What do you need from me for a quote?
Four things get you a firm price. The rest is detail.
- The street address. Not the zip code, not the neighbourhood. In Philadelphia the block is half the
job, and a quote written against a zip code is a spreadsheet row rather than a price.
- The dates. Start and finish, or an open end if it is a jobsite running until the work does.
- The number of people. Crew size for a site, guest count and event length for a party.
- Where the unit goes. Curbside, driveway, rear yard, inside a fenced compound, up a hill.
Add anything odd about access and you will get a better number, not a worse one. Trash day, a one-way running against you, permit parking, a shared alley, a low rail bridge, a security desk that controls the gate on a hospital site.
What is actually in the quote?
Delivery, the unit, the agreed service visits and pickup, listed separately so you can see what you are paying for. Most companies in this trade quote a single figure and leave you guessing which of the three went up.
Typical Philadelphia bands, reviewed July 2026, market ranges rather than our rate card:
| Line | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Standard unit, weekend | $125 to $250 |
| Standard unit, per month | $125 to $325 |
| Deluxe flushing, weekend | $200 to $350 |
| ADA accessible, weekend | $199 to $300 |
| Delivery | $50 to $150 |
| Weekly service visit | $30 to $60 |
The full breakdown, including the fees most quotes bury, sits on the porta potty rental cost page, with day rates and monthly jobsite rates split out separately.
How many units should I ask for?
For a construction site, OSHA 1926.51(c)(1) requires one toilet for 20 or fewer workers, then one toilet seat and one urinal for every 40 workers above that, counted by people on site rather than by contractor. A gut rehab with a framer, an electrician and a plumber counts all three.
For an event, plan one unit per 50 guests over four hours, add 15 to 20 percent where alcohol is served, and include at least one accessible unit, which the 2010 ADA Standards size around a 60 inch turning space in section 304.3.1. The sizing calculator does both, and the OSHA requirements guide covers the jobsite side in detail.
Ask for a number you are unsure about and we will say if it looks light. Undercounting shows up on day two as a service call.
How fast does the quote come back?
Same working day on anything straightforward. Standard units ordered before noon usually go out the next working day after that. Trailers and multi-unit event orders take three to five days to schedule, because they get planned around the venue rather than around the truck.
If it is genuinely urgent, say so in the first line rather than the last. Emergency porta potty rental explains what we can and cannot turn around on short notice, and it is more honest than a promise made to win the booking.
What moves the price?
Six things, in rough order of how much they matter here.
- Access. The single biggest variable in Philadelphia. A driveway in the Northeast and a one-way in Queen Village are not the same delivery.
- Distance from the yard. Delivery sits at the low end of the $50 to $150 band close in and the high end out toward Doylestown at 26.2 miles.
- Service frequency. ANSI/PSAI Z4.3, the industry standard for non-sewered waste systems, treats one visit a week as the baseline. Heavy traffic needs more, and a quote carrying one fewer visit is not cheaper.
- Unit type. A deluxe flushing unit with its 5 gallon flush reservoir costs more than a standard cabin with a 60 to 70 gallon holding tank and no water.
- Duration. Past about ten days, ask for monthly pricing. The per-day rate drops hard.
- Season. Spring and early autumn weekends are the tight ones. Winter changes the chemistry, which porta potties in winter covers.
Quoting an event versus a jobsite
They are different questions. An event quote is driven by guest count, hours, alcohol and how far the units sit from the crowd, plus whatever the venue's own vendor access rules say. Lincoln Financial Field, Citizens Bank Park, Fairmount Park and Penn's Landing each handle that differently, and their rules land before pricing does. Start at event restroom rental, or go straight to weddings, festivals or restroom trailers if you already know what you want.
A jobsite quote is driven by crew size, duration and what else is going on the truck. Bundle a roll off dumpster, temporary fence or storage container into the same movement and it prices better than three separate deliveries. See construction site services.
What we will not quote blind
A walked-in rear yard placement priced as a curbside drop. A standard cabin weighs 150 to 200 pounds empty, so getting one through a house or down an alley is a two person job and we would rather say that up front.
Also a Philadelphia event on public ground without knowing whether the Department of Public Health application is in hand. That permit comes from Public Health under its infectious waste program, not from a streets department, and the permit page explains why people lose days over it.
Send it through
Address, dates, headcount, placement. Contact us if you would rather talk it through, check what rentals cost, see where we deliver, read the FAQ, find out who we are, or go back to the home page.
Next step
Get a delivery date
Tell us the address, the dates and the headcount. We size the order and confirm the route.