Chicago E-Waste Disposal: The One City Drop-Off

Item: E-waste — computers, monitors, laptops, printers and scanners, keyboards and mice, TVs, VCRs and DVD players, game consoles, portable music players, converter boxes, cable and satellite receivers, small-scale servers, cell phones (plus CFL bulbs and non-alkaline batteries) Jurisdiction: City of Chicago, Illinois — state overlay: the Illinois Consumer Electronics Recycling Act (CERA) Official sources: City of Chicago Department of Environment, Chicago Recycles E-Waste hub, CDPH facility flyer, Illinois EPA, CHI 311 Last verified: September 2026 · Next review: December 2026

Quick answer: Chicago e-waste disposal at a glance

Chicago does not collect electronics at the curb. There is no alley route for them and no blue-cart route, so a dead TV left in the gangway has no lawful pickup. There is exactly one permanent city-run drop-off for covered electronics — and if a microwave is hiding in your box, the attendant hands it back.

• One permanent city drop-off. The Household Chemicals & Computer Recycling Facility (HCCRF) at 1150 N. North Branch Street, Chicago, IL 60642 — about two blocks east of the Kennedy Expressway at Division Street — open year round.
• Fixed hours, no appointment: Tuesday 7:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Thursday 2:00–7:00 p.m., and the first Saturday of every month 8:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
• Two buildings. The blue building takes household chemicals and batteries; the yellow building takes old electronics. Split the load before you arrive.
• An attendant inspects every load. Nothing may be left outside unattended, and anything not on the accepted list is returned to you. The program stops taking electronics once the collection truck is full.
• Three wrong doors: the blue recycling cart, the alley or dumpster, and the city's monthly neighborhood drop-off events — on hold until further notice. Do not hunt for those dates.
• No published fee. The city publishes no HCCRF e-waste fee schedule. Call 311 to confirm costs before you drive.
• Wipe your own data. No city or retailer route publishes a data-destruction guarantee.

Read this first — the three wrong doors

1. The blue recycling cart. Chicago's blue-cart stream does not collect electronics.
2. The alley, the dumpster, or the building trash. Illinois law bans covered electronic devices from landfills.
3. The monthly neighborhood drop-off events. A city program, but officially on hold until further notice — there are no dates to find.

Jurisdiction warning: this guide covers the City of Chicago residential program only — the address on this page is 1150 N. North Branch Street, and the program serves the city's residents.

Town-limits warning: HCCRF takes residential (household) waste only, so businesses, schools and large groups cannot use it. Landlords, condo and co-op boards and building management may impose their own set-out rules that override general guidance. And the Illinois landfill ban applies statewide, so if you are outside Chicago — or outside the city limits of any municipality — verify your own county and municipal collection options with the Illinois EPA directory before acting.

Quick facts: Chicago e-waste drop-off

Why Chicago e-waste cannot go in the trash

Illinois bans covered electronic devices from landfills, and the ban applies to households, businesses, schools and government agencies alike. Since January 1, 2026, all covered devices are barred from Illinois landfills, so the alley-and-hauler plan is closed.

The list is broader than most people expect: computers (desktop, laptop, notebook, tablet) and peripherals, keyboards, mice, printers, scanners, fax machines, monitors, televisions, cable and satellite receivers, digital converter boxes, DVD players and recorders, home audio components (speakers, stereos, amps), portable digital music players, small-scale servers, VCRs and video game consoles.

The governing law is the Consumer Electronics Recycling Act (CERA), signed August 25, 2017. It requires manufacturers to help manage unwanted devices and sets a convenience standard — a minimum number of collection sites in each participating county — replacing the earlier Electronic Products Recycling and Reuse Act. On January 1, 2027, CERA expands to cover peripherals and home audio components.

The Illinois EPA does not accept electronics at its own facilities; it points residents to a statewide network of registered collectors, recyclers and refurbishers. In Chicago, the household-facing node of that network is HCCRF.

The one city drop-off: HCCRF at 1150 N. North Branch Street

HCCRF is the single permanent city e-waste site, with fixed hours:

• Tuesday: 7:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
• Thursday: 2:00–7:00 p.m.
• First Saturday of every month: 8:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.

The two-building layout decides your route before you get out of the car. Household chemicals and batteries go to the blue building; old electronics go to the yellow building, so a box mixing a printer, paint thinner and loose batteries means two stops.

The gate procedure is strict. Materials must not be left outside unattended, and drop-off is allowed only during those hours — no after-hours drop box, no leaving it by the fence. An attendant inspects everything, accepts what is allowed, and returns the rest.

Who can use it: all Chicago residents may drop off their individual household chemicals and electronics. The facility takes residential waste only — businesses and large groups must use a private disposal company instead.

The program stops accepting electronics once the collection truck is full, so arrive early in a window where you can, and verify hours before driving: hours change, and some third-party pages publish schedules that contradict the city.

What the city accepts — and what it will not take

The eligible electronics list is fixed:

• Computers and computer monitors
• TVs
• Printers, fax machines and scanners
• Keyboards and mice
• VCRs, DVD players and recorders
• Video game consoles
• Portable digital music players
• Digital converter boxes
• Cable and satellite receivers
• Small-scale servers

Separately, the site takes cell phones, compact fluorescent bulbs and tubes (CFLs), and batteries — rechargeable, car, small lead-acid and lithium.

Two rules decide whether your trip works: only listed items are eligible, and commercial and other residential electronics are not accepted. If it is not on the list, it is not a close-enough item.

Not accepted: household appliances (microwaves, toasters, coffee makers, stoves, refrigerators, washers, dryers, humidifiers, blenders, dehumidifiers), HVAC systems and accessories (air conditioners, furnaces, filters), refrigerants and freon, tires, large or business copy machines, medical waste, pharmaceuticals, business or commercial waste, explosives, ammunition, fireworks, and alkaline batteries.

That is where mixed loads go wrong: a "clear the basement in one trip" box with a TV, a printer, a lamp and an old microwave loses the microwave at the gate. Appliances, HVAC units, tires and medical waste all need separate routes — see our guide to Chicago appliance disposal for the white-goods branch. Damaged, non-working or outdated electronics are still accepted, because condition does not disqualify a covered device.

If something is refused, the official CDPH flyer names two next stops: Staples for non-accepted electronics, and EverLights for fluorescent bulbs in bulk. Household CFLs can also go to a local Home Depot.

Fees: what is published and what is not

No City of Chicago fee schedule for HCCRF e-waste drop-off is published. Neither the official HCCRF page nor the CDPH flyer states one, and secondary sources contradict each other on whether TVs and monitors cost money. Anyone quoting you a precise HCCRF price is quoting something the city has not published.

The only sourced fee rule is at state level. The Illinois EPA states most public recycling programs are free for consumers, but some locations may charge fees for certain items or services. Public program collection sites and one-day events may charge fees only for TVs and monitors; private or retail sites may charge a recycling fee at their discretion.

For retail, terms are the retailer's own policy: Best Buy states some items are free and some may incur a recycling fee, with state-specific TV and monitor terms; Staples lists its accepted electronics as free. The practical move is to call 311 before you load the car and ask whether a fee applies to your specific items. No dollar amount appears here because none is published.

Retailer and mail-back options when drop-off is not practical

Best Buy runs an in-store electronics and appliances recycling program, intended for residents only — business and organization products are not accepted. Some items are free; some may incur a recycling fee; TV and monitor terms are state-specific. Best Buy advises deleting data before drop-off and says it erases information from devices it receives. Best Buy's own materials are inconsistent on volume — a 2022 corporate post states up to three items per household per day, while some current sections show ten — so treat that figure as attribution, not a guarantee, and confirm with the store.

Staples accepts a wide range of electronics free, daily, with no purchase necessary, and takes all brands regardless of where purchased. It does not accept televisions, appliances, alkaline batteries, floor-model printers or copiers, large servers, large speakers, or lamps and bulbs. Staples is a good route for a laptop, phone or printer, and the wrong route for a dead 55-inch panel.

Mail-back and haul-away cover anyone who cannot transport a device. Best Buy offers haul-away and prepaid recycle-by-mail boxes, and manufacturer mail-back programs exist. Pricing varies by program and product, so treat these as paid options and confirm terms — the realistic route for a walk-up renter with a laptop-sized problem.

One rule for all of them: open the retailer's own recycling page and call the store before loading the car. Item lists, hours, limits and fees vary by store and state.

For a load the household route will not take — a small office cleanout, a school, a large group — a private certified e-waste recycler is the required path. HCCRF cannot take commercial waste. Request a quote, confirm certification, and ask where the material goes before booking.

Which Chicago e-waste disposal route fits your situation?

The short version: for a standard household load, HCCRF is the answer — no published fee, year-round, fixed hours, no appointment, and no item cap published. Everything else is a fallback with a condition attached. One call to 311 about hours and fees beats any figure a third-party page prints.

Apartments, renters, and buildings of five or more units

Building size changes your garbage service. The Department of Streets and Sanitation handles pickup for single-family homes and buildings with four units or fewer; more than four units must arrange a private hauler. That does not change your e-waste options.

HCCRF is open to all Chicago residents regardless of building size. A renter in a fifty-unit building served by a private hauler can still drop off their own household e-waste — the hauler question is about garbage, not e-waste, because electronics are never eligible for curbside or bulk collection in any case.

Three edge cases:

• You cannot carry a TV down three flights. There is no in-home pickup. Ask management for help, hire someone for the lift, or use a paid hauler.
• Your building already runs a collection. Management may organize one; if it does not, transporting the device is the tenant's job. Ask the leasing office rather than assuming the alley will be cleared.
• The items came from your workplace. Business and large-group waste cannot use HCCRF at all.

And the rule that applies everywhere: never place TVs, monitors or computers in the building trash, the alley, the dumpster or the blue cart. It is illegal under the Illinois landfill ban, it exposes any data left on the device, and building haulers generally exclude e-waste anyway.

For renters without a car, the answer is retail drop-off or mail-back — confirm the store accepts the specific device first.

Prep, data, and safety before your e-waste leaves home

• Build the item list first. Check every item against the accepted and not-accepted lists; the attendant inspects everything.
• Split the load by building: chemicals and batteries to blue, electronics to yellow.
• Arrive during scheduled hours only, never leave materials outside unattended, and go early in the window where you can.
• Wipe or remove personal data from phones, laptops, tablets and drives before drop-off. The city publishes no data-destruction guarantee.
• Price a trade-in or donation first for anything still working — reuse comes before recycling where the device still has value.
• Leave the refusals at home: appliances, AC units, refrigerants, tires, medical and pharmaceutical waste, explosives and alkaline batteries.
• Businesses, schools and large groups: do not load the car. Contract a private certified recycler.

Safety on the way out the door:

• Do not break or dismantle CRT or LCD screens. Broken tubes release hazardous material and cut skin; handle a cracked screen with gloves.
• Do not dismantle batteries or devices, and keep lithium batteries from shorting against metal or each other in the load.
• Do not bury alkaline batteries in the box hoping they pass inspection — they are refused.
• Get help lifting a CRT television or monitor. They are heavy, awkward, and easy to drop on stairs or in a parking lot.
• Treat your data as still on the device unless you wiped it yourself.
• Fluorescent bulbs and tubes contain mercury. Keep them intact; household CFLs can go to HCCRF or a local Home Depot, and the CDPH flyer routes bulk fluorescent material to EverLights at 773-734-9873.

Mistakes to avoid

1. Putting electronics in the trash, blue cart or alley. Illegal under the Illinois landfill ban, and it applies to households, not just businesses.
2. Waiting for the monthly neighborhood events to return. They are on hold until further notice; HCCRF is the permanent route.
3. Loading a microwave, toaster or AC unit with the electronics. HCCRF refuses all of them.
4. Assuming a fee — or assuming it is free. No HCCRF fee schedule is published. Call 311 about your specific items.
5. Trusting a third-party page's HCCRF hours or an item cap. The city publishes Tuesday, Thursday and first-Saturday hours, and no per-visit cap.
6. Assuming the facility wipes your drive. No such guarantee is published. Wipe your own data.

FAQ

Where do I take e-waste in Chicago? The only permanent city drop-off is HCCRF at 1150 N. North Branch Street, Chicago, IL 60642, open Tuesday 7:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Thursday 2:00–7:00 p.m., and the first Saturday of every month 8:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. Retail drop-off and mail-back cover the rest.

Can I put an old TV or computer in the trash? No. Illinois bans covered electronic devices from landfills, and the ban applies to households, businesses, schools and government agencies. All covered devices have been barred from Illinois landfills since January 1, 2026.

Does HCCRF charge for e-waste? No city fee schedule is published, so no official source can quote you a price. State rules say public program sites may charge fees only for TVs and monitors. Call 311 about your specific load.

Do I need an appointment? No. HCCRF takes drop-offs during the fixed hours above. Retail drop-off generally needs no appointment either, but haul-away and mail-back require a booking.

Do the monthly neighborhood e-waste events still run? No. The city's monthly neighborhood drop-off locations are on hold until further notice. Use HCCRF instead of searching for dates.

Will they wipe my hard drive? No. HCCRF publishes no data-destruction guarantee. Best Buy advises deleting data and says it erases information from devices it receives, but that is retailer policy, not a certification.

Can I bring a microwave, air conditioner or refrigerator to HCCRF? No. Household appliances and HVAC equipment are on the not-accepted list, along with refrigerants, tires, medical and pharmaceutical waste, explosives and alkaline batteries. Only the published electronics list, plus cell phones, CFLs and non-alkaline batteries, is eligible.

Is there a limit on how many items I can drop off? No per-visit item cap is published. The published access rule is different: the program stops accepting electronics once the collection truck is full, so an early arrival in the window is safer than a late one.

What about a business, school or office cleanout? HCCRF is residential-only. A business, school or large group must contract a private certified e-waste recycler — and the Illinois landfill ban binds those generators too, so the load cannot go in a dumpster.

Do I need to prove Chicago residency? No residency-document requirement is published on the city's pages. If that matters for your trip, confirm with 311 before you drive.

Official verification checklist

1. Check current HCCRF hours on the official City of Chicago HCCRF page — hours change, and third-party pages publish contradictory schedules.
2. Call 311 (or 312.744.5000 from outside Chicago) to confirm whether a fee applies to your items, especially TVs and monitors.
3. Build an itemized list and check every item against the accepted and not-accepted lists before loading.
4. Confirm the item is a covered device — damaged, non-working and outdated devices still qualify.
5. Route non-accepted items elsewhere: appliances and HVAC to their own route, tires to a tire route, medical waste to its own channel, alkaline batteries out of the load.
6. Wipe personal data from every device, and check trade-in or donation first for anything working.
7. For a business or institutional load, contract a private certified recycler.
8. Never use the trash, blue cart, alley or bulk pickup for a covered device, and re-verify retail terms by phone before driving.

Official sources

• City of Chicago — Household Chemicals & Computer Recycling Facility (HCCRF): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/env/supp_info/environmental-permitting-and-inspection/hccrf.html
• City of Chicago — Chicago Recycles E-Waste hub (accepted items, suspended events, truck-full rule): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/chicago-recycles/home/other-wastes.html
• CDPH — HCCRF facility flyer (official PDF): https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/doe/general/PermittingAndEnforcement/HHW_Household-Chemicals-and-Computer-Recycling-Facility_051325.ax.4.9.26.pdf
• Illinois EPA — Electronics Recycling: https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/waste-management/materials-management/electronics-recycling1.html
• Illinois EPA — Consumer Electronics Recycling Act (CERA): https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/waste-management/materials-management/electronics-recycling1/cera.html
• Illinois EPA — Electronics Recycling FAQs (landfill ban, fee rules): https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/waste-management/materials-management/electronics-recycling1/faqs.html
• Illinois EPA — Manufacturers (January 1, 2027 expansion): https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/waste-management/materials-management/electronics-recycling1/manufacturers.html
• CHI 311 — Recycling Pick Up (building-size service boundaries): https://311.chicago.gov/s/article/Recycling-Pick-Up?language=en_US
• CHI 311 — Residential garbage collection (311 contact): https://311.chicago.gov/s/article/Residential-garbage-collection?language=en_US
• City of Chicago — Residential Garbage Collection (Streets and Sanitation): https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/streets/provdrs/streets_san/svcs/residential_garbagecollection.html
• Best Buy — Electronics, Appliances and E-Waste Recycling (retailer policy, re-verify): https://www.bestbuy.com/site/services/recycling/pcmcat149900050025.c?id=pcmcat149900050025
• Staples — Electronics Recycling (retailer policy, re-verify): https://staples.com/sbd/cre/noheader/sustainability-center/recycling-services/electronics

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