How to Redeem Five Cent Deposit Containers in New York

Last Updated: March 9, 2023

New York State residents often have to pay extra fees for containers that need recycling. However, you may not know that you can get these fees back! For those who haven't yet had to redeem their can fees in New York, this article will give you the details for redeeming the deposits you paid at the register that you are owed.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Preparing to Redeem

1
Empty each container. Make sure that the container doesn't have anything left in it. Most places want you to remove plastic bottle tops and some even want you to remove metal can tabs, as these can cause jams in the machine. Glass bottles need their caps removed.
- Don't worry about your cans being sparkling clean. As long as the metal can's details can be read, it won't need to be so clean it can shine through.
2
Make sure the barcode on the side of the container can be clearly read. Avoid using any tape on the barcode; both clear and opaque tapes (such as Scotch or packaging tapes) can make it hard to read and should be avoided.

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3
Make sure metal cans are in good shape. Metal cans shouldn't have creases in the can where the barcode is. Any pre-crushed cans can easily be considered trash if they're not up to standard.
4
Combine all your recyclable containers into a bag. Whether it's garbage bags or brown bags, collect all the containers in bags.
- Identify redeemable bottles by their NY 5¢ marking on the sides of containers. For most metal cans, this may be on the top of the can.
- You can sort them into separate bags for convenience - sorting into bags of metal cans, plastic containers, and glass, but some machines now just single-stream them all together.
5
Watch out for containers that don't have barcodes or barcodes with a single red border around the label (plastic water containers only). These were paid for at places where you didn't pay any extra fees to buy the bottle and you won't get additional money back.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Preparing to Travel

1
Identify places along your route where these container fees can be redeemed. Most beverage places and supermarkets will take - at the very least - their own containers, of their own brands. Others will take every container in some respect as long as their marking is clearly marked on the bottle - even when the machines reject them.
- Manual counting places won't mind about the branding. However, they will enforce that the metal can have the "5¢ redemption" markings on the product at redemption time.^{[citation needed]}
- Don't forget to note the convenience stores near you that will help you redeem those containers. Places like Stewart's Shops, Mobil, Speedway, 7-11, and many similar spots are proud supporters of redemption, as long as the container was bought at their store's chain and is one of their store brands with the NY redemption insignia on the bottle. Most often you won't need to bring a receipt, but it must be in a bag of some sort and handed to a cashier for redemption.
- In 2009, New York started accepting water bottles of most types, but there's been a fight over who's taking what companies' bottles - while Poland Spring is accepted at most places in the state, Dasani, PureLife, Aquafina, and many more have trouble finding a home in some places. The Coke/Pepsi challenge often finds trouble everywhere they go.^{[citation needed]}
2
Be careful of certain redemption restrictions. In the State of New York on any given day, a redemption center will likely have limits and can't give you more than (x) number of dollars in a day, however, the amount may vary from location to location. Unless you have over 50 large garbage bags of bottles stocked to the brim, you shouldn't have to worry about exceeding the limit.
3
Drive to the redemption location. If you can't find the location where they can be redeemed, begin calling supermarkets near you to see how they accept their 5¢ bottle returns - then get some help using navigation apps or other popular address forms of instructions to get you to the location.
- Often you can type into a search engine "container recycling near me" and you'll receive places that will be willing to take your redeemable items.
4
Get out of your car, grabbing your bottle bags. if you have lots of bottles and there are shopping carts, you may often make these carts useful on your trip to the place to redeem these bottles. "Hand-counting redemption centers" will often not have these shopping carts, and you will have to find the system that works best for you.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Redeeming

Redeeming at a Hand Counter

1
Figure out where to place the containers when you take them inside. Some counters will want you to dump all the cans and bottles in big bins, while others say to leave your bottles inside the bags while they count. The counters will be looking for the information of NY 5¢ clearly marked on the container somewhere.
- Some stores may even want you to separate each container into the three component types (cans, plastic, glass), while others say to keep all your containers together.
2
Have a rough count of the bottles they are redeeming for you as they go through the bins or bag so that you aren't missing money at the end based on this count.
- Stores may not want you pre-counting your containers^{[citation needed]}, but you may want to watch as they sort and take them into their hands.
3
Let them finish counting. Most will tell you how many containers you had, while others will notate this number and move on to the next type. This will all depend on the location and type of place, and type of situation they have for the container sorting patterns.
4
Do some quick math as they calculate how much money they owe you. Some may give you the exact count, while others may have already counted and did the math in their head - avoiding giving you the count as they did and you will want to be aware that their count is final!
- Some stores will offer to give you 6¢ per container instead of 5¢ - in hopes of winning your business every time you bring these bottles to their competitors. However, these are few and far between inside New York State.
5
Answer all questions as they come up, and notate where the insignia is on the bottle if they question its placement.
6
Accept the money, and thank them - then walk out of the store - happy with your redemption.

Redeeming at a Machine

1
Find the machines within the store's setup. Most will be by the entrance doors - under separate cover - but you may have to ask if you don't see them and it was told that they have these machines.
2
Walk over to the machines. Note that there are generally three types of machines - cans, plastic, and glass at these locations, and depending on what you have, you may have one, two, or all three.
- Some stores' machines can take all three types of containers in the same machine, but you'll have to read what type of system their machines can take.^{[citation needed]}
3
Hold onto the container as you place it into the machine, but let go of the container once your hand starts to light up on the laser's edge. This laser is often the "drop-off here" laser, and you'll have to drop and pull your hand out quickly.
- If you receive a message saying "unexpected object" on the display, it may have sensed your hand for a little too long, and you may need to remove the bottle as soon as it appears to be safe.^{[citation needed]}
- Both Tomra and Envipco are two common machine companies, based on their receipt at the end.^{[citation needed]}
4
Listen for the crushing of the cans and plastic, or the clinking of the glass breaking as the redemption is processed. Watch for errors happening, and be able to respond.
- If the machine says that an error was encountered, you may have to invert the bottle so that the other end goes into the machine.^{[citation needed]} However, each machine is different in how it determines and displays what errors.
5
Watch the screen as your container totals get totaled up. You'll watch a screen that totals up how many bottles it's redeemed for you, as well as your total amount of money due from that redemption stream.
6
Press the button to get your printed receipt. This receipt must be handed to a cashier inside the store and must be kept by the store employees upon redemption.
7
Pick up this receipt and place it in a safe spot. If you only had one type of redemption or there was only one stream to worry about, you can take this receipt into cash it in.
8
Take your machine redemption load receipts in to be cashed in. Most often, stores want you to take these receipts to their customer service, but some stores can take care of these at the register if your bill of sale for other items you'll be paying far exceeds the amount of money spent giving you back the money and can be awarded in the funds of coupon-like funds taken off your bill.^{[citation needed]}
9
Let the employees handle the transaction, scanning the barcodes as you give them the tickets and totaling up the funds to give you back your redemption change.
10
Thank the employees for your redemption money and walk away. Although not common to receive a different receipt (saying you've received your change from the bottle redemption), all businesses make note of these receipts in some form.^{[citation needed]}

Redeeming at a Store's Mail-Away Company

1
Make sure to assemble the bag. Depending on the mail-away service's special specifications, you may need special purchasable fee-based or subscription stickers which match your bag to your account card when the bag's containers are redeemed for recycling or other markings.
2
Find out where the drop-off point is from store employees. Sometimes it's at a point inside, and at other stores, it's at a point unattached to the building but still on the property grounds.
3
Arrive at the location where the drop-off point is and open the door to the drop-off area.
4
Place the bag at the drop-off point. Be somewhat careful not to heave the bag too hard into the drop-off point - especially if glass bottles are involved.
5
Wait a few days for the money to arrive. Depending on the service's features, you may or may not receive a confirmation call or text saying the bag of containers redemption has been processed. The rest is depending on each service and on how they process your funds - whether it goes to a card or you in the form of a check!
- In the state of NY, mail-away redemption is still a rather least-known and not well-received/understood feature that some stores have. Depending on the person, most people don't pursue this option because most New Yorkers want their money more quickly than it would take for the bottles to be sent away - and some mail-away services cheat the customer out of bottles that were processed by not processing them correctly and hold bottles captive to compensate the companies piggies.