Donating Exercise Equipment: Where to Donate or Remove It [2026]

The biggest challenge with donating exercise equipment is the size and weight. A standard treadmill weighs 200 to 400 pounds. Elliptical machines run 100 to 250 pounds. Most charities are not equipped to pick up items this heavy, which is why "where to donate a treadmill" is such a common search — the answer is more complicated than people expect.

Goodwill accepts exercise equipment at drop-off locations, including exercise bikes, weight benches, dumbbells, and resistance bands. The Greater Washington DC Goodwill specifically lists exercise equipment as accepted. However, some locations refuse large items like treadmills because they lack the floor space and staff to move them. Call your local Goodwill before loading a 300-pound treadmill into your car.

Salvation Army accepts exercise equipment through some locations. Call 1-800-728-7825 to check availability in your area. Home pickup is available in some regions but large, heavy exercise equipment may be declined for free pickup. They prioritize items they can easily resell.

Habitat for Humanity ReStore is often the best option for large exercise equipment. ReStore locations accept NordicTracks, exercise bicycles, and similar machines. According to the Greater New Haven ReStore, they take exercise equipment and sporting goods. The key advantage: ReStore has the floor space and loading equipment that Goodwill locations often lack.

Leveling the Playing Field is a nonprofit that collects sports and fitness equipment for underserved youth programs. They operate in the DC/Baltimore area and rely on community drop-offs. They accept weight sets, resistance equipment, and cardio machines.

Treadmills are the single hardest piece of exercise equipment to donate. Reddit's r/homegym community puts it bluntly: "Donating can become a hard task especially if you have a 300-400lb treadmill in your basement."

The problem is physics. A treadmill in a second-floor bedroom or basement needs to go up or down stairs, through doorways, and into a vehicle — all at 200 to 400 pounds. Free donation pickup services like Pickup Please explicitly limit pickups to items one person can carry. The Salvation Army and Goodwill will not send two workers to wrestle a treadmill up basement stairs.

Consumer Reports contacted five major treadmill manufacturers about recycling or take-back programs. Most have none. NordicTrack, Peloton, Bowflex, and ProForm do not offer equipment recycling. Peloton will pick up its own bikes in certain markets, but that is the exception.

Realistic options for treadmill disposal:

• •Sell on Facebook Marketplace: Working treadmills sell for $50–$300 depending on brand and age. Buyer picks up — their problem to move.

• •Free on Craigslist "free stuff": Post it free with the condition that the buyer moves it themselves. Works well in metro areas.

• •Scrap metal: Treadmills contain 50–100+ pounds of steel. A scrap yard may accept it for free or pay a small amount based on metal weight.

• •Curbside junk removal: If you can get the treadmill to the curb, Dropcurb removes it starting at $79. Cheaper than full-service companies that charge $150–$400+ to enter your home and haul it out.

Some exercise equipment retains meaningful resale value. Check these options before giving it away for free.

Play It Again Sports buys used fitness equipment for resale at their retail locations. Name-brand items in good working condition — Bowflex, NordicTrack, Peloton, Rogue — fetch the best offers. Walk in, get an assessment, and leave with cash or store credit. They will not buy broken or heavily worn equipment.

Buy & Sell Fitness purchases commercial gym equipment in bulk nationwide. If you are clearing out a home gym with multiple high-end pieces, they may buy the entire set.

Facebook Marketplace is the most popular platform for selling used exercise equipment locally. Price 40 to 60 percent of the new retail price for equipment in good condition. Treadmills typically sell for $50 to $300, ellipticals for $100 to $400, adjustable dumbbells for $100 to $250.

The reality check: Basic treadmills, older ellipticals, and standard weight benches from brands like Sunny Health or Marcy have almost zero resale value. If your equipment is 5+ years old, a base model, or not functioning perfectly, donation or removal is more practical than spending hours listing it online for $20.

Donations to qualifying 501(c)(3) organizations are tax-deductible at fair market value. Exercise equipment values for tax purposes:

• •Treadmill (3-5 years old, working): $100–$300 fair market value

• •Elliptical machine (working): $75–$250

• •Weight bench with weights: $50–$200

• •Exercise bike (working): $50–$150

• •Free weights / dumbbells: $0.25–$0.75 per pound

• •Resistance bands, yoga mats, smaller items: $5–$20

Request a donation receipt from the charity at the time of drop-off. For donations valued over $500, you will need IRS Form 8283. For items over $5,000, a qualified appraisal is required.

The tax deduction math often makes donation more valuable than selling. A working treadmill worth $200 at fair market value produces a $200 deduction. At a 22 percent tax bracket, that saves $44 in taxes — likely more than what Facebook Marketplace would net after dealing with lowball offers and no-show buyers.

When exercise equipment is too worn or broken to donate or sell, scrap metal recycling is the last option before junk removal.

Treadmills and ellipticals contain significant amounts of steel and iron — typically 50 to 150 pounds of scrap metal per machine. At current scrap steel prices of $0.05 to $0.10 per pound, a treadmill might net $5 to $15 at a scrap yard. The steel frame is the most valuable component. Motors, plastic housings, and electronic displays have minimal scrap value.

Weight benches, squat racks, and barbell sets are almost pure steel and can fetch better scrap prices by weight. A 200-pound Olympic weight set might get $10 to $20 at a scrap yard.

Is scrapping worth the effort? Only if you have a vehicle to transport the equipment and a scrap yard nearby. The transportation hassle and physical labor of loading 200+ pound machines usually makes the $5 to $15 payout not worth the 2 to 3 hours involved. For most people, curbside junk removal at $79 is the more practical choice — especially since the hauler can recover any scrap value themselves.