Municipal waste statistics show how much waste communities generate, what materials make up the stream, and where that waste goes. In the European Union, recycling and composting reached 48% of municipal waste in 2024, while landfilling fell to 24%. The latest U.S. national figures in the cited EPA series are older: they describe 2018, when the country generated 292.36 million short tons of municipal solid waste.
Contents
- EU generation and long-term treatment
- EU treatment pathways
- What EU municipal waste contains
- Country differences in composition
- Recycling performance and targets
- United States quantities and outcomes
EU generation and long-term treatment
Eurostat reported 234.4 million tonnes of municipal waste generated in the EU in 2023. The municipal-waste category includes household waste and similar waste from commerce, offices, public institutions, and selected municipal services. It excludes industrial, agricultural, medical, and construction-and-demolition waste. Source: Municipal waste landfilled, incinerated, recycled and composted, EU, 1995-2024.
Per-person treatment figures provide a useful way to compare the EU across years. Municipal waste generation was 511 kg per person in 2023. Of that amount, 246 kg per person was recycled. Recycling therefore represented 48.0% of generation in 2023. These figures come from Eurostat’s Municipal waste down by second consecutive year, which reports 2023 data.
The longer series through 2024 shows a major shift away from landfill:
| Measure | Earlier point | 2024 or change | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landfilling rate | 61% | 24% | 1995–2024 |
| Landfilled waste | — | 50 million tonnes | 2024 |
| Landfilled waste per person | — | 110 kg | 2024 |
| Recycled through material recycling and composting | — | 111 million tonnes | 2024 |
| Recycled through material recycling and composting per person | — | 247 kg | 2024 |
| Overall recycling share | 19% | 48% | 1995–2024 |
From 1995 to 2024, EU municipal-waste landfilling was 72 million tonnes lower, a 59% decline. The average annual decline over that period was 2.0%. The overall share recycled rose from 19% to 48%, while the recycling total increased at an average annual rate of 6.9%. The 2024 figures and long-term comparisons are from the Eurostat PDF cited above.
EU treatment pathways
The 2023 treatment profile separates recycling, incineration, and landfill. Recycling measured 246 kg per person, or 48.0% of municipal waste generated. Incineration measured 129 kg per person, equal to 25.2% of generation. Landfilling measured 115 kg per person, equal to 22.5% of generation. These are 2023 EU figures from Municipal waste down by second consecutive year.
The same source gives a comparison with 2013. Recycling increased from 199 kg per person, representing 37.2% of generation, to 246 kg per person in 2023. Landfilling decreased from 142 kg per person, or 29.7% of generation, in 2013 to 115 kg per person, or 22.5%, in 2023.
Eurostat’s longer treatment series records a different movement for incineration. EU municipal-waste incineration reached 61 million tonnes in 2024. Between 1995 and 2024, incineration increased by 31 million tonnes, or 105%. On a per-person basis, it rose from 70 kg in 1995 to 135 kg in 2024, a 93% increase.
Taken together, these measurements describe changing treatment pathways rather than a single disposal trend. Landfill’s share and quantity fell over the long period, recycling grew, and incineration also became a larger treatment pathway. The percentages and tonnages refer to different reported measures and years, so they should be read with their stated period attached.
What EU municipal waste contains
Eurostat’s 2023 composition figures show that biowaste was the largest category in the EU, totaling 67.4 million tonnes, or 28.8% of municipal waste. Mixed waste followed at 47.5 million tonnes, or 20.3%. The “other waste” category accounted for 33.9 million tonnes, or 14.5%.
Paper and cardboard represented 32.6 million tonnes, or 13.9%, while plastic represented 17.5 million tonnes, or 7.5%. Glass totaled 14.8 million tonnes, or 6.3%. Wood accounted for 7.9 million tonnes, or 3.4%, and metals for 6.9 million tonnes, or 2.9%.
The main 2023 categories were:
- Biowaste: 67.4 million tonnes, 28.8%.
- Mixed waste: 47.5 million tonnes, 20.3%.
- Other waste: 33.9 million tonnes, 14.5%.
- Paper and cardboard: 32.6 million tonnes, 13.9%.
- Plastic: 17.5 million tonnes, 7.5%.
- Glass: 14.8 million tonnes, 6.3%.
- Wood: 7.9 million tonnes, 3.4%.
- Metals: 6.9 million tonnes, 2.9%.
Biowaste was the largest municipal-waste category in 17 EU countries in 2023. The composition results are EU averages, not a description of every national waste stream. Eurostat also notes that eight EU countries did not apply a full composition analysis to mixed waste, which can cause mixed waste to be overrepresented.
Country differences in composition
National composition figures vary substantially. Biowaste made up 58.4% of total municipal waste in Romania in 2023, compared with 42.6% in Greece and 41.2% in Cyprus. These measurements use each country’s reported share of total municipal waste for that year.
Mixed waste was the largest category in seven EU countries. Its reported share ranged from 33.4% in Denmark to 79.2% in Portugal in 2023. Other waste accounted for 22.1% in Ireland, 31.1% in Lithuania, and 26.8% in Slovenia.
Paper, cardboard, and plastic also showed wide country-level ranges. Paper and cardboard ranged from 26.5% of municipal waste in Croatia to 7.2% in France. Plastic ranged from 18.5% in Croatia to 6.7% in France. The figures are composition shares, not recycling rates, and should not be interpreted as the proportion of each material that was recovered.
Some country composition inputs are based on surveys conducted ten years ago or more. That limitation matters when using the figures to describe current local conditions. The figures also reflect Eurostat’s municipal-waste definition, which excludes several non-municipal waste categories.
Recycling performance and targets
The EU-27 average preparation-for-reuse and recycling rate was 43.3% in 2023 under municipal-waste reporting data. This measure is distinct from the 48.0% share of municipal waste recycled in the separate 2023 treatment summary: the two statistics use different reporting concepts, so they should not be combined as if they were identical.
The EU targets for preparation for reuse and recycling are 55% for 2025, 60% for 2030, and 65% for 2035. Against the 2023 reporting measure, eight EU countries met the 50% municipal-waste target under the new calculation rules. Three of those countries also reached the 55% target that applies to 2025.
The highest specifically reported national rates under the new rules were Austria at 62.8%, Luxembourg at 56.5%, and Belgium at 55.8% in 2023. Romania reported a total municipal-waste recycling rate of 12.4% in 2023, and five EU countries reported total municipal-waste recycling rates below 20%.
These country results illustrate why an EU average can conceal large differences. A national rate may be compared with a target only when the calculation method and metric are the same. The target and performance figures above are from the Eurostat source titled Municipal waste landfilled, incinerated, recycled and composted, EU, 1995-2024.
United States quantities and outcomes
The EPA’s national municipal solid waste series in Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: Facts and Figures 2018 reports 2018 results for the United States. The series uses U.S. short tons and covers municipal solid waste, excluding construction and demolition debris, industrial process wastes, and certain other wastes.
The United States generated 292.36 million short tons of municipal solid waste in 2018. Reported outcomes included 69.09 million short tons recycled, 24.89 million short tons composted, 34.55 million short tons combusted with energy recovery, and 146.12 million short tons landfilled.
Material composition and recovery also differed sharply by material in 2018:
| U.S. material measure | 2018 result |
|---|---|
| Paper and paperboard share of generation | 23.1% |
| Food share of generation | 21.6% |
| Plastics share of generation | 12.2% |
| Paper and paperboard recycled | 45.97 million short tons, 68.2% of generation |
| Corrugated boxes recycled | 32.09 million short tons, 96.5% of generation |
| Total glass recycled | 3.06 million short tons, 25.0% of generation |
| Total metals recycled | 8.72 million short tons, 34.1% of generation |
| Plastics in durable goods recycled | 0.93 million short tons, 6.8% of generation |
Paper and paperboard made up 23.1% of U.S. municipal solid waste generation, food made up 21.6%, and plastics made up 12.2%. The reported recycling outcomes show a wide range: corrugated-box recycling was 96.5% of generation, compared with 25.0% for total glass and 6.8% for plastics in durable goods.
Because the EPA series is for 2018, these figures should be labeled as 2018 measurements rather than treated as current estimates. They also use short tons, while the EU figures above use tonnes, kilograms per person, or percentages. Those units and scope differences prevent direct tonnage comparisons between the two regions.