Don't see your Best Buy points? Here's Why

Where are my Best Buy points?

Members of the My Best Buy loyalty program are entitled to 0.5 points per dollar spent at Best Buy. When you hit 250 points, you'll be eligible for a $5 reward. But if you don't see your points in your account after a purchase, there may be several reasons for this.

You Weren't Signed In

One of the most common problems across loyalty programs in general is that customers don't identify themselves as members when making a purchase. If you're shopping in a Best Buy store, for example, you'll need to tell the cashier that you are a member of the My Best Buy rewards program. If you don't, then they'll have no way of automatically associating that purchase with your account and you won't get points. You'll typically just need to give the cashier your phone number or email address in order to identify your membership account, which makes it really frustrating when you forget. Similarly, when shopping online, you'll just need to make sure you're signed into your My Best Buy account. If you're checking out as a guest, you won't get any points for your purchase.

What You Can Do

If you make a qualified purchase without providing your My Best Buy member ID at the time of purchase, there are some options for you to recover your missing points. Fortunately, Best Buy allows you to request points within 180 days of the transaction. That's a very generous window compared to many other brands which allow just 30 days. To submit a request for uncredited points, head over to the Report Missing Purchase section of your Best Buy account where you can fill out details about your purchase in order to claim your missing points. You can also call 1-888-BEST BUY (1-888-237-8289) to speak to a customer care representative who will help you out. Note that you must have your receipt with you in either case. Lastly, you can use SoLoyal to keep track of your Best Buy points, which includes tracking down and recovering any missing points or rewards that should have posted to your account.

You're Within the Points-Posting Window

Best Buy points will generally be credited to your account 15-20 days after you make the purchase. But keep in mind that this window will sometimes begin at the shipping date, or even the delivery date. This means it can take 2-3 weeks for your Best Buy points to hit your account, which is a significant window. As a result, many Best Buy members think they've missed out on points that they should have earned. But the reality is that the points just haven't shown up yet.

What You Can Do

In situations where you're still inside the points-posting window, there is no way to speed up the posting date. You'll just have to wait for those points to show up in your account. However, you can definitely check to make sure the purchase is credited under your My Best Buy account by simply logging in and then going to the Order Status section. If you're logged in and your order appears there, you'll get the points as long as the item you purchased was eligible. If the purchase was made in-store, you can call Best Buy support at 1-888-BEST BUY (1-888-237-8289). They'll be able to check whether your purchase will earn points.

Your Item Isn't Eligible for Points

Although the loyalty program allows you to earn points on the vast majority of items sold by Best Buy, there are some exceptions. These include purchases made for resale, purchases paid for with a reward certificate or a Best Buy Gift Card, or purchases of Best Buy Gift Cards themselves. You should also note that certain charges and fees, including sales tax, state fees, service charges and other charges, will be excluded from the purchase price when calculating how many points you'll earn. Lastly, payments made on your My Best Buy Credit Card are excluded, as are Apple and Beats products and Apple services not purchased on standard credit with the Best Buy Credit Card.

What You Can Do

The best way to avoid purchasing an ineligible product prior to checkout is to consult Best Buy's Terms and Conditions, which references a full list of the excluded items. If you're shopping in a store, check with an associate. If your item is ineligible, you may be able to find a similar item that will not be excluded from the rewards program.

You Chose Financing Instead

If you chose the financing option when paying with your My Best Buy Credit Card, you'll likely be excluded from earning points.

What You Can Do

Your only option on this one is to pay without financing.

Final Thoughts

While there are tens of thousands of points-earning items in Best Buy's catalog, it's important to know which items are excluded. In addition, when you are purchasing a points-earning item, you'll want to avoid the common pitfall of checking out as a guest without identifying yourself as a member. If you've ensured that you'll earn points on your purchase, you'll just need to check your purchase date to ensure you're safely inside the points-posting window. If you're outside that window and you still don't see your points, there are options for recovering them. If you ever need a refresher course on what to do in this situation, feel free to drop by any time!