Old pillows are not accepted by curbside recycling and most thrift stores refuse them. Here are nine options that actually work, from pet bedding to textile recycling.
Pillows are awkward to get rid of. They are too bulky for a kitchen bin, too soiled for most donation centers, and almost never accepted in curbside recycling. So they sit in a closet for two years until someone finally moves them to the garage. Here is what actually works, from most useful to last resort.
Before you get rid of anything, check whether the pillow is finished or just flat. Fold it in half and let go. If it springs back, it still has life in it and probably just needs washing and fluffing. If it stays folded, the fill has collapsed and no amount of laundering will bring it back. Our guides on washing pillows properly and how often to replace a pillow cover the difference in detail.
This is the single best use for a retired pillow. Slide it into a durable cover, or cut it open and use the fill to stuff a homemade dog or cat bed. Your pet does not care that the loft has collapsed. Wash it first on a hot cycle.
Two old pillows inside a canvas cover make a decent floor cushion for a kid's room or a patio bench. Foam pillows work better here than down, since they hold their shape under weight.
Old pillows are excellent for wrapping mirrors, framed art and lamps when you move. They are free, they are already the wrong shape for anything else, and if they get damaged you are not out anything.
A firm pillow at the base of a door blocks drafts. A flat one is useful under the knees for back sleepers, or between the knees for side sleepers, which is a legitimate alignment aid and not just a way to avoid throwing something away.
Polyester fill can be repurposed into stuffed toys, cushion inserts or kneeling pads for the garden. Down and feather fill can go into a compost pile in small amounts, since both are natural fibers.
Shelters are the most reliable place to donate used pillows, since bedding needs there are constant and they are less concerned with appearance. Call first. Some shelters have restrictions on fill type, and most cannot accept anything moldy, wet or infested. Wash before dropping off.
Be realistic here. Most thrift chains decline used pillows on hygiene grounds, and human shelters usually require new or nearly new bedding. Unused pillows still in packaging are a different story and are often welcome. Call ahead rather than leaving bags at a door, which just moves your disposal problem onto someone else.
Pillows do not belong in curbside recycling bins. The mixed materials jam sorting equipment. What does work is a dedicated textile recycling drop-off, which many cities and some retailers operate. In Los Angeles, check the city's household hazardous and special waste resources or a local textile collection point before assuming there is no option.
If you want to maximize what gets recycled, take the pillow apart first. Cotton and polyester covers can go into textile recycling. Shredded memory foam is sometimes accepted by carpet underlay manufacturers. Down and feathers are compostable.
If the pillow is moldy, soaked, infested or genuinely unusable, the bin is the right call. Compress it into a bag first so it does not eat half your trash volume. There is no benefit to donating something a shelter will simply throw away themselves.
Pillows tend to get replaced around the same time as everything else, and mattresses have their own rules. Mattresses cannot go in the trash in most of Los Angeles, and California charges a recycling fee at purchase specifically to fund free mattress recycling. If a mattress is heading out alongside your pillows, read how to dispose of a mattress in Los Angeles and our explainer on the California mattress recycling fee, which you have already paid and may as well use.
In order of preference: reuse them at home as pet bedding or padding, donate clean ones to an animal shelter, take them to a textile recycling drop-off, and only then put them in the trash. Curbside recycling bins do not accept pillows in most cities.
Not through standard curbside programs, because the mixed fill and fabric cannot be sorted by municipal equipment. Dedicated textile recycling programs will often take them, and separating the cover from the fill improves the odds that the materials get used.
Animal shelters and rescue organizations are the most likely to accept used pillows. Thrift stores and homeless shelters generally will not take used bedding for hygiene reasons, though they often welcome new pillows still in packaging. Always call before dropping anything off.
Many do, and it is one of the few consistently useful destinations for used bedding. Policies vary, so confirm first. Shelters will refuse anything with mold, strong odors, pests or heavy staining, and everything should be washed before donation.
Roughly every one to two years for polyester fill, two to three years for memory foam, and up to five years for high-quality down or latex. The fold test is more reliable than the calendar: if it does not spring back, it is done supporting your neck.
If the reason you are reading this is a stiff neck rather than a spring cleaning, the pillow may not be the whole story. Pillow height and mattress firmness work together, and a mattress that has softened over the years changes what your pillow needs to do. Take our sleep quiz, or browse mattresses built for pressure relief and stop by one of our five LA showrooms to test pillows and mattresses together.
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