FAQ

Catalog Choice is a service for people who wish to opt-out of catalogs and other kinds of paper junk mail. We're a non-profit organization unaffiliated with the marketing industry or any private company. We cannot and do not assist with product orders or sending out catalogs. If you are interested in receiving a particular catalog, please contact that merchant directly.

You can save frequently used names or addresses to your account by logging ing then clicking the "names" or "addresses" tab on the lower left of your dashboard. Then, click the "new name" or "new address" button to add a new name or address.

To set a saved name or address as your "primary," click the star icon next to a saved name or address. To edit a saved name or address, click the pencil icon next to the saved name or address. Note that it is not possible to edit your primary name or address, or a name or address which has already been used to submit an opt-out request.

To archive a saved name or address, click the folder icon next to the saved name or address. To return a saved name or address from your archive, click the "Names" or "Addresses" label at the top of the box of saved names or addresses, then click "archive" to view your archived names and addresses. Click the arrow icon to restore a name or address from your archive.

Log in to your account, then click “CANCEL A CATALOG” at the top of the screen. Enter the name of the catalog that you’d like to cancel, then click the name of that catalog in the search results. Click “OPT OUT OF THIS CATALOG” to begin your opt-out request; you will be taken to the Catalog Choice opt-out form, or redirected to the relevant page on the merchant’s website.

Mail addressed to 'Current Resident' is typically distributed to every mailbox in a specific area, rather than being mailed to you specifically. This means that the company in question may not have your individual name on their mailing list, and the USPS does not make it possible to opt out of this type of mailing. We suggest affixing a note to your mailbox asking your postal worker to not deliver mail that is not addressed to you personally. While they would not be required to honor this request, it is unfortunately the only solution available at this time.

It may take 6-8 weeks to stop receiving mail from a particular merchant after your opt-out request was processed.

However, there is unfortunately no law requiring companies to honor opt-out requests. That means that we depend on merchants' voluntary participation, and have virtually no control over how they handle your opt-out request after receiving it.

To help us identify non-compliant merchants so that we can reach out to them about cooperating with opt-out requests, you can indicate whether or not your opt-out request was honored. To do so, log in to your account, then click on that opt-out within the "history" section of your dashboard; then, click the thumbs up or thumbs down to indicate whether or not your opt-out request was honored.

Unfortunately, no current service has the capability to stop all of your incoming junk mail in one fell swoop, because there are many different kinds of mail coming from different sources.

You can get started submitting individual opt-out requests to merchants using Catalog Choice by logging in and clicking "Search for Companies" at the top of the screen to find a mailing that you would like to cancel. We also recommend that you register at DMA Choice, an industry-affiliated service that helps take your name off of prospecting lists, in tandem with our service.

No, our service is only applicable to catalogs and other kinds of paper junk mail.

Using Catalog Choice will help you terminate catalogs more quickly and easily than picking up the phone and calling each individual merchant on your own. We have over 9,000 titles in database, so our website provides merchant opt-out information in one convenient place.

As an environmental non-profit organization, we're passionate about working to protect natural resources and encouraging merchant compliance. Your participation in our service will help us track merchant compliance as well as calculate the aggregate amount of water, energy and trees that our members efforts have helped save!

The Customer Number or Source Code are numbers listed on a catalog mailing label, which merchants use to help identify you. You can find the Customer Number located in a blue box on the mailing label, or in the line above your name on the mailing label as a string of numbers that begin with the letter C.

You can find the Source Code located in a grey or yellow box on the mailing label.

If you cannot clearly identify a customer number or source code, simply leave this field blank, as many merchants do not require this information to process your opt-out request.

Contact us at support@catalogchoice.org, or by clicking "Contact Us" in the footer of this site.

You can use Catalog Choice for more than just terminating unwanted catalogs! We have over 9,000 titles in our database, some of which are charitable and political organizations.

Yes! We're thrilled to hear that you want to get your city or company involved in stopping their junk mail! We partner with numerous organizations to help them track their member activities and the resulting financial and environmental benefits.

Please email us at support@catalogchoice.org to begin the conversation about using Catalog Choice to help your organization reduce its junk mail.

To suggest a new title for our database, please click here to submit your request!

Note that we do not add hyperlocal or very small organization's publications to our database. We also do not list add political campaigns/candidates, which change every 2-4 years.

You can process opt-out requests on behalf of another person, such as a family member or the previous resident of your home, by entering their name in the opt-out form rather than your own.

Mail addressed to "Current Resident" or "Our Neighbor", rather than a specific person, is usually distributed by the USPS to every house in a given area. Therefore, the company responsible for that mail does not have your personal information, so it is not possible to submit an opt-out request directly to a company through our site.

According to the USPS, you can visit your local post office and fill out a form to opt-out of these kinds of mailings. You may also try attaching a small sign to your mailbox asking not to receive this type of mail; however, different mail carriers may or may not honor this request.

Please see our Privacy Policy for information about how we protect your personal information.

Our condolences for your loss. You can process opt-out requests on behalf of a deceased person through your own Catalog Choice profile by filling in that person's name on the opt-out form for a particular catalog.

We also recommend that you register this person with the Deceased Do Not Contact List maintained by the DMA.

Some merchants make it very difficult for you to opt-out of receiving mail from them, and a few do not accept requests from Catalog Choice - instead, they'll require that you submit your personal email address to complete your request.

Unfortunately, we have virtually no control over the manner in which merchants process their opt-out requests. We're constantly trying to work with merchants and encourage them to collect and process opt-out requests in a way that is easy and convenient for our members.

We want to thank you so much for considering making a donation to Catalog Choice! As a non-profit organization, we rely on the generosity of our members to be able to provide our service free of charge.

You can make a donation over the phone by calling us at 510-883-1055, or mailing a check to:

Catalog Choice/The Story of Stuff Project
1442 Walnut Street # 272
Berkeley, CA 94709

Again, we truly appreciate you considering making a donation to Catalog Choice! We couldn't do what we do without your help.

Catalog Choice/The Story of Stuff Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, EIN # 46-4334785. No goods or services were received in exchange for this gift and it is fully tax-deductible in the U.S.A.

We want to thank you so much for considering making a donation to Catalog Choice! As a non-profit organization, we rely on the generosity of our members to be able to provide our service free of charge.

If you were unable to complete your donation, here are a few things that may have caused the problem:

• Using a credit card other than a Visa, Mastercard or Discover.
• Not filling out all of your personal information in the online form before submitting it.

If you continue to experience problems with the online form, you can make a donation over the phone by calling us at 510-883-1055, or mailing a check to:

Catalog Choice/The Story of Stuff Project
1442 Walnut Street # 272
Berkeley, CA 94709

Again, we truly appreciate you considering making a donation to Catalog Choice! We couldn't do what we do without your help.

Catalog Choice/The Story of Stuff Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, EIN # 46-4334785. No goods or services were received in exchange for this gift and it is fully tax-deductible in the U.S.A.

We will happily refund any donation made in error, such as a duplicate donation, as long as you reach out to us within 2 business days.