Clean, crack-free HDPE with little stress-whitening earns the most; swelling or splits lower or void an offer.
We buy totes
Turn empty totes into cash.
Empty IBCs are an asset, not clutter. Sell your clean, sound totes to IBC Boston — we quote fast by email and pick up across New England.
Request a quote
Get a buy-back quote
Tell us quantity, size, and what the totes last held. We'll send a per-tote offer by email.
Answer first
We pay for totes worth keeping in service.
The cleaner the bottle, the sounder the cage, and the better-documented the prior contents, the more your totes are worth. Every tote we buy is one that gets reconditioned and reused — instead of a new one being manufactured from virgin plastic and steel.
We happily buy
- ✓ Clean, fully emptied 275 & 330-gallon totes
- ✓ Sound HDPE bottles — no cracks, deep gouges, or heavy stress-whitening
- ✓ Intact steel cages and pallets (minor wear is fine)
- ✓ Documented prior contents (food-grade history is worth more)
- ✓ Quantities from a single tote to full truckloads
We can't accept
- ✕ Totes that held hazardous, toxic, or unknown chemistry
- ✕ Bottles with leaks, splits, or chemical swelling
- ✕ Pesticide, fuel, or acid residues we can't safely process
- ✕ Crushed or structurally failed cages with no salvage value
How it works
Four steps, zero phone calls.
Send the details
Use the form with quantity, size, prior contents, and your location. Photos help but aren't required.
Get an email quote
We assess condition and history and reply with a per-tote offer — no phone calls, ever.
Schedule pickup
Approve the quote and we arrange collection from your site anywhere in New England.
Get paid
Totes are inspected on arrival and payment is issued per the agreed terms.
NE
Pickup across all of New England from our Somerville hub.
1+
We buy from a single tote up to full truckloads.
~60 kg
CO₂e avoided every time a tote is reused instead of replaced.
Email
Quotes and scheduling handled entirely in writing.
What affects your offer
Six things that move the number up or down.
There's no mystery to our pricing — a few clear factors decide what a tote is worth to us. The more of these you can tell us up front, the tighter and faster your quote comes back.
Documented food-grade history is worth more than industrial; unknown or hazardous chemistry we can't accept at all.
Intact, forkliftable steel and a sound base add value; crushed cages with no salvage subtract from it.
Full truckloads and sites near our routes carry better per-tote economics than scattered single units.
Working valves, caps and gaskets save us reconditioning time and lift your offer.
Sizes and grades we happen to be short on can command a premium that week.
Prep your totes
Five minutes of prep earns a better grade.
You don't need to recondition anything — that's our job. But a little prep before pickup speeds the count, lifts the grade, and gets you paid faster.
Fully empty & drain
Pour off all residual liquid — the cleaner and drier the bottle, the better the grade.
Rinse if you can
A quick rinse of food-safe prior contents helps; never rinse hazardous residue down a drain.
Leave caps & valves on
Keeping the original fittings closed protects the inside from contamination in transit.
Document the history
Note exactly what each tote last held — a label or product name speeds grading and quoting.
Group by size & grade
Sort 275s from 330s and food-history from industrial so pickup and counting go fast.
Who sells to us
If your totes pile up, we'll take them off your hands.
Food & beverage producers
Syrups, oils, juice concentrate and other edible bulk liquids — your empties grade out as Grade A.
Chemical & coatings distributors
Non-hazardous industrial liquids; tell us the chemistry and we'll confirm what we can take.
Farms & agricultural operations
Bulk inputs, feed additives and fertilizer totes ready for a second working life.
Manufacturers & co-packers
Process liquids and ingredient totes that pile up faster than you can use them.
Logistics & warehousing
Returned or surplus totes taking up valuable rack and floor space.
Car washes & cleaning services
Detergent and solution totes that are easy to empty, rinse and turn around.
Region & logistics
We dispatch from Somerville, MA and collect across all six New England states. Greater Boston pickups are quick and frequent; loads from Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine are scheduled per order and often consolidated with other stops to keep freight efficient. Once your totes arrive and pass inspection, the totes we buy go straight onto our reconditioning line and back into service as used stock.
Selling, not buying?
If you need totes instead, see what we sell or browse used totes. Need a hand moving them? That's transport & logistics.
Buy-back FAQ
Selling us your empties, answered.
How much do you pay for a used IBC tote?
It depends on condition, prior contents, size, quantity and your location. A clean, food-grade-history 275 with a sound cage is worth more than a stained industrial unit with a bent frame. Send the details and we'll reply with a per-tote offer in writing — no haggling by phone.
Do I have to clean the totes before you sell them to us?
Empty and drained is the minimum; a quick rinse of food-safe contents helps your grade. You don't need to fully recondition them — that's our job. Just never rinse hazardous residue down a drain, and tell us exactly what each tote last held.
Will you pick up a single tote, or only large lots?
Both. We buy from a single tote up to full truckloads. Single units and small lots near our routes are easy; larger volumes anywhere in New England are scheduled and often consolidated with other stops.
What totes can't you buy?
Anything that held hazardous, toxic, or unknown chemistry, plus bottles with leaks, splits or chemical swelling, and crushed cages with no salvage value. Pesticide, fuel and acid residues we can't safely process are also a no.
How quickly will I get an offer and get paid?
Offers usually come back within a business day of your form submission. Once you approve, we schedule pickup; totes are inspected on arrival and payment is issued per the agreed terms.
Do you buy totes outside Massachusetts?
Yes — we cover all six New England states from our Somerville hub. Greater Boston is fast and frequent; Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine are quoted per order and frequently combined with other runs.
Ready to clear out those empties?
Send the details and we'll turn your idle totes into a same-day offer. Prefer to buy instead? See what we sell.
Get my buy-back quote