Donate an Old Computer to a Charity

With technology growing as fast as it is, you might be looking at purchasing a new computer for your home or office. But what does an environmentally-friendly person do with the old computer? Why not donate the computer to a charity?

Before donating, you’ll need to decide what charity to donate the computer to. If you’re looking at donating the computer as a working machine, the computer should not be more than five years old. Even though many nonprofits would appreciate the help to their budget, they do have to worry about making sure it’s a machine they can buy software for that will help their organization, which means it needs to be a model that was manufactured within the last few years. If you have a specific charity in mind, it’s recommended to call them first to make sure they actually could use the computer. You’ll also want to donate all the peripherals (mouse, keyboard, monitor) that initially came with your computer if possible, as most nonprofits prefer getting complete systems.

Another option is to donate it to a charity that will refurbish it for use elsewhere. After all, there are many charities that use the computer for its parts or whose main purpose is to take older computers and make them reusable for people, such as the elderly or people in need.

If you are willing to expand beyond local charities, www.recycles.org has a service where nonprofits can request computers, and people willing to donate can see what needs are out there. The Environmental Protection Agency also keeps a list of organizations that either take donated computers or are willing to recycle the equipment.

If you want to donate it to an individual rather than a charity, you can also check at your local Freecycle system. Freecycle is a nationwide program that connects individuals looking for items and individuals willing to donate those items, all in the goal of keeping things out of the landfills.

If there is equipment that isn’t working, or if the computer is more than five years old and you’re having a hard time finding someone to accept it, you’ll want to recycle it. Many cities have businesses that recycle computers, taking what computer parts are useful and then breaking down the remaining. Many of these places will charge a fee to recycle your equipment – especially for monitors.

Once you’ve decided what charity to donate it to, you will want to make sure your new computer is set up correctly and all the files from the old computer have been transferred over. Make sure when donating the computer to include any software, manuals, and the certificate of authenticity sticker (typically on the computer) that originally came with the computer, as this provides a legal transfer of software. Don’t donate any software you plan on using on your new computer and make sure it’s uninstalled from the older computer, as legally the software is only allowed on one computer.

Once everything that you want is transferred over, you’ll want to make sure to clean your hard drive – especially all your personal data. While some charities do clean the hard drive as part of the refurbishing process, it’s still recommended to at least get rid of smaller personal information, such as the data connected to your internet settings (i.e., the cookies, history, and cache), your e-mail items if using a computer-based e-mail system such as Outlook or Outlook Express (versus a web-based e-mail system such as Hotmail or Yahoo), and your recycle folder. There are computer utilities available (many of them free) that will clean your hard drive, making the data unrecoverable, and a quick internet search will help, depending on whether you have a PC or a Mac. Bringing the computer back to its factory settings is another good recommendation, as this clears a lot of extra information out from the computer.

You also will want to check the Web page of the computer manufacturer, as they may list charities they work with for donated equipment as well as programs recommended that can clear the computer’s hard drive.

When you contact the charity, you will want to clarify what the charity requires for delivery of the computer. Will they pick up the computer, or do you have to drop it off? If you drop it off, is there a specific location or a specific time that their drop off location is open?

If you’re donating the computer to a nonprofit, you’ll want to get a tax receipt so you can deduct the donation. Be sure to keep a complete list of what you donated, and find out the market value of the computer for the eligible price for deduction.

Finally, as you’re setting up your new computer, be thinking of when it’s time to donate it. Keep all the documents and software that came with your new computer in one place, so it’s easy to find when you buy your next computer and donate the old one.