The quick answer
- Working hearing aids are worth donating. Lions Clubs and hearing aid charities collect used aids of any brand or age, refurbish what they can and use the rest for parts.
- Dead hearing aids are electronics. Take them back to your hearing care office or to an electronics recycling drop-off rather than the trash.
- Disposable batteries are button cells. Tape them or bag them one by one and take them to a battery drop-off. Keep them away from children and pets.
- Rechargeable aids have a built-in lithium-ion battery. They go to e-waste or a battery collection site, never the trash or the recycling cart.
- Small plastic parts are trash. Domes, tubing, wax guards and old ear molds go in the regular trash.
Before you get rid of them
- Check that they are really done. Weak or crackly sound is often a clogged wax guard, a worn dome or a dead battery, all cheap fixes. A hearing care office can clean and test an aid quickly.
- Check the warranty and loss coverage. Many aids come with a repair warranty, and a broken aid that is still covered may be repaired or replaced instead of thrown out.
- Unpair them from your phone. If the aids connect to an app, remove them from the app and your phone’s Bluetooth list so the next user can pair them.
- Clean them. Wipe the aids, remove wax and the battery, and put them in a small case or envelope so they do not get crushed.
Donating used hearing aids
Used hearing aids still have value even when they no longer fit your hearing. Programs that collect them sort the aids, refurbish the ones that can be reused and pass them on to people who cannot afford new ones, and parts from the rest can help repair others.
- Lions Clubs. Many local Lions Clubs place collection boxes for eyeglasses and hearing aids in libraries, eye care offices and town halls. Lions International points individual donors to the Hearing Charities of America donation page. The same boxes often take glasses; see our guide on how to dispose of old eyeglasses.
- Your hearing care office. Audiologists and hearing aid dispensers often collect old aids for a charity or a maker’s recycling program, and some will take them when you pick up a new pair.
- Hearing aid makers. Some manufacturers run take-back or donation programs for their own devices. Check the maker’s support page.
Before you donate, take out disposable batteries, and include the charger for rechargeable aids if you still have it.
Recycling hearing aids that are done
A hearing aid is a tiny piece of electronics with a circuit board, a microphone, a receiver and often a battery. If no one can use it, treat it like other small electronics.
- Take it back. Ask your hearing care office whether they send old aids to a recycler or the maker. This is the easiest route for most people.
- Electronics drop-off. A city or county electronics collection, or a retailer that takes small electronics, will usually accept hearing aids. Our guide to where to dump electronics lists the usual options, and the Dumpmapper map shows drop-off sites near you.
- Household hazardous waste days. Some programs accept small electronics with batteries at HHW events. See what counts as household hazardous waste.
Hearing aid batteries
Most disposable hearing aid batteries are zinc-air button cells. They come in standard sizes, often marked 10, 312, 13 and 675, and they start working when you peel off the sticker tab.
- Tape or bag each one. Put a piece of clear tape over both sides of the cell, or seal each battery in its own small bag, so it cannot touch other batteries or metal and short out.
- Take them to a battery drop-off. Many retailers, libraries and HHW programs collect button cells. The EPA advises against putting button and coin batteries in household trash or recycling bins, and some states, including California, ban all household batteries from the trash. Our guide to where to recycle batteries covers the usual drop-off options.
- Collect them safely at home. Keep used cells taped in a small jar with a lid, out of reach of children and pets. A swallowed button battery is a medical emergency; get help right away and call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222.
- Do not put them in the recycling cart. Loose batteries in curbside bins can start fires in trucks and sorting plants.
Rechargeable hearing aids and chargers
- The battery is built in. Most rechargeable hearing aids use a sealed lithium-ion cell you cannot remove at home. Do not try to pry it out; take the whole aid to an electronics or battery collection site, or back to your hearing care office.
- The charging case is electronics too. Many charging cases have their own battery for charging on the go. Recycle the case and its cable with small electronics, the same way you would dispose of an old cell phone.
- Damaged or swollen aids need care. If an aid or case is cracked, swollen or hot, set it on a non-flammable surface away from anything that can burn, and ask the drop-off site how they want it packed.
Domes, tubes, wax guards and cases
- Domes, tubing and wax guards: regular trash. They are small and too mixed to recycle.
- Custom ear molds: trash, unless your hearing care office wants them back with the aid.
- Cleaning tools and brushes: trash.
- Plastic storage cases without electronics: reuse them for small parts, or put them in the trash. Most curbside programs do not take small hard plastics like these.
- Battery packaging: paper cards can go with paper recycling; plastic blister packs usually go in the trash.
What not to do
- Do not throw rechargeable hearing aids in the trash. Lithium-ion batteries can catch fire when crushed in a garbage truck.
- Do not drop loose batteries in the recycling cart or a junk drawer full of coins and keys.
- Do not burn or crush hearing aids or batteries.
- Do not leave used button cells where a child or pet can reach them.
Hearing aid disposal FAQ
Can you throw hearing aids in the trash?
It is better not to. Hearing aids are electronics, and rechargeable ones hold a lithium-ion battery that can start a fire in a garbage truck. Donate, return or recycle them instead.
Where can I donate old hearing aids?
Many Lions Clubs collect hearing aids in drop boxes, Lions International points donors to Hearing Charities of America, and many hearing care offices collect old aids for charity.
How do you dispose of hearing aid batteries?
Tape both sides of each used zinc-air cell or bag it on its own, then take the batteries to a retailer, library or household hazardous waste program that collects button cells.
Are hearing aid batteries hazardous?
Zinc-air cells are lower risk than many batteries, but they can still short out, and a swallowed button cell is a medical emergency. Some states ban all batteries from the trash.
What do I do with rechargeable hearing aids?
Take the aids and the charging case to an electronics or battery collection site, or back to your hearing care office. Do not try to remove the sealed battery yourself.
Do old hearing aids have any value?
Yes. Charities refurbish working aids for people who cannot afford them and use parts from broken ones, so even old aids are worth donating.
The bottom line
If your old hearing aids still work, donate them through a Lions Club box, a hearing aid charity or your hearing care office. If they are finished, treat them as electronics and take them back or to an e-waste drop-off. Tape disposable batteries and take them to a battery collection site, keep them away from kids and pets, and put the small plastic parts in the trash.