Free E-Waste Pickup
Free Pickup for the Old Computer, the Tube TV, and the Box of Cables Nobody Wants.
The dead laptop in the closet. The CRT television nobody knows what to do with. The pile of phone chargers from devices long retired. The printer that finally gave up. Households across the Albuquerque metro accumulate this stuff for years because it's the kind of thing you can't put in the regular trash, can't drop at Goodwill, and don't want to drive across town for a fee-based recycler. I pick it up for free.
No tipping fee. No minimum load. No appointment hoops. I'm already crisscrossing the metro for book pickups and donation runs, and most weeks I add e-waste to the same trip without a second thought. Working electronics get a second life through resale. Non-working electronics walk next door from my warehouse to the certified computer recycle center. Almost nothing ends up in a landfill.
Free · Any condition · No sorting · I do the loading
The Convenient Truth
Last verified May 2026 · Original research by Josh Eldred
My Warehouse Is Right Next Door to a Certified Computer Recycler.
This sounds like a small detail. It isn't. It's the reason this service can be free.
Most e-waste services have to pay tipping fees to a recycler, and they pass those fees on to the household — that's why "free e-waste pickup" is rare and "a typical TV disposal fee" is common. My warehouse on Edith Boulevard is physically adjacent to a certified e-waste recycle facility. When a computer comes off the truck and turns out to be unsellable, I walk it ten yards. There's no driving cost, no scheduled drop-off, no fee structure to absorb.
Combine that with a free book pickup operation that already drives across the Albuquerque metro every week, and the math works: the truck is already going your way, and the disposal end of things is fifteen feet from where the truck unloads. That's the entire reason this is free.
What I take
Pretty much everything households accumulate in the "old electronics" drawer, closet, garage, or storage unit. The full list:
Computers and computing
- •Desktops, towers, all-in-ones
- •Laptops (any condition — broken hinges, dead batteries, won't power on, all fine)
- •Servers and small networking gear
- •External hard drives, USB drives, SSDs
- •Keyboards, mice, webcams, microphones, speakers
- •Computer cables, power supplies, dock stations
Displays
- •Computer monitors (LCD, LED, and most CRT)
- •Flat-panel TVs (LCD, LED, plasma, OLED)
- •Tube TVs (the heavy CRT kind — yes, including those)
- •Projectors
Audio and video
- •DVD players, Blu-ray players, VCRs, VHS decks
- •CD players, tape decks, turntables (working turntables especially welcome — they often resell)
- •Stereo receivers, amplifiers, speakers, soundbars
- •Radios, clock radios, boomboxes
- •Camcorders and digital cameras
Mobile and small electronics
- •Cell phones (smartphones and old flip phones)
- •Tablets, e-readers, smartwatches
- •Gaming consoles and accessories (NES era through current gen)
- •GPS units, dash cams, fitness trackers
- •Old MP3 players, iPods, portable disc players
Office equipment
- •Printers (inkjet, laser, all-in-one)
- •Scanners, fax machines, copiers (small and mid-size)
- •Shredders, label makers, calculators
- •Telephones (corded and cordless), answering machines
Small kitchen electronics and other
- •Coffee makers, microwaves, toaster ovens, blenders, mixers
- •Vacuum cleaners (any type)
- •Hair dryers, electric razors, small bathroom electronics
- •Power tools and battery-operated tools
- •The proverbial box of mystery cables and chargers — yes, all of it
What I can't Take (Without Calling First)
A short list of categories that need a different handler — usually because of safety, regulation, or specialty disposal:
- ✕Loose lithium-ion batteries. They're a real fire risk in transit. If a device has the battery removed and it's loose, mention it on the call so I can route it correctly. Devices with the battery still installed are usually fine.
- ✕Large appliances with refrigerants. Refrigerators, freezers, room air conditioners, dehumidifiers. These need certified refrigerant handling and are better served by a specialty hauler.
- ✕Smoke detectors with radioactive elements (americium-241). Most household smoke detectors should go to a specialty handler or back to the manufacturer.
- ✕Visibly damaged or leaking devices. If a battery is swollen or fluid is leaking, don't transport it. call me and I'll point you to the right safety-equipped handler.
- ✕Medical devices with embedded radioactive sources. Same — specialty handler.
For everything in this list, call 702-496-4214 and I'll point you at the right handler. We'd rather refer you out than mishandle something.
How E-Waste Pickup Actually Works
For most households — combined with a regular pickup
The most common pattern: a household is already calling for a free book pickup or a donation pickup, and they ask if I can also take an old computer, a TV, or a box of cables. Almost always, yes. I'm already in the truck and already driving to your address. The e-waste rides along with the books and ends up at the warehouse on the same trip. Zero extra coordination, zero extra cost.
If you're scheduling a pickup, mention the e-waste up front. I'll bring whatever capacity is needed.
For e-waste-only pickups
Sometimes a household has a stack of dead electronics and not much else. I'll come anyway. The same scheduling applies — call or text 702-496-4214, tell me what you have and where you are, and I'll fit the pickup into the routes I'm already running. Most pickups happen within a few days of the call.
For larger loads — businesses, offices, estates
A small office moving locations and clearing out old computers. A school cycling out classroom electronics. A senior moving to assisted living with thirty years of accumulated tech. Estate cleanouts where the contents include serious electronics. For loads bigger than a typical household pickup, I coordinate a dedicated trip with the right capacity. Still free in most cases — the resale and recycler-next-door math works at scale too. For very large business or institutional loads, I may quote a small handling fee depending on volume and complexity.
For drop-off at the warehouse
Small e-waste — laptops, phones, cables, keyboards, small electronics — can go in my 24/7 donation drop bin at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, Unit A. The bin is outdoor and outside business hours, available any time. For TVs, monitors, and larger items, please call ahead so I can store them properly under cover instead of leaving them exposed in the bin.
Where Your E-Waste Actually Ends Up
Transparency on this matters. Households are rightly skeptical of "free e-waste recycling" services that turn out to be ship-it-overseas operations or quietly dump things in a landfill. Here's the honest breakdown of where the contents of an e-waste pickup actually go:
Working electronics → resale
A laptop that boots, a TV that turns on, a stereo that plays sound, a working printer — these get tested, photographed, listed, and sold through my resale channels. The buyer is usually a household that wants a working device for less than retail. The original device gets a second life instead of being shredded for scrap value.
Non-working electronics → certified recycler next door
Anything that can't be revived, isn't worth the labor to repair, or is past the end of its commercial life walks next door from my warehouse to the certified computer recycle center. They handle the actual material recovery — circuit boards, copper, aluminum, gold, glass — under proper environmental controls. I don't ship overseas, I don't dump, and I don't grind things down myself. I hand them to the people who do that for a living.
Cables, cords, chargers → metal recycling
The mountain of cables every household accumulates gets bundled and routed for copper recovery. Even the proverbial mystery USB cable from 2008 has metal in it that's worth recovering.
A small fraction → disposal
Some items genuinely can't be recovered. A waterlogged stereo with corroded boards, a melted plastic shell with no circuit, broken consumer electronics from before standardized parts. These go to disposal — but they're a small fraction, and they're the genuine end-of-life cases. The landfill is the last resort, not the first one.
Data Destruction
A real concern for any household giving up an old computer, phone, or external drive. The honest answer: I physically remove and destroy hard drives on request before any computer is resold or recycled. Tell me at pickup or drop-off if data destruction is required, and I'll handle it.
For sensitive data — financial records, medical records, business data, anything you genuinely don't want recoverable — I recommend pulling the drive yourself before pickup as the gold standard. It takes about ten minutes for a desktop, fifteen for a laptop, and you control the process end-to-end. I'll still take the rest of the device and recycle it.
For phones and tablets, a factory reset before pickup is usually sufficient. For external drives, the drive itself is the data carrier — those get destroyed unless the household specifically asks otherwise.
How This Compares to Your Other Options
Albuquerque has a few other places to take e-waste. They're real options and worth knowing about — here's the honest comparison:
City of Albuquerque drop-off events
The city runs occasional household hazardous waste and e-waste drop-off events. They're free but limited to specific dates, specific locations, and you have to drive your stuff there during their hours. Good if you're already going.
Big-box stores
Some national retailers accept certain electronics for recycling. Their accepted-items lists have narrowed over the years, and many now charge fees for items they used to take for free. If you're going to one anyway and your item fits their list, it's a fine option.
Goodwill and thrift donation
Some thrift stores accept electronics; many don't, and policies change. If a thrift accepts your item, it'll be tested and sold or routed for recycling. You drive it there.
Standalone e-waste recyclers
Several certified recyclers in town accept drop-offs. Most are business-hours only, some charge per-item fees (especially for CRT TVs), and you do the driving. They're the right call for very large or unusual loads.
Junk haulers
Will haul anything for a fee. The honest version of what often happens: e-waste in a junk hauler's truck goes to a landfill or transfer station, not a certified recycler. If routing matters to you, ask before signing.
Us
Free, I come to you, and the disposal end is fifteen feet from where I unload. Working items get a second life through resale; non-working items go to the certified recycler next door. The trade-off is that I'm one operator running a finite number of pickups per week — service is rare, and I'm occasionally booked a few days out for non-urgent pickups. That's the honest framing.
Service Area
The full Albuquerque metro and surrounding communities. If you're in or near any of these areas, I pick up:
- Albuquerque (all quadrants)
- North Valley
- South Valley
- Northeast Heights
- Rio Rancho
- Corrales
- Los Ranchos
- Bernalillo
- Placitas
- Tijeras & East Mountains
- Edgewood
- Los Lunas
Larger or unusual jobs farther out — Santa Fe, Belen, Moriarty, Estancia Valley — are handled case by case. Call and I'll work it out.
Schedule a Pickup
Call or text 702-496-4214 with what you have, your address, and the rough timing. Most pickups happen within a few days. No appointment hoops, no fees.
Or drop small e-waste in the 24/7 bin at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, Unit A — open day and night.
Start a ConversationOther Things I Pick Up Free
Free Book Pickup
Books, paper, magazines — across the Albuquerque metro, no minimums, no fees.
24/7 Donation Drop Bin
Outdoor drop bin at the warehouse on Edith. Day or night, no contact required.
Estate Cleanouts
For households with much larger volumes — full-property cleanouts including all electronics.