How much is a donated blanket worth?
Updated , edition 2026.1
A used blanket in good condition is worth about $7 to $11, and $9 is a fair middle. Comforters, quilts and afghans each have their own row below, and calling a comforter a blanket undervalues it.
- Typical value, good condition
- $9
- Published range, good condition
- $7 to $11
What a donated blanket is generally worth
Fair market value is a range, so these are ranges. The suggested figure sits inside the band the source guide published for that condition.
| Item | Like new | Good | Fair | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blanket | $11 to $15 | $7 to $11 | $3 to $7 | Source 1 for BlanketSource 2 for BlanketSource 3 for BlanketSource 4 for Blanket |
| Comforter | $16 to $20 | $10 to $16 | $5 to $10 | Source 4 for Comforter |
| Bedspread | $18 to $24 | $10 to $18 | $3 to $10 | Source 1 for BedspreadSource 2 for BedspreadSource 4 for Bedspread |
| Quilt | $18 to $24 | $10 to $18 | $3 to $10 | Source 1 for QuiltSource 2 for QuiltSource 4 for Quilt |
| Afghan | $11 to $15 | $7 to $11 | $2 to $7 | Source 2 for AfghanSource 4 for Afghan |
| Throw Blanket | No guide prices this one. Enter your own figure and keep the evidence for it. | |||
| Bed Pillow | $4 to $5 | $3 to $4 | $2 to $3 | Source 1 for Bed PillowSource 3 for Bed Pillow |
Values are per item, in 2026 dollars, from the DeductiBee valuation dataset, edition 2026.1. A range is what the source guide published; the suggested figure is the point inside it we prefill, not a price. Back to the full chart of donation values by item, or add this to a list. Got a receipt for this? Check it.
Count yours
Set a count and a condition on each line for a total range you can print, link to, or save.
4 pieces, suggested total
$38
Supported range $27 to $48
- This is fair market value, not tax saved. What it is worth to you
Photograph them before they leave the house. DeductiBee keeps the count, the condition, the photo and the value together on your iPhone until April. A counted batch is one entry; free for 20 new entries a year.
How this range was derived
The Salvation Army publishes $3 to $16 for a blanket, Goodwill Industries International $2 to $15, Goodwill Northern New England $3 to $14, and Catholic Charities $3 to $15. We use the most conservative shared band, $3 to $15, and split it into three tiers: Fair $3 to $7, Good $7 to $11 and Like new $11 to $15.
The dataset record
Published: Salvation Army "Blanket" $3-$16; Goodwill Intl "Blankets/afghans" $2-$15; Goodwill NNE "Blanket" $3-$14; Catholic Charities "Blankets/Afghans" $3-$15. L*=$3 H*=$15 by lower median; tiers split at 35%/70% of span per CITATIONS.md 3.4.
The same rules apply to every item: how the values are built. Want a different condition? Look up this blanket in the value tool.
- Like new
- Unused or barely used: full loft, crisp binding, no pilling, fading or marks.
- Good
- Washed and used, with light pilling at most, binding intact, no stains or holes.
- Fair
- Clean and whole, but pilled, faded or flattened, with no holes, stains or moth damage.
What drives the value of a donated blanket
The tier you pick is the biggest lever on this page. Here is what actually decides it.
Fibre sets the ceiling. Wool holds value if it has not been eaten, cotton and acrylic sit lower, and fleece pills into the bottom tier faster than anything else in a linen closet. On wool, look for the small round holes and the fine grit that indicate moths, since a single hole in the middle of a blanket takes it out of resale. On down-filled comforters, check that the baffles still hold loft and that the fill has not migrated into one end.
Size is a real driver even though the guides publish one band per type. A king comforter and a twin blanket are not the same object to a buyer, so record the size on your list and let it inform which end of the range you land on rather than inventing a separate figure. Pilling, a bound edge that has come unstitched, and permanent staining are the three faults that decide the tier for almost every piece.
Two categories sit outside the ordinary rows. A handmade quilt or a hand-crocheted afghan can be worth well above the guide band, and the evidence for that is recent sales of comparable work rather than a thrift figure. Electric blankets are the opposite case: charities frequently decline them because of the cord and controller, and one that is refused is not a contribution at all.
Handmade quilts and afghans
A quilt or afghan you bought or inherited is valued like anything else, at fair market value, and for a handmade piece that usually means comparable sales: find three recent sold listings of similar work, use the middle figure, and keep screenshots of the listings with the item.
A quilt you made yourself is different. Property you created is generally treated as ordinary income property, so the deduction is generally limited to what the materials cost you (fabric, batting, thread), not what the finished quilt would sell for, and your time is not deductible (Publication 526).
Thresholds still apply: above $500 of noncash gifts for the year, Form 8283 generally goes in with the return, and above $5,000 for one item or a group of similar items a qualified appraisal generally comes into it. The Form 8283 checker tells you which section applies.
Will they take it?
Electric blankets are often refused because of the cord and controller. Weighted blankets are often accepted only when the cover comes off and washes. Baby blankets are generally fine, but crib bedding gets safety screening (see the crib page).
Animal shelters welcome worn blankets, but a blanket below good used condition gives no deduction whatever the recipient does with it. Call first: the Salvation Army and Goodwill guides cover what each typically accepts.
Blankets, a linen closet and an inherited quilt
One wool blanket in good condition is about $9. The receipt from the drop-off is enough at that size.
A linen closet clean-out of two blankets in good condition, one comforter in good condition and one quilt in fair condition comes to about $27 to $48, suggested $38, which is the tally the counter above starts with. Add the towels and sheet sets from the same closet and the line most people forget turns into a real number.
An inherited handmade quilt with comparable sales at $120, $150 and $180 is valued at the middle figure, $150, with the three listings kept on the record. Bought, made and inherited quilts are each treated differently, as the section above explains.
Itemizing is what makes any of this count: a donated blanket only reduces tax if you itemize, and the new deduction for people who take the standard deduction is, as currently written, for cash gifts only (how it works; should you itemize?).
What evidence supports the condition you claimed
A number you can trace and defend is worth more in an audit than a generous one you cannot.
Wash it, then photograph it spread out on a bed so the size, the binding, and any staining are all visible in one frame; a folded blanket hides exactly what a tier claim depends on. Note the fiber content and the size on your own list, and for anything handmade, photograph the stitching and keep the comparable sales you relied on rather than relying on the row.
Like new generally means unused or nearly so, no pilling, binding intact, full loft. Good means washed and used, clean, minor pilling, no holes. Fair means it is thin, pilled, or faded but sound and clean. Moth holes, torn binding, and set-in stains put a piece below Fair, and household goods below that line generally are not deductible.
Items people log as a blanket by mistake
Filing an item under the wrong line is the quietest way to end up with a number you cannot support.
Comforter
A filled top layer priced on its own row, generally above a plain blanket. Whether the fill still lofts, rather than the cover fabric, is what decides the tier.
Quilt or bedspread
Both have their own rows here. A mass-produced quilted bedspread belongs on the row; a handmade or antique quilt is a comparable-sales item, and using the guide band for one would understate it considerably.
Throw blanket
Our sources publish no range for a small decorative throw, so it carries an honest blank rather than a number. Counting throws as full-size blankets is a common way a linen total inflates.
Up, sideways, and out
Every value on this page comes out of the kitchen and housewares section of the donation value guide, which shows the rest of the category with the same sourcing.
- ValuesKitchen and housewares donation valuesThe whole category, item by item, with the published range and the source behind every line.
- ValuesTowel donation value: what a donated bath towel is worthA used bath towel in good condition is generally worth $1.75 to $3 for a tax deduction. Count your stack by condition, and run the rag test before you donate.
- ValuesHow much is a donated bed worth?A donated full, queen or king bed frame is worth about $95 to $140 in good condition. Add the mattress and box spring, compare sizes, and log it for taxes.
- ValuesCurtains donation value: what each panel is worthDonated curtains are worth $3.75 to $6 per panel in good condition, drapes $3 to $4. Pair math, rods, the Salvation Army comparison, and a panel counter.
- ValuesCrib donation value: what a used crib is worth for taxesA donated crib with mattress is worth about $26 to $105 ($55 to $80 in good condition). How to value one with no mattress, and why drop-side cribs are worth $0.
- LookupLook up any other itemSearch the whole catalog, pick a condition, and read the range with its citation.
- CalculatorWhat the deduction is worth to youTurn a documented total into a range of tax effect, with the marginal-rate assumption stated on screen.
Questions about donating a blanket
Is a comforter a blanket for valuation?
What about a handmade quilt?
Can I donate an electric blanket?
I made the quilt myself. What can I deduct?
How much is a used comforter worth?
Can I deduct blankets I gave to an animal shelter?
Where these values come from
Every range on this page traces to one of these. Values are derived from the published ranges, never copied from another product’s valuation database, and never invented where no source covers an item.
- Donation Value Guide (The Salvation Army Thrift Stores | Donation Valuation Guide)
The Salvation Army (Thrift Stores / Adult Rehabilitation Centers)
Primary value source. A published range from this guide can set the low or high end of an item's band. Fetched and read .
- Valuation Guide for Goodwill Donors
Goodwill Industries International (compiled list, republished by member affiliates)
Primary value source. A published range from this guide can set the low or high end of an item's band. Fetched and read .
- Donation Value Guide - What is my Donation Worth?
Goodwill Northern New England
Primary value source. A published range from this guide can set the low or high end of an item's band. Fetched and read .
- Thrift Store Valuation Guide
Catholic Charities Maine (Catholic Charities Thrift Store)
Corroborating check. Used to sanity-check a band. Never moves a figure on its own. Fetched and read .
- Publication 561 (12/2025), Determining the Value of Donated Property
Internal Revenue Service (U.S. Department of the Treasury)
Methodology. Sets the standard the values have to meet. Never a source of dollar figures. Fetched and read .
- Publication 526 (2025), Charitable Contributions
Internal Revenue Service (U.S. Department of the Treasury)
Methodology. Sets the standard the values have to meet. Never a source of dollar figures. Fetched and read .
The rules behind the thresholds
- Publication 561, Determining the Value of Donated PropertyIRS, IRS publication
- Publication 526, Charitable ContributionsIRS, IRS publication
- Instructions for Form 8283IRS, IRS form
A value is evidence, not a ruling. Deductibility depends on your own facts, including whether the organization is qualified and what records you kept. This is record-keeping software, not tax advice.
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Condition on the record
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