It’s time to say “out with the old.” If you want to declutter your space, why not give new life to like-new or gently used items?
To help inspire your home or closet refresh, we’ve rounded up a few ATX organizations that accept donated items, help locals in need + support community causes.
Vehicles
Make-A-Wish, Habitat for Humanity, Austin PBS, Vehicles for Veterans, Salvation Army, and nonprofit CARS all accept car donations. In fact, most of them will send you a receipt letter for tax deduction and tow your car for free. Psst — Make-A-Wish, Habitat for Humanity, and Austin PBS will accept cars that no longer run.
Clothing
Most local thrift shops will accept clothing donations (check out our list of secondhand shops for more ideas), but here are a few places that will put your used goods to good use.
- All the proceeds from Austin Pets Alive! Thrift — with five locations around the city — go toward caring for animals in the community.
- Proceeds made from the Assistance League of Austin go to local charities including Project Impact, Operation School Bell, and Toy Cart. Excess donations are distributed to folks in need and therefore diverted from the landfill.
- Gently used professional clothing given to Dress For Success Austin provides the wardrobe to help women gain economic independence. Plus, the org also offers career coaching services.
Childcare + household goods
- The SAFE Alliance, Casa Marianella, and The Settlement Home for Children always need certain childcare essentials. The SAFE Alliance also accepts furniture and vehicles to help support local families.
- Caritas of Austin is on a mission to end homelessness in Austin. You can browse their wishlist to see which household + children’s items, art supplies, and kitchen essentials they seek.
- Austin Diaper Bank in north Austin provides diapers + wipes to families living in poverty.
- Toybrary Austin allows families to play with and “check out” toys for free, so it’s a great place to donate toys with more life left in them.
- If you have usable tech items like laptops, TVs, scanners, or smartphones, Travis County’s Recycle & Reuse Drop-off Center collects technology.
- Cleaning out your bookshelf? Inside Books Project accepts gently used books, as they send 35,000+ free books to people who are incarcerated in Texas each year.
Furniture
- In addition to accepting vehicles, Austin Habitat for Humanity takes donated equipment + furniture to build homes, meaning you can bring your leftover remodel materials here. Psst — you can also donate to ReStore, the organization’s home improvement shop with three Austin-area locations.
- Salvation Army makes donating your used stuff easy peasy by taking almost any type of donation, including furniture, clothing, kitchenware, toys, and books. Bonus: Salvation Army employees will pick up the items from your house if you schedule a time.
- College Hunks Hauling Junk will also pick up your used items so you don’t have to lift a finger (often with same-day or next-day service). Plus, they’ll bring you a tax-deduction receipt.
- Saint Louise House, which provides fully-furnished apartments to single mothers experiencing homelessness, is currently accepting items like living room chairs, side + coffee tables, dressers, dining tables, kitchen gadgets, and more.
Miscellaneous
- Got some extra materials from a project or craft? Austin Creative Reuse will take those supplies off your hands.
- Musicians can donate gear, instruments, and supplies to Anthropos Arts, which provides mentorship and musical instruction to low-income youth in Austin.
- If you have extra pet supplies — think unopened bags of food + treats, newspapers, towels, clean beds or collars, and medications — you an drop them off at Austin Pets Alive! locations, the Austin Animal Center, or the Austin Humane Society.
- Lend a helping hand to older Austinites by donating gently used medical equipment like wheelchairs, rollators, walkers, canes, and shower chairs to AGE of Central Texas. They’ll be given to folks in need for free through the Health Equipment Lending Program.
- Keep a longtime local tradition alive by donating holiday decor to 37th Street Lights. They’ll make your LED lights, extension cords, and weird sculptures sparkle each December.
- Already living a minimalist lifestyle? We Are Blood is always in need of blood donors. Want to donate your time? Check out our guide to volunteering.
We want to know — where do you like to donate in Austin and why? We might include your responses in an upcoming newsletter.
