In California, you get 5 cents for each plastic bottle under 24 ounces and 10 cents for each bottle 24 ounces or larger, as long as the bottle carries a California Redemption Value (CRV) label and you take it to a certified recycling center. That’s the statutory refund, and it’s the same whether the bottle held water, soda, juice, or sports drink.1California Legislative Information. California Code Public Resources Code 14560 What you actually walk out with, though, depends on how the center chooses to pay you.
Count or Weight Decides What You Take Home
Recycling centers can pay two ways. By count, you get the full CRV value for every bottle: a nickel or a dime, one at a time. By weight, they weigh your plastic and multiply by a per-pound rate that CalRecycle updates every January 1 and July 1.2CalRecycle. California Recycling Program Rates January 1, 2026 Clear PET (#1) plastic pays more per pound than HDPE (#2).
Payment by weight almost always comes out to less than payment by count. Empty plastic bottles are light, and a pound of them contains a lot of nickels’ worth of deposits that the per-pound rate doesn’t fully return.
You Have the Right to Be Counted Up to 50
State law gives you the right to be paid by count for up to 50 containers of each material type per visit: 50 plastic, 50 glass, 50 aluminum, 50 bimetal.3CalRecycle. Beverage Container Recycling If you bring 50 plastic bottles or fewer, ask to be counted. Centers don’t always volunteer this, and the difference in your payout can be significant.
Bring more than 50 plastic bottles and the center can switch you to weight for the whole load. Daily limits apply too: 100 pounds of plastic per customer per day.3CalRecycle. Beverage Container Recycling Ordinary household recyclers won’t hit that ceiling.
Which Plastic Bottles Actually Qualify
Check the label. Eligible bottles print one of four phrases: “CA CRV,” “California Redemption Value,” “CA Cash Refund,” or “California Cash Refund.” Manufacturers are required to mark every covered container sold in the state.4California Legislative Information. California Code Public Resources Code 14561 No label, no refund.
The program covers most beverages in plastic bottles: water, soft drinks, juice, sports drinks, coffee, tea, and beer. A few plastic-bottled drinks are excluded:
- Milk and plant-based milk alternatives
- Medical food and infant formula
- 100% fruit juice in containers 46 ounces or larger (this exclusion is ending with a labeling requirement that takes effect July 1, 2026)3CalRecycle. Beverage Container Recycling
Bottles bought outside California carry no California deposit and won’t be paid on. Trying to redeem out-of-state containers as CRV is fraud, and CalRecycle investigates it.5CalRecycle. Recycling Fraud Convicts Ordered to Pay California $140 Million
Where to Take Them
Certified recycling centers are the main way to get paid. These are CalRecycle-certified businesses that must accept CRV containers and pay the refund. Some are standalone yards, others sit in supermarket parking lots.6CalRecycle. Certified Recycling Centers Many grocery stores also have reverse vending machines that read each bottle and print a redemption slip.
Access has narrowed. Hundreds of convenience zone centers have closed since 2016, and finding one near you can take some searching.7California Legislative Analyst’s Office. Addressing California’s Convenience Zone Recycling Newer options have filled some of the gap, including bag drop sites where you leave labeled bags and receive electronic payment later.8CalRecycle. Changes to the Beverage Container Recycling Program To find the closest location, use the CalRecycle locator or call 1-800-RECYCLE (1-800-732-9253).9CalRecycle. Contact CalRecycle
Curbside Bins Don’t Pay You
Throwing CRV bottles in your curbside recycling cart hands the deposit to the hauler. You get nothing back. To recover the nickel or dime, the bottle has to reach a certified center, a reverse vending machine, or a bag drop.
Getting the Most From Each Trip
A few habits make the difference between a fair payout and a shortchanged one.
- Ask to be paid by count whenever you have 50 or fewer plastic bottles. The per-pound rate almost always pays less.
- Sort plastic, aluminum, and glass before you arrive. It speeds the count and keeps each material at its correct rate.
- Keep bottles intact. Crushed containers can jam reverse vending machines or get bumped to weight-based payment.
- Empty and rinse them. Liquid inside adds weight that doesn’t count and slows the process.
- Check hours before you drive. Many centers run limited schedules; the CalRecycle locator lists them.
For a typical household bag of plastic bottles, the math lands at a few dollars. Not a windfall, but it’s your money, and the only way to get it back is to bring the bottles in yourself.