11% of Tennessee Dumpster Rental Companies Are Ghost Listings. Here's the Data.

11% of Tennessee Dumpster Rental Companies Are Ghost Listings. Here's the Data.

We scored every dumpster rental operator in America. All of them. 6,304 companies. 50 states. Real Google data, real reviews, real scores.

Tennessee's ghost listing rate isn't as dramatic as Arizona's or Louisiana's, but the problem is concentrated in specific cities — and if you're searching for a dumpster in those cities, the odds are stacked against you.

The Headline Number

11.4% of Tennessee dumpster rental companies are ghost listings — Google Maps entries with zero reviews, a sub-3.0 star rating, or both. That's 20% higher than the 9.5% national average.

Out of 166 dumpster rental operators listed in Tennessee, 19 are ghosts. Roughly 1 in 9 Tennessee dumpster rental listings has no verifiable track record.

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What Is a Ghost Listing?

A ghost listing is a business listed on Google Maps that shows one or more of these red flags:

• Zero reviews — nobody has ever reviewed them publicly
• No star rating — Google has no rating data at all
• Sub-3.0 star rating — enough bad experiences to drag the average below 3 stars

In Tennessee, the ghost listings concentrate in the Nashville suburbs and smaller cities outside the three main metros. Nashville proper and Knoxville are relatively clean — the problem is in the secondary markets.

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The Data: Tennessee by the Numbers

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Worst Cities for Ghost Listings in Tennessee

Murfreesboro is the biggest ghost listing problem in Tennessee. With 13 operators and 4 ghosts, the 30.8% rate means nearly 1 in 3 Murfreesboro dumpster rental listings is unreliable. Murfreesboro is one of the fastest-growing cities in Tennessee, sitting 35 miles southeast of Nashville — exactly the kind of growth market that attracts ghost listings.

Clarksville follows at 23.1%. Tennessee's fifth-largest city (and home to Fort Campbell) has 3 ghost listings among its 13 operators. Military base cities tend to attract transient operators who set up shop to capture demand from soldiers and families doing frequent moves and cleanouts.

Madison, a Nashville suburb, has 1 ghost among 3 operators — a 33.3% rate that's concerning for such a small market.

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Why Tennessee?

1. Nashville's growth halo. Nashville's explosive growth has pushed development into Murfreesboro, Clarksville, Lebanon, and other secondary cities. Those cities generate demand, and ghost listings follow demand.

2. Military installations. Fort Campbell (Clarksville) creates consistent dumpster rental demand from military families relocating, clearing quarters, and doing PCS cleanouts. Ghost listings target this captive audience.

3. Three distinct metros, different dynamics. Nashville, Memphis, and Knoxville each have their own dumpster rental market. The ghost listings don't concentrate in the big three — they cluster in the satellite cities around Nashville where the market is growing but not yet mature enough to self-police.

4. Low licensing friction. Like most Southern states, Tennessee requires minimal oversight to operate as a waste hauler. Basic LLC paperwork is enough to appear on Google Maps.

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The Best-Rated Operators in Tennessee

These are the top 5 Tennessee operators by DCS Score. Every one has been independently scored on public data — none paid to be here.

Junk Bee Gone LLC leads Tennessee with a perfect 100 DCS Score and 1,665 reviews in Knoxville. Red Dog Dumpster Rental Nashville matches with 100 DCS and a perfect 5.0 rating across 1,193 reviews. Tennessee's top operators are genuinely excellent — the challenge is finding them through the noise.

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How to Avoid Ghost Listings in Tennessee

1. Never hire a company with fewer than 10 Google reviews. Tennessee has 166 operators — there's no reason to settle for one with no track record. 2. Check the DCS Score. Operators scoring below 40 are in the "Listed" tier — the ghost listings live there. 3. Be extra cautious in Murfreesboro and Clarksville. These fast-growing cities have ghost rates of 30.8% and 23.1% respectively. Verify reviews and addresses before calling. 4. For Nashville, start with Red Dog Dumpster Rental. 100 DCS, 5.0 rating, 1,193 reviews. For Knoxville, Junk Bee Gone is the clear leader. 5. Watch for military-area ghost listings. Operators near Fort Campbell who target military families with aggressive Google Maps listings and no reviews are a known pattern. 6. Use the [size estimator](/tools/size-estimator) to know what you need before you call, and the [cost calculator](/calculator) to benchmark quotes.

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Our Methodology

• Data source: Google Places API, pulled April 2026, across 50 US states and 200+ metros.
• Universe: 6,304 unique operators with at least one business detail field populated.
• Ghost listing definition: A Google Maps business listing with either (a) zero reviews, (b) no star rating, or (c) a rating below 3.0 stars.
• DCS Score: Our 100-point rubric measuring Rating Quality (25 pts), Review Volume (25 pts), Consistency (15 pts), Trust Signals (20 pts), and Data Completeness (15 pts).
• Independence: No operator paid for placement. No operator can pay to improve their DCS Score.

Data last updated April 2026. We re-score monthly.

[Browse the full Tennessee operator directory](/dumpster-rental/tennessee) | [Try the size estimator](/tools/size-estimator) | [Use the cost calculator](/calculator)