I have always loved shopping for home décor, furniture, and kitchen items at thrift stores, antique stores, flea markets, auctions, and estate sales. The idea that you can find really nice, rare, unique, vintage, antique, well-made, and/or expensive items for a fraction of their original price has always been so much fun for me. These items have so much character. I am happy to spend hours in a single store or sale. I have purchased several really fun antique and vintage items for our home from local thrift stores. With the recent creation of my Etsy shop, I wanted to expand my options for sourcing items for my shop. So, I decided to venture to all of the major thrift stores within a 20-mile radius of downtown Cleveland. Here is my ranked list of the major Cleveland thrift stores.
I decided to rate each store based on my personal experiences. Please note that I shop exclusively for housewares and furniture and cannot provide any information about other areas in the store such as clothing or shoes. My ratings are based on a few factors: selection of items/size of store, quality of items, pricing, and cleanliness. I rated each store on a scale of zero to five below.
Before you go
In order to get the best deals, I strongly encourage you to follow the major thrift stores on social media. I follow The Salvation Army Family Stores – Cleveland, Goodwill Industries of Greater Cleveland and East Central Ohio, Inc., Value World, and Savers on Facebook. I am also signed up for the Goodwill and Value World emails. This way I am sure to be notified of any sales or discounts offered at these stores.
A few times each year the Salvation Army stores in Cleveland have a 50% off of everything sale. Value World offers a similar promotion which seems to be a bit more frequent. Goodwill ran the most adorable promotion this Easter- they hid promotional eggs around the stores with coupons in them. My sister and I had a blast looking for the eggs at our local store!
Major thrift store chains in the Cleveland area
Although there are several smaller, independent thrift stores in the Cleveland area, I have not yet had an opportunity to visit them. I will update my list below once I have the opportunity to do so. Each of the major thrift store chains in the area (Goodwill, Savers, Value World, and Salvation Army) tend to offer rotating discounts. Typically, each week they identify a specific colored price tag to offer at 50% off. Note that Savers does not have a discounted tag color on Sundays. The one Volunteers of America Store I visited had three discounted tag colors; one for 25% off, one for 50% off, and one for 75% off. Always try to find out which tag color is on sale before you begin your shopping. This information is typically posted at the front of the store.
Thrift Store Rankings (from lowest to highest)
12. Strongsville Salvation Army
8623 Pearl Rd, Strongsville, OH 44136
Rating: 1.5
This Salvation Army store was very small and did not have a good selection of home and décor items. When I visited, I arrived a little after 4pm and was reminded repeatedly by the staff that the store closed at 5pm. I was not impressed with the prices. I doubt I would return to this store. Their hours are Monday through Friday 10am – 6pm and Saturday 10am – 5pm. They had donation hours listed separately as 10am – 3pm.
11. Brookpark Savers
7100 Brookpark Rd, Cleveland, OH 44129
Rating: 2.0
This store was very picked-over and the shelves were largely bare. Partially empty shelves seemed to be an issue at all of the Savers locations that I visited. And, like the other Savers that I visited, I felt that their prices were higher on average than the prices at the other thrift stores. I was not able to find any items with the discounted tag color. Their hours are Monday 9am – 8pm, Tuesday through Saturday 10am – 8pm, and Sunday 10am – 7pm.
10. North Olmsted Volunteers of America
27240 Lorain Rd, North Olmsted, OH 44070
Rating: 2.5
This store was large and well-organized. They had a really extensive selection of cool home decor and houseware items. However, I found that the prices were quite high. Most of the home decor and houseware items were priced with a wax pencil and it wasn’t clear if the different colored wax pencil colors corresponded to the price tag colors that were on sale. But even for those items in bags that had traditional price tags, I didn’t see any items with the discounted colored tags.
The most frustrating part of visiting this store was that I did not have service so I couldn’t look up items to check the age or pricing if I was unsure. As a result of this, I likely won’t return to this store. Their hours are Monday through Saturday 8am – 8pm and Sunday 11am – 6pm.
9. Rocky River Savers
21201 Center Ridge Rd, Rocky River, OH 44116
Rating: 3.0
This Savers felt brand new. It was very clean and quite large. It was also very busy. The shelves of home items were well organized but also somewhat sparse. This was true with most of the Saver’s locations that I visited. Their pricing felt a bit high to me and the color tag that was on sale was almost nonexistent. I didn’t buy anything at this store. They did have a decent selection of furniture. Their hours are Monday 9am-8pm, Tuesday through Saturday 10am-8pm, and Sunday 10am-7pm.
8. University Heights Goodwill
13908A Cedar Rd, University Heights, OH 44118
Rating: 3.0
This Goodwill has some of the highest prices in the Cleveland areas. Despite this, the shelves feel bare and picked-over. I have found a few items here, but leave empty-handed more often. The store is a decent size and moderately busy. Their hours are Monday through Saturday 9am – 8pm and Sunday 11am – 7pm.
7. North Randall Value World
4639 Northfield Rd, Cleveland, OH 44128
Rating: 3.5
This store is medium in size. It has a fair selection of items but isn’t as nice or big as the Lakewood Value World. The prices seemed fair and the store felt a bit disorganized and not too clean, but I did find a few treasures on my last visit here. Their hours are Monday through Saturday 10am – 9pm and Sunday 12pm – 6pm.
6. North Olmsted Goodwill
23100 Lorain Rd, North Olmsted, OH 44070
Rating: 4.0
This was a pretty standard Goodwill store. It was a bit small and quite crowded. I felt the pricing was pretty fair and purchased some cool pieces. They had a large selection of chairs on my most recent visit. This location also has a Wired Up section which has refurbished computers, laptops, monitors, and other equipment for sale. Their hours are Monday through Saturday 9am – 8pm and Sunday 11am – 7pm.
5. Brook Park Goodwill
14690 Snow Rd, Brook Park, OH 44142
Rating: 4.0
This Goodwill was a little bit on the smaller side. I thought that the prices were fair but there was a decent selection of items. I didn’t have any luck on my most recent visit, but I would definitely return. Their hours are Monday through Saturday 9am – 8pm and Sunday 11am – 7pm.
4. Pearl Road Goodwill
6880 Pearl Rd, Cleveland, OH 44130
Rating: 4.0
This was a pretty nice Goodwill. It was a decent size and they had a nice selection of interesting and higher quality items. The prices seemed fair and I found several items with the discounted colored tag. I found two items on my most recent visit: a vintage glass juicer and a vintage Anchor Hocking butter dish- both of which I am keeping for myself. Their hours weren’t posted, but I believe that they are the same as the other locations I visited: Monday through Saturday 9am – 8pm and Sunday 11am – 7pm.
3. Salvation Army Downtown
5005 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44103
Rating: 4.0
This store feels very old and haphazard and is oddly organized. However, because it is such a large store I never feel it is too crowded. I don’t usually have much luck with the standard home décor section in the very back of the store, but I did find an antique steamer trunk for my basement here once. This store typically has two colored price tags that are 50% off and one color that is 50 cents. This is usually posted on a sign at the entrance of the store. Make a point to look for this sign as this information does not appear to be marked anywhere inside the store. Their hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 am – 5pm.
If you are looking for nicer antique or vintage items, the boutique section at the front of the store is your best bet. These items have a different discount schedule from the rest of the store. Instead of colored tags, these items have dates on their tags. I was told that these items are reduced by 25% after one month, 50% after two months, and 75% after three months, but I could not find this information posted anywhere in the store. I find their prices to be pretty average.
On a previous visit, I was told about a ‘garage sale’ that occurs on Thursdays and Saturdays. From what I can glean, this is something similar to the bins at a Goodwill Outlet Store. On my most recent visit in March 2022 I was told that they are not having their garage sale because they do not currently have enough inventory.
2. Lakewood Value World
11900 Detroit Ave, Lakewood, OH 44107
Rating: 4.5
This store had a surprising amount of new merchandise and the store felt very full. It was well-organized and felt clean. However, only the clothes seem to go on sale with any regularity. The housewares don’t have colored tags- just prices written in wax pencil. I was told that home items only go on sale when they have special 50% off sales. So I signed up for their newsletter and found out that they were having a 50% off sale the following week. I returned and purchased some beautiful crystal pieces, an antique juicer, and some Fenton glass. Their prices seemed to be pretty average with a few items I felt were priced too high. Their hours are Monday through Saturday 10am – 9pm and Sunday 12pm – 6pm.
1. Lee Road Goodwill
4071 Lee Rd #110, Cleveland, OH 44128
Rating: 4.5
This Goodwill store is a decent size. It isn’t in the best part of town, but this is the thrift store that is located closest to my home and therefore is the one that I visit the most often. In general, this store is a bit of a mess. However, the prices are pretty good and I can usually find an item or two that I want that has the discounted tag color. I have found some really great items here- but like I said, I visit it the most often. As a result, I am somewhat partial to this store. Their hours are 10am – 6pm every day.
Other notes:
I was unfortunately unable to visit the Brooklyn Salvation Army at 6990 Biddulph Ave, Brooklyn, OH 44144. As was true for all of the Salvation Army stores I visited, the hours listed for this store online were incorrect. So, when I arrived just after 5pm they were already closed. I will plan to visit again on a future date so that I can determine the appropriate rating. Their hours are Monday through Friday 10am – 6pm and Saturday 10am – 5pm (despite what it says online).
Please note that the following thrift stores are no longer in business:
- The Goodwill located at 13719 Lorain Ave, Cleveland, OH 44111
- The Value World located at 6858 Pearl Rd, Middleburg Heights, OH 44130
- The Salvation Army Store located at 4633 Northfield Rd, North Randall, OH 44128
Conclusion
Overall, I tend to have the most luck and find the best prices at the local Goodwill stores. But I also love the Lakewood Value World and the Downtown Salvation Army Store. However, everyone has their own preferences when thrift shopping, so these rankings might not match up perfectly with your own. I hope you have some success identifying the stores that work best for you.
What is your favorite Cleveland-area thrift store? What smaller charity shops should I visit and include on my list above? Let me know in the comments!
If you enjoy thrifting, you should also consider visiting some estate sales. Estate sales are a thriving business in the Cleveland area. If you are new to estate sales, be sure to visit my post on tips for visiting your first estate sale. You might also enjoy my post on warehouse and clearance stores you didn’t know about.
I am so glad you visited us at Jack and Bax. If you haven’t already done so, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter (sign up available either on the right sidebar or at the bottom of the page). And please follow me on Instagram and Facebook so that you don’t miss any of my upcoming projects!
