Lost a Receipt? How to Get a Copy at Walmart, Target, Home Depot and More
By the Returns & Refunds team · How we research
Summary
- If you paid by card or scanned a rewards account, most big stores can find the receipt in their app, on their website, or at customer service.
- Have four things ready: the card you paid with, the approximate date, the store location, and the total from your card statement.
- Cash purchases are the hard case: unless you gave a phone number or member ID, the store usually has nothing to search.
- Lookup windows vary: about a year in the Target app, 24 months online at Home Depot, two years online at Costco, three years in the Sam's Club app.
On this page (5 sections)
If you’ve lost a receipt, there’s a good chance the store can still produce it. When you pay by card or scan a rewards account, the transaction is stored against that card or account, and most large retailers can reprint it. The table below covers the major stores, starting with what you can do yourself.
Before you start: what you’ll need
- The card you paid with (or the phone number, email, or member ID on your rewards account)
- The approximate purchase date
- The store location
- The exact total, which you can find on your bank or card statement
The statement is often the key: store systems search by card and date, and a matching total confirms the right transaction.
Store-by-store: how to get a copy of a receipt
| Store | Do it yourself | At the store or by phone | How far back |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walmart | Receipt lookup for card purchases: enter the store location, date, card type, last 4 digits, and total. Online orders are in Purchase History. | Customer service desk | Not stated |
| Target | Target app → Account → Purchases → In-store, if you paid with a card saved to your account, scanned your Wallet barcode, or entered your Target Circle phone number. | Guest Services can look up purchases by Target Circle Card, Visa, Mastercard, Amex, or Discover | About 1 year in the app |
| Home Depot | Add your card to your homedepot.com account and its purchases appear in Purchase History, ready to print. | Store can search by the card; older receipts need the exact date, card, store, and total | 24 months online |
| Lowe’s | MyLowe’s account shows online and in-store purchases; you can print transaction details. | Lookup by phone number, card, MyLowe’s card, or checking account | Not stated |
| Costco | costco.com → Orders & Returns → In-Warehouse tab | Membership desk for receipts older than two years | 2 years online |
| Sam’s Club | Sam’s Club app → Account → Purchase History | Member Services can look up purchases by membership number | 3 years for receipt copies |
| Best Buy | Online orders: account → order → “See details & receipt” → Print. My Best Buy members see store purchases in purchase history. | Customer service with the card you paid with, or your My Best Buy phone, email, or member ID; or call 1-888-BEST BUY | Up to 10 years |
| Amazon | Your Orders → Invoice under the order number → print | Not needed | Your full order history |
| Apple | Order status on apple.com or the Apple Store app, signed in with your Apple Account; in-store receipts are emailed if you gave your email | Apple Store where you bought it | Varies |
| Kohl’s | Kohl’s app return barcode for linked purchases | Lookup by order number, Kohl’s Rewards account, or the card you used | Not stated |
| Macy’s | Search your email for a Macy’s eReceipt (offered at checkout) | Customer service | Not stated |
| Old Navy & Gap | No online lookup | Stores can find purchases from your rewards phone number or the card you used | Not stated |
| Ulta Beauty | ulta.com account purchase history | Lookup by Ulta Beauty Rewards member number | Not stated |
| Walgreens | Online account → Product Purchase History | Store, with the order number | Not stated |
Policies and tools change; if a method above doesn’t work, the store’s customer service desk is the fallback.
If you paid cash
Cash leaves no card trail, so a lookup only works if the purchase was tied to something else:
- Membership stores (Costco, Sam’s Club, BJ’s) record every purchase against your membership, however you paid.
- Rewards accounts: if you gave a phone number or scanned a rewards card at checkout, the store can search by it.
- Email receipts: if you accepted an emailed receipt, search your inbox.
Otherwise, treat the return as a no-receipt return: bring photo ID and expect store credit at the lowest recent price. See how to return something without a receipt.
If you need the receipt for a warranty claim
A manufacturer mainly needs the purchase date and seller. If the store can’t reprint the receipt:
- Use the card statement showing the store, date, and amount, together with the product’s serial number.
- Check whether you registered the product. The registration confirmation records the date.
- Some manufacturers (Apple, Dell, HP, Lenovo) can check coverage from the serial number alone.
See our warranty claim checklist for the full list of what to prepare.
Stop losing receipts
The simplest fix is to make every purchase findable: pay by card, sign in to store apps, and accept emailed receipts. For paper receipts that matter, take a photo the day you buy. Thermal receipt paper fades within months. Our receipt organizer guide shows a system that takes under a minute per purchase.
Common questions
Can a store look up a receipt with my credit card?
Usually, yes. Target, Home Depot, Lowe's, Best Buy, Michaels, and many other stores can search their transaction records by the card you paid with. Bring the physical card, and ideally the date and amount from your statement. Walmart also has an online receipt lookup that uses the card type and last four digits.
Can I get a receipt for a cash purchase?
Only if the purchase is linked to something searchable, such as a rewards account, phone number, or membership. Costco and Sam's Club record every purchase against your membership, so cash isn't a problem there. At most other stores, an anonymous cash purchase can't be looked up.
How far back can stores find receipts?
It depends on the store and the method. Target's app shows in-store purchases for up to about a year; Home Depot shows 24 months online for cards saved to your account; Costco shows two years of warehouse receipts online; Sam's Club gives receipt copies for three years in the app; Best Buy can't retrieve purchases older than ten years.
Is a reprinted receipt as good as the original?
For returns and warranty claims, yes. A reprinted or digital copy from the store's own system shows the same details. Some mail-in rebates insist on the original paper receipt, so check the rebate terms.
Related guides
We have no business relationship with the stores or brands on this page. Policies change without much notice, so check the store's own policy page before you count on a deadline. If something here is out of date, let us know.