can you compost greeting cards?
brown · carbon paper & cardboard
Yes, but plain paper cards only — glitter, foil stamping, ribbon, and battery sound modules all disqualify a card.
breaks down in 2–4 months torn into pieces
C:N ≈ 300:1
which bins can take it?
- hot pile yes
- cold pile yes
- worm bin caution
- bokashi no
- tumbler yes
- curbside caution
- worm bin: Torn plain sections work as bedding; keep foil, glitter, and glued seams out.
- curbside: Send only undecorated cards — glitter and foil end up as contamination in finished municipal compost.
why?
A basic greeting card is uncoated cardstock, which breaks down like thin cardboard once torn and wetted. The card aisle's decorations are the real problem: glitter is loose PET plastic, foil accents are metallized film, and musical cards hide a button-cell battery that has no business near soil. Photo-printed cards ride on resin-coated stock that also resists decay.
how to prep it
- Tear off and trash any glittered, foiled, or photo-printed panels
- Remove ribbons, bows, and batteries from musical cards
- Tear the plain remainder into pieces
watch out for
- Glitter doesn't stay put — one glittered card shed into a pile spreads plastic flecks through the whole batch.
- Musical cards contain a lithium button cell; pull it for battery recycling, never the pile or the trash.
quick answers
Can I compost the envelope that came with the card?
Usually yes — plain paper envelopes compost fine, gum adhesive included. Colored linings are fine too; only foil-lined or padded envelopes need to stay out of the pile.