How To Combat Bad Donations: A Thrift Store’s Guide

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Every thrift store gets its share of questionable donations. A broken toaster. A ripped recliner. A trash bag full of stained clothes. Most donors mean well, but too often, the items they drop off create more problems than value.

Bad donations slow down your team, fill up your backroom, and lead to more trash than resale. But with the right tools and clear communication, you can cut down on unusable items — without turning away your community.

In this blog, we’ll walk through practical ways to reduce bad donations. From setting clear policies and scheduling dropoffs to training staff and using the right systems, you’ll learn how to take control of what comes in your door.

Let’s get started.

What Happens to Unsellable Items — and Why Bad Donations Occur

Not every donation that shows up at a thrift store is usable. There are a few common reasons why:

Some donors genuinely believe their items are still in good condition, even if they’re broken, worn out, or incomplete.
Others don’t thoroughly check what they’re donating. For example, a box of clothes found in the attic might look fine on top — but underneath, it’s stained or damaged.
The saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” leads some people to donate items that really should have gone in the trash.
Many assume thrift stores can repurpose or recycle everything, and that nothing they donate ends up in a landfill — but that’s simply not true.
On a broader scale, there’s been a noticeable decline in the overall quality of goods. Fast fashion, cheaper manufacturing, and disposable culture have made truly durable items harder to come by.

For example, in a single year, Goodwill received 75 million pounds of donations — and 5% ended up in a landfill because the items were unusable. While 5% may not sound like much, that still adds up to nearly 4 million pounds of waste.

And getting rid of it is costly. Between 2016 and 2021, Goodwill of Southern California spent over $2 million per year on trash removal for unsellable items. Goodwill of West Texas allocates around $3 million annually just to dispose of donations they can’t use.

Smaller, local thrift stores don’t have that kind of budget to spare — which is why it’s so important to reduce bad donations before they ever reach your door. Here are seven practical ways to do this — without discouraging your community from giving.

1. Create a Clear Donation Policy (and Make It Easy To Find)

Donors aren’t mind readers. If this is their first time donating — or they’re clearing out an attic — they might assume anything “used” qualifies. For this reason, your first step is to create a clear list of what you do and don’t accept. Be specific.

Saying “no broken items” isn’t enough. Instead, list examples:

Yes: Clean clothing, gently used books, furniture in working condition
No: Cribs with missing parts, CRT TVs, stained mattresses

Once your policy is written, post it everywhere it matters like your website, donation dock, social media pages, and even inside your thrift store. Print handouts to give to donors. The easier it is to understand your guidelines, the more likely people are to follow them.

2. Use Donation Scheduling To Gain Control

Unscheduled dropoffs make it difficult to plan staffing, storage space, and quality control. Implementing donation scheduling is a smart option for busy thrift stores — especially if you have limited capacity. It’s also helpful for smaller stores with fewer employees.

“Donation scheduling gives you a buffer,” says Ryan Christensen, director of customer success at ThriftCart. “It lets stores plan for volume, reduce sorting bottlenecks, and filter what they actually accept.”

Scheduling also gives you a chance to guide donors. You can confirm your policy, set limits, and require more detail before someone shows up with a truckload of stuff you don’t need.

3. Require Photos for Large or Bulk Donations

Furniture, electronics, and oversized donations come with risk. It’s expensive to dispose of what you can’t sell — and photos help lower this risk substantially.

Kyle Payton, product manager at ThriftCart, sees image submissions as one of the most practical tools for donation management. “We’ve seen stores save hundreds of dollars just by reviewing photos before pickup or dropoff,” he says. “It gives staff the ability to say yes or no without wasting time or space.”

This feature is especially helpful when it’s built into your donation scheduling system or point of sale (POS) system. Some thrift-specific platforms allow you to approve or deny donations by category, with optional notes for the donor. This way, everyone stays on the same page.

4. Give Staff the Tools To Say No (Nicely)

Even with signs and scheduling, people still show up with items you can’t use. Your staff needs to be ready for those conversations.

Start by training your team. Teach them how to decline donations in a way that’s respectful but firm.

Example:
“Thanks so much for thinking of us, but we aren’t able to take this item right now due to safety and quality policies.”

Post a printed donation acceptance guide in your sorting or intake area, so your team can reference it quickly. It’s important to back them up when they follow the policy — consistency matters more than being “nice.”

5. Run Targeted Drives for What You Do Need

If your store is low on certain categories — like housewares or baby gear — run a donation drive focused on those needs. Use email, social media, and signage to let donors know exactly what you’re looking for and why.

These targeted efforts help you stock what sells and encourage high-quality items. You can even tie it into seasonal needs or upcoming store events.

6. Use Your POS System To Support the Process

Managing donations through spreadsheets, sticky notes, or a variety of tools can lead to confusion and missed opportunities. A POS system designed specifically for thrift stores can help streamline donation intake and approval from start to finish.

With the right system, you can:

Schedule donation dropoffs and pickups.
Sort items by custom categories.
Automate reminders and confirmations to donors.

These features save your team time, reduce the hassle of sorting through unusable items, and improve communication with donors — all while helping them contribute the right way.

7. Make Donating Feel Valuable, Not Frustrating

Donors want to feel useful, not uncertain. When they understand what’s needed and how to give, the entire experience becomes more satisfying — and more likely to happen again.

On your end, fewer mystery boxes mean less stress. With only the right items coming in, your team can stay focused on what actually drives the store forward: helping customers and keeping the shelves full of products people want.

How ThriftCart Helps Thrift Stores Cut Down on Bad Donations

ThriftCart is an all-in-one POS system built specifically for the needs of secondhand and nonprofit retailers. With its donation management tools, you gain better control over what comes in the door — ultimately reducing bad donations. ThriftCart offers several features that can simplify donation processes while helping your team work more effectively.

One key feature is donation scheduling management, which allows you to plan and manage donation dropoffs smoothly. This helps prevent stress by ensuring your team is prepared for incoming items and can properly assess each donation.

Plus, ThriftCart supports better inventory management through categorized items and barcoding, making it easier to organize and track donations. Enhanced inventory management simplifies sorting and helps staff quickly identify what can be sold and what can’t.

And for customers who may not have items to donate, the roundup donation feature gives them another way to support your mission. By rounding up their purchase total at checkout, shoppers can still contribute in a meaningful way.

These tools help thrift stores save time, reduce waste, and build stronger relationships with donors. Want to see how it works? Schedule a demo to take the first step toward better donation management.