How much is a donated crib worth?
A crib is only worth something if a charity can legally and safely resell it, and that question is settled by its label rather than its finish.
- Typical value, good condition
- $65
- Published range, good condition
- $55 to $80
What a donated crib 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crib, With Mattress | $80 to $105 | $55 to $80 | $26 to $55 | Source 1 for Crib, With Mattress |
| Crib, Without Mattress | No guide prices this one. Enter your own figure and keep the evidence for it. | Source 4 for Crib, Without Mattress | ||
| Crib Mattress | No guide prices this one. Enter your own figure and keep the evidence for it. | Source 4 for Crib Mattress | ||
| Bassinet or Cradle | No guide prices this one. Enter your own figure and keep the evidence for it. | Source 4 for Bassinet or Cradle | ||
| High Chair | $39 to $50 | $25 to $39 | $10 to $25 | Source 1 for High Chair |
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.
How this range was derived
Published: Salvation Army "Crib (w/mattress)" $26.00-$104.00. Single primary source. L*=$26.00 H*=$104.00; tiers split at 35%/70% of span per CITATIONS.md 3.4-3.6. The published row explicitly includes the mattress, so it backs this variant only. Considered and excluded: St. Vincent de Paul Cincinnati prints "Bed (Baby)" $45-$100 under Furniture, a registered primary. It is unqualified as to the mattress and ambiguous between a crib, a bassinet and a toddler bed, so merging it with a row that explicitly includes the mattress would cross granularity (CITATIONS.md 3.2). If a reviewer rules the two rows denote the same item, |P| becomes 2 and this leaf re-derives to L*=$26 H*=$100 (fair $26-$50, good $50-$80, like new $80-$100) and loses the singleSource flag. CORROBORATION 2026-08-04 (derivation pass, no values changed): hope-village "Crib (w/ Mattress)" $25.00-$75.00, an independent Deep South figure differing from The Salvation Army's row at both ends. Corroborating, so per 3.3 it does not enter the consolidation. AUDIT 2026-08-04 (adversarial verification pass, no values changed): smbiz-valuation-guide-charitable-contributions prints "Crib (w/mattress)" $30.00-$120.00 as a Low / High / Average triplet, and per CITATIONS.md 3.1 a three-point quality row yields the outer pair. It was fetched and read on this pass (HTTP 200, 11,999 bytes) and is now recorded in sourceIds; it is registered corroborating, so per 3.3 it does not enter the L*/H* consolidation and the published range above is unchanged. It is recorded because the leaf previously cited fewer publishers than actually print a matching row.
- Like new
- Unworn or barely used, with tags or as good as. The top of the published range.
- Good
- Used, complete, clean, and working, with no notable damage. The middle of the range.
- Fair
- Visible wear but still usable and saleable. The bottom of the range, and generally the lowest condition that can be claimed at all.
What drives the value of a donated crib
The tier you pick is the biggest lever on this page. Here is what actually decides it.
The standard the crib was built to comes first. Drop-side cribs are no longer manufactured or sold under current federal crib standards, and charities generally will not accept one at any condition, which means it has no fair market value to claim. The same applies to any crib under an open recall. Both are answered by the model number and date of manufacture on the label, usually stamped on an end panel or a rail, and both are worth checking before the crib is dismantled.
Hardware is the next thing, and it is where most donated cribs fail. Cribs are assembled with model-specific bolts, barrel nuts, and mattress-support brackets that are not interchangeable and often not replaceable, so a crib donated without its complete hardware bag cannot be reassembled and cannot be sold. The assembly instructions are nearly as important, and printing a copy to tape to the rail is a genuine value-preserving step.
After that it is the wood and the parts that make it a bed. Slats must all be present and firm, the mattress support must sit level and lock, and rails should be free of splits and of the teething damage that appears on the top rail of the front side. Whether the mattress comes with it matters: our sources price a crib with a mattress and publish no range for a crib without one, for a crib mattress alone, or for a bassinet, since used infant mattresses are frequently refused for hygiene reasons.
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.
Before dismantling, photograph the crib assembled, the model and date label close enough to read, and the hardware laid out on a cloth. Bag the hardware and tape it to a rail with the instructions. Record the recall and standards check with the date you made it. If the crib turns out to be a drop-side model or is recalled, dismantle it and dispose of it rather than passing it on, and claim nothing for it.
Like new generally means recent, compliant, complete with hardware, instructions, and an unstained mattress. Good means used and sound, all hardware present, finish worn at the rail. Fair means it is compliant and complete but the finish is marked or a teething rail is chewed. Missing hardware, a split slat, an unknown model, a drop-side design, or an open recall all mean it should not be donated rather than donated cheaply.
Items people log as a crib by mistake
Filing an item under the wrong line is the quietest way to end up with a number you cannot support.
Bassinet or cradle
A different product with a short useful life and no published range in our sources. Weight limits and stability standards apply to it rather than crib standards, and many charities decline used ones.
Crib mattress on its own
Also unpriced by our sources, and often refused outright for hygiene reasons. The priced row on this page is a crib with its mattress, so listing the mattress again would count it twice.
Toddler bed and nursery dressers
A convertible crib used as a toddler bed still sits on the crib row, but a changing table or a nursery dresser is furniture and is valued in the furniture section instead.
Up, sideways, and out
Every value on this page comes out of the baby gear section of the donation value guide, which shows the rest of the category with the same sourcing.
- ValuesBaby gear donation valuesThe whole category, item by item, with the published range and the source behind every line.
- ValuesWhat is a donated stroller worth?Donation values for strollers by condition, why a travel system carries no published range, and the safety checks to make before any baby gear leaves the house.
- ValuesHow much is a donated pair of jeans worth?What a donated pair of jeans is generally worth, why denim is priced above other pants, and how to tell like new from good on a pair you actually wore.
- ValuesWhat is a donated winter coat worth for taxes?Fair market value for a donated winter coat, why a coat and a jacket are priced on different lines, and what evidence supports the condition you claim.
- ValuesHow much can you deduct for a donated T-shirt?What a donated T-shirt is generally worth, how it differs from a blouse or a sweatshirt in the published guides, and when a tee is too worn to claim.
- 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 crib
Will a charity take a used crib?
Does the mattress count as a separate item?
What about a drop-side crib?
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 .
- Donation Value Guide
Hope Village for Children (Hope Village Thrift Store, Meridian, Mississippi)
Corroborating check. Used to sanity-check a band. Never moves a figure on its own. Fetched and read .
- Valuation Guide for Charitable Contributions
Small Business Taxes & Management (A/N Group, Inc.), ISSN 1089-1536
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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