How Much Money Can You Get For Aluminum Cans

Would like to make extra cash every month without investing too much time and effort? Do you often drink beverages in aluminum containers? Do you have access to places where you can find used cans like parks or stadiums?

Well, you can probably make a nice additional income by collecting and selling cans.

You must be wondering: "Are there any centers for aluminum can recycling near me?". The probability of having access to at least one scrapyard in your area is pretty high. Plus, if you strategize your new money-making hobby smartly, you won't need more than one or two trips there per month.

Keep reading and learn everything you need to know in order to become a can recycling guru. You can potentially make anything between $500 and $1,000 per month if you take this task seriously.

Table of Contents

1 Aluminum Can Prices At Recycling Centers
2 How Much Will You Get For Cans With Bottle Bills?
3 Effort And Time Vs. Profit
4 Where To Collect Aluminum Cans?
5 Where To Sell Aluminum Cans Near Me? (Locator)
6 Stores near you
- 6.1 Contact Store
7 Summary

Aluminum Can Prices At Recycling Centers

Before anyone starts collecting beverage containers, they should find information about the aluminum can recycling prices in their area.

Unless you live in a bottle bills state, the average price for an aluminum can is between 1.5 and 2 cents. Selling a pound of cans should earn you something between 35 and 45 cents. Once again, we want to highlight that the exact price may vary depending on the center you're selling the items. Also, sometimes the weight can affect the price too.

For example, one scrapyard may pay nice 45 cents per pound of aluminum containers, regardless of how many pounds you take to them. Other recycling businesses may offer this price only if you get them at least 50 pounds of containers.

How Much Will You Get For Cans With Bottle Bills?

The answer to the question "How much is aluminum cans worth?" is much better if you live in a state with bottle bills.

"Bottle bills" is a different way of saying "container deposit law". This regulation is present in 10 states and demands a minimum deposit on beverage containers. These regulations exist in order to guarantee a better rate of reuse and recycling.

With minimum payouts on aluminum containers, the potential of making money drastically improves. This minimum payout varies from 5 cents to 10 cents per can, depending on the state laws. The following states have bottle bills: California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Oregon, and Vermont.

To exemplify, let's say the minimum payout per can in your state is 5 cents. If you manage to collect 1,000 aluminum containers every week, you'll be making extra $50 each week. That's additional $200 per month. If your state pays 10 cents per can, then your extra cash income will be doubled.

This amount of cash should be enough to motivate you to ask yourself the question: "Is there aluminum cans recycling near me?".

Effort And Time Vs. Profit

It's important to understand the amount of time and effort you put towards can recycling versus the profit. For some people, this activity may not be profitable if they can make more money doing something else.

Everything depends on your opportunities, willingness and organization skills. So, here are several tips to help you maximize the profit you make from aluminum cans recycling.

Sell them in bulk – Getting to the place that buys the cans costs money and time. Instead of going there every single week, try collecting beverage containers for a month. Selling containers in bulk ensures larger payments and saves you multiple trips to the scrapyard. You can store the collected items in your garage in plastic bags or large trash bins.
Crush the cans – Clean and crushed cans get you better prices and take less space. For this purpose, you can invest in a can crusher as this will maximize the free storage space. Recycling centers often pay less if your cans have liquids inside them because this affects the total weight.
Find the best prices – Not all aluminum can recycling prices are the same. Even a seemingly insignificant price difference can mean more cash in the long run. Do your research and find the best prices in your area before deciding where to sell.
Know the weights – One pound includes around 30 aluminum beverage containers. Knowing this lets you calculate your possible profit on your next trip to the scrapyard. So, it's a good idea to keep track of how many cans you have collected in order to have realistic cash expectations.
Have a plan – Aluminum can recycling can easily turn into a waste of time unless you have a good plan. You need to ask yourself several questions.

How much money you'd like to make per month? Are there places that offer aluminum can recycling near me? Is the price good? Can I meet my monthly goals? How many cans do I need per month? Is it possible to collect that number of items?

You should start your recycling adventure only after you go over all these questions and establish all the necessary facts.

Where To Collect Aluminum Cans?

Making cash selling cans is profitable only if you can collect enough of them. Let's say that the average price per pound is 45 cents and a pound includes approximately 30 cans. You'll need over 300 cans to make $5. That surely won't make you a rich person or solve many of your financial problems.

With a good plan, you can recycle cans for money and actually make good cash out of it. The only thing you need is a smart strategy on where to find as many items as possible. Here are several locations to keep your eyes on and quickly reach the desired number of cans per month.

Local parks – Teenagers and large groups of friends often hang out in local parks where they enjoy canned soft or alcoholic drinks. They either throw their trash in trashcans nearby or simply leave them on the grass. Take regular walks in your local parks and collect any empty cans you find along the way;
Local streets – People often leave beverage containers on the side of local streets when they finish their drinks. Some may leave them next to trashcans too. Either way, you can find many of them just by wandering around local streets;
Sports venues and stadiums – When thousands of visitors leave sports venues and stadiums, you are bound to find many cans behind them. If you have access to sports venues and stadiums, make the most of it by collecting hundreds of items at once;
Your or your friends' events – Whenever you host any event, buy canned drinks and then ask visitors to throw them in dedicated trashcans or plastic bags. You can also ask your friends and family to collect any cans they have and to give them to you;
Your office – Your office can be a great place for collecting aluminum items too. Go a step further and place a dedicated plastic bag alongside a sign asking your coworkers to throw their containers inside;
Concerts and festivals – Just like sports events, concerts and festivals attract thousands of visitors. So, they're a great place for collecting hundreds of used aluminum cans at once.

Once you've collected enough containers for a nice profit, you can start wondering where to sell aluminum cans near me.

Where To Sell Aluminum Cans Near Me? (Locator)

You know the average prices and you know how to make the most out of collecting beverage containers. Now's the time to ask: "Who buys aluminum cans near me?".

Well, the answer to this isn't universal and depends on where you're located within the USA. One idea is to use the iScrap App, which enables you to easily find scrapyards in your area. This app is easy to use and lets you browse recycling businesses around your location. This is probably the easiest way to find all the options near you.

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A quick research on the topic alongside the name of your state and/or town should also do the trick. For example, Recycle USA Inc. is popular among those living in Birmingham, Alabama. If you live near Tempe, Arizona, you may want to use the services of I-Buy-Scrap. New York has several options too and some of them are TNT Scrap Metal, Sims Metal Management, and Fortune Plastic & Metals Inc.

Summary

Doing research about aluminum can recycling near me and average prices for selling cans is the first step towards making extra cash. There are countless success stories of people who managed to boost their monthly income with an additional $500 or even $1,000 by recycling cans.

If you happen to live in one of the 10 states with bottle bills, then you're incredibly lucky. The average prices for aluminum containers in those states are much higher and the profits are easily maximized. If not, you'll have to work a bit harder to reach your desired amount of cash by selling cans to scrapyards.

With a good strategy and enough information, you can easily meet your goals. You don't have to work harder as long as you know how to work smarter. Find the spots where you can collect lots of cans at once, dedicate a storage space in your home and sell them in bulk. That's the best way to maximize your profits.

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I-Buy-Scrap / iScrap App / recycling / Sims Metal Management / TNT Scrap Metal