Donation FAQs

Many organizations – both for-profit and nonprofit – offer stand-alone bins for donation drop-offs. These bins are convenient, and many are operated by reputable charitable organizations. Some are not, however. The State of Tennessee requires that organizations clearly and accurately identify themselves so people know who receives their donations. There should be contact information for the organization that benefits from your generosity. For more information on donation bins, click here.

By choosing to round up your total purchase price to the nearest dollar, you help us further our mission to help people transform potential into opportunity. Your extra change creates opportunities and removes barriers to employment for our community and our own retail associates.

We do not pick up items; however, for large estates or commercial donations, please call 423-629-2501.

Our store donation center hours are Monday – Saturday 9 AM – 8 PM and Sunday 10 AM – 8 PM. Our attended donation center hours are Monday – Sunday 9 AM – 1 PM and 2 PM – 6 PM.

If you’ve got a donation, we likely have a convenient place to take it.  Check our locations to find a donation center near you.

When you donate, you help put people to work. How? The items we collect are sorted, priced and sold in our stores. One-of-a-kind items are sold on our auction website, and the remaining donated items are sold by the pound in our outlet store. We use the money from the sale of these items to fund job training programs and employment services. Any unpurchased items are recycled to minimize waste.

We accept clothing, shoes, accessories, books, furniture, small appliances, household items, CDS/videotapes/DVDs/records, linens, and sporting equipment. While we like to say we can accept almost anything, there are a few items we cannot accept.  Please click here to review a list of items we can and can’t accept.

Due to safety issues and other concerns, Chattanooga Goodwill Industries cannot accept these items:

• Aquariums, fish, live animals or livestock
• Guns, ammunition, fireworks
• Alcoholic beverages
• Medications
• Pianos and organs
• Furniture, mattresses, or clothing that is wet or in conditions that make items unusable
• Building and construction leftovers or debris

Yes, Goodwill of Chattanooga is a 501 (3) (c) nonprofit organization. According to the IRS, donated goods (in good, used condition, or better) made to us are tax-deductible. We will provide you with a receipt once you’ve made a donation to keep for your tax records.

According to IRS regulations, a non-profit organization cannot provide a donor with the dollar value of an in-kind gift. However, there are resources available to locate reasonable values for your donations. Please click here for Donation Valuation Guide.

Absolutely. You can make monetary donations directly from our website here, donate at the register of any of our stores, or contact us at (423) 629-2501 extension 2290.

We are not equipped to repair items and do not sell items that are broken, torn, or soiled.

Our goal is to be good stewards of your generosity. We have recycling programs that allow us to minimize our environmental footprint.

Some items are impractical or illegal for us to accept. Please click here for a list of those items.

We partner with Friends of Disabled Adults & Children (FODAC), another nonprofit whose mission is to provide durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs and hospital beds to individuals with disabilities at little or no cost. Many smaller medical items that are donated are sold in our stores or recycled.

Yes, if you have a used car, truck, boat, RV, or other vehicle you can donate it to Goodwill. To donate your vehicle or for more information, call Goodwill at (866) 233-8586 or click here to find more information.

Goodwill helps individuals facing various barriers to employment, such as a lack of work history, physical, mental, and emotional disabilities; limited education; language barriers; criminal background; and other challenges that hinder employment.

Visit About Us for more information about our organization or call (423) 629-2501. To stay up-to-date follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

There is no limit to what you can donate. However, please remember that IRS Form 8283 is required when an in-kind donation exceeds the $500 fair market value. Should the fair market value of a single item, or group of similar items exceed $5,000, you must provide a certified appraised value of the item and Goodwill will complete Part IV of Section B of IRS Form 8283.

Goodwill of Chattanooga is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit. Revenue generated in our stores supports our mission to help people turn potential into opportunity.