The 2024 Paper Recycling Rate Numbers Are In!

Paper recycling works, and it works every day. In 2024 alone, we recycled around 46 million tons of paper in the U.S. That’s 125,000 tons every day being turned into things like cardboard boxes, paper packaging and toilet paper.

That translates to a paper recycling rate of 60%-64% and a cardboard recycling rate of 69%-74%.

Dive Deeper: What’s even more exciting? U.S. paper mills used 1.29 million more tons of recycled paper to make new products in 2024. That’s 32.7 million tons compared to 31.3 million tons in 2023.

In Our Words: “The paper industry has prioritized recycling for over 30 years, and we are committed to advancing this progress. AF&PA members are not just participants in the recycling system, we are helping build and improve it through voluntary industry investments that use more recycled paper, create jobs, and innovate in our U.S. manufacturing processes.” – AF&PA President and CEO, Heidi Brock

Explore the investments our industry is making in recycling infrastructure and how we’re scaling up the use of recycled paper.