Betterbin

What Betterbin does

Betterbin, operated by the Wisconsin-based legal entity KIGO LLC (formerly branded ERbin), is a clean tech company that operates a mobile application delivering localized recycling and composting instructions to consumers and organizations managing CPG packaging waste. The core product is a cross-platform iOS and Android app in which users scan the UPC barcode of a product or search for it to receive disposal guidance tailored to their specific community, municipality, or processor. The platform extends beyond the consumer experience through a modular B2B offering that includes dedicated modules for municipalities, materials recovery facility (MRF) operators and organics processors, subscription food scrap and yard waste program operators, and apartment or condo property managers; subscription compost program clients receive a custom white-label branded version of the app with processor-specific acceptance criteria. Underlying the product is a curated, location-indexed database of community and processor disposal rules that is presented as the primary differentiator over generic on-package recycling labels.

Betterbin's business model is a sales-led, multi-segment B2B subscription operation paired with a freemium consumer app. Enterprise revenue is generated through quote-based annual or recurring subscriptions to municipalities, MRF operators, subscription compost programs, and property managers, with pricing not publicly disclosed and contracts negotiated via direct outreach and demo requests. The consumer side operates through the Apple App Store and Google Play Store under a freemium rewards model that gamifies correct recycling and composting behavior but is not disclosed as a meaningful revenue contributor. The company is small — reported headcount of 1–10 employees — and has recorded only one disclosed funding event (March 2021, from Bild Alternative Investments Corporation) and one enterprise customer of note (Wesleyan University CT). GTM is executed through a combination of direct enterprise sales, organic social channels, video product demos, app store optimization, and email communications, and the company participates in the Plug and Play Tech Center sustainability cohort for corporate introductions.

Name

Betterbin

Legal name

KIGO LLC

Website

https://about.betterbin.app

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Betterbin, operated by KIGO LLC, is a Wisconsin-based clean tech company offering a mobile app with UPC barcode scanning that delivers localized recycling and composting instructions to consumers, municipalities, MRF operators, compost programs, and property managers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Wausau

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Municipal Government Subscriptions: Betterbin provides municipalities with branded apps to increase financial efficiency of recycling and composting programs, reduce community education burden, and improve resident service
2. Subscription Compost Program Licensing: Licenses custom branded apps to subscription food scrap and yard waste program operators for member education and engagement
3. Apartment/Condo Manager Licensing: Provides building-level disposal instruction tools to property managers for tenant empowerment
4. MRF Operator Services: Helps MRF operators and organics processors reduce contamination and operational downtime by educating community residents
5. Consumer App (Freemium): Consumer mobile app with rewards for proper recycling/composting behavior

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Betterbin is a mobile application platform that lets users scan UPC barcodes on consumer products to receive community-specific recycling and composting instructions. The platform serves both consumer end-users (via a freemium app) and organizational buyers such as municipalities, MRF operators, subscription compost programs, apartment/condo managers, and universities through subscription-based custom branded apps and licensing.

Product overview

Betterbin is a mobile application platform offered by KIGO LLC that provides localized, brand-specific packaging and food disposal education through barcode scanning and search functionality. The core product is the Betterbin App, which serves consumers directly, supported by specialized modules for Municipalities, Subscription Food Scrap Programs, Apartment/Condo Managers, and MRF Operators and Organics Processors. The platform delivers custom instructions based on processor type and local community guidelines, and rewards users for proper recycling and composting behavior.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Betterbin App

Named customers1 record

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Plug and Play Tech CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBetterbin is listed among Plug and Play Tech Center's sustainability startup cohort. Plug and Play is an innovation platform that connects startups with corporate partners for technology and business development opportunities in the sustainability sector.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• How2Recycle (Sustainable Packaging Coalition): How2Recycle is a standardized on-package recycling labeling program run by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. It competes indirectly with Betterbin's value proposition by trying to clarify disposal at the package level, though it lacks Betterbin's localized, processor-specific guidance and rewards layer.
• Litterati: Litterati operates a citizen-science app that tracks litter and waste data via photo capture. It overlaps with Betterbin's mission of using consumer apps to inform better waste behavior and could converge on disposal guidance or data services for municipalities.

Direct peers

• Recyclebank: Recyclebank runs a rewards-based recycling engagement program tied to municipal and brand sponsorships. It is comparable to Betterbin on the gamified-rewards consumer engagement mechanism and on the B2B municipal sponsorship model, though Betterbin layers on barcode-scanning for package-specific guidance.
• ReCollect Systems: ReCollect provides waste and recycling customer-engagement software (apps, calendars, lookup tools) sold to municipalities, haulers, and private waste operators across North America. It overlaps head-to-head with Betterbin's municipal and hauler-operator modules in delivering localized collection-day and disposal information to residents.
• Recycle Coach: Recycle Coach offers municipal-branded recycling and waste apps with localized disposal guidance and reminders. It is the closest direct competitor to Betterbin in the U.S./Canada municipal recycling-education app category, sharing the same B2B SaaS model and core functionality of barcode search plus location-specific instructions.
• Curbside (by RouteMatch / waste-route software): Curbside provides a resident-facing recycling and waste lookup app for municipalities and haulers, with location-based disposal guidance. It is a direct competitor to Betterbin's municipal module in delivering location-aware disposal instructions to residents.

Others

• Seabin Project: Seabin is a clean-tech company addressing marine and waterfront plastic pollution through physical capture devices and data/education programs. It shares Betterbin's clean-tech positioning and consumer-side sustainability education narrative but does not overlap directly in product or buyer.
• Sustainable Packaging Coalition: The Sustainable Packaging Coalition is an industry working group that defines standards and labels (including How2Recycle) for packaging recyclability. It is adjacent to Betterbin because brand-side adopters of SPC standards could treat Betterbin's localized guidance as complementary or substitutive to on-package SPC labeling.

Broad incumbents

• Waste Management (WM): Waste Management is the largest U.S. hauler and operates consumer-facing recycling lookup tools and large municipal contracts. It is a broad incumbent that could in-house or substitute for Betterbin-style resident education within its existing service portfolio, though its focus is on haul collection rather than app-based education.
• Rubicon Technologies: Rubicon provides a software and services platform for waste and recycling operators and municipalities at much larger scale than Betterbin. It competes indirectly through its resident-facing engagement tools and operations platform, competing for the same municipal sustainability budgets rather than for individual consumers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/BetterbinApp
• Facebookfacebook.com/Betterbin
• Instagraminstagram.com/Betterbin.app

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Betterbin