Global E-waste Statistics

Alex Barshai

August 13, 2025

Global e-waste statistics

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Annual e-waste generation: In 2022, the world generated 62 million tonnes of e-waste, averaging 7.8 kg per person, according to the Global E-waste Monitor 2024. This is an 82% surge from 34 million tonnes in 2010. By 2030, e-waste is expected to reach 82 million tonnes, a 32% increase, outpacing recycling efforts.⁽²⁾
E-waste recycling rate: In 2022, only 22.3% of the 62 million tonnes of e-waste generated globally was formally collected and recycled. At the moment, the recycling activities are not keeping pace with the global growth of e-waste.⁽²⁾
Value of the e-waste: In 2022, the raw materials in 62 million tonnes of e-waste were valued at USD 91 billion, with only USD 19 billion recovered through environmentally sound recycling, according to the Global E-waste Monitor 2024. This includes USD 19 billion in copper and USD 15 billion in gold, with precious metals like gold, silver, and palladium representing a significant portion of the unrecovered value⁽²⁾
E-waste compared to the total waste: In 2022, the world generated 62 million tonnes of e-waste, representing approximately 3.1% of the estimated 2 billion tonnes of total waste produced annually, according to the Global E-waste Monitor 2024. This increase from 53.6 million tonnes (2.7% in 2019) highlights the growing contribution of e-waste to global waste.⁽²⁾
E-waste is not the best waste for a landfill: Plastic in the e-waste can take up to 1 million years to decompose, while aluminum and other metals can take anywhere between 50 and 500 years to break down. Some components in the e-waste will pollute the environment rather than biodegrade. ⁽³⁾
Mobile phones are a significant source of e-waste: In 2022, small IT and telecommunication equipment, including mobile phones, contributed 5 million tonnes to the global e-waste stream. ⁽²⁾
E-waste manufacturing is very resource-hungry: It takes at least 240kg of fossil fuels, 22kg of chemicals, and 1.5 tonnes of water to manufacture a single computer and its screen according to a UN study. This is more than the weight of a car. ⁽¹⁵⁾
E-waste represents a significant opportunity for circular economies: With only 22.3% of e-waste formally recycled, the unrecovered precious metals and other resources highlight a massive untapped potential for sustainable recycling to unlock economic value and support a circular economy. ⁽²⁾

What is e-waste?

E-waste, also known as electronic waste, refers to discarded electrical or electronic devices. E-waste typically includes items such as computers, cell phones, televisions, and other electronic equipment that have reached the end of their useful life. Because many of these items contain materials that are hazardous to the environment and human health, it is important to properly dispose of e-waste to prevent it from polluting the air, water, and soil.

What are the types of e-waste?

E-waste is categorized into six general types based on 54 Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) product categories, defined by their waste management characteristics. These include:

Temperature Exchange Equipment: Devices like refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners, and heat pumps.
Screens and Monitors: Televisions, monitors, laptops, and tablets, excluding small screens like mobile phones.
Lamps: Fluorescent, LED, and high-intensity discharge lamps, excluding light fixtures.
Large Equipment: Household and professional appliances with at least one dimension over 50 cm, such as washing machines and large printers, excluding photovoltaic panels.
Small Equipment: Household and consumer devices under 50 cm, such as microwaves, toasters, and small medical devices.
Small IT and Telecommunication Equipment: IT and communication devices under 50 cm, including mobile phones, personal computers, and routers. These categories guide recycling efforts to recover valuable materials like copper and gold.

Which metals are found in e-waste?

EEE may contain up to 69 elements from the periodic table including precious metals like gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and many others. A large part of the e-waste is critical raw metals like cobalt, indium, germanium, bismuth, and antimony, as well as non-critical metals like aluminum and iron.

For example, the concentration of gold in mobile phones and personal computers can be relatively high, reaching 140 grams per ton of e-waste. ⁽²⁾

What are the most common e-waste items?

In 2022, the majority of e-waste, approximately 32% or 20 million tonnes, comprised small equipment such as vacuum cleaners, microwaves, toasters, electric kettles, video cameras, radio sets, electrical tools, small medical devices, and monitoring equipment. The runner-up, about 24% or 15 million tonnes, was from large equipment, including items like washing machines, dryers, and stoves, but excluding photovoltaic panels, highlighting the significant contribution of these categories to the global e-waste stream.⁽²⁾

What percentage of total waste is e-waste?

E-waste represents approximately 2.7% of the estimated 2.3 billion tonnes of total municipal solid waste generated globally each year.

In 2022, 62 million tonnes of e-waste were generated, underscoring its notable share of the global waste stream and the urgent need for improved recycling to recover valuable materials and mitigate environmental impacts. ^(2,18)

E-waste Regional Overview

Which country generates the most e-waste?

In 2022, China generated 12 million tonnes of e-waste, making it the largest contributor to global electronic waste, accounting for approximately 19.4% of the world’s 62 million tonnes.

The reasons for that are the concentration of EEE manufacturing in the country, as well as the large domestic population which creates a lot of local demand for electronics.⁽²⁾

Which region is the largest contributor to e-waste?

In 2022, Asia generated the most e-waste, producing 30 million tonnes, followed by the Americas with 14.1 million tonnes and Europe with 13.1 million tonnes, according to the Global E-waste Monitor 2024.

While Asia contributes the largest absolute volume, accounting for 48.4% of the global 62 million tonnes, Europe ranks first in per capita e-waste generation at 17.6 kg, highlighting regional differences in electronics consumption and waste management challenges.⁽²⁾

What country has the lowest e-waste generation per capita?

African countries generate the least e-waste per capita globally. For example, Burundi produced only 0.6 kg of e-waste per person in 2022, according to the Global E-waste Monitor 2024. This low per capita generation, compared to the global average of 7.8 kg, reflects limited access to electronics and lower consumption rates in many African nations.⁽²⁾

Which country recycles the most e-waste?

In 2022, Germany likely recycled the most e-waste globally, with Europe recycling 6.0 million tonnes (46% of its 13.1 million tonnes), far exceeding other regions. Germany’s high recycling rate (61%, ~0.8 million tonnes) reflects robust legislation and infrastructure.

China, while a major e-waste generator, aims to recycle 50% of its e-waste and source 20% of raw materials for new electronics from recycled content by 2025, highlighting its growing efforts in e-waste management.⁽²⁾

E-waste trends

Is electronic waste increasing?

Global e-waste increased by 17.6 million tonnes from 2014 to 2022, reaching 62 million tonnes, and is projected to grow to 82 million tonnes by 2030.

While formal recycling rose by 5.8 million tonnes from 2010 to 2022 (reaching 13.8 million tonnes), the annual e-waste generation rate (2.6 million tonnes) far outpaces the recycling rate (0.5 million tonnes), highlighting the urgent need for enhanced global recycling efforts.⁽²⁾

What is e-waste CAGR (Cumulative Annual Growth Rate)?

The growth of e-waste has been a growing concern in recent years, as the demand for electronic devices continues to increase and the lifespans of these products continue to decrease.

According to recent estimates, the market is projected to grow to about USD 145 Billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 13.2%.⁽⁷⁾

Why is e-waste growing so fast?

E-waste is growing rapidly due to economic growth, population increase, rapid urbanization, rising demand for consumer electronics, limited repair options, and short product lifecycles.

Global e-waste reached 62 million tonnes in 2022 and is projected to grow to 82 million tonnes by 2030, an 84% increase from 44.4 million tonnes in 2014, underscoring the need for enhanced recycling and sustainable design to manage this escalating waste stream.⁽²⁾

What is the fastest-growing e-waste stream?

Temperature exchange equipment e-waste is growing at the fastest rate (7% per year on average), followed by large equipment (5% per year on average), and lamps and small equipment (4% per year on average).

This growth is attributed to the economic development of lower-income countries and increased consumption of household items. ⁽²⁾

What is the fastest growing e-waste stream?

E-waste and its effects on the Environment

Why is e-waste causing pollution and why is it a huge problem?

E-waste causes significant pollution due to toxic substances like mercury, brominated flame retardants (BFRs), and refrigerants (CFCs, HCFCs), which pose serious risks to human health and the environment when improperly handled.

In 2022, 45 tonnes of mercury and 79 kilotonnes of BFR plastics were found in undocumented e-waste flows globally, while improperly discarded refrigerators and air conditioners released 0.19 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions.⁽²⁾

How toxic is e-waste?

E-waste is highly toxic due to hazardous substances like heavy metals (mercury, cadmium, lead), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), and brominated flame retardants (BFRs)

Some of the contaminants in e-waste pose serious health risks and can be responsible for kidney damage, and skin disorders, and affect the nervous and immune systems. ⁽²⁾

How does e-waste affect global warming?

Improper e-waste management contributes to global warming, with temperature exchange equipment like refrigerators and air conditioners releasing 0.19 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions in 2022 due to refrigerant leaks during improper disposal.⁽²⁾

What percentage of e-waste ends up in landfills?

In 2022, 78% of global e-waste (48.2 million tonnes of 62 million tonnes) was not formally collected or recycled, with significant amounts ending up in landfills or illegal dumping sites, particularly in regions like Central Asia.⁽²⁾

What percent of e-waste ends up in landfills_

E-waste recycling

Recycling e-waste is important for several reasons. One of the primary reasons is that electronic devices often contain a variety of materials, including metals, plastics, and glass, which can be recovered and used to manufacture new products. This not only reduces the need to extract and process raw materials but also reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfills.

In addition to the environmental benefits of recycling e-waste, there is also a significant monetary value to be gained from recovering and recycling these materials. For example, the metals in electronic devices can be recovered and sold to metal recyclers, who can then use them to manufacture new products.

Similarly, the plastics and other materials in electronic devices can be recovered and used to make new products, which can generate revenue for recyclers and manufacturers.

Overall, recycling e-waste is important for both environmental and economic reasons. By recovering and recycling materials from electronic devices, we can reduce waste, conserve natural resources, and generate revenue from the sale of recovered materials.

What metals can be recovered from e-waste?

A wide variety of base and precious metals can be recovered from e-waste including:

Ferrous metals: Iron

Base metals: Copper, Tin, Lead, Nickel, Aluminum, Zinc

Precious metals: Iridium, Rhenium, Ruthenium, Rhodium, Palladium, Osmium, Platinum, Silver, and Gold

Rare-earth metals: Neodymium, Europium, Terbium, and other rare earth metals

Many other elements and metals can be found and recycled from e-waste: Lithium, Silicon, Cadmium, Tellurium, Titanium, Molybdenum, and some others.

Why is e-waste recycling so difficult?

There are a few reasons why e-waste recycling is so difficult.

E-waste recycling is very costly. The consumer products are not designed nor assembled with recycling principles in mind which brings complexity to the recycling process.

Recycling of e-waste is a very complicated process from a technical standpoint, requiring multiple steps of shredding, separation of plastic and metals, hydro and/or pyro metallurgical steps for metal recovery, and many other technological know-how.

On the other hand, a large amount of precious and base metals makes it worthwhile to invest in the recycling process design. For example, it is estimated that there are 140 grams of Gold in one ton of mobile phone e-waste.⁽¹⁹⁾

Technologies for effective e-waste recycling

Several technologies are commonly used for effective e-waste recycling. These include:

Physical separation techniques: Physical separation techniques are used to separate different materials in e-waste, such as metals, plastics, and glass. These techniques can include shredding, grinding, or crushing the e-waste to make it easier to sort and separate the different materials.
Pyrometallurgical processes: Uses heat to separate the different materials in e-waste. For example, a technique called smelting uses high temperatures to melt metals, which can then be separated and recovered.
Chemical separation techniques: Chemical separation techniques use chemical reactions to separate the different materials in e-waste. For example, a common technique called hydrometallurgy uses a solution of water and chemicals to dissolve metals, which can then be electrowon as a high-purity metal cathode.

We prepared a detailed blog on precious metals recovery from e-waste and highly recommend you read it.

The role of e-waste in the circular economy

In a circular economy, e-waste is seen as a valuable resource that can be recovered and recycled. This is because many of the materials used to make electronic devices can be recovered and used again in the production of new products. By recycling e-waste in a circular economy, we can reduce the need for mining and other forms of resource extraction, which can help to conserve the environment and reduce pollution.

Gold

In 2023, ~75% of the global gold supply (3,100 metric tons of ~4,136 tons) came from mining, with ~25% (1,036 tons) from recycling.⁽⁸⁾

Of recycled gold, ~90% originates from jewelry, and ~10% (~100–150 metric tons) from e-waste, per industry estimates.

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Silver

In 2024, global silver production included ~25,500 tonnes from mining and ~6,000 tonnes from recycling, with recycled silver sourced from industrial scrap, jewelry, silverware, and photography.⁽⁹⁾ Silver from electronic waste contributed ~1,000–1,200 tonnes of recycled metal, with growth expected as e-waste volumes rise from 62 million tonnes in 2022 to 82 million tonnes by 2030.⁽²⁾

Copper

About 23 million tonnes of copper are mined on an annual basis worldwide. Copper is one of the most recycled metals as close to 9 million tonnes every year are recovered from end-of-life scrap and scrap generated during the industrial production processes. On average 35% of all copper in use was sourced through recycling. ⁽¹⁰⁾

Palladium

Global palladium demand (~290 tonnes in 2024) exceeds supply, with ~190 tonnes mined and ~90–100 tonnes recycled, mostly from catalytic converters. Approximately 80% of palladium is used in auto exhaust systems, driving recycling due to a ~40-tonne deficit. ⁽¹³⁾

What are the main systems and legislation for e-waste management?

Most of the electronic waste can and should be recycled. E-waste contains materials and metals that can be reused and given a second life.

Some of the ways to increase the recycling rates of e-waste are:

Establish a clear legal framework for e-waste collection and recycling
Introduce extended producer responsibility to ensure producers finance the collection and recycling of e-waste
Enforce legislation for all stakeholders, and strengthen monitoring and compliance mechanisms
Create favorable investment conditions for experienced recyclers to bring the required technical expertise to the country
Create awareness of the environmental benefits of recycling among consumers. (Magalini et al. 2016)

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