Millions of people throw away unwanted Christmas presents, with two in five admitting to binning a gift in the past five years.

Britons chucked gifts worth £59 on average, according to a survey by Tesco Bank. The most commonly disposed of items were aftershave and bath bombs, followed by chocolate, clothes, mugs and candles. 

This is despite half of us supposedly wanting to have a more ethical and “greener” Christmas.

But instead of throwing presents away for good, there are ways of recycling unwanted gifts and other items that will leave you with a clearer conscience, as well as some extra money in your pocket. 

Here are five ways you can turn your recycling into cash. 

1. Sell old gifts 

There is a new gadget on sale every year which renders older technology obsolete. But if you are buying your children the latest phone or games console, you can offset some of the cost by trading in older devices or selling them on the second hand market. 

A digital edition of the PlayStation 5 is currently being restocked at retailers at a price point of £359.99, for example, but trading in a PlayStation 4 “Slim edition” cuts this price by just over £100 to £258.99, according to NetVoucherCodes.co.uk, a coupon site.

Old DSLR cameras are an ideal gadget to cash in and a Canon EOS 250D in good condition can be worth as much as £232, it said. 

2. Flog leftover litter 

Broken tiles, cups and saucers sell on artisanal crafts websites such as Etsy, particularly those with interesting or colourful patterns. They tend to be picked up by artists and crafty types, who use them for mosaics and other art pieces. 

You can even get cash for cardboard. On eBay, a bundle of 50 toilet paper rolls have been known to sell for £5, and a stack of 150 half-dozen egg boxes for around £13. Shoe boxes from sought-after designers such as Gucci have previously sold for £15 to £30.

3. Keep your corks 

Bundles of 50 used wine corks are listed on eBay for around £8 – enough for another bottle to start collecting all over again. These are often used by crafters and even pub owners or wedding planners who used them to make decorative features and table centre pieces. 

4. Turn in tree lights 

Metal scrap yards such as Argall Metal Recycling in Leyton, east London, will take your old wires, chargers, drain pipes, festive decorations and even old razors – anything from which you can extract metals such as aluminium, copper and steel. The electric motor of an average microwave or a bunch of 10 wires would earn you £3 to £5.

5. Recycling ink cartridges 

Websites such as Printercartridgerecycling.co.uk will exchange your printer cartridges for cash. It will pay up to £5 for an unused HP 62XL colour cartridge, for example, and £2.50 for it even if it has been used. As a bonus, they will come and collect them free of charge.