy week without paying for air. Repeat the check over several representative weeks rather than relying on one.

Is one large bin cheaper than several smaller ones?

Per litre of capacity a larger bin is normally the cheaper way to hold the same waste, because much of a collection charge covers the lift and the truck's time rather than the volume. Per lift, the larger bin costs more. Whether the trade works out depends on the rates in your own quote, so price both arrangements — number of bins, number of lifts, rental and any excess-weight charge — against the same weekly waste quantity. No model-specific price is established on this page.

Can I fit an 1100L bin through my back door?

On SULO's published specifications the 1100L commercial bin is about 1,240 mm wide, 1,070 mm deep and 1,330 mm tall, so it will not pass through a standard single doorway. The 660L model is about 1,205 mm wide and 770 mm deep, which can pass a wider commercial doorway when wheeled end-on. Where access is tight, a smaller bin collected more often, or a front-lift bin kept outside where the truck can reach it, is usually the practical answer. Measure your own opening; other manufacturers' models differ.

How much does each bin size weigh when full?

That depends on the waste rather than the bin: glass and wet food reach a weight limit long before cardboard does. What is fixed is the container's rated limit. SULO lists a maximum filling weight of 96 kg for the 240L model, 265 kg for the 660L and 440 kg for the 1100L, with empty weights of 12.5 kg, 43 kg and 65 kg. A collection provider may apply a lower allowance of its own and may charge for, or refuse, an overweight bin, so confirm the permitted weight in writing.

Can I mix bin sizes for different waste streams?

Yes, and matching each bin to its own stream is usually the more efficient setup. General waste, commingled recycling, food organics and secure paper rarely fill at the same rate, so one size across all of them leaves some bins overflowing and others half empty. Size and schedule each stream on its own measured volume, and check the storage area has room for every bin you separate into.

Related decisions

Discuss your waste setup with Bundle Waste.

Sources

SULO — 240 Litre Container. Technical Specifications: Dimensions, Volume and Weight. Checked 21 September 2026.
SULO — 660 Litre Commercial Bin. Technical Specifications: Dimensions, Volume and Weight. Checked 21 September 2026.
SULO — 1100 Litre Commercial Bin. Technical Specifications: Dimensions, Volume and Weight. Checked 21 September 2026.

240L vs 660L vs 1100L Commercial Bins