Party City Return Policy: 14 Days From Delivery, Online Orders Only After the 2025 Store Closures
Party City’s return policy now gives you 14 days from the date your delivery arrives to return an online order — and online orders are the only ones it covers. The old Party City chain filed for bankruptcy for a second time in December 2024 and closed roughly 700 stores by the end of February 2025; the brand was bought out of bankruptcy, relaunched as an online-only store at partycity.com in June 2025, and now also sells inside more than 700 Staples stores. Returns go back by mail, a Party City return label costs $8.99 deducted from your refund, and seasonal items have their own deadline: they must go back up to 7 days before the holiday. This guide covers the current rules, the Staples and DoorDash exceptions, and what the old 30-day policy no longer promises.
Return Period 14 days from delivery
Where Online orders only — no in-store returns for online purchases
Return Label $8.99 deducted from your refund
Seasonal Items Return up to 7 days before the holiday
Return Windows at a Glance
| Category | Return window | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Online orders from partycity.com | 14 days from delivery | Return must be requested within the window; merchandise new, unused and in saleable condition |
| Seasonal merchandise (Easter, Halloween, Christmas, New Year) | Up to 7 days before the holiday | The seasonal deadline replaces the 14 days — check the calendar before you buy |
| Defective or incorrect items | Contact Customer Service within 14 days of the order date | Party City will replace the item or refund it if a replacement is no longer needed |
| Balloons (quality guarantee) | Report within 2 hours of pickup or delivery | Order number, description and photos or video required; natural deflation is not covered |
| Store Pickup orders | Contact the store where the order was placed | No in-store returns for online purchases; in-store returns are at each store’s sole discretion |
| Party City at Staples orders | Through the Staples location of purchase | Call or visit that Staples store to find out if the items are eligible |
| Local delivery orders through DoorDash | Handled by DoorDash | Contact DoorDash directly at 1-833-380-5713 — Party City’s Customer Care team is separate |
How to Return an Item to Party City
- Check your window first — it is short. Count 14 days from the day your delivery arrived, not from the day you ordered. For seasonal items, the deadline is earlier: the item must be returned up to 7 days before the holiday itself.
- Email Customer Care for a return label. Write to customercare@partycity.com with your order number and ask for a return label. Party City emails the label to you, and $8.99 is deducted from your refund if you use it.
- Or post it back yourself with a tracked service. If you buy your own label, use a tracked service, keep your proof of postage until the refund lands, and consider insuring the parcel — you are responsible for the condition of the goods until they reach Party City’s warehouse.
- Pack it like new. Merchandise must be new, unused and in saleable condition, with all original tags and labels attached, in its original packaging, with all original components and accessories, and free from any smell of smoke or perfume or any sign of wear or use.
- Wait for processing. Returns are typically processed within 2 weeks of Party City receiving the item — but during the Halloween season, September through November, processing can take up to 4 weeks. If your return falls outside the policy, it will not be refunded and you will receive an email explaining why.
How Long Do You Have to Return Items to Party City?
The current window is 14 days from receiving your delivery, and it applies only to online orders made through PartyCity.com. That is a sharp change from the old chain’s policy, which third-party guides still quote as 30 days — that 30-day window belonged to the pre-closure store chain and no longer appears on Party City’s published Returns page. Seasonal merchandise runs on a different clock again: Easter, Halloween, Christmas and New Year items can be returned up to 7 days prior to the holiday, so a Halloween costume bought on 20 October has to be back before 24 October, not 14 days after delivery. Defective or incorrect items follow the same 14-day frame, measured from the original order date — contact Customer Service within that window and Party City will work to replace the item quickly or refund it if a replacement is no longer needed.
How Do Online Returns and Mail Returns Work?
Every return starts by email — there is no online returns portal and no phone line for the relaunched store. You email customercare@partycity.com with your order number, Party City emails you a return label, and $8.99 comes off your refund if you use that label. If you would rather arrange your own postage, Party City recommends a tracked service and keeping proof of postage, and suggests insuring the shipment, because you remain responsible for the goods until they are received at the warehouse. Two costs are never refunded: your original shipping and handling charges are non-refundable, and your refund only ever reflects the amount you actually paid after promotions or discounts. Incorrect addresses carry their own penalty — if a delivery is refused or returned to sender because of a wrong address, you are subject to a $15.00 fee.
Can You Return a Party City Order In Store?
Effectively, no. Party City’s published policy states that it does not accept returns in stores for online purchases, and that in-store returns are at the sole discretion of each store and may not be honoured. For Store Pickup orders, the page directs you to contact the Party City store where the order was placed for help with your return. The reason is structural: the old chain’s roughly 700 freestanding stores are closed, and the brand’s physical presence today is the shop-in-shop inside Staples. If you bought Party City products at a Staples store, the return runs through Staples, not Party City — call or visit the Staples location where you bought the items to find out whether they are eligible for a return or refund. Local delivery orders placed through DoorDash are likewise separate: delivery problems go to DoorDash at 1-833-380-5713, not to Party City’s Customer Care team.
Can You Return to Party City Without a Receipt?
Your order number is the key document. The return label is requested by emailing Customer Care with your order number, so a return without that number cannot be started through the published route. Party City’s policy does not describe a no-receipt or no-order-number fallback — unlike the old chain, which accepted a receipt or order confirmation — so keep the order confirmation email and the order number safe. If you bought through Staples or DoorDash, the receipt for that channel is what the Staples store or DoorDash will ask for.
What Can’t Be Returned to Party City?
Party City publishes a long restricted list, and the rule for everything on it is the same: the item qualifies for a return only if it is in its unopened, original packaging and has not been worn, used or altered in any way. The restricted items are:
- Sale or clearance items and final sale items — returnable only unopened, in original packaging
- Wigs, beards, facial hair and any type of artificial hair
- Headbands and hair accessories
- Contacts and eyelashes
- Prosthetic noses or chins, prosthetics, fangs and fake teeth
- Cosmetics
- Undergarments, socks and stockings
- Shoe covers, boot tops, slippers and similar footwear
- Cigarette holders
- Inflatable items, including costumes and décor
- Pet costumes
Shoes must be unmarked, unworn and in new condition — try them on indoors on carpet before deciding. Party City also reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to decide whether returned merchandise is in saleable condition, and items that arrive worn, used, smelly or outside the 14-day window are not refunded. Balloons sit outside the normal return flow: they are covered by a separate quality guarantee, so report any problem within 2 hours of pickup or delivery, with your order number, a description and ideally clear photographs or video. Damage after pickup, natural deflation, latex allergy reactions and failure to follow the care instructions are not covered.
How Are Refunds Issued and How Long Do They Take?
Refunds go back to your original form of payment, for the amount you actually paid after promotions and discounts — not the ticket price. The $8.99 label fee is deducted when you use Party City’s label, and the original shipping and handling charge is never refunded. Processing takes up to 2 weeks from the day Party City receives the item in normal times, and up to 4 weeks in the Halloween season (September–November) — so a Halloween return posted in late October may not be refunded until late November.
| Return route | How the refund timing works |
|---|---|
| Online order, Party City label | Refund processed typically within 2 weeks of receipt (up to 4 weeks in Halloween season), less the $8.99 label fee; original shipping not refunded |
| Online order, your own label | Same processing times; you pay the postage and keep proof of postage until the refund lands |
| Defective or incorrect item | Replacement sent quickly, or a refund if a replacement is no longer needed — contact Customer Service within 14 days of the order date |
| Party City at Staples purchase | Refund eligibility and timing are set by the Staples store where you bought the items |
| DoorDash local delivery | Delivery issues are handled by DoorDash at 1-833-380-5713 |
Does Party City Extend Returns for the Holidays?
No — the holiday rule runs in the opposite direction. There is no extended January deadline for December purchases: seasonal merchandise must be returned up to 7 days before the holiday. A Christmas decoration bought in early December has to be back before 18 December, and a Halloween costume has to be back a week before 31 October. The only holiday-related timing change is processing, not the window: returns in the Halloween season (September–November) can take up to 4 weeks to process instead of the usual 2. Treat the holiday itself as the deadline and return anything unwanted the same week it arrives.
Party City Contact Options
| Option | Details |
|---|---|
| Customer Care (email) | customercare@partycity.com — include your order number; the route for return labels and online order questions |
| Phone | No shopper phone line is published for the relaunched online store; the old chain’s 1-800-727-8924 was retired when the stores closed in 2025 |
| DoorDash local delivery | 1-833-380-5713 — delivery issues for local delivery orders go to DoorDash, not Party City |
| Party City at Staples | Call or visit the Staples location where you bought the items |
| Store Pickup orders | Contact the Party City store where the order was placed |
| Start a return | Email customercare@partycity.com with your order number to request a return label |
Frequently Asked Questions
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Conclusion
Party City’s return policy is a different policy from the one most shoppers remember: 14 days instead of 30, online only, email to start, and $8.99 off the refund for the label. The bankruptcy and relaunch explain every part of it — there are no freestanding stores left to take a return, and the brand’s physical home is now a shelf inside Staples. Keep the order number, return within the fortnight, and treat the holiday deadline — seven days before the party — as the real one.
Policy Return is an independent guide and is not affiliated with Party City. Return policies can change at any time; always confirm the current policy on Party City’s official website before making a return.
Checked against Party City’s published policy on 12 November 2026. Policies change; the retailer’s official page is the final word.
