A used Australian standard pallet in good condition sells for up to about $10 to a recycler, and only when you have 50 or more of them. Damaged pallets fetch little or nothing, chipboard and plywood pallets are refused outright, and blue CHEP or red Loscam pallets can never be sold because they belong to the pool. Below that line, collection stops being free and becomes a disposal cost that is set by your state's landfill levy.
What a used pallet is worth, by type and condition
The figures below are the published conditions of recyclers that buy or collect pallets. Prices are quoted after the recycler sees photos, so treat the dollar figure as the ceiling, not the offer.
| Pallet | Condition | What happens | Published by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australian standard 1,165 × 1,165 mm hardwood | Sound, no snapped bearers | Bought. "Used and second-hand pallets generally sell for anywhere up to $10", minimum 50 units | Plain Pallets, Melbourne |
| Australian standard, damaged or missing boards | Repairable | Still bought by some recyclers ("we will buy used pallets that are damaged and missing boards"); refused if "covered in grease and oil or have snapped bearers" | Smart Pallets, Melbourne |
| Export 1,100 × 1,100 mm, 1,200 × 1,000 mm, Euro 1,200 × 800 mm | Sound | Bought by the larger recyclers; Marks Pallets buys EPAL Euro "in quantities over 50 … as long as they are high quality" | Plain Pallets; Marks Pallets, Sydney |
| Plastic pallets | Sound | Bought in quantities over 50 (Marks Pallets); also bought by Export Pallets | Marks Pallets; Export Pallets |
| Chipboard or plywood pallets | Any | Refused: "We will not accept chipboard or plywood pallets" | Tom's Pallets, Brisbane; Export Pallets |
| CHEP (blue) or Loscam (red) pooled pallets | Any | Cannot be sold. "We don't buy used pallets that are CHEP, LOSCAM or other rental/pool pallets." They must be returned or transferred, see CHEP and Loscam hire fees | Smart Pallets; Tom's Pallets; Palletwest |
Two things move the price more than anything else: whether the recycler can resell the pallet as-is (a sound standard pallet goes straight back into circulation) and how many you have on one site. A truck sent for twelve pallets loses money even if the pallets are perfect, which is why every published threshold starts at 20, 30, 50 or 100 units.
Quantity thresholds by named recycler
| City | Recycler | Published condition | Pays for pallets? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melbourne | Plain Pallets (Braeside) | Minimum collection 50 units; Melbourne metro pickup; damaged pallets are not collected free | Yes, up to about $10 each |
| Melbourne | Smart Pallets (Dandenong South, Epping) | Photos first, then pickup or drop-off; buys damaged pallets with missing boards | Yes, price on assessment |
| Melbourne | Export Pallets | No stated minimum; estimate after photos; no CHEP, Loscam, chipboard or plywood | Yes, estimate given |
| Sydney | Marks Pallets | "No pickup fees charged - Sydney and Surrounds"; buys standard, EPAL and plastic in quantities over 50 | Yes, "cash for good quality pallets" |
| Sydney | A2Z Pallets | "Free pickup is available for undamaged pallets in quantities above 100"; damaged pallets collected "for a small service fee" | Not stated |
| Brisbane | Tom's Pallets (Runcorn) | Minimum 50 pallets; forklift must be available; no residential pickups | Maybe: payment "will depend on the condition and types of pallets" |
| Brisbane | Brisbane Pallet Recyclers (Hemmant) | Minimum 30 pallets for pickup; free removal of pallets "good enough for recycling" | Not stated |
| Perth | Palletwest | Undamaged standard pallets free "for quantities over 20"; under 20 "a pickup fee may apply" | Not stated |
| Perth | Pallet Pals (Maddington) | Free collection of standard, Euro and other pallets after photo approval | Not stated |
| Adelaide | Born Again Pallets (Athol Park) | Free removal "only for qualifying customers", assessment form, minimum 30 pallets | Not stated |
| National | Palleco (Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide) | "Complimentary pickup for standard 1165 x 1165 pallets"; paid collection for non-standard sizes; unusable pallets mulched | No, collection service |
City-by-city detail, with addresses and what each recycler refuses, is on the Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide pages. Melbourne businesses use the pallet collection and recycling service page.
When you pay instead of getting paid
Three situations flip a pallet from asset to liability: you have fewer pallets than the recycler's minimum, the pallets are non-standard and damaged, or the stack is mixed with broken timber, strapping and packaging waste. Then the options are a paid recycler collection, a skip bin, or a trip to a transfer station, and each option is priced off the same number: your state's landfill levy.
| State (2026-27) | Landfill levy per tonne | Source |
|---|---|---|
| NSW metropolitan levy area | $180.20 (regional area $103.80) | NSW EPA |
| Queensland metropolitan zone | $135 (regional zone $100) | Queensland Government |
| South Australia metropolitan | $171.00 (non-metropolitan $85.50) | EPA SA |
| Western Australia | $90 | WA Government |
A pallet weighs roughly 30 kilograms, so a tonne is about 33 pallets. In Sydney that tonne carries $180.20 of levy before the gate fee, the transport and the labour are added. This is why a paid recycler collection is almost always cheaper than a skip for pallets alone, and why Palleco describes its paid service as "far more economical than hiring a skip bin". Victorian, Tasmanian and ACT rates are on the waste levy rates by state guide.
How to get the top of the range
- Send photos before you ring. Every recycler above prices from photos. Show the stack, one pallet face-on and one bearer close-up.
- Sort by type and keep pooled pallets out. A mixed stack is priced at the worst pallet in it. CHEP and Loscam pallets in the pile can get the whole collection refused.
- Count and stack forklift-ready. Tom's Pallets will not collect without a forklift on site; most others price on how fast the truck can load.
- Hold until you clear the minimum. Fifty sound pallets earns money; twelve pallets costs a call-out. If storage is the problem, the paid national collectors will take smaller lots.
- Do not let timber pallets go in the general waste bin. They are charged by volume at the bin and by weight at the gate, and they crush nothing, so you pay for air. The timber versus plastic pallet disposal comparison shows the arithmetic.
Where the money actually leaks: the bins next to the pallet stack
Pallet collection is the one waste stream most Australian businesses get for free, so it is rarely where the savings are. The general waste bin, the cardboard bin and the front-lift bulk bin beside the pallet stack are where the bill grows: bin rental, fuel levies, contamination charges and annual increases that nobody re-tenders. Bundle Waste is a Melbourne-based commercial waste cost broker that works with businesses Australia-wide. We audit your current invoice free, benchmark every line against provider rates, negotiate the contract, and are paid only from the savings we find. If we find nothing, you pay nothing. Start with a free waste audit, and see how every line on a waste invoice is built before you sign anything new.
Sources
- Plain Pallets — We buy your used pallets (Melbourne) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Smart Pallets — We buy pallets (Dandenong South, Epping) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Export Pallets — We buy used pallets (Melbourne) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Marks Pallets — Sydney pallet supplier and buyer (accessed 2026-09-03)
- A2Z Pallets — Services (Sydney) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Tom's Pallets — Free pallet collection Brisbane (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Brisbane Pallet Recyclers — Pallet removal (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Palletwest — Collections and pallet recycling (Perth) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Pallet Pals — Services (Maddington, Perth) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Born Again Pallets — Pallet recycling Adelaide (Athol Park) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Palleco — Recycled pallets Adelaide (free standard-pallet pickup policy) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- NSW EPA — Waste levy rates for 2026-27 (media release, 23 Dec 2025) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- Queensland Government — Waste disposal levy rates (accessed 2026-09-03)
- EPA South Australia — Waste levy rates (2026-27) (accessed 2026-09-03)
- WA Government — Waste levy rate schedule (accessed 2026-09-03)
Frequently asked questions
How much do pallet recyclers pay for used pallets in Australia?
Can I sell CHEP or Loscam pallets?
How many pallets do I need before a recycler will collect for free?
What do I do with broken pallets nobody will take?
Are plastic pallets worth anything second-hand?
Does Bundle Waste collect pallets?
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