Best Buy holiday return window: dates and exceptions
By Sloane Glitchford, Founder · Checked 10 Nov 2026, 17:42 UTC
Best Buy's holiday return window: purchase dates, return-by dates, membership and category exceptions, and what to bring, quoted from Best Buy's policy.
The short answer
Best Buy extends returns for most purchases made in its holiday window, with a later return-by date for My Best Buy Plus and Total members on earlier purchases in that window. Activatable devices and holiday decorations stay on shorter clocks. Other terms on the same policy—restocking fees, nonreturnable products and like-new condition—still apply. [1]
This is a how-to for the holiday window, quoted from Best Buy's Return & Exchange Policy as checked on November 10, 2026. For open-box grades and Outlet versus refurbished at Best Buy, see our live guides rather than repeating them here: Best Buy open-box conditions and open-box vs refurbished at Best Buy. For clearance returns at other stores (Walmart, Target, Kohl's, Lowe's, TJ Maxx and Home Depot), see can you return clearance items.
The holiday window, as Best Buy prints it
Under "Extended holiday return & exchange periods," Best Buy says: "Purchases made Oct. 30 through Dec. 31 have an extended return period through Jan. 15, 2027," excluding items purchased with a third-party contract (for example, activatable devices—cell phones, cellular tablets, mobile hotspots, cellular wearables—and AppleCare+ plans) and holiday decorations (for example, artificial trees, lights, decorations). Other exclusions, including restocking fees, non-returnable products and all other terms and conditions of the Best Buy Return & Exchange Promise, apply. [1]
Best Buy's table of last days of the return window, as printed: [1]
| Qualifying purchase | Last day of return window |
|---|---|
| Activatable devices | 14 days |
| Holiday decorations | 15 days |
| Most Best Buy purchases | Jan. 15, 2027 |
| My Best Buy Plus and My Best Buy Total member purchases | Purchases made Oct. 30 - Dec. 3, 2026: Jan. 31, 2027. Purchases on, or after, Dec. 4, 2026: 60 days |
Source: Best Buy Return & Exchange Policy, checked November 10, 2026. Best Buy notes that day 1 is the date the customer acquires the product, and that Verizon activatable devices have a 30-day return period for all customers. [1]
Best Buy prints the standard (non-holiday) return and exchange periods for purchases before Oct. 30, 2026, and after Dec. 31, 2026: most products, 15 days, or 60 days for My Best Buy Plus and Total members (Marketplace purchases excluded from those member extensions); activatable devices, 14 days (30 days for Verizon activatable devices, all customers). That period "begins the day you receive your product" and applies to new, clearance, open-box, refurbished and pre-owned products sold and shipped by Best Buy. [1]
Exceptions Best Buy lists
These stay on the shorter or special clocks even in the holiday section, or are called out on the same page: [1]
- Activatable devices (cell phones, cellular tablets, mobile hotspots, cellular wearables): 14 days, except Verizon activatable devices, which have a 30-day return period for all customers. [1]
- Holiday decorations: Best Buy's holiday table lists 15 days. Separately, it says products in Halloween Decorations and Christmas Decorations categories can be returned within 15 days for all customers, including My Best Buy, Plus and Total members, for a full refund. [1]
- AppleCare+ plans and other third-party-contract purchases are excluded from the extended holiday period. [1]
- Marketplace purchases: My Best Buy Plus and Total extended return timeframes do not apply to any Marketplace purchases. Unless noted otherwise, Marketplace products have the same standard return policy as products sold from Best Buy. [1]
- Vendor-sold in-store purchases: if your purchase at a store is directly with a vendor, the vendor's return policy applies. [1]
- Nonreturnable products remain nonreturnable. The same page lists items that are nonreturnable once purchased (including custom or personalized orders, items marked Final Sale, and other categories on that list) and items that are nonreturnable once opened. Check the policy for your category before you rely on the holiday window. [1]
- Restocking fees still apply where the policy says they do: a $45 fee on activatable devices (excluding prepaid phones), and 15% of the item purchase price on drones, digital cameras, camera lenses, camcorders (including action cameras), and the other categories on Best Buy's restocking-fee list. There is no restocking fee if the product is unopened, or if the purchase occurs in AL, CO, HI, IA, MS, OH, OK, SC, and where prohibited by law. Best Buy notes the restocking fee will be taxed in select states. [1]
- A few categories have their own extended windows on the same page (for all customers, including membership-program members): litter boxes, 90 days; pet training devices and hearing aids, 60 days. Hearing amplifiers follow the standard 15-day policy. Microsoft Office can be returned within 30 days. [1]
What to bring, as printed
Best Buy says to gather the purchases you want to return, along with the original contents and packaging. [1]
- In a store: you may return any item shipped from and sold by Best Buy on BestBuy.com at any Best Buy store. "For faster return processing, please bring your packing slip (if you received one), or your receipt, and the credit card used to make your purchase." [1]
- By mail: Best Buy says you get free shipping on a return of items purchased from Best Buy by using its prepaid label: log in to your Best Buy account, locate the order, print the label, and ship it during your return period. Some items cannot be returned via shipping, including major appliances, TVs over 50 inches, kegerators and Soda Stream makers; other shipping limits apply. [1]
- Condition: "Items need to be returned in a like-new condition." Items that are damaged, unsanitary, dented, scratched or missing major contents may be denied a return. Return items with all accessories and packaging, or Best Buy may deny the return or deduct for what is missing. [1]
- Proof of purchase: reimbursements on returns lacking proof of purchase may require an email address, will be in the form of store credit, may be denied or limited, and state sales taxes and fees will not be reimbursed. [1]
How the holiday price match window lines up
Best Buy's Price Match Guarantee page ties its Holiday Price Match Guarantee to the same return period. It says most products purchased at Best Buy between Oct. 30 and Dec. 31 can be price matched through Jan. 15, and that customers may request a match to the current sold-by-Best-Buy price for an immediately available new product during the extended Holiday Return & Exchange period. [2]
Items excluded from that extended return period—Best Buy's examples include items purchased with a third-party contract (cell phones, AppleCare+ plans), holiday decorations and non-returnable products—are excluded from the Holiday Price Match Guarantee. Best Buy says this holiday match "does not apply to price matching competitor’s prices," and that all other Price Match Guarantee terms apply. [2]
FAQ
What purchase dates and return-by date does Best Buy print for the holiday window? Purchases made Oct. 30 through Dec. 31 have an extended return period through Jan. 15, 2027, for most Best Buy purchases, subject to the exclusions above. [1]
Do Plus and Total members get a later date? For My Best Buy Plus and Total member purchases, Best Buy prints Jan. 31, 2027, when the purchase was made Oct. 30 through Dec. 3, 2026, and 60 days when the purchase was on or after Dec. 4, 2026. Those member extensions do not apply to Marketplace purchases. [1]
Are phones included in the January return date? No. Activatable devices are excluded from the extended holiday period and have a 14-day window, or 30 days for Verizon activatable devices. [1]
Do holiday decorations get the January date? No. Best Buy lists holiday decorations at 15 days, including for membership-program members. [1]
What should I bring to the store? Best Buy asks for the item with original contents and packaging, and, for faster processing, your packing slip or receipt and the credit card used to make the purchase. [1]
Keep the dates with you
Start with The Clearance Cheat Sheet: Clearance Tag Quick Card, our own product.
For sourced clearance-tag field cards, a fee-aware profit tracker for Excel and Google Sheets, and a price-error playbook, get The Clearance Cheat Sheet: Reseller Field Kit, our own product.
Disclosure: The Clearance Cheat Sheet is our sister store on Whop. Sloane Glitchford is the pen name of Price Bug Alerts' founder, and we benefit from sales of these guides. These are plain links, not affiliate links.
Neither product replaces Best Buy's current policy page. Recheck Best Buy before you return.
We're not affiliated with or endorsed by Best Buy. Return windows, fees and policies change. Everything above was checked against Best Buy's pages on November 10, 2026.
Sources
- Best Buy Return & Exchange Policy (official), checked 10 Nov 2026, 17:42 UTC
- Best Buy Price Match Guarantee (official), checked 10 Nov 2026, 17:42 UTC