Each cell phone contains around 0.034 grams of gold content which is worth around $1.82 at current gold prices.
You need special chemicals and products to remove the gold from the cellphones so it's best to just sell the cellphones to scrap yards or other electronic recycling centers.
You can also recycle them at places that accept cellphones and electronics for recycling even though you won't get paid for them at the cellphone and electronic drop off locations but at least it recycles it and keeps it out of the landfill.