This October, Chicago is going up against Philly and Los Angeles to prove which city can pick up the most trash in just one month! It’s a friendly rivalry with a powerful purpose: cleaning our streets, building pride in our neighborhoods, and ending the culture of litter and dumping. You can participate by joining a group cleanup, running your own group cleanup, or going solo, but photos of your filled bags MUST BE SUBMITTED for all cleanups for them to count toward the competition! Learn more about how you can contribute at our group cleanup and resource page. The top individual litter pickers will be eligible for prizes, including tickets to the MSI and Morton Arboretum, bottles of Malort, tickets to the Music Box, gift cards to REI and Dovetail Brewing, a membership to the Chicago Tool Library, and more!

Cleanup Club Chicago is leading on the Chicago side, Block By Block Philly is leading on the Philly side, and South Central Clean Up is leading on the Los Angeles side. Special thanks to Independent Recycling Services for sponsoring the Chicago side of this event!

Media Coverage So Far:

How it Works

  1. Pick Your Spot
    Clean your block, a park, a street corner, or any area within Chicago, Philadelphia, or Los Angeles city limits. You can also join one of our group cleanup events that count toward the competition.

  2. Bag the Trash
    Count your filled bags (or other containers) and take one or more photos that clearly show all containers and how full they are. (Only if you’re doing it on your own- if you’re at a participating cleanup event, they’ll do it for the whole group.)

  3. Submit Your Cleanup
    Every cleanup needs to be logged through our form below.

  4. Track the Scoreboard
    We’ll be tallying every submission and updating the online scoreboard regularly so you can see which city is leading.

  5. Win Prizes and Celebrate with Us
    Top individual litter pickers will win a variety of prizes, and we will celebrate once the cleanup is over!

The Rules

  • All trash must be collected within Philly, Chicago, or Los Angeles city limits.

  • Submissions require a photo of your full bags/containers for verification. You can submit up to 5 photos per cleanup.

  • Bag/bucket counts must be included.

  • Yard waste does not count- it has to be litter.

  • Only volunteer efforts count (city employees or contractors cannot participate on the clock.)

  • Cleanup group organizers are the only ones who can submit totals from group events (aka, participants cannot submit their personal totals from group events).

  • Individuals who pick up litter outside of formal group events can submit as many times as they like throughout the month. You are encouraged to submit right after doing your cleaning, as this will make our weekly counts as accurate as possible.

Have any questions? Reach out to cleanupclubchicago@gmail.com

Help us Spread the Word!

Participate on Social Media

Let’s make this go viral! 

Promote it with a Flyer!

Download our Printable Flyer

Thank You to Our Chicago Sponsor!

Local Partners

This form is for Chicago submissions only, and will close at midnight on October 31st.

Last year, we held the same competition against Philly, and CHICAGO WAS VICTORIOUS! Learn more about our collective impact below.

Become a Member
Donate to Cleanup Club
Follow Us on Instagram!

Founded in July 2020, Cleanup Club Chicago is a dedicated group of Chicago residents who care about the environment and taking care of our community. We combat litter by organizing group cleanups on both land and water, promoting individual cleanup challenges, collaborating with the city to tackle litter removal and reduction, and fostering a culture that discourages wasteful practices. We maintain a network of Cleanup Captains across the city, enabling us to engage with a diverse array of neighborhoods. We now have nonprofit status through the Illinois Environmental Council!


As of September 15th, 2026:

  • We have over 2,100 members across Chicago

  • We have collected nearly 7,000 kitchen-sized bags of litter, weighing more than 59,000 lbs

  • We have completed 130+ group cleanup events

Become a Member

For questions related to sponsorship,
press/media inquiries, and student projects, please contact us at cleanupclubchicago@gmail.com.

*Please note that we are volunteers and appreciate serious inquiries out of respect for our time.

Visit this page for more information on collaborating on a group cleanup.