What can you recycle? Find your recycling mistakes in this quiz.

What can go in my blue bin? The answer — and even the bin color — can be different from one neighborhood to the next, so we’ll try to help curb the confusion.

Most U.S. residents who have recycling at home can toss items such as cans, bottles, cardboard and old editions of The Washington Post together into one container.

That's called single-stream recycling, and while it is convenient for us, it means all those different materials have to be trucked away and sorted before they can go to a paper mill, a plastics recycler and so on. So far, so good.

This is the basic sorting process at the Manassas, Va., materials recovery facility. The types of equipment and the arrangement of the machines may be different in other places.

Pile of

recyclables

Drum

feeder

Pre sort

At many points in the process, human sorters watch the line and pull out items that shouldn't be there.

CARDBOARD

Cardboard

sorting

Paper, plastic and metal keeps going

Glass sorting

Glass

Paper

sorting

Ballistic

separator

A computerized optical sorter recognizes paper and blows it off the line.

Separates objects by shape and material in 2D and 3D.

Paper

Plastic

sorting

Magnetic

belt

Plastics

Nos. 1 and 2

Plastics

No. 5

Steel

Optical sorters use image-recognition and beams of light to detect different types of plastic.

Last

chance

Aluminum

sorting

Trash

People look for any remaining recyclables before the "residue" goes to the trash.

Aluminum

This is the basic sorting process at the Manassas, Va., materials recovery facility. The types of equipment and the arrangement of the machines may be different in other places.

Pile of

recyclables

Drum

feeder

CARDBOARD

Pre sort

Cardboard

sorting

At many points in the process, human sorters watch the line and pull out items that shouldn't be there.

Paper, plastic and metal keeps going

Glass sorting

Glass

Paper

sorting

Ballistic

separator

Separates objects by shape and material in 2D and 3D.

A computerized optical sorter recognizes paper and blows it off the line.

Paper

Plastic

sorting

Magnetic

belt

Steel

Plastics

Nos. 1 and 2

Plastics

No. 5

Optical sorters use image-recognition and beams of light to detect different types of plastic.

Last

chance

Aluminum

sorting

Trash

People look for any remaining recyclables before the "residue" goes to the trash.

Aluminum

This is the basic sorting process at the Manassas, Va., materials recovery facility. The types of equipment and the arrangement of the machines may be different in other places.

Pre sort

At many points in the process, human sorters watch the line and pull out items that shouldn't be there.

Pile of

recyclables

Drum

feeder

CARDBOARD

Cardboard

sorting

Paper

sorting

Paper, plastic and metal keeps going

Glass sorting

A computerized optical sorter recognizes paper and blows it off the line.

Paper

Glass

Aluminum

sorting

Ballistic

separator

Magnetic

belt

Plastic

sorting

Separates objects by shape and material in 2D and 3D.

Steel

Plastics

No. 5

Plastics

Nos. 1 and 2

Aluminum

Optical sorters use image-recognition and beams of light to detect different types of plastic.

Last

chance

Trash

People look for any remaining recyclables before the "residue" goes to the trash.

This is the basic sorting process at the Manassas, Va., materials recovery facility. The types of equipment and the arrangement of the machines may be different in other places.

Cardboard

sorting

CARDBOARD

Pile of

recyclables

Drum

feeder

Glass sorting

Pre sort

At many points in the process, human sorters watch the line and pull out items that shouldn't be there.

Glass

Aluminum

sorting

Plastic

sorting

Magnetic

belt

Ballistic

separator

Paper

sorting

Separates objects by shape and material in 2D and 3D.

A computerized optical sorter recognizes paper and blows it off the line.

Aluminum

Plastics

No. 5

Plastics

Nos. 1 and 2

Steel

Last

chance

Optical sorters use image-recognition and beams of light to detect different types of plastic.

Paper

People look for any remaining recyclables before the "residue" goes to the trash.

Trash

The puzzling geographical differences between what can and can't go into a bin arise because not all sorting technology is identical, and not all local markets for recycling materials are the same.

The result is that a lot of people mean well but recycle wrong.

Fortunately, if you know some key information, you can improve your recycling no matter where you live.

Click on the items you’d put into your recycling bin, and we’ll tell you if you’re right according to what's accepted in most places.

Paper envelopes

Plastic shampoo bottles

Styrofoam egg cartons

To-go paper coffee cups or lids

Packing peanuts

Foil

Loose shredded paper

Beverage cans

Clothing

Soup can lids

Plastic inflated packing bags and plastic envelopes

Creamer cups

Empty paper towel and TP rolls

Plastic takeout containers

Compostable utensils

Glass jars

Candy wrappers

Printer paper

Milk cartons

Milk jugs

Wood

Aerosol cans

Small electronics

Brown packing paper

Batteries

Ceramics

Wire hangers

Newspapers

Cereal boxes

Animal pelts

Data on how much of the country accepts certain types of recyclables comes from the Recycling Partnership. Additional information from Jack DeBell, Republic Services general manager for the Northern Virginia market, and Marjory Appel, chief marketing and communications officer for the Recycling Partnership.

Story editing by Tim Meko. Copy editing by Jordan Melendrez.