By U.S. Recycled More Than 33 Million Tons of Cardboard in 2025, AF&PA Says
Cardboard recycling remained strong across the United States in 2025, with a recycling rate of 70%-75%. Overall paper recycling totaled approximately 45 million tons, with recovered fiber supplying domestic mills and overseas markets.
By Paul Ploumis
Published September 1, 2026
Key Points
- More than 33 million tons of cardboard were recovered for recycling in the U.S. during 2025, equivalent to approximately 90,000 tons per day.
- The U.S. cardboard recycling rate reached 70%-75%, compared with an overall paper recycling rate of 61%-65%.
- The U.S. recycled approximately 45 million tons of paper in 2025, with more than two-thirds converted into new products at mills.
- Nearly 20 million tons of recovered paper became containerboard, while approximately 29% was exported to overseas paper mills.
MONTREAL (Scrap Monster): U.S. cardboard recycling remained strong in 2025, with more than 33 million tons recovered for reuse, according to industry data released by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA).
This translates to approximately 90,000 tons of cardboard recycled every day, keeping a substantial amount of packaging material out of landfills. Cardboard is collected from homes, businesses, factories, retailers, schools, hospitals and other institutions across the country.
The U.S. cardboard recycling rate stood at 70%-75% in 2025, exceeding the overall paper recycling rate of 61%-65%.
Recovered Cardboard Returns to Paper Mills
After collection, cardboard is sorted to remove unwanted materials before being sent to paper mills. Recovered fiber is then used to manufacture new packaging and other paper products, AF&PA noted.
U.S. Paper Recycling Reached 45 Million Tons
Overall, the U.S. recycled approximately 45 million tons of paper during 2025, or about 123,000 tons daily. More than two-thirds of recovered paper was converted into new products at mills.
Nearly 20 million tons became containerboard, while approximately 29% was exported for use by overseas paper mills. The remaining material was used for products including tissue, printing paper, cereal boxes and medicine packaging.
About half of all recycled paper in 2025 was converted into containerboard.
The figures indicate that paper remains one of the most widely recycled materials in the U.S.
