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DONATION GUIDELINES

What items does Goodwill accept?
What items does Goodwill not accept?
Why can't Goodwill accept some items?
Why does Goodwill throw away some items?
What can I do with items Goodwill cannot accept?
Are my donations tax deductible?
What if I accidentally donated an item?
How can businesses donate?
Tips for donors

What items does Goodwill accept as donations?
We are pleased to accept the following in good/working condition:

  • Clothing — men's, women's, boys', girls', and infants'
  • Footwear — shoes and boots
  • Outerwear — hats, gloves, mittens and scarves
  • Books, records, compact disks, videotapes and DVDs
  • Games and toys
  • Housewares — dishes, kitchen utensils, lamps and small appliances
  • Knickknacks (giftware)
  • Furniture — dressers, tables, bed frames and sofas (home pick-up available)
  • Antiques and collectibles
  • Hardware and tools
  • Domestics — curtains, linen, bedspreads, blankets, etc.
  • Sporting goods
  • Bicycles
  • Automobiles
  • Computers/electronics — Goodwill accepts the following electronics for free recycling. Computers and electronics donated to Goodwill do not need to be in working order, but customers are responsible for removing all personal information before the donation occurs.
    • Computers and accessories (desktop, tower, laptops, keyboards, speakers, mice, monitors)
    • Printers (including ink and toner cartridges)
    • External drives (hard drives, floppy drives, CD/DVD drives)
    • USB drives (flash drives, jump drives)
    • Scanners  
    • Fax machines  
    • Networking equipment (HUBs, routers, switches)
    • Cords: Power cords, A/C adapters, loose cables, UPS (uninterrupted power supplies)
    • Servers and other commercial / enterprise equipment
    • Computer software (i.e. CDs) 
    • iPods/MP3 players and accessories
    • Any mobile phone or device and accessories
    • Pagers
    • Digital voice recorders

Goodwill also accepts televisions, TV recording/viewing devices (VHS, DVD, etc.), video game consoles and accessories, video equipment and digital photo frames and key chains for resale in its stores. These items should be in working order.

      For more information on electronic donations, click here.

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We cannot accept the following items:

  • Furniture in need of repair – soiled, torn, missing pieces, etc.
  • Large appliances – refrigerators, stoves, washers/dryers, etc.
  • Automobile parts of any kind – tires, rims, hubcaps, etc.
  • Hot water heaters
  • Furnaces
  • Carpeting and padding
  • Mattresses, bed springs, sofa beds, hospital beds
  • Windows, screens, shutters, doors
  • Newspapers, magazines, school textbooks
  • Household trash and garbage
  • Loose/unbundled hangers
  • Scrap lumber, concrete, bricks, stones
  • Bathroom/kitchen fixtures – sinks, bathtubs, toilets, etc.
  • Playground equipment
  • Pet houses
  • Pianos and organs
  • Pool tables
  • Stripped TV cabinets/partial consoles
  • Broken electronics – stereos, radios, etc.
  • Air conditioning units
  • Paint, household chemicals, insecticides, etc.
  • Food items
  • Gas-powered equipment
  • Gas grills

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Why does Goodwill not accept some items?
All donations that Goodwill can sell in its stores are greatly appreciated. However, when Goodwill receives items that cannot be used, staff must dispose of them, raising expenses and reducing the revenue available for job-training and employment services. 

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Why does Goodwill throw some items away?
Where possible, items that are placed on the sales floor but do not sell are recycled and sold for salvage.

When Goodwill receives items that it cannot sell, such as broken, torn or damaged items or products that have been recalled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, we are forced to dispose of those items for the safety of our customers. The fees for disposal of these items raise our expenses and reduce the revenue available for job-training and employment services.

For a list of items Goodwill can and cannot accept, click here.

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What can I do with items that Goodwill does not accept?
Your local trash pick-up usually can remove items on their “heavy pick-up” days. Gas tanks should be removed from grills and other gas-powered equipment and disposed of at a toxic waste site before these items can be picked up. Call your local trash pick-up service for details and pick-up information.

Salvation Army, AmVets and St. Vincent DePaul sometimes accept items that Goodwill does not. For more information, contact these organizations in your local area to inquire about what they can accept as donations.

Household paint products can be taken to Tox-Drop at 7400 N. Lafayette Road, Indianapolis, on the first or third Saturdays of the month or to Tox-Drop at 4925 S. Shelby St., Indianapolis, on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month. For hours or more information about either Tox-Drop location, call (317) 327-4TOX.

Car batteries can be dropped off Ace Battery, 2166 Bluff Road, Indianapolis. Ace Battery does not accept nickel cadium batteries. For hours or more information, call (317) 786-2717

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Are my donations tax deductible?
Yes. See the How To Value page for more detailed information.

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What if I accidentally donated an item. Can I get it back?
Regrettably, there isn’t much chance of retrieving items that are donated accidentally.

If an accidental donation can be found, Goodwill is happy to return it. Donors may wish to call the manager of the store where they made the donation. If the donation was made recently, it might not be too late to locate the item in the store.

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How can businesses donate?
If your place of business would like to make a donation, Goodwill will gladly work with you to make arrangements for pick-up and transportation. Goodwill accepts commercial donations such as clothing, office supplies, furniture and other bulk items.

Making a commercial donation to Goodwill provides your business with a tax deduction for the value of the donated items, eliminates and saves on the cost of product storage and recycles the items. For Goodwill, it becomes valued merchandise in Goodwill businesses and further supports Goodwill’s employment and training efforts.

To make a commercial donation, contact Jerry Jamison at (317) 524-4551 or jjamison@goodwillindy.org.

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Tips for Donors
To make your donation process go smoothly and to ensure that you are donating items Goodwill can sell in its stores, here are some tips for checking the items you plan to donate:

  • Check your items before donating to make sure all are items you want to give to Goodwill.
  • Cross reference Goodwill’s convenient online list of items we can accept.
  • Check pockets of clothing for jewelry, money and other valuable items that you might not want to donate.
  • Separate clothing into different bags/boxes than household items.
  • Check to ensure that items you are donating are not soiled, stained or ripped.
  • Test electrical equipment and battery-operated items to make sure they work.
  • Include all pieces and parts to games, toys and household appliances.

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