Donating furniture and household items you no longer use is a perfect way to give back to your community while also going through your belongings. It’s especially strategic if you’re moving, downsizing, or decluttering.
Donating large furniture items isn’t as difficult as you might think. You don’t need a pickup truck or extra hands to get furniture to its destination. Instead, get in touch with one of the 10 charities listed below who will come and pick up household items for free or at an extremely reduced rate.
If you’re renting, save your landlord or property manager the hassle of dealing with furniture items that have been placed near or inside trash and recycling receptacles. And if you’re a landlord dealing with tenant abandonment, save yourself the headache of managing abandoned belongings.
Habitat for Humanity is an international nonprofit organization focused on creating affordable shelters for families, operating out of 70 countries and all 50 states. Habitat for Humanity is dedicated to educating communities on the barriers to affordable housing and the impact a healthy home has on families.
Habitat ReStores, Habitat for Humanity’s donation and home improvement store, offers furniture, large appliances, and building material pickup in most of their locations. You can schedule your pickup here.
Who your donation serves: Families across the U.S. and the world in need of affordable housing.
Items Habitat for Humanity accepts:
Note: Any donated upholstered or leather furniture must be free of tears, stains, and pet damage. Also, if you’re renovating your home, here’s a list of renovation donations they accept.
The Salvation Army is a Christian-based nonprofit that provides community-focused programs. It helps those who have experienced a disaster, poverty, addiction, domestic violence, and more.
The Salvation Army offers scheduled pickups and drop-off locations in a variety of areas. Use their ZIP code finder to schedule a pickup in your area and to determine which items are available for pickup. The Thrift Stores page also has ZIP code finders for drop-off locations, thrift stores, and vehicle donations. Note, The Salvation Army’s list of accepted is one of the most comprehensive.
Who your donations serve: Families who find themselves in crisis or those experiencing homelessness
Items The Salvation Army accepts:
GreenDrop is a for-profit company and registered professional fundraising company. Their services are primarily located on the East Coast.
The organization distributes to the American Red Cross, the Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Philadelphia, and the National Federation of the Blind to raise funds through donation collection.
Who your donations serve: The American Red Cross, the Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation, the National Federation of the Blind, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul
Items GreenDrop accepts:
Pickup Please is a donation program that helps veterans. It’s an extension of the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA). They work in select states across the U.S., and you can schedule a free pickup online. Items will often be collected within 24 hours.
Pickup Please’s convenience and quick turnaround are some of their major benefits. However, their locations are limited and specific in what they’ll collect. All items should be small and light enough for one person to easily lift and carry, and they do not pick up large appliances, large furniture, or televisions.
Who your donations serve: Vietnam veterans
Items Pickup Please accepts:
The Arc was founded in 1950 to serve people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families. The company has more than 600 chapters across the U.S.
You can drop off items or schedule a pickup by calling your local chapter. Use this chapter locator to see what items are accepted and to schedule a free pickup (if allowed). To donate a car, use this online donation form or call (877) 272-2270.
Who your donations serve: Children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities
Items The Arc accepts:
*All items are location-dependent
The AMVETS National Service Foundation represents more than 20 million veterans and has more than 250,000 members nationwide. AMVETS has physical stores and donation pickups across the country.
You can schedule a pickup in the following states and areas: Maryland, Washington D.C., northern Virginia, Delaware, Texas, and Oklahoma.
Who your donations serve: United States veterans
Items AMVETS accepts:
You can inquire about items not listed by emailing [email protected].
The Furniture Bank Network consists of registered charities that help individuals donate gently used furniture to people in need. This collective helps other organizations with furniture pickup.
They serve a wide range of people, including but not limited to those who are unemployed, immigrants, families that have experienced domestic violence or homelessness, and those affected by natural disasters/fires.
Use their North American location finder to see if there’s a furniture bank near you.
Who your donations serve: Families who have experienced homelessness, unemployment, domestic violence, natural disasters, robbery or fires
Items The Furniture Bank Network accepts:
Donation Town is similar to Furniture Bank Network, but instead of acting as an overarching network, its website is a search engine in which individuals can locate charities. Think of it as an online real estate marketplace, where you can find homes for sale or rent. Instead of apartments or houses, it lists charities that offer donation pickup or have donation drop-off locations.
Each nonprofit Donation Town works with will provide you with a tax receipt for your donation.
Who your donations serve: Various charities across the United States and Canada
Items Donation Town accepts:
*The list above is general and varies depending on your local charity. You can see which items Donation Town does not accept here.
Housing Works’ mission is to help support the community of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS, particularly those experiencing homelessness or poverty. Housing Works was founded in 1990 and provides service to more than 30,000 homeless and low-income New Yorkers.
Housing Works offers online donations, thrift shop donations, and furniture pickup. You can learn more about furniture pickup here or call (212) 366-0820.
Who your donations serve: Individuals in New York living with or affected by HIV/AIDS
Items Housing Works accepts:
You can find a detailed list of items Housing Works does and does not accept here.
Similar to Pickup Please, PickUpMyDonation aims to make the donation process easier for nonprofits. Since 2012, PickUpMyDonation has helped donate more than $89 million to nonprofit organizations.
The process is easy. You make a donation request based on your ZIP code and select either a free pickup or priority pickup. Priority pickup requires a fee, but is carried out by professional moving companies that have partnered with PickUpMyDonation and will move donations to a local thrift store or donation center. The free version puts you in contact with other nonprofits, some of which have free pickup services.
Who your donations serve: A variety of local charities and nonprofit organizations
Items PickUpMyDonation accepts:
Donating household items, appliances, and furniture can happen year-round, especially when you’re moving homes or downsizing. Another time to donate is if you upgrade furniture and don’t know what to do with the old pieces.
Below are four steps to follow when scheduling a donation pickup:
The above-listed charities and others not listed use your donation directly or indirectly to help individuals. That being said, most charities serve a particular group of people. Research each organization’s website to ensure its values align with your beliefs or if there’s one you’d prefer to reach out to.
Most importantly, confirm that the organization accepts your donation type. Many of these nonprofits’ websites list items that they do and do not accept, along with exceptions. If your chosen charity doesn’t accept or won’t pick up one of your items, research one of the other ones on our list.
Most charities make it easy to schedule a donation pickup. You can typically do so by filling out an online form, sending an email, or inquiring via phone. Once you have a move date, schedule your donation pickup. It’s best to plan ahead so you’re not in too much discomfort without an often-used furniture piece like a bed or couch.
Note: Charity donations increase dramatically during the holiday season so there might be longer wait times for scheduled pickups.
As a tenant, it’s best to make your landlord and close neighbors aware of your scheduled donation pickup. If you can’t be there during the exchange, ask a neighbor or friend to sub in for you. Also, let your landlord know so they don’t toss the item intended for donation or fine you for breaking lease rules.
Part of being a great landlord means organizing fun and exciting events for your tenants. One option is to create a canned food drive or a donation pickup for your tenants. You can organize a community-wide donation pickup by contacting one of the above-listed organizations and working with them to do a large sitewide pickup.
Below are a few donation pickups or drives the entire complex or community can help with:
Another option is to advertise these charities that pick up appliances and furniture via email, flyers, or your monthly newsletter. This way, tenants are fully aware of these services. You can organize this type of event annually during high turnover seasons, biannually, or quarterly.
If you’re having a difficult time deciding what to donate, check out this flowchart to help them quickly decide which item should be donated, kept, or trashed.
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