Help Clothe the Masses by Donating Your Used Clothing

Americans only recycle about 15% of their used clothing each year, which results in more than 10 million tons of clothing winding up in landfills. Though some clothing items are beyond being reused, most can be recycled and worn by someone else. This is where charitable clothing donations come in. By donating your used clothing, you can help those who are less fortunate while also diverting billions of tons of clothing from winding up in landfills each year.

The average person in the U.S. buys twice as many clothes as they did 20 years ago, and that amounts to about 70 pounds worth of clothing per person thrown away each year. That is a lot of waste to go into the landfill. People can always try to sell unwanted clothing on their own, but that often takes a lot of effort for not a lot of money gained. A good alternative is making charitable clothing donations.

There are a number of ways you can donate your unwanted clothing. Some charitable organizations, such as Goodwill and the Salvation Army, either take clothing donations at their office locations or they have special clothing drop off locations. Other charities also may take clothing donations. Charities that help veterans often take clothing donations and even may offer a charity clothing pick up at home. If you have a local homeless shelter, it also is likely to take clothing donations. Some national charitable organizations may offer drop-off boxes in places where they don’t have operations to facilitate clothing drop off and make it easier. There also are thrift shops that take donations of clothing for them to resell.

When thinking about clothing to donate, there are some things to take into consideration. The item must be in usable condition and be free of stains, rips and other blemishes. Also, there are some clothes that you should not donate unless they are new, such as undergarments.

Clothing donations are tax deductible, so you should get a receipt of the clothing items you donate. The Internal Revenue Service allows you to deduct a reasonable amount of value for your clothing, but not the amount you paid for the item. There are guides you can find online telling you how much you can reasonably deduct for each item of clothing you donate.