You bought something online. It didn’t fit, didn’t work, or just wasn’t right. So you box it up, ship it back, and wait for your refund — only to find the store kept a chunk of your money.
If that’s happened to you lately, you’re not imagining it. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that returns are getting harder, and shoppers are furious about it.
Here’s what’s going on. In 2025, U.S. shoppers returned an estimated $849.9 billion in merchandise, according to the National Retail Federation — about 15.8% of everything they bought. For online purchases, nearly 1 in 5 orders went back.
That flood costs retailers a fortune to unpack, inspect and restock. So they’re clamping down — and a lot of that crackdown lands squarely on you.
Here are the six ways stores are making it harder to get your money back, and how to protect yourself.
1. You’re paying just to ship it back
Free returns are disappearing. Nearly three-quarters of retailers — 72% — charged a fee on at least one return in the past year, up from 66% a year earlier, based on NRF data reported over the 2025 holiday season.
The fees aren’t huge, but they sting. News outlets reported that Marshalls and T.J. Maxx were deducting around $11.99 per mailed-back package, while Macy’s charged roughly $10 for non-members.
Retailers blame rising shipping and processing costs — the same squeeze that’s making fast, free shipping disappear.
Here’s how to dodge it: Haul the item back to a physical store. Most retailers waive the mail-in fee if you return in person. Loyalty-program members often skip it too.
2. Restocking fees are eating your refund
Even when the shipping’s free, watch for a restocking fee — a cut the store takes just for putting the item back on the shelf.
Best Buy, for example, has charged 15% on opened electronics and as much as $45 on “activatable” devices like phones. Kohl’s has applied a similar 15% on certain non-defective returns. Across retail, these fees typically run 10% to 25%.
Keep everything — box, tags, foam, cables — in original condition. A missing accessory or a torn box hands them the excuse to keep more of your money.
3. Your return window is shrinking
Remember when you had 90 days to change your mind? Those windows are tightening, and stores are getting stricter about the deadline.
Sit on a return too long and you’re stuck with the item, or you’ll get store credit at the current (often lower) sale price. The buy-it-and-decide-later habit is riskier than it used to be.
Some retailers still stretch their return windows during the holidays, but the everyday clock is getting shorter. When you buy, note the return deadline that same day. Don’t let it drift.
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4. More items are stamped ‘final sale’
“Final sale” used to mean deep clearance. Now it’s spreading to whole categories — beauty, swimwear, intimates, and plenty of online-marketplace items.
If a tag or a checkout screen says final sale or nonreturnable, believe it. That bargain isn’t a bargain if you’re stuck with it.
Screenshot the return policy before you check out. If there’s a dispute later, you’ll have the proof.
5. Tags, receipts and packaging aren’t optional anymore
Stores are done being casual about proof. More of them now demand the original receipt, intact tags and original packaging before they’ll take anything back.
Toss the receipt or snip the tags off the second you get home, and you’ve handed them a reason to say no.
Save your receipts — a quick photo works fine — and leave tags on until you’re sure you’re keeping it.
6. Stores are tracking you — and they’ll cut you off
This is the big one. Retailers are using artificial intelligence to track your return history across purchases, and serial returners are getting flagged, hit with fees, or banned outright. In fact, 85% of retailers say they’re using AI to spot return fraud.
Why the crackdown? The NRF estimates 9% of returns are fraudulent. A separate study from Appriss Retail and Deloitte pegged fraudulent and abusive returns at $103 billion in 2024.
A lot of it is “bracketing” — ordering three sizes and returning two — and “wardrobing,” wearing something once and shipping it back. Gen Z shoppers alone averaged 7.7 online returns last year, more than any other generation.
You might be scrupulously honest. But you’re paying for everyone who isn’t, in the form of fees, shorter windows and a permanent record. Return what you truly need to, and skip the games that got us here.
Bottom line? The era of no-questions-asked, free returns is ending. Stores got tired of eating the cost, and now they’re passing it straight to you.
Not every retailer is playing this game — a handful still have generous return policies worth seeking out.
You can still come out ahead. Read the return policy before you buy, not after. Return in-store when you can. Keep your tags, packaging and receipts. And stop treating your closet like a free rental service.
Do that, and you’ll hang onto the one thing the stores are counting on you to lose: your full refund.
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