How to exchange your unwanted gift cards for cash

Proper etiquette is to always maintain a smile while receiving gifts — even if it’s something you may not want or can’t use. That said, hundreds of billions of dollars in gifts are returned each year.

A common offender is gift cards — a present slightly less personal (and less practical) than cash. Wouldn’t it be great if you could return gift cards? After all, 47% of Americans have at least one unused gift card, and the average unused amount is $175 per person.

Maybe you have impeccable taste in clothing that’s nearly impossible to pinpoint. Or maybe you’re the person who already has it all. Regardless, even the best gift givers can get it wrong, and sometimes a gift card just misses the mark.

So what do you do with gift cards you don’t want? Or what happens when you spend a portion of your gift card but don’t know what to do with the rest?

You don’t have to let them go to waste. When you open that less-than-perfect gift, grin and bear it. Then explore these options.

Keep the change

Gift cards can often leave us stuck between a rock and a hard place. Use up the entire card, and you may end up shelling out more than you bargained for. An impressive 59% of consumers surveyed say they’ll usually spend more than the value of their gift card.

But spend just under the amount of the card, and you feel like your remaining $1.22 has gone to waste.

In some states, when you leave dollars and cents on the card, you can cash it in for cold, hard cash. For instance, in California, according to the California Department of Consumer Affairs, “effective January 1, 2008, any gift certificate with a cash value of less than $10 is redeemable in cash, which includes currency or check, for its cash value.” Check to see whether your state has a similar law. If it does, you should be able to ask a retailer for the remaining balance in cash if it’s under the threshold.

Give it away

Won’t use the gift card and don’t need the cash? Find someone else who’ll take it off your hands. You can regift the card or donate it to a good cause.

Before long, you’ll likely turn from a gift recipient to a gift giver. Gift cards are one of the most requested holiday gifts each year, according to the National Retail Federation.

Exchange it online for cash

Gift givers won’t let you down. But if they do, consumers have a few options when they’re left with a card they don’t want.

There are a number of third-party websites that give you the opportunity to exchange gift cards for cash. They each work slightly differently, so the one you choose will depend on convenience — and sometimes, the gift card merchant.

Sites like WON operate as a sort of marketplace with the burden to sell the gift card placed on you. You can easily turn gift cards into cash through reputable sites like WON. The exchange rate will depend on the ease of sale and the type of gift card you have. You won’t get full value for it, but that’s still better than letting a gift card go unused.

Next time you unwrap a thoroughly uninteresting gift card, you can display a genuine smile as you scheme to convert it into something you actually want with just a few clicks.