Deals

Great News – Amazon Holiday Return Policy Now In Effect

a hand holding a card and typing on a laptop
Written by Charlie

The Amazon holiday return policy is now in effect. This means that you can safely hunt for deals and gifts without worrying about a better price coming up next month or the recipient not liking the gift and being stuck with it!

If you are like any of the millions of people that will be doing some online shopping at Amazon this month and next, the good news for you is that you have a much longer time to return items than normal! This is because the Amazon holiday return policy went into effect for all packages shipped today and onward!

The Amazon Holiday Return Policy Now In Effect

amazon holiday return

Link: Amazon Return Page

What is the Amazon Holiday Return Policy?

For packages shipped from November 1 to December 31, customers have all the way until January 31, 2019 to return them! This means that packages shipped today would not need to be returned for up to 92 days!

This means that items shipped by Amazon do not need to be returned for quite a while. This is great news for gift-givers who find a great deal and want to wait all the way into December to give it (or, if you are like me and can’t wait, you make up a holiday name for the day you want to give it!). It is also great news for deal hunters. This is because this month is one of the best months of the years for deals from retailers but they do not always come out at the same time. So, you can buy from Amazon as soon as you see a great price and then wait to return it to see what other deals might pop up.

From Amazon:

What can I return?
You may return most new, unopened items sold and fulfilled by Amazon within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. During the holidays, items shipped by Amazon between November 1st and December 31st can be returned until January 31st.

Another important part is that the return policy also includes the price matching. If you find something within the Amazon holiday return timeframe that is cheaper from Amazon after you bought it, you can chat with Amazon to have it matched (edit: some have mentioned that they no longer do this though this did with me last month so you may need to reason with the rep since you could just rebuy and return).

To return an item, it is super simple. Just login to your Amazon account and select the item you want to return from your Orders page. On that page, it tells you when the return window is open until and you are able to initiate the return!

Some of the links on Running with Miles are affiliate links that pay a commission if a purchase is made. Running with Miles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

About the author

Charlie

Charlie has been an avid traveler and runner for many years. He has run in marathons around the world for less than it would cost to travel to the next town - all as a result of collecting and using miles and points. Over the years, he has flown hundreds of thousands of miles and collected millions of miles and points.
Now he uses this experience and knowledge to help others through Running with Miles.

14 Comments

  • Does that also include free return shipping? In the past that’s stopped me from buying from them if I’m not sure.

    Great news

    • It depends on the reason for the return. If it is a case of you don’t want it anymore, no, it isn’t free. If it is that you found it cheaper elsewhere, I have been able to have them give free shipping for that.

  • The banner on the Amazon Return Center does not match the one you have in the article. Instead it says nothing about holiday return policy.

    • Update: Oops it says the holiday return policy on the right side. But where does it say the price matching

      • Sorry, I meant price matching to Amazon’s own sales. So if a price drops, Amazon will reimburse you for the difference if you chat with them (since you would otherwise just rebuy and return and Amazon is out the money for the restocking). I will make that more clear in the post.

        • When I chatted with an Amazon last month after the item I bought dropped price on Amazon, he said Amazon stopped price matching since a year ago. Where do you see the price matching policy? Can you post the link?

    • Sorry, I fixed it. I had meant it to say that you could price match it to Amazon’s own sale prices if the price drops. You can do that through chat and they will reimburse you for the difference.

      • I tried it a month but the rep said Amazon stopped doing that since a year ago. He said I could return and re-buy at the lower price.

        • I just did online chat with amazon.com today: if I buy this item and it goes lower price within a week, do I get the difference, and he said “we do not have any price protection policy ” and that fluctuating prices depend on a variety of factors (eg supply/demand).

          It is very silly though because I too asked even prior (via phone) and the rep said I can return it and rebuy – but you can get caught cuz not all things are free shipping to return.

          I have a feeling some credit cards may offer price protection though.

          • It’s true – some credit cards will cover it but I am sure Amazon is not getting a ton of price protection chats so it would make sense – for them – that they just go situation by situation.

        • Hmm, that is too bad. I did it last month without an issue. It could be something that they decide based on the item? I think it is dumb of them to not do that, especially with such a long return timeframe. People may open and begin using an item that Amazon is going to have to resell at much lower prices if they return because Amazon won’t refund the price difference! Not a very well thought out idea for Amazon, I believe.