Majority of Americans have never participated in a mobile network’s recycling scheme

We surveyed 1,001 adults in the US through YouGov Surveys: Self-serve to understand their participation in device recycling schemes offered by mobile networks. Here's what we found.

Only 9% of Americans have participated in a mobile network's device recycling scheme. The majority, 74%, have not used these schemes.

When asked why they have not used a mobile phone recycling scheme, the most common reason was a lack of knowledge. About 33% of Americans say they don't know enough about these schemes. Another 17% prefer to give their old devices to someone they know, like friends or family.

Other reasons include trading in devices or recycling them in other ways (15%), not wanting to get rid of old devices (15%) and having devices that are broken or heavily damaged (14%). Some find the process too much hassle (14%) or believe it's not worth it for the amount of money offered for old devices these days (14%). Additionally, 13% of people are worried about what will happen to their devices after recycling. About one in 10 simply are not interested in recycling their devices at all (9%).

Methodology: YouGov polled 1,001 US adults online on July 26, 2024. The survey was carried out through YouGov Surveys: Self-serve. Data is weighted by age, gender, race, political affiliation, education level and region. The margin of error is 1% for the overall sample. Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Self-serve.