Recycle Old TVs and Electronics in Tucson: Drop-Off Spots and Pickup Options

If you have old TVs, monitors, or laptops piling up in your garage, you are not alone. Tucson generates thousands of pounds of e-waste every year, and most of it can be recycled for free. We put together this list of local drop-off locations, accepted items, and pickup options so you can clear out your space without sending electronics to the landfill.

Where to Drop Off Electronics in Tucson

Several locations in the Tucson metro accept old electronics at no charge. Hours and accepted items vary, so call ahead if you have something unusual.

• Tucson Recycling & Shredding (2730 N. Flowing Wells Rd): Accepts TVs, monitors, computers, printers, and small electronics. Open Monday through Friday, 8am to 4pm. No appointment needed.
• Best Buy (4545 N. Oracle Rd or 5725 E. Broadway Blvd): Free drop-off for most small electronics. TVs and monitors accepted up to 32 inches. Larger items may have a fee.
• Pima County Household Hazardous Waste (2440 W. Sweetwater Dr): Takes CRT monitors, batteries, and items other locations won’t accept. Open Wednesday through Saturday, 8am to noon. Pima County residents only.
• Goodwill (multiple Tucson locations): Accepts working electronics for resale. Non-working items are sent to their recycling partners.

What Electronics Can You Recycle?

Most consumer electronics are accepted at Tucson recycling centers. Here is a quick breakdown.

Accepted at most locations: flat-screen TVs, laptops, desktop computers, tablets, cell phones, printers, gaming consoles, cables, and chargers.

Accepted with restrictions: CRT monitors and TVs (Sweetwater facility only), batteries (lithium-ion and lead-acid need special handling), and appliances with refrigerants like mini fridges.

Not accepted: smoke detectors, medical devices, and items contaminated with chemicals. Contact Pima County Environmental Quality at (520) 724-7400 for guidance on those.

How to Prepare Your Electronics for Recycling

Before you drop anything off, take a few minutes to protect your personal data and make the process smoother.

Wipe your data. Factory reset phones, tablets, and laptops. For desktop hard drives, use a free tool like DBAN to overwrite the disk. If you are unsure how, remove the hard drive and keep it.

Remove batteries when possible. Loose lithium-ion batteries are a fire hazard in recycling bins. Tape the terminals with electrical tape and hand them to staff separately.

Keep cords attached. Most facilities prefer items with their power cords. It helps them test and sort faster.

When a Drop-Off Does Not Make Sense

If you have more than a carload of electronics, or you are clearing out an office, hauling everything yourself gets old fast, and our junk removal in Tucson crew can haul it all. We offer electronics recycling pickup across the Tucson metro. We sort, load, and deliver everything to certified recyclers so nothing ends up in the landfill.

This is especially common for businesses replacing workstations, rental properties with leftover tenant electronics, and estate cleanouts where a garage full of old equipment needs to go at once.

Why Recycling Electronics Matters in the Desert

Electronics contain lead, mercury, cadmium, and flame retardants that leach into soil and groundwater. In a desert climate with limited water resources, that contamination hits harder than it would in wetter regions. Pima County processes over 2 million pounds of household hazardous waste annually, and electronics are a growing share of that volume.

Recycling also recovers copper, gold, aluminum, and rare earth elements. One ton of circuit boards contains 40 to 800 times more gold than a ton of ore. Your old laptop is worth more than you think, just not to you.

If most of what you need to get rid of is computers and laptops, we have a dedicated guide on computer recycling options in Tucson with data wiping steps and donation info.