Recycling can be a fun way to make money, and it’s an added bonus that you’re helping the environment when you do. Still, you might worry that there aren’t enough recycling opportunities near where you live to make it worth your while. Well, I’m here to tell you that collecting recyclables is easier than ever before. You can even turn what most people consider trash into cash!
For example, old cell phones and tablets can earn a few bucks for every unit recycled—and in some places, broken or damaged electronics are accepted as well. Plus, most of the things on this list require zero investment or special training. All you need is a little hustle and ingenuity. So let’s take a look at some of the best ways to make money from recycling in 2022!
Make Money From Recycling
14 Ways to Make Money from Recycling
1. (Sell) Recycled Plastic Bottles
- Sell your bottles to a recycling center. You can sell your bottles at local bottle return centers, or you can take them to a recycling center yourself. Some recycling centers will pay you by the pound for your plastic and glass materials, but some may only give you store credit or vouchers toward future purchases of other items at their store.
- Sell your bottles on eBay or Craigslist: This option is useful if you have lots of recyclables that need to be sold quickly (and don’t mind waiting for payment), but it’s also an option for anyone looking for fast cash from their recyclables as well!
2. Recycle Your Junk Mail
Recycle your junk mail by using the postage-paid recycling envelope that comes with most of your junk mail. You can also recycle it by cutting it up into small pieces and putting it in the recycling bin.
Another thing you can do is not order anything from a company that sends you too much junk mail.
3. Sell Your Old Phone
You can make a couple of bucks by selling your old phone. There are many websites that will buy phones and other electronics, like Gazelle or Swappa. You can also try selling your phone to a pawn shop, if they’re open in your area and if they accept used electronics. If you find someone who wants or needs your old phone, you can sell it directly to them for cash (or barter).
And finally, some recycling companies will accept electronic devices from consumers as well as businesses; this may be the easiest way to make money from recycling in 2022 because there’s no waiting time for payment and it doesn’t require any additional effort on your part beyond dropping off the item at their facility!
4. Earn Cash for Recycling Books With PaperBack Swap
PaperBackSwap is a book-swapping site where members can trade books they’ve read for ones they want to read. It’s like an online used bookstore, with a twist: You pay shipping costs instead of buying the book outright. The site has more than 2 million members and over 6 million books available for trade.
To make money from this program, all you need to do is join PaperBackSwap (it’s free) and post your unwanted books in the “Wish List” section of your profile page. When someone requests one of your books, send it through the mail—and get paid by receiving credits that can be applied toward future purchases on PaperBackSwap!
Keep in mind: there may be fees associated with packaging and mailing books depending on where you live (for example, some states have laws requiring recycled materials be disposed separately). But overall it doesn’t cost much to ship items within the U.S.—about $3 per book—and if you sign up for Amazon Prime Student membership ($49/year), then shipping will be free!
5. Sell Old CDs and DVDs
If you have old CDs and DVDs, you can sell them on Amazon or eBay. You can also sell them at a local flea market, yard sale, Craigslist or Facebook group.
6. Recycle Electronic Devices
Recycling electronic devices is a great way to earn some extra cash and help the environment. Even if you don’t have any electronics that need recycling, there are plenty of places where you can drop off your old electronics so they can be recycled instead of ending up in landfills.
Most electronics recyclers will pay cash for your old electronics, but some may offer store credit or vouchers instead. Here are some ways you can make money from recycling your old devices:
- Sell them on eBay or Craigslist: Use these sites to sell your old items quickly and easily without having to go through all the trouble of setting up an online shop yourself! There’s no need to worry about shipping costs either—most online buyers will arrange pickup themselves once payment has been received. It’s just one more way of making extra cash with minimal effort involved!
7. Bring Glass Jars to the Grocery Store
- Bring Glass Jars to the Grocery Store
Most grocery stores accept glass jars, but they might not be willing to pay you much for them. Typically, they’ll give you a small amount of money or store credit—or nothing at all if they’re feeling generous. This can be frustrating, especially if you need the cash right away and there are no other places nearby that buy jar returns (See #8).
If you do want to sell your glass jars this way, start by looking up local grocery stores in your area and asking whether they will take them back and how much they pay for them. You can also check out sites like Craigslist or OfferUp to see if anyone is buying multiple bottles of wine or water from their own home through those channels.
If none of this works out for whatever reason—maybe there aren’t any nearby store options or maybe no one wants your used containers—there are still plenty of things people can do with the empty bottles lying around their house:
- Make crafts with them! A Pinterest search reveals that there are tons of ways people have repurposed recycled glass jars into useful items like vases and candle holders (and even flower pots).
- Recycle again! Some facilities will allow customers who bring back old containers in exchange for new ones so that everything ends up being reused over time rather than discarded as garbage after one use only; however, this isn’t always possible due to lack space limitations on certain recycling routes where space may not be available anymore (especially during summer months when demand goes up dramatically). In addition
8. Work in a Bottle Return Center
If you’re looking to make money from recycling, working in a bottle return center is a great way to do it. Bottle return centers are gaining popularity as people use them more and more to get cash back on their empty bottles and cans.
Here are three reasons why working at a bottle return center is a good option for you:
- It’s stable – Bottle return centers typically have stable hours because the number of employees isn’t dependent on how many cans are brought into the store that day. This means that employees can plan their schedules around whatever they want, including school or other part-time jobs.
- You get paid well – Since there’s no need for extra workers during slow periods (which do happen), most workers at these stores only make between $10-$20 per hour depending on how much time they spend there each day. That means if you work long enough hours each week, even if it’s just one or two days per week, your total earnings could add up quickly while not impacting your primary income source too much!
9. Sell Your Recycled Crafts
- Sell your crafts on Etsy.
- Sell your crafts at local craft fairs.
- Sell your crafts at local craft shows.
- Sell your crafts at local flea markets.
- Sell your crafts at local farmer’s markets.
- Sell your crafts at local craft stores
10. Collect Aluminum Cans, Get Paid
You can earn money by collecting aluminum cans. You can get paid by selling them to a recycling center, or you can sell them on eBay or to a scrap metal dealer.
By selling your aluminum cans, you’re helping reduce the amount of waste going into landfills and keeping it out of our oceans and streams.
11. Sell Your Hair to Make Money, Legally!
If you’re looking for a sustainable way to make money, consider selling your hair. It’s a renewable resource that is naturally organic and can be used in the manufacture of wigs, hair extensions and other hair products. And, if you want to go one step further and make some extra cash while helping the environment out at the same time, then consider using your shed strands to create paper products like books or magazines. You could even sell it as glue!
12. Keep the Change! (From a Piggy Bank)
If you’re saving up for something specific, consider adding to your piggy bank. If it’s a vacation or birthday present, perhaps you can put some change in a jar at home and offer to chip in as well. If the recipient is someone special, maybe they could have the honor of helping themselves to their own savings when it’s time to buy something special.
The other option is simply saving up until you have enough money for whatever goal you want—maybe that means putting coins into a jar every night after dinner so that next week’s bus fare isn’t an issue!
13. Help Clean Up Your Neighborhood Park, Earn $$$ Doing It!
If you have a neighborhood park that is in need of cleaning up, there are many companies that will pay you to do so. One such company is called Healthy Planet International (HPI). They offer the opportunity to earn $25 an hour by volunteering at local parks or other public areas. By doing this, you can help improve your community while also getting paid! If this sounds like something you want to do, here’s how:
- Sign up with HPI at https://www.healthyplanetinternational.org/get-started/
- Contact them and ask how much they’re willing to pay for your services
Once you’ve found out how much they’re willing to pay per hour and decided whether or not it’s worth it for your time (hint: if it isn’t financially beneficial for either party, don’t do it), then just start cleaning up your local park! It should take about 20 minutes each visit depending on what needs done there during those visits; some people may even decide that working at multiple parks would be better than just one since then they’d get paid more often without having more travel time between places.”
14. Make Money at the Beach by Collecting Shells and Selling Them
You can make money from your shells by selling them to local craft stores, or on eBay. Shells are also popular with tourists and shell collectors. Shells can be sold for a variety of purposes including:
- Crafts
- Jewelry making
- Collecting
Recycling can be a great way to make money from your spare time
Recycling can be a great way to make money from your spare time.
Recycling is all about taking something that you’d normally throw away, sell, or donate—and turning it into something else. So if you have some spare time on your hands, consider getting involved in recycling by learning how to recycle items around the house.
Here are some things that you may be able to turn into cash:
- Your old clothes—If they’re clean and in good condition, sell them online through sites like ThredUP or Poshmark. Or donate them to charities like Goodwill or the Salvation Army (which will resell them).
- Old electronics—You could try selling these online at eBay or Craigslist (or even give them away if they don’t work anymore). You might also want to check with local libraries and schools for any electronics recycling programs available in your area; this can help reduce e-waste and keep harmful chemicals out of landfills
Conclusion
I hope this article gave you some fun and interesting ideas for how to make money from recycling. Remember that it’s never too late to start recycling, and even if you don’t make a living off of it, it will still help the environment! So get out there and start recycling now—you’ll be glad you did.
