Composting in an apartment

Worm bin

Produces castings you can use on houseplants or give away. Needs weekly attention and stable temperature. Odorless when run properly. If it smells, it is overfed or too wet.

Bokashi

Handles everything including meat and dairy, takes up little space, no smell while sealed. But the fermented output still needs burying in soil, so you need a garden, a community garden plot, a friend, or a drop-off willing to take it.

Freeze and drop off

Least glamorous and often the best answer. A container in the freezer, emptied weekly at a drop-off site. No smell, no flies, no system to maintain, nothing to go wrong.

Keeping it liveable

Fruit flies are the main complaint. Freezing scraps until bin day eliminates them. In a worm bin, bury food under bedding and cover with a damp sheet of cardboard.

Smell in a worm bin means too wet or too much food. Add dry bedding and stop feeding for two weeks.