Best environmentally-friendly phone accessories 2022

Technology and sustainability were mutually exclusive terms for quite a while, but these days, it’s much easier to combine green living with the best Android phones. These cases, chargers, and accessories are sustainably made, compostable, and/or made with renewable materials. Here are the most environmentally-friendly phone accessories you can buy for your smartphone today.

Table of Contents

Go green with these eco-friendly phone accessories

Nimble Eco-Friendly PowerKnit USB-C to USB-C Cable

OtterBox Symmetry and Symmetry Clear Series

Think inside the box

OtterBox started adding recycled materials to its cases in 2020, and while most series are 30-50% recycled, the Symmetry is a whopping 60% recycled plastics, meaning that you don’t have to sacrifice quality or protection just to get an eco-friendly product. OtterBox cases are available for most Samsung, Pixel, and OnePlus phones.

PopSockets PopGrip Plant

Pela Eco-Friendly Phone Cases

Nimble APOLLO Wireless Pad

Incipio Organicore Series

Nomad Base Station Hub Edition

Lifeproof Wake Series

CASETiFY Cases

Pela Grip

Kerf Wireless Charging Block

House of Marley Champion True Wireless Earbuds

Great for you, great for the planet

As a case fiend, I’m happy to see more environmentally friendly phone accessories beyond the traditional Pela Cases. OtterBox, Incipio, and Lifeproof are just a handful of the companies joining the sustainable accessory game: Tech21 has several series of Eco-friendly cases for the best Android phones from Samsung, Google, OnePlus, and more. Woodworking accessory makers like Carved and Kerf also crank out one-of-a-kind cases and even wireless chargers; I’ve had a Kerf wireless charger on my nightstand for years, and I adore it.

Finding sustainable chargers and cables is more difficult. Honestly, for cables, I’d just as soon you buy the most durable, long-lasting USB-C cable you can and take good care of it rather than try to find an inferior cable that uses recycled materials. The Nomad Wireless Charger uses some recycled materials for the exterior, but everything inside is shiny, new, and should last you years, which is the most important part of buying eco-friendly today: buy something that won’t end up in a landfill in a year or two, buy something worthwhile that will go the distance.

Other ways to be eco-friendly with your tech purchases

This will sound counter-productive, but if you can’t find an eco-friendly solution for all of your tech means, all is not lost. It simply means that you need to follow three other guiding principles when shopping for technology:

Don’t buy something new until the old one breaks. Do you want to reduce e-waste? Don’t buy tech you don’t need. I have a 20-by-20-by-8-inch drawer full of cables that I’ve acquired over the last 15 years, and I open that drawer maybe four times a year. If you already have a cable and it works, don’t buy a new one! This goes double for anything that needs to hold a charge, like Bluetooth headphones and power banks. These devices don’t like to be relegated to a shelf and left to rot, as their batteries will lose their charging capacity over time if left unused with full cells.
Don’t buy anything that uses micro-USB ever again. USB-C will last longer and will allow you to charge much more of your tech with one cable. Fewer cables mean fewer chargers and fewer things that need to be bought or thrown out. If it uses micro-USB or mini-USB, use your current one until it breaks, then buy one that uses USB-C instead.
Buy something that will last. As mentioned earlier, my Kerf Wireless Charging Block has lasted me a long time, longer than any other charger in my apartment. My favorite over-ear Bluetooth headphones have lasted me five years and counting. If you buy something durable and dependable, you can avoid having to replace it for as long as possible, limiting the e-waste you produce as well as saving you money.