A shopping cart rattles past a mountain of winter coats while, two aisles over, someone discovers a mid-century lamp buried behind three boxes of mismatched dishes. That is the particular thrill of New Jersey’s biggest secondhand stores: the best find is rarely sitting politely at eye level waiting to be noticed.
These places reward comfortable shoes, patient digging, and the willingness to inspect one more rack before calling it a day. Some operate like giant department stores, with clothing sorted by size and housewares arranged in long, orderly aisles.
Others embrace glorious chaos, filling old warehouses with furniture, records, jewelry, collectibles, and objects whose original purpose may require a conversation with the owner.
There are pay-by-the-pound bins for determined bargain hunters, sprawling antique co-ops for collectors, and enough rotating inventory to make a return trip feel completely different.
Clear some trunk space before visiting these ten destinations. Leaving empty-handed is technically possible, but it takes discipline.
1. Goodwill NYNJ Outlet Store & Donation Center — South Hackensack
The first rule here is simple: forget everything you know about leisurely browsing through neatly arranged racks. South Hackensack’s Goodwill outlet runs on rolling bins, quick decisions, and the knowledge that the person beside you may be searching for the exact same vintage sweatshirt.
Instead of pricing every garment and household item separately, outlet merchandise is generally sold by weight, turning a full cart into a surprisingly affordable haul.
That format makes the store especially appealing to resellers, costume designers, upcyclers, and anyone willing to inspect a large volume of clothing for a few standout pieces.
Gloves are a smart addition to the shopping kit, as are clothes that allow you to bend, reach, and move without fuss. New bins may draw a small crowd when they reach the floor, so listen to staff instructions and wait until shoppers are given permission to begin digging.
The inventory can include clothing, shoes, textiles, toys, books, and miscellaneous household goods, but there is no dependable shopping list. That unpredictability is the whole attraction.
Located on Huyler Street in an industrial section of South Hackensack, the outlet feels less like a traditional retail stop and more like a warehouse treasure hunt. Give yourself time, arrive with realistic expectations, and remember that finding one excellent jacket can make an hour of sorting entirely worthwhile.
2. 2nd Ave Thrift Superstore — Pennsauken
Rows of clothing seem to stretch toward the horizon at this South Crescent Boulevard superstore, but the scale is far less intimidating once you notice how carefully everything is divided.
Garments are organized by category and size, while separate departments gather shoes, handbags, books, toys, electronics, linens, dishware, collectibles, and small furniture.
That structure makes Pennsauken’s 2nd Ave a strong choice for shoppers who enjoy secondhand prices but have little patience for digging through mixed piles. You can arrive looking for work shirts, a replacement casserole dish, or children’s clothes and head directly toward the relevant section.
The more entertaining strategy, of course, is to walk every aisle and see what interrupts the plan. Thousands of items are added to the sales floor regularly, so the store can change significantly between visits.
Colored tags and loyalty promotions may create additional discounts, making it worth checking the day’s signs before filling the cart.
The store sits near the intersection of Crescent Boulevard and Kaighn Avenue and maintains long daily shopping hours, which helps anyone hoping to visit after work or make it the final stop on a South Jersey thrift run.
Bring measurements when hunting for furniture or décor, inspect electronics carefully, and leave enough time for the housewares department. That is often where the truly unnecessary but irresistible discoveries happen.
3. 2nd Ave Thrift Superstore — Union
A good thrift store can replace several errands at once, and this Morris Avenue location proves the point. One cart might end up holding a blazer, a stack of novels, a board game, two picture frames, and a kitchen appliance nobody expected to buy that morning.
The Union 2nd Ave carries the chain’s broad mix of clothing, shoes, accessories, linens, electronics, toys, media, dishware, collectibles, and smaller home furnishings, all arranged more like a conventional department store than an old-fashioned rummage shop.
Clothing sorted by size is particularly helpful when the goal is practical rather than recreational, whether that means building a work wardrobe or finding rapidly outgrown children’s basics.
Still, the store remains large enough for serious wandering. New merchandise reaches the floor throughout the day, and the changing color-tag discounts can turn an already reasonable item into a genuine score.
Located near Morris and Liberty avenues, the store is easy to combine with other Union-area errands, although a quick visit can become a lengthy one once the shelves start producing surprises.
Start with the department that matters most before browsing the rest of the building; otherwise, an hour in housewares may leave too little time for clothing.
The donation center also makes this a useful two-part trip: clear unwanted items from the trunk, then attempt not to refill it immediately.
4. MyUnique Thrift — Union
Color-coded tags turn this Route 22 store into a small exercise in strategy. MyUnique regularly marks selected tag colors down by 25%, 50%, or even 75%, so experienced shoppers check the discount signs before becoming attached to anything.
Sometimes the best bargain is exactly what you came to find; sometimes it is a completely impractical object with the correct colored tag. Fresh inventory arrives daily across clothing, accessories, furniture, electronics, and household goods, giving the Union location enough turnover to justify repeat visits.
The fashion selection is particularly suited to patient label hunters. Scan fabric quality and construction first, then check the brand, rather than racing only toward familiar logos.
Coats, denim, handbags, office clothing, and occasion wear can produce impressive finds, while the furniture and home sections are useful for apartment dwellers trying to furnish a room without paying new-retail prices. Because this store sits along busy US 22, it works best as a destination rather than a casual stroll-in stop.
Set aside a real block of time and avoid arriving with an overstuffed trunk if furniture is even a remote possibility. The sales floor is large, the assortment changes constantly, and the strongest discoveries often appear after the obvious racks have been checked.
MyUnique rewards shoppers who circle back, look beneath larger items, and inspect the end of every aisle before heading to checkout.
5. MyUnique Thrift — Elizabeth
Downtown surroundings give the Elizabeth MyUnique a different rhythm from its highway-based sibling. Located on Broad Street, the store draws a steady mix of neighborhood shoppers, commuters, fashion hunters, and people searching for affordable household basics.
Clothing is the natural starting point, especially when the goal is to find vintage pieces, name-brand staples, coats, shoes, or accessories without boutique pricing. The inventory extends into home goods and other everyday secondhand merchandise, and new arrivals keep the selection from feeling static.
This is a particularly good place to shop without a rigid list. Begin with a broad category—perhaps jackets, handbags, or kitchenware—and let the racks decide the specifics.
MyUnique’s rotating color-tag discounts can reduce selected items substantially, so check every tag before rejecting something on price alone.
The Broad Street address also makes the store convenient to pair with lunch or other downtown errands, although shoppers arriving by car should allow a little extra time to navigate city traffic and parking.
Weekday mornings generally offer the calmest chance to work through the merchandise, while later visits can feel more energetic. The Elizabeth location is not about hushed antique-gallery browsing or competitive outlet-bin digging.
It offers the middle ground: an enormous, constantly changing secondhand store where practical necessities and delightfully odd surprises share the same aisles.
6. Red White & Blue Thrift Store — Paterson
Jewelry cases, crowded clothing racks, kitchen shelves, electronics, and small furnishings compete for attention inside this McLean Boulevard standby.
Red White & Blue is known for adding thousands of secondhand items across its stores each day, and the Paterson location delivers the kind of variety that can make even experienced thrifters lose track of time.
Family clothing takes up a substantial share of the floor, with possibilities ranging from everyday basics to vintage garments and recognizable designer labels. Beyond apparel, shoppers can work through shoes, watches, collectibles, glassware, tools, sporting goods, toys, games, and home décor.
The quantity is the appeal, but it also means selectivity matters. Check seams, zippers, soles, electrical cords, and missing pieces before committing, particularly because secondhand return policies can be limited.
Colored-tag promotions frequently place selected merchandise on deeper discount, giving shoppers a reason to scan entire racks instead of judging only the first visible price.
The store’s location along McLean Boulevard makes it accessible from several major North Jersey routes, and the dedicated retail setting is easier to tackle with a cart than a tote bag.
Visit with enough time to compare similar items and examine the display cases rather than rushing through only the clothing. The best purchase might be a practical winter coat, but it could just as easily be an old camera, an unusual serving platter, or a framed print that suddenly determines the color scheme of an entire room.
7. Goodwill Outlet Store — Bellmawr
At $1.99 per pound for most merchandise, restraint becomes surprisingly difficult. Bellmawr’s Goodwill Outlet strips secondhand shopping down to its most adventurous form: large bins, bulk pricing, and the understanding that every discovery must be earned.
Books, videos, and other media are priced separately at 50 cents each, while larger merchandise and furniture do not follow the pound rate. That setup makes the outlet especially useful for anyone sourcing fabric, filling costume wardrobes, reselling clothing, or outfitting a household on a tight budget.
It is also entertaining for shoppers who genuinely enjoy the search more than the convenience. Expect to sort, unfold, inspect, and occasionally wonder why you picked something up in the first place.
Lightweight purchases offer the greatest value, so a silk blouse or thin vintage dress can cost very little, while heavy boots may require a quick calculation. The store occupies a warehouse setting on Benigno Boulevard in Bellmawr’s Interstate Business Park, and it also serves as a pickup point for certain online Goodwill purchases.
Comfortable shoes and protective gloves are useful, but patience is the most important thing to bring. Outlet inventory is inconsistent by design; there may be an excellent haul one day and only a few promising finds the next.
Go for the possibility, not a guarantee, and check every pocket before anything reaches the scale.
8. Scranberry Coop — Andover
A bright yellow building beside Route 206 holds far more than its cheerful exterior suggests. Scranberry Coop packs more than 170 dealers and thousands of antiques, collectibles, vintage pieces, and decorative objects into roughly 10,000 square feet.
Because every booth reflects a different seller’s interests, the merchandise can shift dramatically within a few steps. One corner may resemble a farmhouse kitchen, the next a mid-century living room, and the one after that a cabinet of toys, advertising signs, jewelry, records, or pop-culture memorabilia.
That constant change of perspective makes the co-op feel larger than its measurements. It is not simply a place to hunt for high-value antiques; it is equally useful for finding affordable conversation pieces, small gifts, restoration projects, and objects that add personality to a home.
Prices vary by dealer, and some booths run individual sales, so look carefully for handwritten signs and discount notices. The shop is open Wednesday through Sunday, with slightly longer weekend hours, and its Route 206 location makes it a natural stop during a Sussex County drive.
Dogs are welcome, which is a rare and useful detail for anyone traveling with a four-legged antique assistant. Scranberry also holds periodic outdoor flea markets, expanding the hunt beyond the main building.
Plan at least an hour, walk the aisles in both directions, and take photos of booth numbers whenever something requires a second look.
9. A Touch of the Past Antiques — Lambertville
Polished wood, framed artwork, sculptural lighting, and glittering estate jewelry give this Lambertville showroom the feeling of a gallery whose exhibits happen to be for sale. A Touch of the Past brings together 50 dealers across 10,000 square feet, with more than 2,000 pieces represented through its broader inventory.
The range moves confidently between periods and styles: mid-century modern furniture, early American pieces, Asian antiques, folk art, European furnishings, ceramics, paintings, photography, decorative objects, and vintage jewelry all appear under one roof.
This is the stop for shoppers seeking a statement piece rather than a bag of inexpensive basics.
Prices can reflect quality, age, provenance, and condition, but browsing remains rewarding even when a major furniture purchase is not part of the day’s plan. Study the smaller displays carefully; jewelry, ceramics, artwork, and tabletop objects can provide a more approachable entry point than a full dining set or cabinet.
The North Union Street address places the store directly within Lambertville’s celebrated antiques district, making it easy to build an entire afternoon around nearby galleries, shops, and restaurants. It operates most days from late morning through the afternoon but closes on Tuesdays.
Bring room measurements, doorway dimensions, and photographs of the intended space when shopping seriously. Falling in love with an enormous antique sideboard is much easier than getting it through a narrow hallway.
10. Elwood Antiques — Hammonton
The giant duck outside is your first clue that this will not be a restrained, minimalist shopping experience.
Elwood Antiques occupies a distinctive yellow-and-black warehouse along the White Horse Pike, filling approximately 10,000 square feet with furniture, lamps, signs, artwork, architectural pieces, collectibles, and objects that appear to have arrived from every possible decade.
The shop has operated in the Hammonton area for roughly four decades, and its packed rooms favor curiosity over perfect symmetry. A narrow path may lead toward an antique lamp, an old advertising piece, or a piece of furniture almost hidden behind several other pieces of furniture.
That abundance is precisely what makes Elwood worth the drive. It feels less like browsing a carefully staged showroom and more like exploring the accumulated attic of a very interesting family.
Owners Bruce Dooley and Dennis Stanford also handle appraisals, estates, and house buyouts, helping explain the store’s eclectic supply and steady flow of merchandise. The shop is generally open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with its own parking beside the Route 30 building.
Wear shoes suitable for navigating a densely stocked space and ask for help when something catches your eye; knowledgeable conversation is part of the experience here. Elwood is not the place to rush.
The back corner you nearly skip may contain the reason you drove to Hammonton.