Holiday price match 2026: Target, Best Buy and who still matches competitors

Buying gifts early is smart, until the price drops a week later. Two big retailers have holiday-season price policies worth knowing before you shop in November. They work very differently, and one common assumption (that Target matches Amazon or Walmart) is no longer true.

Target: matches its own price through Dec. 24

Under the Target Price Match Guarantee, if you buy an eligible item in store or online starting November 1, 2026, and the price goes lower at Target on or before December 24, 2026, you can request a price match. Outside that window, the normal rule is 14 days from purchase.

Key rules from Target's page:

• The lower price must be at Target.com or your local Target store, and the item must be identical in brand, size, color, quantity and model number.
• Show the current price on Target.com, the Target app or the digital ad. Target says screenshots and pictures can't be accepted.
• Clearance, closeout, liquidation, refurbished items and typographical errors are excluded. For in-store purchases, a lower price at a different Target store doesn't count.
• Target coupons and Target Circle bonuses can't be combined with a price match; manufacturer coupons are applied after the match.

What Target no longer does is match other stores. As reported by TheStreet via the Herald Sun (Oct. 27, 2026): Best Buy keeps price matching policy that Target dropped, Target ended its competitor price-matching policy on July 28, 2025, after 12 years.

Best Buy: matches 19 named competitors

The Best Buy Price Match Guarantee covers new, immediately available products sold by Best Buy that are identical (same brand, model number and color) to an item at a "Qualified Competitor." The current Best Buy qualified competitors list names Abt, Amazon, Apple, B&H Photo Video, BJ's Wholesale Club, BrandsMart USA, Costco, Crutchfield, Dick's Sporting Goods, Home Depot, Lowe's, Menards, Micro Center, Nebraska Furniture Mart, P.C. Richard, RC Willey, Sam's Club, Target and Walmart.

The fine print matters:

• No marketplace sellers. Items sold by third-party sellers on Amazon, Walmart.com or BestBuy.com don't qualify.
• No Thanksgiving-week matching. Best Buy excludes competitor items for sale from the Thursday before Thanksgiving through the Monday after, plus anything labeled Black Friday pricing.
• No special deals. Daily or hourly sales, limited-quantity offers, bundles, gift-card offers, membership-only prices, clearance, open-box and refurbished items are excluded.
• One match per item. Best Buy allows one price match at the time of purchase, per identical item, per customer.
• Its own price drops count too. If Best Buy lowers its own price during the return and exchange period, it will match the lower price on request.

A simple holiday plan

1. Buy the gifts you're sure about on or after Nov. 1, so Target's extended window covers you.
2. Set price alerts (see our price tracking guide) and keep receipts in one email folder.
3. For electronics, compare the exact model number across Best Buy's competitor list before checkout, and plan around the Thanksgiving-week exclusion (see our Black Friday 2026 plan).
4. If a price drops at the same store, ask for an adjustment; our price adjustment guide has a short script.

Policies can change at any time, so check each store's current page before you rely on it. And a "deal" is only a deal if the price is actually lower; see is that sale real?

Published October 28, 2026. We do not use affiliate links on this page; see our Affiliate Disclosure.