Where Is the Linux Trash Folder?
The freedesktop.org trash layout: ~/.local/share/Trash with its files and info folders, plus the .Trash rules for other drives.
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The trash on Linux is a plain folder, and the freedesktop.org spec says exactly which one. Each user gets a trash directory inside their XDG data home, which defaults to ~/.local/share, so the usual location is ~/.local/share/Trash.
Inside sit two subfolders that work as a pair. files holds what you deleted, and info holds a small .trashinfo record with the original path and deletion time. Without that record the file cannot be moved back automatically, which is worth knowing before you start cleaning up.
Where Linux stores this, by platform
~/.local/share/Trash/
Two subfolders: files/ contains the deleted items, info/ contains the matching .trashinfo metadata, one per file. On another volume the trash moves to that volume's root, either .Trash/$uid with the sticky-bit setup or .Trash-$uid without it. Nothing is removed until you empty the trash.
Frequently asked questions
where is the trash folder on linux
The per-user trash is ~/.local/share/Trash, or $XDG_DATA_HOME/Trash if you have set XDG_DATA_HOME to something else. Deleted items sit in the files subfolder and their restore metadata sits in info, one .trashinfo file per item.
why are deleted files from an external drive not in home trash
A file can only be moved into the home trash when it is on the same filesystem as that trash. Anything deleted from another volume goes to a trash on that volume instead: .Trash/$uid if the admin set up the sticky bit, otherwise .Trash-$uid at the volume root.
what is a trashinfo file
It is the metadata record that lets a file manager restore an item to where it came from, holding the original Path and the DeletionDate. If the .trashinfo file is missing, the trash still lists the file but the original location is unrecoverable from it.
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