Battery guide
How to recycle an e-bike battery
Take an old e-bike battery to a battery drop-off. It should never go in the trash or the blue bin. Tape the terminals, bag the pack, and call the site first. A swollen or overheating pack needs different handling, covered below.
Updated September 24, 2026
Short answer: use a battery drop-off
The U.S. EPA says lithium-ion batteries, and devices that contain them, should not go in household garbage or recycling bins. They should go to a separate battery recycling or household hazardous waste collection point. EPA notes that a battery tossed in with trash or recyclables can be crushed in the truck or by sorting equipment, which creates a fire hazard.
For most riders there are three places to start: a bike shop that collects batteries for The Battery Network's e-bike program, your county or city household hazardous waste (HHW) facility, and the company that made the bike or battery.
Why e-bike packs need their own drop-off
The Battery Network, the nonprofit formerly called Call2Recycle, classifies e-bike batteries as medium-format batteries because they store more energy than everyday household batteries. Illinois and California now use the same definition for rechargeable packs: more than 11 pounds or more than 300 watt-hours, up to 25 pounds or 2,000 watt-hours. Illinois EPA lists e-bikes, e-scooters, electric lawn mowers, and electric snow blowers as examples.
To check your own pack, look for a watt-hour (Wh) rating on the label. If the label only shows volts and amp-hours, multiply them. A 36 V, 14 Ah pack works out to 504 Wh, well over the 300 Wh line. Size is the reason a store box may turn you away: The Battery Network says most of its sites accept common household and rechargeable batteries, but only some accept e-bike batteries or other packs over 300 Wh.
Choose the route by battery condition
Worn out but intact
Holds less charge but looks normal. Tape the terminals, bag it, and take it to a site that lists e-bike batteries, or to an HHW facility.
Swollen, leaking, or overheating
Treat it as damaged. Isolate it in sand or kitty litter and contact the manufacturer. Most store collection boxes cannot take it.
Recalled
Follow the manufacturer's recall instructions for disposal and replacement. Battery Network collection sites do not accept recalled batteries.
Where to take an e-bike battery
- Start with a participating bike shop. Search The Battery Network locator by ZIP code and check each site's details for e-bike batteries. The e-bike program is a voluntary industry partnership, so it covers participating brands only. Call with your battery's brand before you drive over.
- Call your city or county HHW facility, or ask when the next collection event is. EPA points consumers to local solid waste and household hazardous waste programs. What each one accepts varies, so ask about e-bike or scooter packs by name.
- Contact the manufacturer or the shop that sold the bike. EPA tells consumers to contact the manufacturer for handling information on damaged lithium-ion batteries and on larger packs, and the maker can tell you whether it takes old packs back.
- Try an electronics or battery recycler. If the pack came off a scooter or another device, the recycler options in our electronics recycling guide may apply. Confirm the recycler takes loose lithium-ion packs of that size.
Prep the pack before you transport it
- Cover the terminals with electrical tape, clear packing tape, or duct tape. The Battery Network says to skip masking, painter's, and Scotch tape because they can fall off.
- Put the pack in its own clear plastic bag, and keep the brand and chemistry label visible.
- Keep it away from metal objects and other batteries on the way. A used battery can still hold enough charge to spark if its terminals touch metal or another battery.
- Do not open, modify, or take apart the pack, and stop riding on a battery that is not behaving normally.
If the battery is swollen or damaged
The Battery Network treats any battery that is swollen, leaking, punctured, or overheating as damaged or defective. Other warning signs include a cracked or warped case, burn marks, water damage, a strong odor, or a device that acts strangely while charging. Its instructions are to isolate the battery right away, set it in a non-flammable material such as sand or kitty litter, and keep it out of the trash, water, home recycling bins, and collection boxes.
Then call the manufacturer. The Battery Network says trained drop-off sites for damaged batteries may exist in Illinois, New York, Vermont, and Washington, D.C. To look for one, select "Damaged/Defective" in its locator. Elsewhere, ask your HHW program whether it handles damaged lithium-ion packs.
What California's SB 501 changes
Governor Newsom signed SB 501 on September 20, 2026. It adds medium-format batteries to California's Responsible Battery Recycling Act of 2022, so producers of batteries for e-bikes, portable generators, electric lawn and garden equipment, and backup power units will have to fund their collection and recycling. Batteries in motor vehicles are excluded, but the bill text keeps motorized scooters and other one-person devices, including hoverboards, inside the program.
The law sets a minimum number of free medium-format drop-off sites in each county: at least five, or one per 30,000 people, in counties with 50,000 or more residents; two in counties of 18,001 to 50,000; and one in smaller counties. Retailers with five or more California stores must collect small-format batteries, but they do not have to take e-bike-sized packs unless a store is designated as a medium-format site. Collection sites also do not have to accept damaged, defective, or recalled batteries.
The program is not running yet. The 2022 act has not been implemented because CalRecycle is still finishing its regulations, and stewardship plans are due within 12 months after those rules take effect. For now, Californians should use an HHW facility, a participating bike shop, or the manufacturer.
Illinois already has a statewide program
Illinois' Portable and Medium-Format Battery Stewardship Act took effect on January 1, 2026. Producers selling batteries in the state must belong to an approved stewardship plan, and Illinois EPA approved The Battery Network's plan on October 29, 2025. The state asks residents to use an approved drop-off location instead of curbside trash or recycling. According to the Illinois Recycling Foundation, putting covered batteries in regular trash or recycling becomes illegal on January 1, 2028.
Questions riders ask
Can I throw an e-bike battery in the trash?
No. The U.S. EPA says lithium-ion batteries and devices that contain them should not go in household garbage or recycling bins. A pack that gets crushed in a truck or at a sorting facility can start a fire. Take it to a battery drop-off or household hazardous waste program instead.
Will a bike shop take my old e-bike battery?
Many shops collect e-bike batteries through The Battery Network's e-bike program, but the program only covers participating brands. Check the Battery Network locator for a site that accepts e-bike batteries, then call the shop with your battery's brand before you go.
What should I do with a swollen e-bike battery?
Stop using and charging it. Move it away from anything flammable, set it in sand or kitty litter, and contact the battery or bike manufacturer for instructions. Do not put a swollen, leaking, or overheating battery in the trash, the recycling bin, water, or a store collection box.
Does California's SB 501 mean I can recycle an e-bike battery for free now?
Not yet. Governor Newsom signed SB 501 on September 20, 2026, adding medium-format batteries such as e-bike packs to the state's battery stewardship law. The free drop-off network starts only after CalRecycle finishes regulations and approves stewardship plans. Until then, use a household hazardous waste facility, a participating retailer, or the manufacturer.
Find local disposal help
Battery rules and drop-off hours are local. Search RecycleFind for a recycling center, transfer station, or HHW site near you, then call to confirm it accepts e-bike batteries before you bring one in. The e-bike batteries entry in our materials directory has the drop-off basics in one place. If you are clearing out a garage at the same time, our guide to what happens to bulky junk after pickup explains why batteries should come out of the load first, and the recycling contamination guide covers other items to keep out of the blue bin.
Sources
- U.S. EPA: used lithium-ion batteries
- California Legislature: SB 501 (Chapter 414, Statutes of 2026)
- National Law Review: California enacts SB 501
- Illinois EPA: batteries and the battery stewardship program
- Illinois Recycling Foundation: Portable and Medium-Format Battery Stewardship Act
- The Battery Network: e-bike batteries
- The Battery Network: battery prep and damaged-battery safety
- The Battery Network: drop-off locator