How often should you have your archive destroyed? A frequency guide
How often you have your archive destroyed does not follow a rule from a book. It follows how much confidential paper you produce each month. Someone who fills a few binders a month needs a completely different rhythm than an office where boxes fill up daily. In this guide we tie your paper volume to a concrete frequency, from a one-off clear-out to a weekly subscription, so you neither overpay nor sit on a pile of sensitive documents for too long.
What the question is really about
Asking how often you should destroy sounds simple, but three things sit underneath it. First, your paper flow. How much confidential paper arrives each week or month, and how quickly your storage space fills as a result. Second, retention periods. Part of your paper cannot be discarded yet because the legal period is still running, while another part could have gone out long ago. Third, risk. Every pile of old documents with names, addresses or bank details that stays put is data that can leak in a break-in, a flood or a move.
The right frequency is the point where those three are in balance. You collect often enough to keep the pile of sensitive paper small and limit the risk, but not so often that you pay for half-empty containers. In practice it almost always comes down to your volume, because retention periods decide what you may destroy and risk decides how quickly you want to do so. Once you know how much paper you genuinely want gone each month, the rest falls into place.
How much fits in a 240L roll container?
To translate volume into a frequency it helps to know how much goes into a container. We work with a sealed 240L roll container, the same size as a large grey wheelie bin. As a rough indication it holds around five to seven full archive boxes, or the contents of some thirty to forty ring binders once you remove the rings and folders. Single paper stacks more compactly than full binders, so emptying the folders gets a lot more in.
Be honest with yourself. This remains an estimate. The real number depends on how tightly you stack, whether staples and tabs are still in there and how heavy the paper is. So treat the 240L container as a handy unit of measure, not an exact scale. The rule of thumb you need is simple. Work out how many such containers you fill per month and you immediately know which pickup frequency makes sense. The same way of thinking in containers and boxes comes back in our article on renting a roll container for paper.
Matching the frequency to your volume
We offer the archive destruction subscription in three fixed frequencies. Four-weekly, two-weekly and weekly. Each rhythm suits a certain volume, so you choose based on how quickly your container fills.
- Four-weekly (once every 4 weeks). For the bulk of offices, practices and private individuals. You fill roughly one container a month, so around five to seven boxes of paper. This is the entry frequency and also the most affordable. Fixed (12 months) starts from € 29.95 per month, Flex from € 34.95 per month, and with annual payment you pay from € 329 per year, which works out to roughly one month free.
- Two-weekly (once every 2 weeks). For offices with a solid paper flow, where a container fills within two weeks. Think of an accountant in peak season, a healthcare practice or an office in the middle of a clear-out. In the Fixed plan you pay € 59.95 per month for this.
- Weekly (once a week). For organisations with a full container every week, for example due to an ongoing digitisation drive or a large active archive. In the Fixed plan this costs € 104.95 per month. If your container structurally fills within a week, this is the only rhythm that truly keeps up with the pile.
All prices quoted are per 240L container and exclude 21% VAT. You get the container free on loan, with free placement and no rental cost. At every emptying we collect the container under seal and destroy the contents in-house, usually within 24 hours, to DIN 66399 P-5. You receive a certificate of destruction at each emptying, not only at the end of the year. Still hesitating between the frequencies and plans? Our overview on renting a roll container on subscription sets them side by side.
The role of GDPR retention periods
Frequency is about how often you collect. Retention periods are about what you may hand over at that moment. The GDPR includes the principle of storage limitation. In short, you do not keep personal data longer than needed for the purpose you collected it for. If the period for a given type of document is still running, you keep it. If the period has passed and you no longer need it, it should in fact be cleared out rather than left lying around indefinitely.
That means a fixed pickup frequency and retention periods complement each other neatly. The subscription provides the rhythm and the sealed removal, you decide per document whether it may go. Concrete periods differ by type of document and by situation, so check them in your own records before you discard anything. The principle stays the same. Whatever is past its period and contains personal data should be destroyed in a demonstrable way. A periodic pickup turns that clearing out into a habit rather than a chore that keeps being postponed.
A one-off clear-out versus an ongoing subscription
Not everyone needs a subscription. Someone clearing an attic or archive cabinet once is better off with a single pickup. That works through our single collection service, where you pay € 120 per roll container each time or € 30 per box. You state the quantity, get a fixed price and receive a certificate. For a one-off clear-out that is often exactly enough.
As soon as the destruction recurs, the sum tips over. After two single jobs a subscription is nearly always cheaper than booking extras each time, and you no longer have to arrange it over and over. A four-weekly subscription from € 29.95 per month is soon cheaper than two single pickups at € 120. Important for flexibility. The Flex plan has a minimum of three months and is then cancellable monthly, so you are not tied to a multi-year contract. So choose single when it truly is one-off, and a subscription as soon as you notice the paper keeps coming back. Want to clear out fully first? Read how to tackle that in our step-by-step archive clear-out plan.
Decision table: volume to recommended frequency
The table below sums it up. Estimate how much confidential paper you genuinely want gone per month, expressed in 240L containers, and read off the frequency that fits on the right.
| Your volume per month | Recommended approach |
|---|---|
| One-off clear-out, then little to nothing | Single collection service (per box or per container) |
| Less than half a container (a few binders) | Four-weekly, or single pickup on request |
| Around one full container (5 to 7 boxes) | Four-weekly subscription |
| Around two containers | Two-weekly subscription |
| Four containers or more, container often full | Weekly subscription |
If you sit on the border between two rhythms, pick the lighter one and track how full the container is at pickup. If it structurally fills too early, step up a level. That way you keep both your costs and your risk in hand. To be sure your situation falls within our service area, see how our approach compares to a nationwide provider with outsourced destruction in DeSnipperaar vs MKB-afval.
Curious which frequency suits you?
Based on your paper volume, choose a four-weekly, two-weekly or weekly subscription. Sealed 240L roll container, free on loan, in-house destruction to DIN 66399 P-5 and a certificate at every emptying. Available in the Amsterdam region, within 20 km of our premises.
View the subscriptionFrequently asked questions
How often should I have my archive destroyed?
It depends on your paper volume. A small office with a few binders a month is usually served by a one-off clear-out or a four-weekly pickup. If a roll container fills within two weeks, two-weekly fits. If it fills within a week, choose weekly.
How much fits in a 240L roll container?
As a rough indication it holds around five to seven full archive boxes, or the contents of some thirty to forty ring binders once you remove the folders. It remains an estimate that depends heavily on how tightly you stack the paper.
Is a subscription cheaper than single pickups?
After two single jobs a subscription is nearly always cheaper. A single pickup costs € 120 per roll container each time. A four-weekly subscription starts at € 29.95 per month and delivers a certificate of destruction at every emptying.
Can I change the frequency later?
Yes. You pick a frequency that suits your current volume and adjust it later as your paper flow changes. Flex is cancellable monthly after a minimum of three months, with no multi-year lock-in.
In which area can I take out a subscription?
The subscription is available in the Amsterdam region, within 20 km of our premises. We only handle secure paper, archive and data carrier destruction, no general waste, glass, plastics or organic waste.
Ready to pick a rhythm? View the archive destruction subscription or compare the frequencies and plans in renting a roll container on subscription. Still unsure between one-off and ongoing? Read renting a roll container for paper first.