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How to Recycle Packaging
Cardboard, cartons, and mailers with very different recycling odds. Corrugated cardboard recycles at 69-74% (2024, AF&PA); food and beverage cartons reach 61% of US households but only about 20% actually get recycled; plastic film mailers need a store drop-off, not curbside.
15 materials covered10 recyclable
Corrugated Cardboard Boxes
Shipping boxes and corrugated packaging, widely accepted in curbside programs. One of the highest-performing recyclables by weight, with a 69-74% US recycling rate in 2024.
Learn how to recycle Corrugated Cardboard Boxes
Aseptic Cartons (Tetra Pak)
Multi-layer cartons for shelf-stable and refrigerated beverages, soup, and broth. Made of paper, plastic, and (for shelf-stable cartons) a thin aluminum layer - not wax, despite a common myth. Access has grown fast, but actual recycling participation still lags well behind.
Learn how to recycle Aseptic Cartons (Tetra Pak)
Padded Mailers (Paper)
Shipping mailers made entirely of paper, including crinkle-paper and molded-paper cushioning formats that have replaced plastic bubble padding in a growing share of e-commerce packaging.
Learn how to recycle Padded Mailers (Paper)
Bubble Mailers (Plastic)
Plastic bubble mailers and similar flexible plastic shipping padding. Most curbside programs exclude them; participating retail film drop-off locations may accept clean, dry mailers, subject to the local bin's instructions.
Learn how to recycle Bubble Mailers (Plastic)
Coffee Pods & Capsules
Single-serve coffee capsules may be aluminum, #5 plastic, compostable material, or a mixed package. Check the brand's instructions and your local program to find the right route. The word ‘recyclable’ on the pod is not enough.
Learn how to recycle Coffee Pods & Capsules
Disposable Utensils & Straws
Disposable plastic and compostable utensils, straws, stirrers, and similar food-service items. Most are too small or too contaminated for household container-recycling systems.
Learn how to recycle Disposable Utensils & Straws
Takeout Containers
Plastic clamshells, deli tubs, foam boxes, paper takeout boxes, and aluminum trays. Material, color, coating, and food residue determine whether a local program can accept them.
Learn how to recycle Takeout Containers
Aluminum Foil & Trays
Household aluminum foil, pie plates, roasting pans, and takeout trays whose local acceptance differs from aluminum cans.
Learn how to recycle Aluminum Foil & Trays
Plastic Clamshell Containers
Hinged produce, bakery, deli, and takeout packaging commonly made from PET, polypropylene, or polystyrene.
Learn how to recycle Plastic Clamshell Containers
Chip Bags & Snack Wrappers
Flexible snack packaging made from metallized film, plastic laminates, paper layers, or pouches that standard recycling and grocery-film bins commonly reject.
Learn how to recycle Chip Bags & Snack Wrappers
Paper Cups
Disposable hot and cold paper cups with plastic or plant-based linings, including coffee cups, fountain cups, and takeout drink cups.
Learn how to recycle Paper Cups
Multi-Layer Food Pouches
Flexible food pouches made from plastic, foil, paper, or bonded layers. The recycling symbol on a pouch does not guarantee that a local program accepts it.
Learn how to recycle Multi-Layer Food Pouches
Toothpaste Tubes
Squeezable toothpaste tubes may be multilayer plastic or newer single-material plastic; a recyclable design does not guarantee local collection.
Learn how to recycle Toothpaste Tubes
Blister Packs
Small plastic-and-foil pill packs and molded retail blister packaging require different handling from bottles and ordinary rigid containers.
Learn how to recycle Blister Packs
Bottle Caps & Lids
Plastic closures for beverage and household bottles, plus separate lids from jars and tubs. Recyclers handle attached and loose caps differently.
Learn how to recycle Bottle Caps & Lids
Guides, tools, and research
Continue from individual material instructions to the broader guide, calculator, or research page for this topic.
Cartons
Empty cartons and check whether your local program accepts them with containers or paper.
Takeout containers
Separate rigid containers from foam, pouches, and food residue before checking local acceptance.
Paper cups
Most paper cups have a plastic lining, so recycling depends on a specific local program.
Food pouches
Keep bonded plastic and foil pouches out of curbside and grocery-film bins unless a named program accepts them.
Chip bags and snack wrappers
Keep laminated wrappers out of curbside and store film bins unless a named program accepts them.
Plastic bags and film
Keep bags, wrap, and air pillows out of curbside carts and use an accepted store-drop-off route.
Find packaging recycling centers
Search recycling centers by city or ZIP, then call ahead to confirm they take packaging.
Packaging Recycling Guide
Complex Materials
Start with the material and the local acceptance list. A package that mixes paper, plastic, foil, or a coating usually needs a named program rather than a guess based on its recycling symbol.
- • Cardboard: Flatten boxes to save space
- • Film Plastics: Store Drop-off (grocery bags, air pillows)
- • Styrofoam: Specialized drop-off only
Reuse is Best
Reuse boxes and packing material for your own shipping or moving needs whenever possible.
Packaging Recycling FAQ
Can I recycle bubble wrap and air pillows?
Not in curbside bins! They are plastic film (like grocery bags). You must pop them and drop them off at grocery store plastic bag collection bins (Store Drop-Off). In curbside bins, they jam sorting machinery.
Is Styrofoam packaging recyclable?
Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) foam blocks are rarely accepted in curbside programs. However, many specialized drop-off centers exist. Packing peanuts are generally harder to recycle; consider reuse or donation.
Can I recycle paper coffee cups?
Usually not with ordinary paper. Most cups have a plastic lining. Empty the cup, remove the lid and sleeve, then use a cup-recycling or commercial organics program only when your local service lists it.
Can baby-food or applesauce pouches go in recycling?
Most do not belong in curbside or grocery-store film bins because they use bonded plastic or foil layers. Empty the pouch, check for a named take-back program, and use the local trash route when none accepts it.