Clearing out a closet or an old sofa always raises the same question: where does it actually go?
Amsterdam has several real options for donating clothes, furniture and household items, and most of them are free.
Clothes and shoes
Het Wereldhuis, which supports undocumented migrants in Amsterdam, accepts donated clothes, shoes and accessories, and also asks for bedding, blankets, musical instruments and USB sticks for its activities -- check their supplies list before dropping anything off.
Stichting Babyspullen collects baby items for low-income parents-to-be, including clothes in sizes 50 to 92 and bottles, through red collection containers placed at various points around the city.
Packmee runs a box system: fill a box with clothes, shoes, towels, glasses or even hearing aids, and hand it in at a post office for free.
Packmee sells the sorted items to specialized companies and passes on at least half the proceeds to KiKa or Kinderpostzegels.
Kringloopwinkels (secondhand stores) across the city also take used clothing.
Volksbond will pick clothes up, usually the same day, and both the Salvation Army and Sympany run collection bins in most neighborhoods, with Sympany also accepting worn or threadbare clothing for recycling rather than resale.
Furniture and larger household items
A local kringloopwinkel is the first call for furniture that is still usable -- these secondhand stores take in sofas, tables and bed frames depending on what they specialize in and how much space they have.
Facebook groups for buying and selling are a fast option for furniture a kringloop won’t take: list it for free, and someone will often collect it themselves, sometimes for a price.
The Selling Your Stuff In The Netherlands guide covers how to set up and price a listing.
De Regenboog Groep, which supports people living in poverty in Amsterdam, is worth contacting directly if household items rather than clothing are what needs a new home -- they ask that donors get in touch before dropping anything off.
Toys
Speelgoedbank provides new and used toys to low-income parents in Amsterdam; check their website for current donation days and which items they accept.
When nothing wants it
Furniture too worn even for a kringloop or a Facebook buyer doesn’t have to go in with the regular trash.
The municipality will collect bulky items -- furniture, appliances, large household waste -- and the Amsterdam Bulky Trash Guide explains how to book a free pickup and what counts as bulky waste.
For everything else that isn’t furniture, from packaging to glass to textiles that are genuinely beyond donating, the Amsterdam Waste and Recycling Guide lays out which bin or container each type goes in.
