This popular holiday gift often goes unused. Here's how to turn it into cash
Are your unused gift cards gathering dust? You may be able to exchange those cards for cash.
Gift cards are among the most popular gifts during the winter holiday season: 44% of consumers planned to give one as a gift in 2023, ranking second only to clothing, 56%, according to the National Retail Federation.
Many Americans don't use their cards. To that point, 47% of U.S. adults have at least one unused card, according to a 2023 Bankrate survey. Nationwide, those unused balances are worth $23 billion, the report found.
Their average value is $187 a person — a 61% increase from $116 in June 2021, Bankrate found.
However, certain websites let consumers sell their unused cards for money.
«Consumers certainly don't need to leave these gift cards unused in a drawer somewhere,» said John Breyault, vice president of public policy, telecommunications and fraud at the National Consumers League.
These websites have a few different financial models, which pay consumers less than the face value of their card. Some vendors pay a percentage of a card's value, with amounts varying by retailer, while others are like an eBay for gift cards, for example, Breyault said.
Examples include Raise.com, CardCash.com and GiftCash.com, said Ted Jenkin, a certified financial planner based in Atlanta and a member of CNBC's Advisor Council.
One «detriment» of holiday gift cards is that recipients are generally inclined to spend more than a card's value while shopping, Jenkin said. A $100 card might turn into a $118 total purchase, for example, he said.
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