Near Me

If you typed "scrap yard near me" with a truck bed full of pipe, wire, or a busted appliance, you don't need a lecture on metallurgy — you need to find a yard that's open, get a fair price, and not waste the afternoon. The directory pages below break out the specific search variants (yards, recyclers, prices); the rest of this page is the practical playbook for getting paid today.

The 60-second framework: Google Maps + your state's licensed-dealer registry + a 2-minute reputation check. Most yards are within a 15-mile drive in any populated US metro, but the closest one isn't always the best-paying one — and a yard that hasn't updated its hours since 2019 will waste your day. Below: the call script, the prep checklist, and the scale-house mechanics the aggregator directories don't explain.

How to find a scrap yard near you in 60 seconds

This is the actual three-step search method. It's faster than scrolling Yelp and it filters out the dead listings.

1. Search Google Maps for "scrap yard" or "metal recycler" + your zip. Sort by rating, but only trust listings with 30+ reviews from the last 12 months. Yards with three 5-star reviews from 2018 are usually closed or under new management with the bad new reviews suppressed.
2. Cross-reference your state's licensed-dealer registry. Most states with anti-theft scrap laws maintain a public dealer list — Texas runs the DPS Metal Recycling Entity registry, California the DOJ junk-dealer registry, others vary (see regional regulatory quirks). A yard not on the list is operating illegally or buying through a broker — either way, walk.
3. Call before you drive. Posted hours on Maps are wrong about 30% of the time, especially Saturdays. The five-question script below takes two minutes and saves a wasted trip.

If you only have time for one step, do step three. The pre-drive phone call is the single highest-leverage move in scrap.

What to call before you drive

Five questions. Two minutes. You can call three yards in the time it takes to load the truck, and you'll know which one to drive to.

• "What are you paying today for [your specific grade]?" Don't ask "what's copper going for" — ask for the grade by name. Bare bright, #1 copper, #2 copper, ICW, irony aluminum. If the yard hedges, that's a signal. The grade ladder covers the vocabulary before you call.
• "What ID do I need?" Photo ID is universal. Some states (Texas, Illinois, Ohio) require a vehicle title for auto parts and catalytic converters. A few states require proof of address.
• "What time does the scale close?" Yards stop accepting loads 30–60 minutes before the office closes. A yard that says "we're open till 4" usually means the scale closes at 3:30. Confirm.
• "Cash or check, and is there a cash limit?" Most states cap cash payouts at $25–$100 per visit (anti-theft law); the rest comes by check or ACH, sometimes after a state-mandated hold period. If you need cash today, know the cap before driving.
• "Pickup vs. drive-in pricing?" Drive-in is almost always 10–15% better. If you're considering a pickup, get both quotes from the same yard.

What yard hours and quirks to expect

Most US scrap yards run Monday–Friday 7am–4pm and Saturday morning only (typically 7am–noon). Sunday is universal closure. Weather and ticker volatility can shut a yard mid-day — when copper drops 8% before lunch, some yards stop quoting until the close. For a non-ferrous load worth more than a few hundred bucks, call the morning of, not the night before.

Two state-law quirks catch first-timers off guard. Several states (Indiana, Tennessee, Georgia, Illinois) impose a 3-to-10-day hold period on payments for non-ferrous loads — the check is dated but won't clear until the hold expires. California adds a mandatory 3-day cooling-off period for catalytic converter sales. Texas requires that you be a registered seller or have an established peddler account for regulated-metal transactions over a threshold. The full state breakdown lives at the regional quirks page; a metro-level companion is the metros directory.

Pick the right "near me" page for what you're searching

The six published directory leaves below each target a slightly different searcher. If you're not sure which fits, the table is the index:

If you're a homeowner with a single-load drop-off, start with the scrap yards page — that's the broadest fit. If you're price-shopping before driving, the prices page has the call-around methodology.

Why prices vary even though spot is national

COMEX copper is the same number in Boise as in Baltimore — but the yard payout isn't. Intra-metro spreads of 10–20% on the same copper grade between two yards 8 miles apart are normal. Five mechanics drive the spread:

• Freight to the next mill. A yard 30 miles from a major EAF mill has a much shorter outbound leg than one 300 miles away — and that freight cost comes straight out of your per-pound price. The deeper mill-and-market context explains how outlet specialization plays into your local quote.
• Local competition density. Five yards within 20 miles of each other produces tighter spreads than a single-yard rural market. Yards know what their neighbors quote because their sellers shop them.
• Mill specialization. A yard feeding a copper-rod mill values bare-bright differently than one feeding a brass foundry. Aluminum-can recyclers and structural-aluminum yards quote different numbers for the same metal.
• State regulations. States with strict registered-seller rules and hold periods on non-ferrous payments build the compliance and carry cost into the price.
• Export proximity. Yards within 90 miles of a major scrap-export port (LA/Long Beach, Newark, Houston, Charleston) compete with international buyers and pay closer to spot. The macro picture is in our trade and pricing context.

The takeaway: call two or three yards before driving anywhere over 15 miles. The spread on a 200-lb copper load pays for the gas to reach the better-paying yard.

Before you drive: the 60-second prep checklist

The yard makes its money on the inspection call at the scale. Material that should grade #1 but shows up dirty gets bumped to #2 — and that's a 10–15 cent per pound haircut. Six minutes of prep in your driveway is the highest-paying labor in scrap.

1. Pre-sort by grade. Bare bright in one bucket, #1 copper in another, #2 in a third, ICW separate. Show up with everything in one barrel and the whole load defaults to the lowest grade present.
2. Separate insulated wire from bare. ICW pays 30–50% of bare-bright per pound. Mixed in a single bucket, it all gets graded as ICW.
3. Drain fluids on auto parts. Radiators, transmissions, anything with oil or coolant — drain it. Wet weight gets discounted, contamination gets you turned away.
4. Bring a current photo ID. Driver's license, state ID, or passport. Some states require an address match — don't show up with an expired license.
5. Know your trailer/truck capacity. Most yards have a posted gross-weight limit. Pulling in 8,000 lb on a 6,000-lb-rated trailer is an immediate turnaround.
6. Confirm your title for vehicles. Whole-car scrapping requires a signed title in every state — the selling guide covers the title-transfer paperwork.
7. Strip insulation only when the math works. Going from ICW (40–50% of spot) to #1 (82–88%) roughly doubles per-pound pay — but only if you can strip faster than 20 lb/hour with a manual stripper.
8. Check today's spot before you leave. Pull up today's copper price so the yard's quote has a reference point. A yard offering 60% of spot on bare bright is walking you.

Frequently asked questions