Amazon Handles Returns Like Others, But Better

With Christmas behind us, thoughts turn to… all those clothes that didn’t fit, colors we don’t quite like, things we already own, and unwanted gifts in general. Amazon has a simple and generous return policy, and like many retailers lengthens their return window for holiday gifts. 

We have surveyed US Amazon shoppers about their most recent merchandise return for several years. 42% of recent US Amazon customers report that they made a return in the past year and another 42% report never returning a purchase to Amazon (Chart 1). Almost one-quarter of customers returned a purchase in the past three months, representing about 40% of all returns.