Knowledge Guide™ · Logistics
How do I get rid of an old mattress?
Six options in order of preference, and one thing never to do.
Key points
- • Arrange haul-away at purchase, not after delivery
- • Bulk pickup often needs one to three weeks' notice
- • Steel, foam and fiber are all recyclable
- • Donation requires clean, stain-free and structurally sound
Options in order
Cost, effort and environmental outcome rarely point the same direction — this order balances all three.
- • Retailer haul-away with delivery
- • Municipal bulk collection
- • Mattress recycling facility
- • Donation, if genuinely clean and sound
- • Licensed junk removal for soiled or damaged mattresses
What recyclers do with it
A mattress is roughly three quarters recoverable: steel from the coils, foam that becomes carpet padding, fiber and wood. Recyclers require the mattress to be dry and unsoiled, which is another reason haul-away beats a rainy curbside wait.
Timing the swap
Line up disposal before the new mattress arrives. A stripped old mattress waiting in a hallway for a bulk pickup two weeks out is how mattresses end up in garages, which is how they end up ruined.
Common questions
Read next
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The path, the paperwork and the first-night steps that protect your purchase.
ReadBack to the Mattress Decision Guide™ →
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