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How to make money from your spring clean
Trade in or recycle your unwanted items with these money-saving schemes
A good declutter doesn’t just free up space – it can put extra cash in your pocket.
Many retailers and online platforms offer trade-in or recycling schemes that reward you for decluttering.
From beauty packaging to old tech, here’s how you can recycle or trade in while earning rewards.
Recycle toiletries for rewards
Get rewarded for recycling empty beauty and toiletry packaging with these schemes:
Recycle at Boots Scheme
Boots runs two recycling schemes that reward you for disposing of hard-to-recycle packaging.
Trade in five empty beauty, skincare, or dental product containers from any brand, log them via the Recycle at Boots app, drop them off in-store, and scan the QR code on the bin. If you spend £10 within three days, you’ll receive 500 Advantage Card points worth £5.
The scheme accepts skincare tubes, mascara containers, and toothpaste tubes but excludes aerosols, perfume bottles, and nail varnish containers.
Boots also takes empty medicine and vitamin blister packs under a separate scheme that works in the same way. You get 100 Advantage Card points worth £1 when you spend £5 if you recycle five packets.
John Lewis BeautyCycle
John Lewis offers £5 off a £50 spend when My John Lewis members bring in five or more empty beauty product containers, through its BeautyCycle scheme.
Items such as shampoo bottles, lipstick tubes and foundation sticks are accepted, provided they’re clean and empty; but aerosols and glass containers are excluded.
Lush Bring it Back
The Lush Bring it Back scheme gives 50p off a purchase for each empty Lush plastic container returned or a free fresh face mask for five full-sized empties.
Lush’s black plastic packaging is made from 100% recycled plastic, and returned containers are reused in a closed-loop system to make new pots.
Mac Back to Mac
You can get a free lipstick when you return six empty Mac product containers to a participating store through the Back to Mac scheme.
Accepted items include lipstick tubes and foundation bottles, but liquid lipsticks, pigments and makeup removers are excluded. The returned packaging is sent for specialist recycling.
Kiehl's Recycle and Be Rewarded
My Kiehl’s Rewards members can return full-sized empties for points using the Recycle and Be Rewarded scheme.
Five empties earn five points, and 10 earn a free travel-sized product. Points can also be redeemed for discounts on selected Kiehl’s items.
Recycle old tech for credit
Your phone, tablet or laptop might be worth more than you think. Many manufacturers run trade-in schemes, so check with the brand before you recycle elsewhere.
Currys Cash for Trash
The Cash for Trash scheme gives a £5 voucher for each unwanted or broken electrical item recycled in-store, redeemable against purchases of £25 or more.
It accepts a wide range of electronics, including small domestic appliances and televisions.
- Find out more: best tech and appliance shops
Apple Trade-In
Apple Trade-In takes old devices for credit toward a new purchase or an Apple gift card.
Trade-in values depend on the model and condition. For example, an iPhone 11 in good condition could be worth up to £115. You can trade online or in-store.
Samsung Trade-In
Samsung runs its own trade-in scheme for smartphones, tablets, smartwatches and laptops.
The value depends on the make, model and condition of your device and is applied instantly as a discount when buying a new Samsung product. For example, trading in a Galaxy S10 in good condition could get you up to £74 off a new phone.
Devices must meet Samsung’s eligibility criteria and be returned within 7 days.
- Find out more: Apple iPhone vs Samsung Galaxy
Amazon Trade-In
The program offers Amazon gift cards in exchange for eligible electronic devices.
The value offered depends on the item's model, condition and functionality. For example, when we checked, trading in a fully functional Kindle Paperwhite (10th generation) could get you a £6 gift card.
On top of this, Amazon offers 20% off a new Amazon device when you trade in a Kindle, Fire tablet, Fire stick, Echo device or Ring doorbell.
Amazon will provide a free shipping label, and once the item is received and assessed, the trade-in value is credited as a gift card.
- Find out more: Amazon Spring Sale 2025
Recycle clothes and textiles for vouchers
Before recycling clothes, it’s worth checking whether they could be sold or donated.
Charity shops typically accept items in good condition.
If an item isn’t suitable for resale, a textile bank or local council recycling service may be an option.
M&S and Oxfam Another Life scheme
The scheme lets customers donate unwanted clothes and textiles.
Items can be dropped off at M&S in-store recycling stations or Oxfam shops. If at least one M&S-branded item is included in a donation at an Oxfam shop, customers receive a £5 M&S voucher to use on a £35 spend.
Oxfam resells donated items in its shops or recycles them into new textiles, such as mattress filling or carpet underlay.
Schuh Sell Your Soles
Get a £5 Schuh voucher for recycling old shoes in-store, redeemable on full-price purchases over £25.
Shoes are collected by a recycling partner, with many resold online in the UK, EU, and US, while unusable pairs are broken down into recycled materials.
Sell or recycle old books, CDs & DVDs
If you’re clearing out your shelves, several platforms let you sell books, CDs, DVDs, and games by scanning the barcode to receive an instant quote.
Items can be posted for free, with payment made via bank transfer, PayPal, or vouchers.
MusicMagpie, WeBuyBooks, and World of Books offer instant valuations and free postage.
When we checked, a hardcover of The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman was valued at 10p by World of Books, 30p by MusicMagpie, and 50p by WeBuyBooks, so it's worth checking what you can get with each platform before committing.
CeX focuses on electronics, games, and DVDs, offering cash or store credit, with vouchers typically worth more.
Get credit for old furniture
Ikea’s Buy Back & Resell scheme offers store credit for eligible second-hand Ikea furniture.
Valuations are given online, and once assessed in-store, refunds of up to 50% of the original price are offered for items in excellent condition.
Eligible items include bookcases, cabinets, tables and office chairs, but sofas, beds, outdoor furniture and modified items are excluded.
Many charity shops also offer free furniture collection for good-quality donations, providing an alternative if an item doesn’t qualify for trade-in.
- Find out more: best furniture, homeware and DIY shops
What to remember
Before using a trade-in or recycling scheme, it’s worth checking a few key details.
- Always remove personal data from tech devices, as they can’t be returned once sent.
- Some schemes only accept items in a certain condition, so check what’s eligible before making the trip.
- Store credit or vouchers may come with expiry dates or minimum spend requirements, so read the terms carefully.
- For larger items such as furniture, check if a collection is available or if you’ll need to transport it yourself.
- If you're getting rid of clothes or furniture, consider whether they could be sold or donated first, as this might be a better option.
