Cape Cod Beach & Transfer Station Stickers 2026: A Town-by-Town Guide to Costs, Where to Buy, and What You Need
If you live on Cape Cod—or own a place here and come down when you can—two little stickers run your summer. One gets your car into the good beach parking lots. The other lets you back your trash up to the transfer station (what everyone here still calls "the dump"). Every one of the 15 Cape towns runs its own program, with its own prices, paperwork, and quirks about who counts as a "resident." We put it all in one place.
Fees change — often mid-spring — and vary by town. The figures below were verified against official town sites for 2026; always confirm on your town's page before you drive over. A few towns don't publish a number online; those are marked "confirm with town."
The Two Stickers, Explained
1. Beach parking permits. A sticker (or, increasingly, a license-plate-linked permit) that lets you park at your town's managed beaches. Resident/"taxpayer" permits are cheaper; non-resident permits cost more, and most towns sell short-term visitor passes (daily/weekly/seasonal). Some beaches are resident-only at peak times.
2. Transfer station / disposal stickers. Proves you can use your town's transfer station for trash, recycling, and bulky items. Most Cape towns have no municipal curbside pickup, so this is how household trash leaves your property if you don't hire a private hauler. Note: Brewster and Dennis now use license-plate recognition (no physical sticker).
The two are separate programs, usually run by separate departments. One does not get you the other.
What to Bring
- Vehicle registration for the car the permit is tied to.
- Proof of residency or property ownership (license with local address, recent property tax bill, or utility bill). Second-home owners: your property tax bill gets you the "taxpayer" rate.
- Photo ID and payment (some offices are card-friendly; some still prefer check).
- Renewing online? Have digital copies ready to upload.
Town-by-Town: 2026 Fees & Where to Buy
Res = resident/taxpayer rate; Non-res = non-resident. "Confirm with town" = not published online at time of writing.
| Town | Beach sticker (res / non-res) | Transfer station | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barnstable | $55 / $375 seasonal ($110 weekly) | Confirm with town | Recreation Dept. |
| Bourne | Confirm with town | Confirm with town | Town/ISWM |
| Brewster | Confirm with town | $50 first car / $15 each add'l (LPR; $10 day pass) | Recycling Center |
| Chatham | $35 / non-res $20 day, $75 wk, $175 season | $150 first / $25 add'l (incl. recycling) | Sticker Office |
| Dennis | $60 / $370 ($190 seasonal, $100 wk, $35 day) | $210 first / $22 second (LPR; May 1–Apr 30) | Sticker office |
| Eastham | Confirm (res) / non-res $120 (1wk), $175 (2wk), $300 season | Confirm with town | Beach office |
| Falmouth | $40 / $275 seasonal (rises after Apr 15) | Confirm with town | Town Hall / online |
| Harwich | Free (taxpayer) / non-res ~$125–$175 | Confirm with town | Beach sticker sales |
| Mashpee | $30 (residents/owners only) / visitor weekly $50 | $280 first / $35 second ($45 recycling-only) | Town Clerk |
| Orleans | Confirm with town (2026–27 on sale) | ~$125 / ~$195 (two tiers — confirm) | Sticker Office |
| Provincetown | Beach $10; parking permit res $95 / non-res $175–$350 | $25 annual (res/owner); non-res pay-per-bag | Town Hall |
| Sandwich | $35 first car / $20 second | $105 first / $30 add'l ($10 one-trip) | Transfer Station |
| Truro | $30 / non-res $120 (1wk) up to $375 season | Confirm with town | Sticker office |
| Wellfleet | Combo (beach+transfer) $60; beach-only $35; non-res $70 (3-day) to $350 season | Transfer-only $25 (res first car) | Permits office |
| Yarmouth | $40 online / $35 mail (res); non-res $250 season ($25 day, $100 wk) | Non-res $250; res confirm | Beach/Disposal offices |
A Quick Word on the National Seashore
Coast Guard, Marconi, Race Point, and Herring Cove are Cape Cod National Seashore beaches—federal, not town. They use a separate NPS vehicle pass (or the America the Beautiful interagency pass), sold by the Park Service, not your town hall. Your town sticker won't get you in.
Renewal Timing: It's NOT All July 1
A common myth is that every dump sticker renews July 1. The truth:
- July 1–June 30 fiscal year (confirmed): Sandwich, Brewster, Mashpee, Chatham.
- Different cycle: Dennis transfer runs May 1–April 30; Orleans transfer fees key to an April effective date.
- Everyone else: confirm your town's exact dates. Several towns also raise beach prices in mid-spring (Falmouth after April 15), so buy early.
The Bottom Line
The stickers are cheap insurance on a good Cape summer. The only friction is that every town does it differently. Gather your registration and proof of residency, confirm the current fee on your town's page, and knock both out in one spring errand.
Fees verified against official town sites for 2026 and subject to change — always confirm before purchasing.
