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Could your microwave be repaired? Could you donate it to a charity? Pass it on to someone you know? Or could you sell your unwanted microwave?
Has it really made its last supper? Here’s how, why and where to recycle your old microwave oven.
Find a bag or box that you can use to store all your old electrical bits and pieces until you can go to the recycling centre – or until collection day, if you have one.
Find your nearest recycling point. Just enter your postcode in our recycling locator. And off you go.
Recycling locatorPick the option that suits you.
All household waste and recycling centres have bins for electricals and batteries. Some also have an area for items that can be refurbished to be passed on.
Thousands of shops across the UK will now take your old microwave for recycling if you’re buying a new one from them. Some take back all your old electricals for recycling even if you’re not buying something new. #zerowaste
Some supermarkets, car parks and designated roadside areas have electrical recycling bins. Check to see if your nearest can take microwaves.
Find your nearest electrical recycling collection or drop-off point by popping your postcode into our handy locator.
DID YOU KNOW?
A study of microwaves being discarded found that
Find repair shops by postcode using the Restart directory. Or see if there’s a Repair Cafe near you where you get help fixing your microwave yourself.
Retailers will take back your old electricals
The crossed-out wheelie bin means you must not throw the product in the general rubbish bin. We need to dispose of electrical and electronic appliances carefully to save valuable resources and avoid polluting the environment.
The only time you should do this is by arrangement with your local council or collection service so that they can make a pick-up from a designated spot at a certain time and dispose of the machine properly. Simply leaving electrical goods on the pavement is against the law – it creates an obstruction and can lead to valuable and hazardous materials not being managed properly. Contact your council, or charities or social enterprises in the area to see if they provide a collection service. If you’re buying a microwave, the retailer should take your old one back. Find your nearest drop-off or collection point for electricals by entering your postcode in our recycling locator.
At a recycling centre microwaves are broken down by machine and by hand. The fragments are sorted into different materials such as metals and plastics, and are cleaned. Material that can be collected is sent to specialists – plastics go for further processing and metals go to smelters for example.
If you have transport and can lift the appliance safely yourself then taking your unwanted microwave to your nearest waste and recycling centre is an option. (Check ahead for opening times and rules.) But if this isn’t convenient, check your options for collection below.
Your council, charities and reuse organisations might collect from your doorstep or a designated spot near your home. Some councils charge for this service, but some provide it free, for example to residents receiving housing benefit. You can hire licensed waste disposal firms to take your electrical appliances away; this might be an economical option if you’re having a general clear-out. If you sell your old microwave via peer-to-peer marketplaces such as eBay and Gumtree, or offer it free on Freecycle or Freegle, you can ask the new owner to collect.
Some charity shops welcome electricals such as kitchen appliances that are in good working order. See our page on donating electricals to charity shops.
Use our recycling locator to find your nearest reuse and recycling point. Or, if you’re shopping, bear in mind that retailers now take back old electricals when you’re buying new. That includes old microwaves. Some larger stores will recycle your old appliance even if you’re not buying something new from them. You should have 28 days from the time you buy your new product to hand your old one over for disposal. In other words, it’s easier than ever to recycle microwaves. More on appliance recycling at retailers
Put in your postcode to find recycling and reuse centres near you
