Frequently
Asked Questions

The state law requires retailers to collect a recycling fee on each mattress and box spring sold. The amount of the fee was approved by the state and is not set or controlled by individual retailers. To see the details of the recycling fee in your state click here.

The fee funds the state’s recycling program, which is administered by the Mattress Recycling Council.

The state law requires retailers to collect this fee on any mattress and box spring sale to fund the state’s mattress recycling program.

Even if you aren’t recycling your mattress right now, a mattress doesn’t last forever, and will eventually be discarded. This program uses a network of participating cities, towns, retailers, recyclers and other organizations to collect, transport and properly recycle old mattresses.

Yes, state law requires retailers to collect this fee on any mattress and box spring sale to fund the state’s mattress recycling program.

You may receive a modest financial incentive if you drop off your used mattress or box springs at a designated recycling location. Click here to find the location nearest you.

Yes, all mattresses originating in participating states are eligible for no-cost recycling, regardless of when they were purchased.

No, state law requires retailers to collect this fee on any mattress and box spring sale to fund the state’s mattress recycling program. Contaminated mattresses posing a health or safety hazard are not eligible for recycling through the program.

Contact your city or town for advice on how to dispose of your mattress as solid waste.

The old mattresses and/or box springs are dismantled and the steel, foam, fabric and wood are separated and used to make new products. Visit this page to learn more about mattress recycling.

Mattresses and box springs that are eligible for free drop-off and recycling through the Bye Bye Mattress Program are defined as:

• Mattresses: which are defined to include any sleep surface covered with ticking or fabric that contains resilient material, such as steel innersprings, foam, fiber, or other filling or upholstery materials, used alone or in combination, regardless of size or shape, except for those products listed below. In California, this now includes futon mattresses (futon bases are still excluded).
• Box springs (also commonly called Foundations): which are defined to include a ticking- or fabric-covered structure used to support a mattress or sleep surface, and may be comprised of a frame, foam, springs or other structure, or other materials, used alone or in combination, and includes both adjustable bases or foundations and stationary foundations.
• Used and renovated Mattresses or Box springs

Products that are NOT eligible for free drop-off include:

• Items that are wet, heavily soiled or infested with bedbugs
• Air mattresses that contain no upholstery material (such as camping beds)
• Car beds
• Cushions (such as from chairs, couches or patio furniture)
• Juvenile products including, carriages, baskets, dressing tables, strollers, playpens, infant carriers, lounge pad, crib bumpers
• Mattress pads
• Mattress toppers
• Pillows
• Sleeping bags
• Sofa beds
• Futons (however, in California a futon mattress is eligble but the base is not)
• Collapsible roll-away beds
• Water beds that contain no upholstery material

Exceptions include:

• Crib and bassinet mattresses are only accepted for recycling in Connecticut