Gift cards are great -- as long as you get ones for stores where you actually shop. But if someone gives you a gift card you don't want, you don't have to treat it like a fruitcake that gets shoved aside and forgotten. You can sell your unwanted gift card online for cash, and the best day to do so is the day after Christmas.
Research shows that on December 26 cardholders get the best rates from resellers who want to restock their depleted supplies of gift cards after the holidays, says Luke Knowles, founder of Gift Card Granny. So he has created Gift Card Exchange Day to encourage people to take advantage of this opportunity.
About $60 billion worth of gift cards -- $300, on average, per household -- go unredeemed each year, according to Gift Card Granny. So grab the unwanted cards you received for Christmas and any others lying around your house, and visit Giftcardexchangeday.com December 26 to sell them. It's partnering with eight gift-card resellers that will provide bids instantly when you enter the name of the retailer that issued your card and the dollar amount of the card. You'll be redirected to the reseller's site to complete the transaction.
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You won't get the full value of your card (up to 92% at best). But if someone gave the gift card to you, it's like getting free money. You'll be paid by check or a deposit into a PayPal account, or you can choose to receive an Amazon.com gift card.
You can sign up to receive an e-mail reminding you to sell your unwanted gift cards on Gift Card Exchange Day. However, if you don't manage to exchange your cards for cash on December 26, you can sell them any other day of the year at sites such as Gift Card Granny and Plastic Jungle.
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