5 Charities That Pick Up Your Donations

One of the first steps for a successful move is to get rid of all the stuff you don’t need anymore. You could pay to ship these items to your home, or you could donate them.

When you donate, your old household goods go to a new home where they will be used and appreciated. Plus, donations to charitable organizations are tax-deductible. Ka-ching.

If the inconvenience of hauling heavy or bulky stuff to a donation center is what’s holding you back, then we’ve got good news for you. All the companies on this list will pick up large items like sofas and tables from your home.

First on our list is The Salvation Army, an international organization that uses donations to help those in need all over the world. If you've ever gone shopping around the holidays, you've probably seen Salvation Army volunteers asking for donations for the organization's red kettle project.

That may be what The Salvation Army is best known for, but the organization also accepts donated household goods, and it will send someone to pick up your furniture donation.

That may be what The Salvation Army is best known for, but the organization also accepts donated household goods, and it will send someone to pick up your furniture donation.

• Appliances
• Clothing
• Furniture
• Toys, bikes, and sports gear
• Dishes and kitchenware
• Decorations and household items
• Computers and other electronics
• Automobiles

Enter your zip code to schedule a donation pick-up with The Salvation Army. If services are available in your area, just fill out the form detailing what you're donating, the date for pick-up, and any special instructions for the driver. 

While The Salvation Army does accept a variety of items, these are a few things they cannot accept or pick up. 

• Air conditioners
• Microwaves
• TVs older than 5 years
• Washing machines and dryers
• Gas appliances 
• Auto parts
• Paint or chemicals 
• Kerosene or gas heaters

The Salvation Army assists roughly 25 million Americans every year, and it operates in 133 different countries. Here are some of the communities that the organization assists:

• Disaster victims
• People experiencing homelessness and/or food insecurity
• People in addiction recovery
• Veterans
• Older adults
• Victims of domestic violence

Habitat for Humanity is a global nonprofit with an ambitious humanitarian goal: “A world where everyone has a decent place to live.” Habitat for Humanity collects monetary donations to build and renovate affordable housing that those in need can apply for.

You can also donate furniture and other household goods to Habitat for Humanity. The organization resells these items in home improvement stores — called Habitat ReStores — and uses the money to fund its humanitarian efforts.

Your local Habitat ReStore may have specific donation requests, but here are the items Habitat for Humanity typically accepts:

• Appliances
• Furniture
• Building materials
• Household goods
• Vehicles

To schedule a pickup from Habitat for Humanity, enter your zip code into the form on their website. This will help you find locations near you.

From there, you can select the closest Habitat ReStore or headquarters near you. Then, make an appointment for a Priority or Standard pickup by giving a few details about what you're donating, your address, and a date. 

Habitat for Humanity helps individuals and communities in more than 70 countries. Anyone can apply to live in one of the organization’s homes, but applicants are accepted based on financial need.

In addition to paying their mortgages, which come with affordable and realistic financing options, Habitat for Humanity home buyers also agree to help the organization with volunteer work.

Like Habitat for Humanity, Goodwill resells donated furniture and other household items to fund its charitable objectives. It sells these items on the Goodwill website and in thrift stores across the country and uses its earnings to provide career training and employment assistance to underemployed individuals.

Goodwill also offers discounts and vouchers to the people enrolled in its training programs, allowing them to affordably furnish their homes and buy clothes for their families.

• Clothing
• Books, DVDs, and other media
• Sports equipment
• Dishes and kitchenware
• Tools
• Electronics
• Small appliances

While Goodwill has stores across the country, not all of them offer pickup services. Check Goodwill's website to find the nearest store in your area and call to ask about pick up donations. 

Goodwill gives vocational training and career assistance to anyone experiencing employment barriers. This can include people with disabilities, people who have been laid off, veterans, and people who don’t have marketable job skills or resumes.

Goodwill’s free online training programs teach valuable workplace skills, financial literacy, and interview coaching. Goodwill also helps people earn high school and college degrees (or equivalents) and can even assist with industry certifications.

Lastly, Goodwill offers a job search tool to help job seekers connect with employers.

PickUpMyDonation.com isn’t actually a donation center like The Salvation Army or Habitat for Humanity, and it doesn’t pick up your donations and distribute them. Instead, it helps you find local nonprofits and thrift stores that do.

If your donation isn’t large enough for a local nonprofit to send a truck (most nonprofits can afford to pick up only large donations), PickUpMyDonation.com can still help. The company will put you in touch with a company like College Hunks Hauling Junk & Moving—one of our favorite local moving companies—to pick up your donation and take it to a nearby center.

Since PickUpMyDonation.com doesn’t literally pick up donations, it doesn’t determine what items are accepted for donation. That depends on which nonprofit you choose to donate to, so read that organization’s list of accepted items to ensure they’ll take what you’re donating.

PickUpMyDonation connects you with local nonprofits who can take your old stuff. Just enter your zip code into the form and choose a free pick-up or the faster fee-based pick-up. 

From there, you'll fill in the details about what you're donating, schedule the pick-up date and address. 

PickUpMyDonation.com doesn’t help communities directly. Instead, you choose the nonprofit you want to work with — and who your donation benefits.

After PickUpMyDonation.com directs you to nonprofits in your area, choose one that benefits a community you care about and want to help.

Furniture Bank Network helps people furnish their homes with comfy and practical secondhand items donated by people within the community. The best part is that recipients get the furniture for free (aside from delivery fees).

People can get furnishings from their local Furniture Bank only if they are referred to the organization through one of its social service partners. This ensures that the furniture goes to those who need it most.

• Furniture
• Electronics
• Appliances
• Dishes and kitchenware
• Decor

The Furniture Bank Network has locations across the US and Canada but pick-ups and accepted donations may vary on what your local bank needs. Find the location closest to you and check that they're able to help before scheduling anything online. 

Furniture Bank’s goal is to help those who can afford apartments or homes but can’t afford to furnish them. This can include the following groups:

• People who have experienced homelessness
• People who are unemployed
• People with disabilities
• Disaster victims
• Victims of domestic violence
• Immigrants

Now that we’ve talked about the great charities that will come to your house to accept your donations, we recommend checking out these other resources that can help you when you’re moving or downsizing:

• The 3 Best Moving Labor Companies
• The Best Junk Removal Companies
• How to Host an Estate Sale

• How Much Does It Cost to Move?
• What Is the Average Cost of Junk Removal?
• How Do Moving Companies Charge?

1. The Salvation Army, “What We Do,” Accessed January 2024.
2. Habitat for Humanity, “Our Mission, Vision and Principles,” Accessed January 2024.
3. Red Cross, “About Us,” Accessed January 2024.
4. Sawso.org, “Vision,” Accessed January 2024.
5. Habitat for Humanity, “Where We Work,” Accessed January 2024.
6. Habitat for Humanity, “Frequently Asked Questions,” Accessed January 2024.
7. Goodwill, “FAQs,” Accessed January 2024.
8. Goodwill, “Jobs & Training,” Accessed January 2024.
9. Furniture Bank, “Accessing Furniture Bank,” Accessed January 2024.
10. H&R Block, “Charitable Donations,” Accessed January 2024.