The paper describes the interface behaviour of bottom ash, obtained from two thermal power plants, and geogrid for possible utilization as a reinforced fill material in reinforced soil structures. Pullout tests were conducted on polyester geogrid embedded in compacted bottom ash samples as per ASTM D6706-01. Locally available natural sand was used as a reference material. The pullout resistance offered by geogrid embedded in bottom ash was almost identical to that in sand. In order to study the influence of placement condition of the material on pullout resistance, test were conducted on uncompacted fill materials. Pullout resistance offered by geogrids embedded in uncompacted specimen reduced by 30–60% than that at the compacted condition. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd