Whether you have single-use batteries, rechargeable batteries, or any other type of dead battery laying around your house, you may be wondering how to recycle household batteries. Fortunately, when it comes to recycling batteries, there are endless options.
Read on for our guide to household battery recycling across the U.S., no matter where you live.
Can you recycle batteries?
Pretty much all kinds of batteries are recyclable. While most municipalities do not accept them in curbside recycling, there are numerous stores and programs across the U.S. — many of which are big-box stores that can be found in just about any town — where you can drop off batteries to be recycled.
Batteries are the most recycled product in the U.S.
Not only can Americans recycle batteries, but Americans do recycle them. In 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reported a 99 percent recycling rate for lead batteries. Three years later, a 2017 study found that lead batteries have a recycling rate of 99.3 percent in the U.S., making them the country’s most-recycled product.
How to find battery recycling near you.
If you have a drawer full of dead batteries that you’d like to recycle, we suggest utilizing Earth911’s Where to Recycle tool. There, you can enter what item you’d like to recycle (just search “batteries” or the specific kind of battery you have) and your zip code. Earth911 will pull up a list of places in your area with battery recycling bins.
Most of these locations will probably be stores, but other options may include recycling centers, safe drop-off events held by your municipality, or mail-in programs.
Another resource for finding local battery recycling drop-off points is Call2Recycle, an organization that has more than 25,000 drop-off sites in North America. You can look up Call2Recycle’s drop-off locations on its website, and you can find the organization’s bins in many chain stores — more on that below.
Before you head to a store or event, it can’t hurt to call ahead to confirm their hours and that they are still operating their battery recycling program.
These stores recycle batteries.
The following big-box stores often have battery recycling bins, meaning you can stop by and drop your batteries off to be recycled. Stores with these programs include:
Best Buy Battery Recycling
All Best Buy locations in the U.S. and Puerto Rico have Call2Recycle bins to collect rechargeable batteries for recycling, but they do not accept alkaline batteries.
Staples Battery Recycling
Staples stores accept the following kinds of batteries for recycling:
- Lithium Ion (Li-Ion)
- Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cd)
- Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH)
- Small Sealed Lead Acid (SSLA/Pb)
Staples does not accept single-use alkaline or lithium batteries or automotive/wet-cell batteries for recycling.
The Home Depot Battery Recycling
The Home Depot has Call2Recycle battery recycling bins in all its stores, and they only accept rechargeable batteries.
Lowe’s Battery Recycling
Lowe’s is also partnered with Call2Recycle, and has bins at more than 1,700 Lowe’s stores and distribution centers where you can drop off rechargeable batteries.
RadioShack Battery Recycling
Various RadioShack locations recycle all household batteries (including single-use alkaline batteries) via Call2Recycle — you can find participating zip codes here.
Office Depot Battery Recycling
Office Depot offers a mail-in tech recycling program. Boxes cost between $5 and $15 (including shipping), and you can fill your box with rechargeable batteries and a variety of other tech items that need to be recycled.
How to Recycle Household Batteries [New Atlas]