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Reporting dumped rubbish in Köln

Köln has an official channel: «Sag’s uns». It is worth knowing, and worth knowing what it lacks: a map everyone sees, neighbours who act, and an app that works outside the city too.

Last updated: 2026-10-19

What CleanSpot does that «Sag’s uns» does not

«Sag’s uns» is a channel between you and Köln: you report, and the case stays between you and the administration. CleanSpot is something else. Every report is a pin on a public map from the first second; neighbours see it, confirm it, add photos and can sign up to deal with it themselves.

That changes what happens when the city is slow. In a municipal channel the alternative to silence is chasing. In a network, the alternative is somebody acting: a dumped bag need not wait for street cleaning if three people on the street take it away on Saturday.

And CleanSpot does not stop at the city limits. The municipality is resolved automatically from the pin’s coordinates: report in Köln and anywhere else with the same app.

The city’s channel: „Sag’s uns“

Cologne collects reports through «Sag’s uns», as a web portal and an app. For dumped rubbish the city asks for the street and house number so its waste company (AWB) can remove it; the same platform takes road, pavement and cycle-path damage, abandoned bikes and other categories.

You can check your report’s status at any time. For some categories, such as abandoned bikes, the city does not reply individually because of the volume.

  • «Sag’s uns»: sags-uns.stadt-koeln.de and app
  • Pothole hotline: 0221 221-38141

A report that gets dealt with, whatever the channel

What moves a report forward is nearly always the same: someone has to find the spot and understand what is there without calling you.

  • Exact location: coordinates or a pin on a map, not just the street name
  • One close-up photo and one showing the surroundings, so size and access are clear
  • What it is: bags, rubble, furniture, tyres, appliances
  • How long it has been there, and whether it is the first time
  • Do not touch anything hazardous (drums, asbestos, chemicals) and say so first

What CleanSpot has that a municipal channel does not

  • A public map of everything reported, with date, photo and coordinates
  • Cleanups: anyone can join, alone or as a group event with invitations and a shared recap
  • Groups, comments, messages and mentions, because a clean street is neighbours’ work
  • Vision AI that suggests severity and tags from the photo
  • Duplicate detection: if a pin already exists a few metres away, your photo joins it
  • Per-location history, the argument for another container or more frequent emptying
  • Works offline: the report is saved and sent later
  • 30 languages, free, no advertising

Sources

Does «Sag’s uns» work outside Köln?

No. It is Köln’s own channel. CleanSpot works in any municipality and resolves it from the coordinates.

Should I report to the city or to CleanSpot?

Both. CleanSpot for the public record, the neighbourhood and the location’s history, which gives a complaint weight; the city’s channel so the administration gets it through its own route. One more minute covers both.

Does CleanSpot send my report to Köln?

CleanSpot has a municipal dashboard with a territory inbox, assignment to crews or contractors and tracking to closure. When a municipality uses it, reports in its area land there directly. Until then the report is public and anyone, the administration included, can see it on the map.

What does it cost?

Nothing. CleanSpot is free for citizens, with no advertising, on iPhone and Android.