IKEA has been the world’s largest furniture maker since 2008. The liberal IKEA return policy is no doubt a big part of their popularity among shoppers. But as with any return policy, there are always some nuisances that aren’t answered on the company’s website and typically require a phone call to the store. To alleviate that phone call, and make your life a little easier, here’s everything you need to know about their return policy.

How Many Return Days Do I Have at IKEA?

365 return days to be exact.

Yes, you have exactly 1-year from your original purchase date to bring items back to IKEA.

They call it their “No-Nonsense” policy and it’s pretty darn generous.

See Also: 6 IKEA Hacks That’ll Save You Money (You’ll Feel Like a Genius)

Do I Need My IKEA Receipt to Return Items?

As of October 22, 2020 you need your receipt to make a return.

If you don’t have your receipt, IKEA can try to use one of the following methods to find your purchase: Credit or debit card, gift card number, or an order number (if applicable).

If they’re unable to find any trace of your purchase, ask that they issue you a merchandise credit for the lowest selling price within the past 365 calendar days.

They often will if you’re polite.

Any Exceptions to the 365-Day Return Policy?

Yes, there are a few big exception.

– Mattresses: If you purchase a mattress from IKEA, and don’t like it, you can’t simply return it for a refund.

You’ll have to exchange it for another mattress and you can only do this once within a 365-day window.

– Gift Cards: You cannot return gift cards to IKEA. You’ll have to sell them through a site like Raise.com if you want to get some money for them.

 – Plants: These cannot be returned.

– Cut Fabric: Measure twice, cut once as cut fabric cannot be returned.

– Custom Countertops: These also cannot be returned.

– As-is Products: These usually are sold at a discount and hence cannot be returned.

See Also: Sam’s Club Return Policy: Here’s Exactly How It Works

What If the Furniture Is Already Assembled?

Not a problem.

So if you finally get your stuff home (and spend an entire weekend assembling it) you can still return it to IKEA if you change your mind or it has a defect.

No questions asked but they do suggest you try and first disassemble at home if you can.

After you return it, they’ll put it in the “assembled” discount section for bargain shoppers to grab.

They state that items must be in unused and salable condition.

But the term “unused” is very subjective in this case. Technically, when you put a bookcase together and throw a book on it, it is used.

Let me know in the comments below if you’ve had trouble returning items to IKEA because of this.

From what I’ve read online, IKEA is fairly generous in what they term as “used” and “salable” and will take most items back without a hassle.

Do I Need the Original Box to Return an Item?

No, you don’t need the original packaging or box to return items.

I hit up IKEA live chat to verify this and was told, “you can return it in any box properly.”

Might be a good idea to keep the box if you haven’t assembled it yet as it’ll make returning it easier.

See Also: Temu Return Policy: It’s Confusing Returning Stuff to China

Can I Return Washed Bedding?

From the comments, it seems you can return washed items as someone returned washed cushions without a problem.

I’m guessing if the washed item lost color, or seems defective, they would be much more likely to take it back.

Can I Return Clearance, Bargain Corner, or “As-Is” Items?

Yes, you can return them all.

This means you have nothing to lose when buying something that’s already assembled and marked down.

Take it home, try it out, and if you don’t like it, just return it to the IKEA warehouse for a full refund.

What Are My Options After 365 Days?

Unfortunately, you don’t have any return options after 365 days.

You’ll have to sell your IKEA items via Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, eBay, or a yard sale.

See Also: Home Depot Return Policy: Orange Apron Tips You Gotta Know

What About Returning Online Purchases?

When buying items from the IKEA website, your return options are slightly different.

Specifically, you only have 14 days after your purchase to return items via the mail, or home pickup for large items.

After 14 days, you’ll have to return online purchases to the IKEA warehouse.

Be sure to keep your online receipt or packing slip to make the return go smoothly.

Note: Items bought in-store CANNOT be returned via the mail or online. They must be brought back to your local IKEA.

What About Returning a Gift to IKEA?

If you have the gift receipt, no problem.

Simply return the item and receive store credit for the item’s purchase price.

I was told that if you ask for cash, instead of store credit, that may be okay.

Apparently there’s no policy in place either way and it’s left up to the discretion of the individual store.

If you don’t have the receipt, it becomes very difficult to return the item as they won’t even give you store credit.

I was told by an IKEA representative that the “purchase holder will need to contact IKEA or take the item back to the store as they have purchased the item.”

Ask the Reader: Have you used IKEA’s return policy in the past? Was it as awesome as it sounds or am I missing something?

By Kyle James

Photo credit to Rarye.

If you’re not regularly taking advantage of the Costco price adjustment policy, you’re absolutely leaving money on the table. While most loyal Costco shoppers are already aware that they don’t price-match other retailers, they absolutely do offer internal price adjustments if the price of an item drops after you purchase it. Here’s everything you need to know to take advantage of this great, yet often forgotten, Costco perk.

First Off, What Is a Costco Price Adjustment?

A Costco price adjustment is when you buy something from the Costco warehouse (or online) only to have the price of the item drop later.

In this case, you’re eligible for a price adjustment and refund for the difference in price.

Costco is known to lower their prices often, especially around Black Friday and December in effort to keep pricing competitive with places like Best Buy, Target, and Walmart.

Be sure to take advantage of this policy moving forward and get some significant money put back in your pocket.

See Also: Skip the Membership: All The Stores That’ll Price Match Costco

How Many Days Do I Have to Get an Adjustment?

30 days.

You have 30 days from the date of your original purchase to request a price adjustment.

What If I’ve Gone Past the 30 Days?

According to several comments on this article, you might NOT be out of luck, especially if it’s just a week or two beyond the 30 days.

Specifically, “K Van” informed me that she actually got $500 back on a bedroom set that went on sale over 2 months after she purchased it.

Moral of the story…always ask politely and you just might get a price adjustment on items 30 days beyond your purchase date.

PRICE ADJUSTMENT WORKAROUND

If for some reason Costco gives you grief about giving you a price adjustment you still have an option. You can simply return the item and purchase it again at the lower price. Because of Costco’s liberal return policy, which pretty much gives you unlimited days to make a return (90 days for Electronics), it’s easy to just return the item and buy it again.

A scenario where Costco might refuse your price adjustment is with a cheaper TV that’s a slightly different model than the one you bought. The Costco employee might decline your price adjustment request for this reason, so simply return your TV and purchase the similar model at the lower price.

Do I Need My Costco Receipt?

No.

If you have your original receipt, definitely bring it with you as it’ll make the transaction much smoother.

But if you lost your receipt, just visit the Costco customer service desk and give them your membership number and they can look up your purchase and get you your price adjustment that way.

Is the Price Adjustment Period 90 Days on Electronics?

Unofficially, yes.

I had a Costco employee at the returns desk tell me that they always prefer to do a price adjustment on electronics if it’s within 90 days of purchase.

He said they do this because it’s WAY easier than having a customer return a used item and rebuy at the lower price.

While not all Costco locations do this, it’s safe to assume that the majority do.

Can I Get an Online Price Adjustment?

If you bought something from Costco.com and notice the price drops within 30 days, you can request a price adjustment.

To make it happen, you can either fill out this online form or call them at 1 (800) 774-2678.

You CANNOT go to the warehouse to get a price adjustment for something you bought at Costco.com.

You must use one of the two methods noted above.

Be aware that the price adjustment they’ll give you will be the online price and not the current warehouse price.

This is important to note as the online price is usually a little higher to make up for shipping costs.

Important Note: From the comments, shoppers were wondering when the online price adjustment period starts: Order date? Shipment date? Or delivery date?

I hit up Costco live chat and was told that the price adjustment period for online purchases begins on the order date.

See Also: 7 Ways to Essentially Get a $60 Costco Membership for Free

Can I Get a Price Adjustment via Live Chat?

Yes.

As of 2024, you can now get a price adjustment via live chat. I tested it out myself to verify that it works.

Keep in mind that this only works for purchases made on Costco.com.

To make it work, you’ll need to be logged into your Costco account and tell the live chat robot you “Want to get a price adjustment”.

The system will then pull up your recent order history and let you select the item you want to get a price adjustment on.

See screenshot above to see what it looks like.

If I Call for a Price Adjustment, How I Will be Paid?

Let’s say you bought a refrigerator off the Costco website, then notice a week later it’s being sold for $100 less.

You call them up at the above number (or fill out the form)..so how will they pay you?

I called Costco and asked and they said they will issue the $100 refund to your original form of payment.

Are There Any Item Exclusions or Limits?

According to the Costco rep I chatted with, “No”.

Specifically, he told me “No, we have a satisfaction guarantee on products. Worst case we have you return the item and repurchase it”.

Can I Get a Price Adjustment on Clearance Items?

According to Costco, Yes.

BUT…according to the comments section, your mileage may vary.

Much to her frustration, blog reader Sandy told me she was refused a price adjustment on clearance items.

So she was forced to go home and get the items, go back to Costco, and return them and then repurchase.

Anybody else had this problem recently? Seems like a terrible policy that causes shoppers nothing but frustrations.

Can I Get an Adjustment on a Rebate Offer?

This question came from Steven in the comments section.

His example was a TV that came with a $100 rebate offer 10 days after he originally bought it.

He was wondering if he could come back to Costco with his receipt and claim the $100 rebate offer.

I called Costco specifically with this question and was told they have no way of issuing a $100 rebate offer WITHOUT you returning and repurchasing the TV.

So unfortunately you’d have to return and rebuy the TV to claim the $100.

Can I Get a Price Adjustment on Tires?

Maybe.

No pun intended, but your mileage may vary on this.

According to this Reddit thread, if you buy a set of 4 tires at Costco and they go on sale within 30 days, you stand a chance of getting an adjustment.

But the original poster had to visit a different Costco than where he bought the tires, and talk to a couple employees at the customer service desk before they agreed to refund him the difference in price.

Can I Request “Cash Back” on My Price Adjustment?

Great question.

I had a Costco rep tell me “it’s up to the Warehouse to do the price adjustments.

But as long as they approve it, I don’t imagine they will have issues giving cash back.”

So I’m guessing your mileage may vary but it’s definitely worth asking if you’d prefer cash to a charge-back to your credit card.

See Also: Employees Tell Me The Single Best Day to Shop at Costco

Ask the Reader: Have you ever taken advantage of Costco’s price adjustment policy? If so, how much cash did you get back and was it an easy process?

By Kyle James

I never thought I would want or like an Apple Watch. That’s until I got one for Christmas and have been mesmerized by all the cool things it can do ever since. But like any new piece of technology, there exists many clever hacks and tricks that I wish I knew from the beginning. So with that in mind, here are fourteen cool Apple Watch hacks that ALL newbies need to know so they can get the most out of their new smart watch.

1. Shortcut to the Home Screen

When you first get your Apple Watch, it can be kinda confusing figuring out exactly where you’re currently located within the device.

A cool little shortcut if you’re confused (like I was) is to simply place your hand over the screen and cover it up.

This will make the watch face go black.

Then when you turn it back on, you will be back on your home screen.

Think of it like a reboot back to the beginning.

2. Push Hard on Watch Face to Clear Notifications

When you have a slew of notifications and you don’t want to clear them one-by-one, this Apple Watch hack is a must.

On the notifications screen, which you access by swiping down from your home screen, simply push down hard on the watch face (also known as a Force Touch).

This will bring up the option to clear all notifications at once. Just press “Clear All” and they will all disappear.

See Also: The 21 Popular Gas Stations That Take Apple Pay

3. Cover the Watch Face to Silence It

When you receive an incoming call on your Apple Watch you may want to quickly stop the sound or vibration coming from your wrist.

Perhaps you’re in a business meeting or crowded movie theater and forgot to put your watch in silence mode.

To silence it, simply cover the watch face with the palm of your hand and the watch immediately silences itself.

The cool part is that by doing this it won’t hang up on the person calling. It will just silence the call and stop your watch from ringing and/or vibrating.

See Also: 11 Smartphone Hacks That’ll Change Your Life for the Better

4. Push Side Button to Toggle Between Apps

It can be a bit of a pain to go from one open smart phone app to another.

A clever workaround is to simply push the side button (below the crown) and you’ll toggle between all open apps and can close them easily or switch between them.

In case you don’t know, the crown is the watch button that sticks out the furthest.

Once I figured out this hack I found myself using it all the time. Saves a bunch of time.

5. Check Battery Level on iPhone

Since you’ll need to charge your watch regularly, it’s nice to be able to access the battery level from your iPhone.

You can actually set up your iPhone so it displays your Apple Watch battery level as a Widget.

From your iPhone’s Notification center, just scroll to the bottom and tap Edit.

From the Add Widgets screen scroll to Batteries and click the + symbol to add it.

Then you can just drag the Batteries tab to where on your notifications screen you want it to appear. I put mine at the top. (see screenshot above)

This is a cool way to track your battery status via your iPhone.

6. Create Custom Text Replies to Save Time

Since there is no keyboard on the Apple Watch it can be a little wonky when trying to send a text message.

This is where custom replies can be REALLY helpful.

While the Apple Watch comes pre-loaded with a bunch of helpful replies, you’ll undoubtedly want to make some of your own for quick access.

To make it happen, simply visit the Watch app on your iPhone. From there select Messages, then Default Replies.

Next scroll to the button and select Add Reply.

Type in whatever custom reply you want to add and tap Done. This reply will now be available when texting from your Apple Watch.

7. Press Both Side Buttons to Take a Screenshot

Surprisingly, I find myself taking screenshots all the time on my Apple Watch.

Whether it’s to send a funny picture to a friend or for article research…I do it all the time.

To make it happen, simply press and hold both side buttons on your watch and the screenshot gets added to your photos.

To find your screenshot, go to the Photos app on your iPhone, tap the Albums tab, then tap Screenshots.

Note: For this feature to work, make sure you go into the Apple Watch app on your iPhone and enable Screenshots.

You’ll find the toggle switch for this feature under My Watch, then General.

Here’s exactly what it looks like:

8. Use Watch Settings to Find Your iPhone

If you can’t find your iPhone, no worries if you have an Apple Watch on your wrist.

Just slide up from the watch’s home screen and tap the vibrating iPhone icon.

This will ping your iPhone with a somewhat annoying sound so you can quickly locate it.

9. Use Apple Watch as Remote Shutter

You can also use your Apple Watch to remotely view exactly what your iPhone camera is seeing.

Simply press the camera icon from your Apple Watch’s All Apps screen. This will automatically turn on your iPhone’s camera and allow you to view whatever your camera sees.

You can then press the round camera button on the watch face to take a picture or hold it to take a cluster of pictures.

You can also press the 3s button for a 3 second delay picture which is WAY handy for group photos.

If you’d rather take video, you’ll need to swipe over to Video mode via your iPhone and then you can press the red button on your watch to start recording video.

Your iPhone and Apple Watch must be on same Wifi or within 300 ft Bluetooth range of the devices for this to work.

Use this one responsibly. In other words, be careful turning your watch into a spy camera.

See Also: Apple Student Discount: If You’re In School You Gotta Read This

10. Force Touch Music App for Hidden Features

When using your Apple Watch to listen to music, there are a few hidden features you should be aware of.

Specifically, when your within the Music app, try a force touch on the watch’s screen.

This will bring up 4 handy options at your disposal: Shuffle, repeat, source, and AirPlay.

11. Send Your Location via the Message App

Force touch within the Apple Watch’s Message app and it will bring up some cool options.

One of the handy options is “Send Location”.

Just tap it once and it will show the text message receiver exactly where you’re located.

Great hack when traveling for business or with the family.

12. Force App Closed by Holding Power Button

When an app on your watch becomes unresponsive for whatever reason you can quickly force it to close.

All you have to do is hold down the power button (the one next to the crown) until the Power Off screen appears.

Then hold down the Crown button until watch’s home screen appears.

Then when you open the unresponsive app again it will start fresh.

13. Hidden Actions When Getting Incoming Call

The next time you’re getting a call on your Apple Watch, try swiping up from the bottom to see two hidden actions.

They are Send a Message and Answer on iPhone.

The send a message feature sends the caller a text message of your choosing. Great feature if you can’t answer but don’t want to ignore them.

The “Answer on iPhone” is fairly self explanatory.

14. Press Both Buttons for Hard Reset

If your Apple Watch becomes completely unresponsive and frozen this hack is for you.

Simply hold down both the power button and crown button simultaneously.

Hold both down for 10-12 seconds and the watch will be reset and start fresh.

Ask the Reader: What Apple Watch hacks did I miss? Anything that you wish you knew when you first put one on your wrist? Let me know in the comments.

By Kyle James