Short answer: there is no single raddi rate per kg in Mumbai. Every kind of paper is its own grade, and newspapers, books, cartons, magazines and office paper are each priced separately. The rate also moves with what paper mills are paying that week, and with how dry, clean and sorted your raddi is. The honest way to know your price is to ask before pickup, with a photo, and then watch it being weighed on a digital scale.
- How the raddi rate per kg is actually set
- Newspapers, books, cartons, magazines and office paper compared
- Six things that raise or lower your rate
- Why weighing matters as much as the rate
- Where your raddi goes after pickup
- How to sell raddi at home in Mumbai or Thane before Diwali
Raddi rate per kg in Mumbai: how the price is set
Raddi doesn’t stay with the raddiwala. It moves up a chain: from your home to a local buyer, then to a bigger godown that sorts and bales it, and finally to a paper mill that pulps it into new paper or cardboard. Each step pays the one before it, so the rate you get at your door depends on what mills are paying at the top.
That is why the rate changes. When mills have plenty of imported waste paper, they pay less for local raddi. When imports are expensive or demand for packaging is high, local raddi is worth more. None of this is visible from your living room, which is how a “rate” can be quoted to you that has little to do with the market.
India’s paper industry depends heavily on recycled paper. According to the Indian Paper Manufacturers Association, about 75% of the paper made in India now comes from recovered paper, and the country still imports about 7 million tonnes of recovered paper a year to feed its mills.
Sources: Waste & Recycling, “India’s Recovered Fibre Sector Requires Reforms To Reach Full Potential”, 9 January 2026; Centre for Science and Environment, “Improving Wastepaper Circularity for the Pulp and Paper Sector”, December 2023.
The same report quotes the association’s general secretary on why every kilo of local raddi counts:
“India continues to be a fibre deficient country.”Rohit Pandit, General Secretary, Indian Paper Manufacturers Association, in Waste & Recycling, 9 January 2026
In plain terms: your old newspapers are a raw material that mills need. CSE estimates Europe recovers about 70% of its waste paper and Japan about 80%, against India’s 57%. The paper that isn’t recovered ends up burnt, dumped, or used once more as wrapping before it’s lost.
Newspapers, books, cartons and office paper compared
A buyer looks at what kind of paper it is, because each kind goes to a different mill. Here’s how the common types in a Mumbai home are treated:
| Type of raddi | What it includes | What helps the rate | What hurts the rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newspapers | English, Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati dailies, any age | Kept dry, folded flat, in their own pile | Mixed with flyers, plastic covers or damp sheets |
| Books and notebooks | Old textbooks, guides, notebooks, diaries | Sorted together, loose pages bundled | Hard plastic covers, spiral wire left on |
| Cartons and boxes | Delivery boxes, appliance cartons, shoe boxes | Flattened, plastic tape pulled off | Thermocol inside, wet or oil-stained board |
| Magazines | Glossy magazines, catalogues, brochures | Kept separate from newspapers | Mixed into the newspaper pile |
| Office paper and files | Printouts, old records, file folders | Metal clips and plastic sleeves removed | Lamination, carbon paper, binding strips |
| Calendars and mixed paper | Old calendars, wrapping paper, paper bags | Clean and dry | Food stains, foil, glitter |
The raddi and paper pickup page lists every paper type we take this Diwali. All of them are bought by weight. As a rule of thumb, newspapers usually fetch more than mixed paper, which is why it pays to keep them in their own pile.
Six things that raise or lower your raddi rate
1. The type of paper
Newspaper, book paper, cardboard and glossy magazine paper are different raw materials for a mill. If everything goes on the scale in one heap, the whole lot is likely to be paid as mixed paper.
2. Dry or damp
This one matters more in Mumbai than most cities. Paper stacked on a balcony through the monsoon, or in a bathroom loft, soaks up moisture. Damp paper weighs more, but buyers know it, and it’s worth less. Keep raddi off the floor, in a dry cupboard or on a shelf.
3. Sorted or mixed
Ten minutes of sorting into newspapers, books, cartons and “everything else” makes the weighing clearer for you and the price fairer. If you haven’t sorted, we’ll do it on the spot, but you’ll see exactly which pile each item went into.
4. What’s stuck to it
Plastic tape on cartons, plastic sleeves on files, spiral wire in notebooks and thermocol inside boxes are all contamination for a paper mill. Pull off what comes off easily.
5. The scale
A hand scale read as “approx” can lose you kilos on a big pile, and that loss is bigger than any difference in rate. Ask for a digital scale and read the number yourself.
6. That week’s market
Paper rates follow mill demand and import prices. Our live scrap rates page shows daily metal rates; paper, like iron, steel and plastic, is quoted on request because it depends on the grade and the week. So ask for the rate before pickup, not after the bundle is already on the scale.
This Hindi report by Ajit Anjum visits a paper mill in Muzaffarnagar and shows what happens to raddi once it’s sold, from bales to new paper:
Video: Ajit Anjum, “Muzaffarnagar की इस मिल को देखकर मैं तो चकरा गया, रद्दी से ऐसे बनता है पेपर” (Hindi).
Why the weighing matters as much as the rate
People compare raddi rates, but the bigger difference is usually in the weight. A rate that sounds a little higher means nothing if the scale is read short. Three things to watch, whoever you sell to:
- Digital scale, zeroed in front of you. The display should read 0.0 before the first bundle goes on.
- Each type weighed separately. Newspapers, books and cartons each get their own reading, so you can check each line.
- Payment before the bundles leave. Cash or UPI, counted at your door, not “we’ll send it later”.
Here’s how our raddi pickup in Mumbai compares with the usual arrangement:
| Usual raddiwala | National Recycling | |
|---|---|---|
| Scale | Hand scale, often “approx” | Digital scale, in front of you |
| Rate | Whatever is offered on the day | Better than local rates, told before we come |
| Payment | After bargaining | Cash or UPI before we leave |
| Old records | Resold as-is | Shredded on request |
| Proof | None | Certificate for every pickup |
Old files and documents: don’t sell them as-is
Bank statements, old cheque books, salary slips, property papers and office records carry personal details. A normal raddi bundle is resold and handled by several people before it reaches a mill. If you have papers like these, tell us when you book and we’ll shred them. For an office clear-out with files, IT and furniture together, see office Diwali clean-up.
Where your raddi goes after pickup
Paper that’s collected dry and sorted goes back to mills as raw material for new newspaper, writing paper and, more and more, packaging board. Cartons are the clearest example: the delivery box from this year’s Diwali sale can come back as next year’s box.
This video from Asian Process X shows a large-scale plant turning waste paper into new carton board, which is where a lot of household cartons end up:
Video: Asian Process X, “Incredible Process | How They Recycle Tons of Waste Paper into Massive Cardboard Carton Boxes”.
Clean sorting at home is what makes this work. The same report on India’s recovered fibre sector puts it simply: Improved segregation at the source is crucial
(Ravendra Veer Singh, founder of PaperTio).
Getting the best raddi rate before Diwali
- Start a week early. Pull out old newspapers, school books and cartons from lofts and under beds, and let anything damp dry in the sun.
- Make four piles: newspapers, books and notebooks, cartons, and everything else.
- Flatten every box and pull off plastic tape and thermocol.
- Keep personal documents aside for shredding.
- Send one photo on WhatsApp of the piles with your area, and get the rate before anyone comes.
- Add the rest of the house to the same pickup. Old brass and copper utensils, a dead fridge or AC, and e-waste can all go together. Our Diwali cleaning guide covers what to sell, recycle or throw room by room, and yesterday’s post on the old AC scrap price explains how appliances are valued.
Customers say the same thing about the experience:
“Their team responded quickly, arrived on schedule and collected all the e-waste”Suchi P, Google review of National Recycling
How to sell raddi at home in Mumbai or Thane
- Send a photo on WhatsApp of your raddi with your area. We reply with the rate before we come.
- Pick a slot. Book by 4 November for a pickup before Dhanteras (Friday, 6 November). Lakshmi Puja is on Sunday, 8 November 2026.
- We carry it down from any floor, sorting on the spot if needed.
- Weighed and paid in front of you. Digital scale, cash or UPI before we leave, and a certificate for every pickup.
Running a collection for your whole building? A housing society Diwali drive weighs and pays each flat separately. Everything we pick up this season is on the Diwali scrap pickup page.
Sell your raddi this Diwali
Free doorstep pickup across Mumbai and Thane. Better rates than your local kabadiwala, weighed on a digital scale in front of you, cash or UPI before we leave.
Book pickup on WhatsAppSee everything we pick upOrganising for the whole building? Our step-by-step guide to a housing society e-waste collection drive covers the notice, drive day and payment to every flat.
Frequently asked questions
What is the raddi rate per kg in Mumbai today?
It depends on the type of paper and that week’s market. Newspapers, books, cartons, magazines and office paper are priced separately, and dry, sorted paper gets a better rate. Send a photo on WhatsApp and we’ll tell you the rate before we come.
Why do raddi rates keep changing?
Raddi is a raw material for paper mills. Its price follows what mills pay, which moves with demand for paper and packaging and with the price of imported waste paper.
Do newspapers get a better rate than mixed paper?
Usually, yes. Newspapers kept dry and in their own pile generally fetch more than mixed paper, so sort them before pickup.
Do you buy old books, notebooks and cartons?
Yes. Old textbooks, guides, notebooks, diaries, cartons and boxes are all bought by weight. Flatten cartons and remove plastic tape where you can.
Can you shred old documents?
Yes. Tell us when you book and we’ll shred old files and records instead of selling them on as-is.
When should I book a raddi pickup before Diwali?
Book by 4 November 2026 for a pickup before Dhanteras on 6 November. Lakshmi Puja is on 8 November, and slots fill up in the last week.
Sources
- Waste & Recycling: India’s Recovered Fibre Sector Requires Reforms To Reach Full Potential (9 January 2026)
- Centre for Science and Environment: Improving Wastepaper Circularity for the Pulp and Paper Sector (December 2023)
- National Recycling: live scrap rates
- Ajit Anjum: raddi se aise banta hai paper, Muzaffarnagar paper mill (video, Hindi)
- Asian Process X: How They Recycle Tons of Waste Paper into Massive Cardboard Carton Boxes (video)