How can I tell if a padded mailer is all paper?

Tear a small corner or feel the padding through the envelope. All-paper mailers use crinkled paper or a honeycomb-style molded-paper cushion that feels papery and tears easily. If the padding feels like small air-filled plastic bubbles, it's a bubble mailer, not an all-paper one.

Can I recycle a mailer that's paper on the outside but has bubble wrap inside?

Not curbside. A paper shell bonded to a plastic bubble lining is mixed material that most paper mills and most plastic film recyclers will both reject. If you can peel the layers apart, recycle each separately (paper curbside, clean film at a store drop-off); if you can't, it goes in the trash.

Do I need to remove the shipping label first?

It helps but isn't required for most paper recycling programs - small amounts of label adhesive and ink are screened out during pulping. Just make sure the envelope itself is dry, empty, and free of any plastic components.

Packaging recycling

How to Recycle 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.

RecyclablePAPERUpdated Jul 2026

Quick answer

Yes, if the mailer is entirely paper, including newer molded-paper cushioning. Fully paper padded mailers go in curbside paper recycling along with other mixed paper. If the padding is plastic bubble wrap, or the envelope combines a paper shell with a plastic bubble lining, it isn't recyclable curbside; separate the layers if you can, or trash it.

Recyclable: Yes
Recycling code: PAPER

How to Prepare

1Confirm the mailer is 100% paper - no plastic bubble lining or plastic film window
2Remove shipping labels if they peel off easily
3

How to Recycle Padded Mailers (Paper)

Quick answer

What's your junk car actually worth?

Recycling centers that accept Padded Mailers (Paper)

Ready to Recycle Your Padded Mailers (Paper)?

How to Recycle Padded Mailers (Paper)

Quick answer

What's your junk car actually worth?

Recycling centers that accept Padded Mailers (Paper)

🌱 Join 12,000+ Eco-Conscious Recyclers

Ready to Recycle Your Padded Mailers (Paper)?