What to Do with Items You Want to Donate or Sell

When you’ve finished decluttering your home, you’re not only left with a much more organized space, but also a bunch of stuff that needs a new place to live. Here’s how to donate (or sell) the things you’ve just decluttered. 

Grab your “donate” and “sell” outboxes — because we will go through them and declutter them from our lives once and for all.

Your “donate” box is most likely filled with clothing, home goods, and other items. Some donation places can take all of these, but some might only be able to take one category of items. Consult the list below to help you decide what donation center or non-profit organization can take your things, or consider giving away your items by posting to an online platform.

• Drop it off at a donation center, charity, or non-profit organization. Goodwill and Big Brothers Big Sisters are great organizations, but they can get overwhelmed with donations. Try less-known places to see if they can take your things, and be sure to check in first to see if they’re taking new donations. 
• Send clothes to companies that recycle them, such as For Days, which has a Take Back Bag program, or Madewell, in partnership with Cotton’s Blue Jeans Go Green™ program, which will take any denim jeans you own and recycle them. 
• Go online and join a local Buy Nothing Group, Nextdoor, or Freecycle to give away your things for free. When dealing with an online marketplace, set boundaries on where you are comfortable meeting and how long items will be available before you move on to the next person. Remember to take down the listing once it is gone. 

Your “sell” box is most likely filled with things that are in good condition that you want to try your hand at selling. Consider donating any items you can’t sell after a certain amount of time so they still find a home with someone else. Here are places to consider.

• Post items on Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, or OfferUp. Like the advice above, whenever using an online marketplace, set boundaries on where to meet and how long it will be available, and take down your listing once it is sold.
• Head to a local consignment or thrift store. (Plato’s Closet and Buffalo Exchange are a couple of options.)
• Use online shops, like ThredUp, which has a Clean Out Kit that lets you mail them a bag of clothing and accessories to sell (anything that doesn’t sell can be returned for a small fee back to you or recycled by them), or Poshmark, which lets you take photos and list items yourself. 

Do you have a great tip on where to donate or sell unwanted items? Tell us about it in our community forum!

• Sign up for email updates.
• Visit the 2025 Decluttering Cure page and catch up on assignments.
• Download the Decluttering Cure calendar.
• Join the conversation by checking out the Decluttering Cure board in our community forum.
• Check off that you’ve completed this task and track your overall Decluttering Cure progress here!
• See all the winners from our 2025 Organization Awards to get your home organized. 

The Cure Program is a tradition here at Apartment Therapy — it happens every January, April, and September. Click here to learn more about the year-round program and when to sign up.