<p>Porous carbon materials were prepared from polyurethane foam waste (PFW) via a rapid carbonization method. The potential applications of the derived porous carbon materials as the cathode active material in zinc-ion hybrid capacitors (ZHCs) were investigated. The porous carbon material prepared at 800&#xa0;°C, PFW-800, possesses a specific surface area of 1223.6 m²g⁻¹. When PFW-800 was applied as the cathode active material in ZHCs, the assembled ZHC showed a high specific capacitance of 434.1 F g⁻¹ at 0.2 A g⁻¹. Meanwhile, the energy density reached 212.1 Wh kg⁻¹ at the power density of 190.3 W kg⁻¹. Furthermore, the ZHC employing PFW-800 as the cathode active material demonstrated good rate capability and maintained over 90% capacitance retention after 5000 charge–discharge cycles. This work lays the foundation for the efficient utilization of polymer waste.</p> Graphical Abstract <p></p>