Electric and Battery-Powered Toy Recycling Guide
Electric and battery-powered toys generally do not belong in curbside recycling bins. They may contain circuit boards, wiring, motors, plastics, metals, and batteries that require separate handling. Donate safe, working toys when an organization accepts them. For broken or unwanted toys, check with an electronics recycler, manufacturer take-back program, or local household hazardous-waste program. Acceptance varies, so confirm that the program handles the specific toy and battery type.
Lithium-ion, batteries and toys containing them, must stay out of household trash and curbside recycling. Crushing, bending, or otherwise damaging these batteries during collection and processing can cause fires. EPA recommends separate collection through appropriate battery recyclers, electronics recyclers, participating retailers, or household hazardous-waste programs.
Which toys may be accepted?
Depending on the program, electronics recyclers may accept battery-powered or plug-in items such as:
Remote-controlled vehicles, robots, and drones.
Talking, musical, light-up, and educational toys.
Electronic keyboards and toy instruments.
Battery-operated dolls and stuffed animals.
Handheld game systems.
Toy tablets, cameras, and walkie-talkies.
Chargers, adapters, and other electronic accessories.
These examples are not a universal acceptance list. A program that accepts computers or phones may not accept toys, oversized ride-on vehicles, or loose electronic components. Describe the item and its battery before arranging collection or drop-off.
Match the disposal route to the battery
Battery chemistry matters. A battery’s size or shape does not reliably establish its chemistry; check the battery label, toy manual, or manufacturer’s information.
Toy or battery type | Recommended approach | Important precautions |
Removable rechargeable battery | Remove it only as directed by the manufacturer, then use a battery recycler, participating retailer, or household hazardous-waste program that accepts its chemistry. Ask separately whether an electronics recycler accepts the toy. | Protect exposed terminals with nonconductive tape or place each battery in an individual plastic bag, following the collection program’s instructions. |
Built-in lithium-ion battery | Take the complete toy to an electronics recycler, participating take-back program, or household hazardous-waste facility that accepts battery-containing devices. | Do not force the battery out or place the device in household trash or curbside recycling. |
Button or coin battery | Remove it only if safe and permitted by the manufacturer. Use a collection program that accepts that battery chemistry. | Even used batteries can cause severe injuries if swallowed. Secure them immediately and keep them away from children. |
Alkaline or zinc-carbon battery | Check local battery-recycling and disposal rules. EPA recommends recycling or consulting the local waste authority. | Some communities allow these batteries in household trash, but this is not a nationwide rule. Do not put loose batteries in curbside recycling. |
Sealed lead-acid battery, often used in ride-on toys | Contact a battery retailer, battery recycler, or household hazardous-waste program that accepts sealed lead-acid batteries. | Do not place the battery in household trash or curbside recycling. Confirm a separate disposal or recycling route for the vehicle itself. |
Damaged, swollen, leaking, defective, or recalled lithium battery | Stop using it and contact the manufacturer or a facility specifically equipped to handle damaged batteries. | Do not place it in an ordinary battery-collection box. Obtain handling, packaging, and transport instructions before moving or shipping it. |
Before donating or recycling
1. Check the toy’s condition and recall status
Consider donation only if the toy is clean, functional, complete, and safe, with an intact battery compartment. Confirm that the receiving organization accepts it.
Search the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s recall database before selling, donating, or giving away a toy. If it is recalled, stop using it and follow the recall notice’s remedy instructions rather than passing it along with an unresolved safety defect. Federal law prohibits offering recalled products for sale.
2. Remove batteries only when safe
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for opening the battery compartment. Remove user-replaceable batteries if the compartment and batteries are undamaged and the receiving program requests separate collection.
Leave built-in batteries in place unless the manufacturer or receiving recycler provides specific removal instructions. Do not puncture battery packs, cut battery wires, or force open a sealed device. Electronics containing non-removable lithium-ion batteries can be collected as complete devices by programs that accept them.
3. Prevent short circuits
For intact batteries prepared for collection, cover exposed terminals with nonconductive tape, such as electrical tape, or place each battery in a separate plastic bag. Follow the program’s instructions, and keep batteries away from loose metal objects. These precautions help prevent short circuits and fires.
Damaged batteries require separate guidance; ordinary taping or bagging should not be treated as sufficient preparation for every damaged battery.
4. Remove personal information
Before donating or recycling connected toys, cameras, tablets, or devices with memory, delete stored photos, recordings, account information, and other personal data. Follow the manufacturer’s reset instructions.
5. Confirm acceptance before transport
Ask the receiving program:
Whether it accepts the specific toy and battery chemistry.
Whether batteries must remain installed or be collected separately.
Whether it accepts damaged, defective, or recalled batteries.
Whether size, weight, residency, appointment, or fee restrictions apply.
How the item must be packaged and transported.
A recycler’s certification does not mean it accepts every type of toy or battery. Confirm both the facility’s qualifications and its acceptance requirements.
Keep electronic toys out of ordinary curbside recycling
Unless your local program provides explicit collection instructions, keep electronic toys, loose batteries, chargers, cords, controllers, and battery-powered novelty items out of the curbside recycling bin. Use designated electronics or battery collection services instead. Lithium batteries and devices containing them must not go in household trash or municipal recycling bins.
Removing a battery does not automatically make the remaining toy acceptable for curbside recycling. Ask your local waste authority whether the battery-free toy has a recycling option or must be discarded.
Button and coin battery safety
A swallowed button or coin battery can cause life-threatening internal burns in as little as two hours. Used batteries remain dangerous. Keep new and used batteries out of children’s reach, secure battery compartments, and stop using a toy if its compartment no longer closes securely.
Tape used batteries and place them in secure storage while arranging appropriate collection.
If a child may have swallowed a battery, seek emergency medical care immediately even if the child appears well. Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 or the National Battery Ingestion Hotline at 1-800-498-8666 for immediate treatment guidance. Do not delay going to an emergency department. Call 911 for breathing difficulties, loss of consciousness, or other immediate danger.
Damaged batteries and emergencies
Stop using or charging a toy with a swollen, leaking, damaged, or unusually hot battery. Contact the manufacturer for handling instructions and identify a program equipped to accept that battery before transporting it. Do not put damaged or recalled lithium batteries into a standard retail collection box.
If a battery is smoking, sparking, hissing, or burning, move people away, evacuate as necessary, and call 911. Do not approach or attempt to fight a lithium-ion battery fire; wait for trained emergency responders.
Safety and Legal Notice
This guide provides general educational information for U.S. households. Recycling availability and disposal requirements vary by jurisdiction, battery chemistry, product condition, and receiving facility. Follow manufacturer instructions, recall notices, local requirements, and collection-program rules. Businesses, schools, and other organizations should confirm the requirements applicable to their waste rather than assuming household guidance applies.
Resources
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Used Household Batteries. Battery-specific recycling, disposal, and handling guidance.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Used Lithium-Ion Batteries. Guidance for loose batteries and devices with built-in batteries.
https://www.epa.gov/recycle/used-lithium-ion-batteries
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Electronics Donation and Recycling. Preparation steps and collection resources.
https://www.epa.gov/recycle/electronics-donation-and-recycling
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Certified Electronics Recyclers. Information on independently certified electronics recycling programs.
https://www.epa.gov/electronics-batteries-management/certified-electronics-recyclers
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: Recalls and Product Safety Warnings. Search for toy, battery, and charger recalls.
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: Button Cell and Coin Batteries. Prevention and emergency guidance.
U.S. Fire Administration: Lithium-Ion Batteries: Community Education. Battery-fire prevention and emergency-response guidance.
https://www.usfa.fema.gov/a-z/lithium-ion-batteries/community-education/
