Furniture Donation Pickup: Who Will Come and Get It

A donation pickup is the simplest way to clear furniture that did not sell before a move: someone else brings the truck, and the piece gets used again. But each organization decides what it will carry out of your home, usually branch by branch.

Below: who picks up, what each organization's own website says it takes, the IRS rules on the deduction, and what to do when the answer is no. Everything was read on those sites on November 10, 2026, so confirm with your local branch before you plan around it.

Who picks up donated furniture

The national site usually only gets you to a local branch, and the branch gives the final answer.

• Habitat for Humanity ReStore. Habitat says most ReStores offer furniture pickup. Enter your ZIP code there to find your store, then contact it to ask whether it can pick up what you have. You can also check whether your store has an online pickup scheduler. Habitat's donation page says many ReStores offer free pickup of large items.
• The Salvation Army. Its scheduling site, satruck.org, starts with your ZIP code. Per its FAQ, you say what you are donating, pick a date on a calendar and give your address. The site calls the pickup free and lists a phone line, 1-800-SA-TRUCK.
• Goodwill. Goodwill's donation page says most Goodwill organizations make house calls for furniture or other large items, and to contact your local Goodwill to find out whether pickup is available in your community. Find yours with the locator.
• Furniture banks. The Furniture Bank Network connects furniture banks and reuse charities in the United States and Canada, with a directory of furniture banks. Pickup terms differ from one furniture bank to the next. An article on its site for furniture bank leaders says some charge donors for pickup, and that many charities pick up free at the curb but charge to come inside.
• Vietnam Veterans of America. VVA's pickup service, ClothingDonations.org, is booked online or at 1-888-518-VETS. Its FAQ says VVA does not accept furniture and large items, because most thrift stores it contracts with do not sell them. It does list usable small furniture, and says it cannot enter apartments, houses or garages.

Before you call, have the details ready: what each piece is, rough measurements, condition, and stairs or elevator. Ask whether the crew comes inside or needs it at the curb, and whether there is a fee.

What makes a piece donatable

Each organization describes condition in its own terms. Habitat says the accepted list differs a bit at every ReStore, that most typically take sofas, chairs, dining room tables, dressers, bedframes, coffee and end tables, filing cabinets and bookshelves, and that upholstered or leather furniture must be free of tears, stains and pet damage.

The Salvation Army's FAQ says its thrift stores in general accept gently used, unbroken furniture, including beds, sofas, desks, cabinets and mattresses, and that the best way to check your area is to call. Goodwill says what you can donate depends on the local organization, and that many do not accept mattresses.

Recalled furniture and cribs

The CPSC says its laws and regulations apply to anyone who sells or distributes consumer products, and it names charities and thrift stores along with yard sales. It also says it is illegal to sell any recalled product. Search the CPSC recall database before you offer a piece to anyone. Its category filter includes cribs, bunk beds, and dressers, desks, chests and buffets.

Cribs need extra care. The CPSC says cribs made or sold before June 28, 2011, when the federal crib standards took effect, are very likely noncompliant, unsafe and illegal to sell or distribute. Its resale page says not to sell broken or wobbly nursery furniture, even if it has not been recalled.

The tax deduction, in the IRS's words

This section is general information from IRS pages, not tax advice. Check your own situation with a tax professional.

Who can deduct. IRS Topic 506 says you can currently "only deduct charitable contributions if you itemize deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040)." Beginning with tax year 2026 it describes a limited deduction for people who do not itemize, but only for cash contributions, and furniture is a noncash contribution. It also says gifts to individuals are not deductible.

Condition. Publication 526 says: "You can't take a deduction for clothing or household items you donate unless the clothing or household items are in good used condition or better." Household items include furniture and furnishings. None of the IRS pages cited here defines the phrase further.

Value. You generally deduct fair market value, which Publication 561 defines as "the price that property would sell for on the open market." For used household items it says that is "usually much lower than the price paid when new." Publication 526 rules out formulas such as a percentage of replacement cost. The Form 8283 instructions say a good measure might be the price buyers actually pay in consignment or thrift shops.

Records. Publication 526 says to support your valuation with photographs, purchase receipts or other evidence, and ties the paperwork to the size of the deduction:

• Less than $250: a receipt showing the organization's name and address, the date and location, and a description of the property.
• $250 to $500: a contemporaneous written acknowledgment from the organization that describes the property and says whether you got anything in return.
• Over $500: the acknowledgment plus Form 8283, Section A, with your return. Similar items donated during the year count together.
• Over $5,000: also a qualified appraisal and Form 8283, Section B.

Photograph each piece before the truck arrives, and get the receipt before it leaves. That day, note each piece, its condition and the date.

When no one will take it

Some pieces will not pass any of these tests. You still have three routes.

• Give it away locally. Buy Nothing rules say gifts must be given freely, with no buying, selling, bartering or trading. Describe flaws honestly and set a firm pickup time. The IRS says gifts to individuals are not deductible.
• Your city or waste hauler. Bye Bye Mattress, the Mattress Recycling Council's program, recommends contacting your city or waste hauler for the best way to dispose of a bulky item. Ask early about dates, limits and fees.
• Mattress recycling. Bye Bye Mattress is a recycling program operating in California, Connecticut, Oregon and Rhode Island. For other states it keeps a nationwide list of recycling facilities, and says free recycling through the council is available only in states with mattress recycling laws.

Timing with a move-out date

Donation works best as the last step, not the whole plan. A piece a charity would accept is often one a neighbor would pay for.

1. Sell first. The guide to pricing used furniture helps you pick a starting number, and how to have a moving sale covers the plan. Where to sell used furniture compares the places to list. On PieceOut, each item has an asking price and a lowest price, and the price steps down every morning until move-out day.
2. Set a cutoff. Pick the day after which anything unsold goes to donation. The price drop planner maps out the schedule.
3. Call early, book for the cutoff. Ask what dates the organization has as soon as you know which big pieces might be left. Don't assume a truck can come in your last week.
4. Keep a fallback. If a piece is still there after the pickup, offer it free and have your city's bulky-item option ready. PieceOut sellers can let what is left go free on the last day.

The moving checklist lays out the rest of your last weeks.