It’s fast approaching that crazy time of year, and if you already have a long list of holiday “to-dos,” it seems nearly impossible to keep track of all the different store return policies — especially when it comes to their holiday return policy.
Making sure you bought all the right gifts is hard enough. But to add return policies into the mix is a whole other level of complication. The good news is that many stores extend their holiday return policies during the last few months of the year so you can focus on celebrating instead of stressing over deadlines.
To make your life easier, we dug into the return policy details you need to know about for easy, breezy holiday shopping returns in 2023 (and into 2024).
Here’s what you need to know about holiday return policies at all the major stores:
Don’t forget to download The Krazy Coupon Lady app for all the latest deals sent straight to your phone. Then text HACKS to 57299 for more money-saving tips.
Here’s a quick look at the stores with an extended holiday return policy:
1. The Walmart holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 31, 2024, to return your items.
The regular Walmart return policy gives you 90 days to return most unwanted items. But with the extended Walmart holiday return policy, you have until Jan. 31, 2024, to return Walmart purchases made on or after Oct. 1 until Dec. 31.
This extended return policy doesn’t always cover online purchases made from Walmart Marketplace sellers, though, so be sure to check the fine print.
2. Target’s holiday return policy went into effect on Oct. 1, freezing the return window until Dec. 26.
You normally have 90 days to make most Target returns under the Target return policy, or 120 days if you paid with a Target RedCard, which is what you’ll get for most holiday purchases like home goods, toys, etc. However, that window gets shortened for electronics (30 days), Apple products (15 days), and mobile phones (14 days).
But for Target purchases made between Oct. 1 – Dec. 24, the return period goes on hold and doesn’t open back up until Dec. 26, 2023.
Here are the extended Target holiday return windows for those three product categories:
- Mobile phones: Return by Jan. 8, 2024
- Apple products (excluding iPhone): Return by Jan. 9, 2024
- Electronics and entertainment (excluding Apple): Return by Jan. 24, 2024
TIP: If you’re a Target RedCard member, you’ll always get an extra 30 days for returns.
3. Macy’s holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 31 to make returns.
Macy’s return policy normally gives you 90 days to return most purchases. But with their extended holiday return window, you have until Jan. 31 to return purchases made on or after Oct. 2.
Store returns to Macy’s are always free, but unless you’re a member of the Star Rewards program, you’ll pay a $9.99 return shipping fee for online returns.
4. Kohl’s extended holiday return window gives you until Jan. 31 to return premium electronics and Sephora items.
You usually get a whopping 180 days to make most Kohl’s returns, but certain items like “premium electronics” and Sephora items always have a shorter regular return window — just 30 days for premium electronics and 60 days for Sephora items.
But for purchases made after Nov. 1, Kohl’s holiday return policy goes into effect, giving you until Jan. 31 to return those items.
5. Ulta’s return window is the standard 60 days.
Ulta doesn’t have an extended holiday return window, but you still have 60 days to return purchases under the normal Ulta return policy.
6. Sephora’s holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 31 for purchases made from Oct. 27 – Dec. 1.
Sephora’s extended holiday return window gives you up until Jan. 31, 2024, to return items you buy from Oct. 27 – Dec. 1, 2023. For items purchased after Dec. 1, 2023, you’ll only have 30 days to make your Sephora returns.
TIP: If you opt to purchase Sephora products at Kohl’s instead, you’ll be covered by the Kohl’s holiday return window, which gives you until Jan. 31 to return purchases made from Nov. 1 – Dec. 25.
7. Victoria’s Secret’s holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 23 for items you bought from Oct. 15 – Dec. 24.
Victoria’s Secret return policy normally gives you 30 days to return purchases, but you don’t have to stress about the time crunch for the holidays. You’ll actually have until Jan. 23 to return any Victoria’s Secret purchases made between Oct. 15 – Dec. 24.
8. Bath & Body Works has a 100% satisfaction guarantee, so no holiday return window is needed.
The Bath & Body Works return policy is already pretty flawless. You can return items to any Bath & Body Works store for a full refund, up to a maximum of $250 in non-receipted returns within 90 days — so no holiday extension is necessary.
Related: Check out our list of retailers that let you return used items for a full refund.
9. Best Buy’s holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 13 to return (most) purchases made Oct. 27 – Dec. 30.
Instead of the standard 14 to 15 days you get with the standard Best Buy return policy, the Best Buy holiday return policy gives you a bit more time to bring back certain items.
For the 2023 holiday season, you have until Jan. 13, 2024, to return most items purchased between Oct. 27 and Dec. 30.
The only exceptions are for activatable devices and holiday decorations — those are subject to their standard return window (15 days for holiday decorations, and 14 – 30 days for activatable devices).
10. Amazon’s holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 15 to return purchases made from Nov. 1 – Dec. 31.
Amazon kinda hides their holiday return policy information online, but we found an update posted on an Amazon seller message board on Oct. 17, 2023.
According to the post, the 2023 Amazon holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 15, 2024, to return anything you purchase from Amazon between Nov. 1 and Dec. 31, 2023.
This is a shorter window than last year, when Amazon gave you until Jan. 31, 2023, to return anything you purchased between Oct. 11 – Dec. 25, 2022 (which covered our Prime Day purchases in October!).
TIP: Did you know that the Amazon return policy lets you make free returns at Kohl’s, Whole Foods, Amazon Hub Lockers, and Amazon Fresh locations?
11. Apple’s holiday return policy kicks in for items received Nov. 3 – Dec. 25, giving you until Jan. 8 to make returns.
We’ve confirmed for 2023 that the Apple holiday return policy kicked in on Nov. 3 and covers any purchases made until Dec. 25.
The standard Apple return policy normally gives you 14 days to make returns, but during the extended window in 2023, anything you purchase (or receive) between Nov. 3 and Dec. 25 can be returned until Jan. 8, 2024.
The only exception is for iPhone purchases that are financed through T-Mobile — these are subject to the standard 14-day return window.
12. The T.J.Maxx holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 25 to return things you buy Oct. 8 – Dec. 24.
The T.J.Maxx holiday return window gives you until Jan. 25, 2024, to return items you buy from Oct. 8 – Dec. 24, 2023.
Purchases made starting Dec. 26 will fall under the normal 30-day window outlined in the T.J.Maxx return policy.
13. Old Navy’s holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 15 or 30 days — whichever is later.
According to the Old Navy return policy, anything you purchase between Oct. 15 and Dec. 24 is subject to the extended Old Navy holiday return policy. This policy gives you until Jan. 15, 2024, or 30 days after your purchase/ship date — whichever happens later.
14. lululemon’s holiday return policy gives you until Jan. 23 to return items you buy after Oct. 16.
According to the lululemon return policy, you’ll have until Jan. 23, 2024, to return holiday purchases you made between Oct. 16 – Dec. 24, 2023.
15. Marshalls’ holiday return policy allows returns until Jan. 25 for purchases made Oct. 8 – Dec. 24.
The Marshalls return policy gets a little more flexible during the holidays, but only for purchases made between Oct. 8 and Dec. 24. You’ll have until Jan. 25 to return those items.
Anything purchased after Dec. 24 is subject to the standard 30-day return window for in-store purchases and a 40-day window for online purchases.
16. Nordstrom Rack’s holiday return policy covers purchases made from Oct. 16 – Dec. 24, giving you until Jan. 15.
The standard Nordstrom Rack return policy gives you 40 days to make returns. But for the 2023 season, any purchases made from Oct. 16 – Dec. 24 can be returned to Nordstrom Rack or Nordstrom locations until Jan. 15, 2024.
If you made your purchase closer to Dec. 24, they’ll give you 30 days after your in-store purchase or 40 days after your online purchase to make your return.
TIP: Did you know you get unlimited time to make returns with the Nordstrom return policy?
Return your holiday purchases in-store (if you can) to avoid pesky return shipping fees.
Most retailers lose a ton of money on returns, mostly because it’s not cheap to process, ship, and restock returned items. That’s why some stores charge fees for returns. They’ll deduct the fee from your refund once you send back your online order, and you could pay anywhere from $4 – $11 just to mail a return back.
To avoid getting slammed with return shipping fees, head to the store to make your holiday shopping returns. Store returns are pretty much always free at any store that accepts them.
TIP: Some stores — like Nordstrom and Dick’s Sporting Goods — offer free curbside returns. So you don’t even have to get out of your car to return purchases for free.
Which stores offer free return shipping? Here’s a list:
These retailers give you prepaid (aka free) shipping labels for holiday returns by mail:
- Amazon (on eligible items)
- Apple
- Banana Republic
- Best Buy
- Chewy
- Costco
- Home Depot
- HSN
- Lowe’s
- Macy’s
- Nike (it’s free for Nike Members only)
- Nordstrom
- Old Navy
- Shein (free for your first return, after that, it’s $7.99 per return)
- Target
- Walmart (not for Marketplace items, though)
- Williams Sonoma (depending on the reason for your return, you may face shipping fees)
- Zappos
Prepare for your refund to take longer than normal.
If you already think refunds take forever, you’re in for a rude awakening during the holiday season. As soon as the New Year hits, retailers are already dealing with ten times their normal return load. And as online shopping gets bigger, refund times get longer.
If you’re sending holiday shopping returns by mail, be sure you jot down your tracking number and keep an eye on your return’s progress.
Tell us what you think