Table of Contents
Battery disposal comes down to one question: what’s the battery made of? An alkaline AA can go in the trash in most of the US. Almost nothing else can. Lithium, rechargeable, button and car batteries all hold enough charge to spark when their terminals touch metal or another cell, even when they look dead, and a lithium cell crushed in a garbage truck is how recycling-plant fires start. The EPA tracked 245 of them at US waste facilities over seven years. Find yours in the table, then pick the nearest route. Most are free.
Battery disposal by type
| Battery | Trash? | Where it goes | Prep |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alkaline and zinc-carbon (AA, AAA, C, D, 9V) | Allowed in most of the US, banned in California | Trash where allowed, or an HHW site or mail-in kit to recycle | Tape 9V and D ends |
| Lithium single-use (lithium AA, camera cells, some smoke alarms) | No | HHW site, or a store box that lists single-use lithium | Tape or bag each |
| Button and coin cells (watches, key fobs, hearing aids) | No | Watch or hearing-aid shop, a store box that takes them, HHW | Tape the whole button |
| Lithium-ion (phones, laptops, power tools, e-bikes) | No | Store box for small packs, HHW for big packs and damaged ones | Tape or bag each |
| NiMH and NiCd rechargeables | No | Store box or HHW | Tape or bag each |
| Lead-acid (cars, boats, mower and UPS batteries) | No | Battery retailer or auto parts store, HHW | Carry upright |
How do you tell them apart? Read the label, not the shape. EPA’s own advice is to look for the word “lithium” printed on the cell, because a lithium AA looks just like an alkaline one.
Button cells get their own warning. Most are lithium now, they’re shiny and small, and a swallowed one can kill a child. Keep spent ones in a closed container away from kids and pets, and tape over the whole button before it leaves the house.
1. Tape or bag the terminals first
Every route starts here. Run a strip of clear packing, electrical or duct tape over the terminals, or drop each cell into its own clear plastic bag. Skip masking, painter’s and Scotch tape (the Battery Network says they fall off in transit), and if you use colored tape, leave the brand and chemistry readable.
Do it for every lithium, lithium-ion and button cell and every 9V. The 9V is the sneaky one: both terminals sit on the same end, close enough to short against a key or the next 9V in the drawer.
Until drop-off day, keep them in a plastic tub or cardboard box. Not the junk drawer.
2. Drop them in a store collection box
For rechargeables, this is the winner. Home improvement, electronics and office supply stores keep a bin by the door, fed by the Call2Recycle network (now called The Battery Network). At Home Depot it’s free for any rechargeable up to 11 lb (5 kg) and under 300 watt hours. No purchase, no receipt.
The catch is single-use cells. Home Depot’s bins won’t take alkalines, and only some network sites do. Button cells have a second home: plenty of watch repair and hearing-aid shops take them back. In New York State, any store that sells rechargeables has to accept them.
3. Take them to a recycling center
For what a store box refuses, your county household hazardous waste (HHW) facility or collection day is the catch-all: lithium single-use cells, button cells, big e-bike packs, car batteries, and anything swollen or leaking. In the UK, the same job falls to the Household Waste Recycling Centre.
Alkalines are the oddity: some HHW sites refuse them, and outside Vermont, Illinois and Washington, D.C. a site that takes them may charge a small fee. Check the facility’s list before you drive over, and hand any damaged battery straight to staff.
4. Book a hazardous waste home pickup
Searching for a battery disposal pickup service? Some counties will collect from your door. In Bexar County, Texas, for example, you call the hotline, give your address and roughly what you have, and a kit with packing instructions is shipped to you. On the agreed day a crew collects it from outside your house. These programs take old paint, cleaners and used motor oil too, so they suit a garage clear-out more than four dead AAs.
Search your county waste site for “household hazardous waste pickup”. Who qualifies, and whether it costs anything, varies.
5. Mail them back in a kit
No drop-off within a sensible drive? Buy a prepaid mail-in kit from Call2Recycle or another recycler, fill it to the stated weight, seal it, and hand it to your carrier. It costs more than a free bin, but it suits a rural address or clearing out a whole drawer at once. Match the kit to the batteries: an alkaline-only box can’t carry lithium packs. A damaged cell never goes in an ordinary kit.
6. Return a car battery to the retailer
A lead-acid starter battery holds up to 18 lb (8 kg) of lead and about a gallon (3.8 L) of sulfuric acid, so it never goes in the trash or a small drop box. The shop that fits your new one takes the old. Doing it yourself? Most auto parts stores take a used lead-acid battery over the counter, often refunding a core charge.
Carry it upright in a leakproof, non-metal container, wear acid-resistant or leather gloves, and take your rings off first. Check what you’ve actually got, though: many e-bikes, hybrids and EVs run on lithium packs, and those go back through the maker or dealer.
7. Check for a curbside collection
A few cities collect small household batteries at the curb, never loose in the recycling, which is how truck fires start. Where it runs, you usually seal the cells in a clear bag and set it on top of the recycling cart on collection day. Most places don’t, so check your city’s waste site first.
When a battery needs more than a drop box
A swollen, hissing, leaking or hot lithium battery is a hazard, not an errand. Don’t tape it, don’t mail it, don’t charge it. Set it in sand or cat litter in a non-flammable container away from anything that burns, then call the maker or your HHW line and take it only to a site that confirms it accepts damaged cells. Smoke or flames? That’s the fire department.
Battery disposal FAQ
Can I throw AA batteries in the trash or the recycle bin?
Alkaline AAs can go in the trash in most of the US (not California), though EPA prefers recycling. Never the recycling bin. Lithium AAs and rechargeables don’t go in either.
Does Home Depot take old batteries for free?
Yes for rechargeables: lithium-ion, NiMH and NiCd up to 11 lb (5 kg) and under 300 watt hours go in its Call2Recycle bins at no charge. It doesn’t take single-use alkalines.
How do I dispose of lithium batteries?
Taped or bagged, rechargeables go in a store box; single-use lithium and big packs go to an HHW site. Never the trash.
Where can I recycle batteries near me?
Enter your ZIP code in the Battery Network locator or Earth911, or search your county for “household hazardous waste”. Like used cooking oil, batteries have their own route, and it’s usually closer than you think.
What about a phone or laptop battery?
If it’s built in, recycle the whole device through an electronics take-back or the shop that sold it (and wipe your personal data first).
