Computer Recycling in Saratoga
Saratoga businesses and residents — recycle computers, laptops, and electronics the responsible way with GreenCitizen. Whether you’re clearing out a home office, managing a business IT refresh, or simply keeping old devices out of the landfill, we make it easy. Schedule a qualifying business pickup or drop off your electronics at our Burlingame EcoCenter today.
We are open from Monday to Friday, 10 AM to 6 PM. (Closed on Major Holidays)
74,685
Business Customers
Served
413,951
Individual Customers
Served
No appointment is needed for drop-off recycling. Just come to our Burlingame EcoCenter to recycle your computers and electronics.
Where to Find Us?
GreenCitizen, Inc.
1831 Old Bayshore Hwy Suite 2, Burlingame, CA 94010
- +16504938700 Extension 103
- info@greencitizen.com
Office Hours
Monday to Friday
10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
(Closed on Major Holidays)
Closed on Holidays: New Year, President’s Day, Memorial Holiday, Independence day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the day after Christmas.
How Saratoga Is Leading the Way in Sustainability and E-Waste Recycling
Saratoga is a city of approximately 30,000 residents in Santa Clara County, situated at the western edge of Silicon Valley where the flatlands meet the Santa Cruz Mountain foothills. Incorporated in 1956, it has deliberately preserved its small-town character — a walkable Village district along Big Basin Way, historic landmarks including Hakone Gardens and Villa Montalvo, the Mountain Winery amphitheater tucked into the hillside, and creekside open space that sets it apart from the denser cities to the east.
That sense of place matters to how Saratoga approaches sustainability. This is a community that values what it has and works to protect it — and over the past several years, it has backed that instinct with formal, measurable climate commitments.
The City Council adopted Saratoga’s first Climate Action Plan on December 2, 2020 — a roadmap with specific strategies aligned with California’s statewide goal of reducing emissions 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. The CAP was built around eight focus areas: low-carbon transportation, renewable energy, energy efficiency, waste reduction, water conservation, carbon sequestration, adaptation, and community engagement. Waste reduction is a named, tracked goal — not a footnote.
Progress has been real. By late 2022, Saratoga had already achieved a 27% reduction in emissions from its 1990 baseline — more than two-thirds of the way to its 2030 target, years ahead of schedule. Mayor Tina Walia noted at the time that “for a city of our small size, with limited resources, we have done tremendously well.”
Before the CAP was even adopted, Saratoga had already laid important groundwork. The city participates in Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE), meaning residents and businesses automatically receive 100% carbon-free electricity without taking any action themselves. The city also enacted a Green Building Ordinance that reduced reliance on natural gas appliances and heating systems in new construction — a step ahead of many neighboring jurisdictions.
The electrification trend has continued to deepen. In 2023, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) adopted rules that phase out the sale of standard gas water heaters as early as 2027 and gas furnaces by 2029. Saratoga has committed to supporting residents through that transition, with resources through SVCE’s Go Electric Advisor program, access to over $20,000 in rebates and incentives for electrification upgrades, and express permitting for solar, EV chargers, and electrical panel upgrades.
On the construction side, Saratoga requires that all non-hazardous construction and demolition waste meet California’s 65% landfill diversion standard, tracked through the Green Halo Systems waste management platform.
California’s Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003 adds a legal baseline: covered electronics — computers, monitors, and televisions — cannot be discarded in the trash. They must be managed through certified recycling channels. For Saratoga households and businesses already working toward the city’s waste reduction and electrification goals, responsible electronics recycling is the natural next step — not an extra obligation, but part of the same commitment.
GreenCitizen: Trusted Electronics Recycling Near Saratoga Since 2005
GreenCitizen has been serving the Bay Area since April 22, 2005, when founder James Kao launched the company on Earth Day with a mission to make every day Earth Day. Our former Peninsula and South Bay locations — including 4500 El Camino Real in Los Altos, 2500 W El Camino Real in Mountain View, and 5155 Stevens Creek Blvd in Santa Clara — served the communities surrounding Saratoga directly before all services were consolidated at our Burlingame EcoCenter, approximately 25 miles north of Saratoga via CA-85 and US-101.
Over two decades, we have served more than 74,000 Bay Area businesses and 413,000 individual customers, recycling over 33 million pounds of electronics. Our proprietary GreenCitizen Total Accountability Management System (GTAMS) assigns each major item a unique asset ID and tracks it from collection through final processing — providing item-level chain-of-custody documentation that a hauler receipt cannot replicate.
We work exclusively with US-based recycling partners certified to R2 or e-Stewards standards, so electronics collected from Saratoga homes and businesses are processed responsibly in the United States, never exported overseas. For devices containing sensitive data, we offer destruction services aligned with DoD 5220.22-M and NIST SP 800-88 standards.
For a city working methodically toward its 2030 climate goals, choosing a certified, locally-rooted, fully accountable recycler is consistent with how Saratoga does everything else.
Drop off your electronics or schedule a qualifying business pickup today!
Acceptable & Non-Acceptable Items for Electronics Recycling
Accepted
Laptops
Desktops
Servers
Monitors/ TVs
Networking Equipment
Tablets/ Smartphones
Computer Components (Hard Drives, Circuit Boards, Keyboards, etc.)
Office Electronics (Printers, Fax Machines, Paper Shredders, etc.)
Kitchen Appliances (Toasters, Blenders, Microwaves, etc.)
Stereo Equipment (DVD Players, VCRs, Receivers, etc.)
Styrofoam (#6 Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) ONLY)
Console Video Games (Xbox, PS3, Wii, etc.)
CD/DVDs
Cables/Cords
Toner/ Ink Cartridges
UPS Batteries (SLA Only)
Not Accepted
Bottles/ Cans
Furniture
Polyurethane
Large Appliances (Stoves, Washers, Dryers)
Non-Rechargeable Batteries (Alkaline, Carbon Zinc, Disposable Batteries)
Light Bulbs (Incandescent and Fluorescent Bulbs)
Items containing liquid mercury (Thermometers and Thermostats)
Smoke Detectors
Styrofoam #4 Low-Density Polyethylene foam (LDPE/PELD)
Hazardous Waste (Paint, Motor Oil, Sharps, Bio Hazardous Waste)
Medical Electronics (Bodily contact devices such as Glucose Sensors)
Business Electronics Pickup for Saratoga Organizations
Saratoga’s business community is centered around its Village district and the professional corridors along Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road and Cox Avenue — small to mid-size offices, medical and dental practices, financial and legal firms, boutique retailers, restaurants, and service businesses. These organizations generate retired electronics regularly: outdated computers, replaced monitors, old networking equipment, phone systems, printers, and more.
GreenCitizen’s business pickup service handles all of it, for qualifying Saratoga organizations within our Bay Area service radius.
Free Pickup for Qualifying Business Loads
Pickup fees are waived when the inventory includes at least 5 qualifying items combined. Qualifying items include laptops, desktops, servers, enterprise networking equipment such as switches and routers, phones or tablets 4 inches or larger, and LCD or LED monitors.
Built for Saratoga’s Business Scale
Saratoga businesses tend to operate from smaller footprints — village storefronts, professional office suites, and home-based operations — rather than large corporate campuses. Our pickup service is designed to match that scale:
- Medical and dental practice IT upgrades
- Law firm and financial office equipment retirement
- Village retail and hospitality technology refreshes
- Home-based business equipment cleanouts
- Small nonprofit and school organization IT turnover
- Recurring recycling for businesses generating equipment on an ongoing basis
Pickup requests are submitted online. Items should be staged at ground level or an accessible location before our team arrives. We confirm logistics and vehicle requirements based on what you’re recycling.
Data Security for Professional Organizations
Saratoga businesses handling client records, financial data, medical information, or legal documents can use GreenCitizen’s certified data destruction options when retiring storage devices.
We offer software-based data sanitization ($5 per drive) and physical hard drive destruction ($20 per drive), both following methods referenced in DoD 5220.22-M and NIST SP 800-88 standards. A Certificate of Destruction is available for $5 per unit, providing the chain-of-custody documentation that compliance-conscious organizations need. If a drive cannot be successfully erased to the required standard, it is upgraded to physical destruction at no additional charge.
Verified Domestic Processing
Every item collected from Saratoga businesses is processed by US-based, R2 or e-Stewards certified recycling partners. For organizations that track their sustainability practices — or report against Saratoga’s CAP goals — this provides a verifiable, documented disposal path.
Everything went great yesterday. Your guys were super professional and took care of everything for us. I’m sure that we will have more for you in the near future.
I have nothing but praise for their whole operation. From the easy to use website to even great, friendly pickup staff.
Your crew provides such a high level of service. It all went very smoothly!
Electronics Drop-Off for Saratoga Residents
Saratoga is a city of well-established households — which means electronics accumulate over time. Laptops replaced during a work-from-home upgrade, monitors swapped for newer models, a decade-old desktop in the garage, gaming consoles the kids have outgrown, kitchen appliances that stopped working but feel wrong to throw away.
GreenCitizen accepts all of them at our Burlingame EcoCenter, with no appointment needed for standard drop-off.
Please note: a drop-off form is required when recycling certain electronics. You can complete it on our website before arriving, or fill it out at the center during drop-off. Please refer to our drop-off electronics recycling page for further details.
How to Get to Our Burlingame EcoCenter from Saratoga
From Saratoga, take CA-85 North toward Mountain View, then merge onto US-101 North toward San Francisco. Take the Millbrae Avenue exit, follow signs for Old Bayshore Highway, turn onto Old Bayshore Highway, then turn at Cowan Road and enter the first driveway on the left. We are located behind the 1831 Old Bayshore Hwy building, directly across from New England Lobster Market and Eatery. The drive from Saratoga typically runs 25 to 35 minutes depending on traffic.
Pro Tip: Search “GreenCitizen, Inc.” in Google Maps or your GPS for direct routing from anywhere in Saratoga.
Drive-Thru Drop-Off, No Appointment Needed
- Pull into the loading zone
- Our team comes out to help unload and sort your items
- Any applicable fees are confirmed before processing begins
- Most drop-offs are completed in under 10 minutes
If you are recycling devices that may contain sensitive personal data, our staff can discuss data handling options at the time of drop-off.
What’s Free and What Has a Fee
The electronics that accumulate most in Saratoga households — computers, laptops, monitors, tablets, and televisions — are free to recycle at GreenCitizen. Items that require more complex processing carry a per-pound fee, confirmed at intake before we proceed.
For drop-off recycling, these are the items that are FREE to recycle and can be dropped off at the GreenCitizen Recycling Center/Eco Center in Burlingame.
Note: All Macbook EFi, Device Enrollment Program, and Remote Management Locks Must Be Removed
- Desktop computers
- Laptops
- Servers
- Tablets
- Monitors
- Network switches
- TVs
And here are the items that cost $1.00/pound to recycle.
- Cables/cords
- CD players and Walkmans
- Christmas lights
- DLP Projector TVs
- Fax machines
- Remote controls
- Heaters
- Ink/Toner
- Keyboards
- Microwaves
- Printers
- Miscellaneous electronics
- Scanners
- Stereo equipment
- VCRs
- DVD players
- Speakers
- Vacuum cleaners
- Fans
- Toasters
- Blenders
- Coffee makers
And here are the items that cost $6.00/pound to recycle.
- CDs
- Cassette tape
- Vinyl recycling
- DVDs
- Floppy disks
- VHS
- 35mm slides
- DLT/LTO
- Film negatives
It’s great to have such a well-run organization in our community to help us with all of our old electronics, especially laptops, which have sensitive information.
They were awesome. I was helping clean my mother in laws garage out. There was one tv that was literally falling apart. No problem here. We dropped off a couple tvs, a monitor, coffee machine, an old speaker, all for around 11 dollars. We rounded up to $15 to help them continue their excellent recycling service. They were friendly helpful and have a drive through. We are customers now! Good location as well.
The staff at Green Citizen were incredibly informative, helpful and courteous.The process of dropping off computers and hard drives for destruction was so quick and simple. They have an efficient set up. I highly recommend them and I will definitely be going back to them when I have additional items to recycle. It’s an impressive organization.
Frequently Asked Questions About Computer Recycling in Saratoga
Yes. GreenCitizen serves Saratoga businesses through scheduled pickup service and Saratoga residents through drop-off at our Burlingame EcoCenter. Saratoga is within our 35-mile Bay Area service radius.
Yes. Walk-in drop-offs are welcome during business hours — Monday through Friday, 10 AM to 6 PM. If you're recycling a computer or television, completing the online drop-off form in advance makes check-in faster. Our team comes out to your vehicle to handle intake, and most drop-offs are done in under 10 minutes.
Take CA-85 North to US-101 North, then exit at Millbrae Avenue. Follow signs for Old Bayshore Highway, turn onto Old Bayshore, then turn onto Cowan Road and enter the first driveway on the left — at 1831 Old Bayshore Hwy, Suite 2, directly across from New England Lobster Market and Eatery. The drive typically runs 25 to 35 minutes depending on traffic. Searching "GreenCitizen, Inc." in Google Maps routes you directly.
Laptops, desktop computers, servers, monitors, TVs, tablets, smartphones, and network switches are all free to drop off. Items like printers, keyboards, cables, fax machines, scanners, and small kitchen appliances cost $1.00 per pound. Older media — CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, floppy disks, 35mm slides, and film negatives — are $6.00 per pound due to the certified destruction process they require. Any applicable fees are confirmed before we process your items.
Yes. Please remove EFI/BIOS locks, Apple ID and iCloud locks, and any MDM, DEP, or Remote Management enrollment before arriving. This applies to both Apple and non-Apple devices. Locked devices can still be dropped off, but they won't qualify for certified data destruction and won't count toward the free pickup threshold for business loads.
Yes, if the load meets our requirements. The pickup fee is waived when your inventory includes at least 5 qualifying items — any combination of laptops, desktops, servers, enterprise networking equipment (switches and routers), phones or tablets 4 inches or larger, or LCD/LED monitors. Submit your inventory details online and our team will confirm eligibility and scheduling.
Most Bay Area pickups are confirmed within four hours to one business day of submitting the request. Same-day pickup is available when the request comes in before 11:00 AM. For urgent decommissions, immediate pickup — within 24 hours — is also an option.
Software-based data erasure is $5 per drive, following DoD 5220.22-M and NIST SP 800-88 Rev. 1 standards. Physical hard drive destruction is $20 per drive. A Certificate of Destruction is $5 per unit. If a drive cannot be erased to the required standard, it is upgraded to physical destruction at no additional charge. Every major item is logged in GTAMS, creating a serialized chain-of-custody record from collection through final processing.
Yes directly. Saratoga's Climate Action Plan tracks waste reduction across eight focus areas, and California's Electronic Waste Recycling Act designates covered electronics as a regulated waste stream. When Saratoga residents and businesses recycle through GreenCitizen — a certified domestic recycler — those devices stay out of the landfill stream the CAP is working to reduce. Our R2 and e-Stewards certified processing partners handle all equipment in the United States, and GTAMS documentation provides verifiable proof of responsible disposal.
Yes. GreenCitizen works exclusively with recycling partners certified to R2 (Responsible Recycling) and e-Stewards standards — the two most rigorous independent certifications in US electronics recycling. All equipment is processed domestically and never exported overseas.
No. GreenCitizen is an independent, for-profit electronics recycling company. We are not affiliated with the City of Saratoga, West Valley Recycles, the West Valley Solid Waste Management Authority, or any municipal program. We serve Saratoga residents and qualifying businesses as part of our broader Bay Area service area.