Saving Lego Set Boxes (When You Should & Shouldn’t)

Do you also have a bunch of empty Lego boxes lying around? I do, and you can see for yourself because I took a picture. As you can tell, I’m a big Lego Star Wars fan. 

For years I’ve been holding onto Lego boxes for sets I’ve collected because I always thought they would keep their value if I ever decided to sell my Lego collection. Today, I wanted to find out if that was true. So, I did a make-shift study where I found the average selling price for 7 sets I own on eBay.com for Lego listings with their original box and without. What I found was very surprising, and a clear answer to the question: 

Should I save my Lego set box?

Saving Lego Boxes will increase the resale value of your Lego sets by an average of 10.5%. This is especially true for collectible, limited-edition Lego Sets. If your set fits these criteria, it’s important that you save its box and keep it in mint condition. 

Let’s dive further into how I found this number and go over some tips on how to keep Lego boxes valuable. 

Examples of a Lego set’s box increasing its resale value.

I picked 7 Lego sets that I own at random and put them in a spreadsheet. From there, I went to eBay.com and toggled “Sold Listings” when I searched each set on eBay. I marked down each sold price and condition of the set. This included sets that were opened, or unopened, including the box, instruction manual, and so forth. You can all of the results from this make-shift study on my Case Studies page, but let’s look at a few sets that greatly benefitted from including the box in their listing. 

Lego Star Wars Battle of Endor 8038: +41%

Probably my favorite Lego set (and probably the most sought-after set by Lego collectors I own) benefitted greatly from including the box in its listing. This set on eBay sold for an average of $60.74 more when the listing included its original box. 

Lego SpongeBob SquarePants Krusty Krab 3825: +20% 

My Lego SpongeBob set sold for an average of $58.92 without its box. When the original box was included in the listing, which I have, it sold for an average of $70.40. That’s a 20% increase in value! Just from holding onto some cardboard. 

Lego Star Wars Naboo Starfighter 7877: +60%

I love my Naboo Starfighter. I have both this version and the 1999 version. If I managed to keep the box of this set, I would be able to sell it for 60% more than I can now! It’s worth $54.78 on average without the box or instructions, but $87.74 with the box and instructions. 

Looking at these numbers makes me wonder why I even opened these sets. If I never opened my Lego Star Wars Battle of Endor set, it would be worth nearly double what it’s worth opening! In fact, you could be ruining the value of your Lego Set just by opening it. If you’re interested in reading more, I highly recommend you read my article: Why Opening a Lego Set Could Cost You Hundreds! 

These are just three examples. Full transparency: I picked the ones with the greatest change to drive my point home. I found one Lego set that did not grow in value with its box. Why? It was too cheap. Let’s go over this in more detail in the next section. 

When does it make sense to throw out a box?

If the Lego box is considerably damaged, or the box is for a small Lego set, it wouldn’t make sense to keep it. Boxes keep their value, even when flattened, but are worthless when seriously damaged. Meanwhile, boxes for low-value sets are not as valuable as high-value sets.

If your find yourself with a box in several pieces, ripped to shreds or ruined to the point where you do not see a point in keeping it, there is no point in having it take up space. If you don’t see value in it, I wouldn’t count on Lego collectors seeing value in it either.

Lego boxes for small Lego sets (usually under $50.00) are not worth keeping. This would include Lego Star Wars battle packs, miniature models, and general sets designed for children. Because the Lego set has low value, to begin with, Lego collectors will not pay more if the box is included.

My advice is to take a look at the boxes you are hanging onto. If you are saving a box for a Lego set that people aren’t collecting and are worth less than $50.00, it might be time to throw it away. To find out how much your set is worth opened, go to eBay.com and search for the set. Remember to filter the results to “Sold Items” for an accurate price point. I did something similar with my sets in my Lego Valuation Case Study (link to study findings).

Can I recycle Lego boxes? 

Lego boxes can be recycled in any paper or cardboard recycling bin that can comfortably fit the box. To save room, it is recommended that you flatten and fold the box to fit in the recycling bin. 

Individual Lego Boxes are Valuable! 

Halfway through this study, I was blown away at how much some sets were selling for with their boxes. I also stumbled upon a few listings where people sold just the box. An empty box! 

Are empty Lego Boxes valuable? 

Lego collectors often buy empty Lego Boxes in good condition. This is more common with higher-priced Lego sets. Mint-condition boxes for rare Lego sets can sell for as much as $100. 

Take a look at a few sold boxes I found on eBay just in the last 30 days. 

One thing that caught my eye was flattened boxes selling for large amounts. Sometimes, they would sell for even more than non-flattened boxes! 

Do Legos lose value if flattened? Flattened Lego boxes do not lose value when flattened. As long as the box has little to no dents, no faded colors, or jarring wear and tear, it is still valuable, and usually just as valuable as a non-flattened box. 

Here are two examples of flattened boxes that sold for a considerable amount of money: 

This comes in handy later when I go over how to optimally store Lego boxes to save space. 

How I carefully open boxes to keep their value. 

I talk a lot in this article about keeping boxes in “mint condition” but I don’t offer any valid way of achieving that. So, let’s change that. 

I used to tear into my Lego set boxes so I could start building. Now, I open the boxes without damaging them. I could have saved so many boxes if I started this sooner. I highly recommend you learn from my mistakes and open the Lego boxes without damaging them. 

To open a Lego set without damaging the box, find the two circular pieces of tape along the shorter-length ends of the Box. While using caution, take a sharp knife and cut this tape with the sharp end of the blade facing away from you. Do this for each piece of tape. 

To be more helpful, see this Youtube Short I made of me doing this: 

Here are a few tips on storing Lego boxes. 

Two ways to store Lego Boxes that will save you space are by placing boxes within other boxes and flattening them. 

Tip #1: Put Lego boxes inside other boxes. 

This method is what I personally use. There is ample evidence that flattening boxes does not lower the box’s value, but I personally don’t feel right doing it. I also have the space for my boxes, so I do not feel bad using it. 

Place a smaller box within a slightly larger box, then that slightly larger box inside a larger box. Repeat this process until all your boxes are in one or several boxes. Do not jam a box inside another, this may damage the box. 

This tip has been a lifesaver for me and saves plenty of room. 

Tip #2: Flatten your Lego boxes. 

Again, I do not personally use this method, but if you find yourself with a lot of boxes this is probably your best option. See this video below for an example: