Best Buy Trade-in 5.0 - see FAQ in OP!

BudzMcGee

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Just seemed like a good time for a new thread. You can view the previous thread here!

THIS THREAD OP WILL NOT BE ACTIVELY UPDATED WITH NEW PROMOS - THIS IS PRIMARILY AN FAQ.

All Promotions are available in-store only, and they DO NOT stack!

Only the 10% Bonus from Gamers Club Unlocked will stack with these offers, and it definitely does stack despite what some employees will say.

Please read FAQ below before asking questions!


Flip discussion is allowed on CAG, but begging for list of games to flip is not only obnoxious but doesn't help the community in any way; don't be surprised if some users are only interested in trading information with other users who regularly contribute to the thread.

General video game promotions link: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=pcat17093&type=page (Promotions are listed at the bottom of the page)

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BEST BUY'S VIDEO GAMES TRADE-IN PAGE & VALUE ESTIMATOR

Check which BB stores do trade-ins here.
In-store trades may be done in the Gaming Dept or at customer service depending on the store.

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F.A.Q. Best Buy has a short FAQ here.

How does the **% bonus TIV work?
The percentage is based on the final total of your entire trade in, so if the trade in is $100 and there is a 50% bonus your final gift card value will be $150.

How does the 10% Gamers Club Unlocked bonus work?
The 10% bonus for Gamers Club Unlocked members is calculated from the base trade in value. So in the above example, a $100 trade would get an extra $10 with the GCU membership bonus. So if there was a 50% trade in bonus it would be $100 base, $10 Gamers Club Unlocked bonus and $50 TIV bonus for a grand total of $160. 

How do I become a Gamers Club Unlocked member and get the 10% bonus?
Any video game section employee should be able to set you up with the GCU membership (should being the key word). The program has undergone some serious changes in the last couple of months. The program now cost $120  for two years and comes with a subscription of @Gamer magazine until May 2014 (which typically has a couple of great coupons every month). It will also get you a 10% bonus on trade ins, 20% off new games and 10% off of used games (Make sure to point it out to the blue shirt doing your trade-in though as it is easy for them to skip, and they are still new to it). It can take 48 hours (or more) for GCU to show up on your My Best Buy membership. Current GCU members have been upgraded to the new program for no extra charge and should have received a coupon to extend their membership for an additional 2 years at a cost of $30 ($15 a year). Members who had their subscription run out within a couple months of November 2013 will also get this coupon. 

I can't find the pamphlet or barcode to sign up for GCU!

Employees by and large seem ignorant of the program and probably won't be much help so here is what you need to do. There may be pamphlets around various areas of the store and if you can not find that try the touch kiosk. 

I didn't get my 10% bonus or the employee said it doesn't stack, what gives?
As of September 2012 the trade in system at Best Buy was updated, and employees seem to be having a hard time making sure that they add the GCU bonus. It should be added immediately after they scan your games, and before they take your personal information. You also should always try to know your full trade in value with bonuses before going to the store so that if the price is different you can identify it immediately. The 10% bonus definitely does stack with any TIV promo (100%, 50%, it doesn't matter). All the Gamers Club Unlocked pamphlets say so, as does the website, and are a great place to point to if an employee or a manager tells you otherwise.

For a full break down of when and how to help make sure your 10% was applied look in the spoiler.

How to get your 10% bonus

For some reason this is incredibly difficult for employees to get right. Following this process should work, but there is no accounting for the occasional very-bad-at-their-job employee.  

The 10% requires that they add your member information at a very specific point. The best way to describe it is that it must be entered along with your games, as it is on the same page. So immediately after they enter your games, but before navigating to the next page on their computer, the Best Buy employee has to enter your information, typically using your phone number, to find your account. It is on the same page as all of the games and if they are asking for your ID it is too late!  The big problem is that the next page also looking up your member information, but in a brilliant move of programming on Best Buy's part, it will not apply the membership bonus at this stage. An easy way to see if the bonus has been applied is to ask for the trade in total at this point as well, as the 10% (and any other bonuses) would already be applied; so if the numbers are off you know they need to go back a page and enter the information. Otherwise, that being done, it should work just fine.

Things to know/help you make sure the bonus is applied:

  • Always know your trade total, including bonuses, before going in. This will help you catch issues.
  • Hold onto your ID until they ask for it, that way you know that they are on that page. Before handing them the ID is a great time to ask them what the total was if they haven't already told you because you can still catch the issue now. 
  • Be polite and helpful. Try to not get frustrated if they didn't enter the information at first, and politely mention that last time you had this issue the employee had to go back a page. In the event the issue isn't being resolved it never hurts to ask if maybe someone from gaming could help.  MOST employees will be friendly and work with you. 
  • Lastly, be persistent. Some employees will take it personally when you try to help, some will just be difficult because lets face it, retail jobs suck and you're probably the 900th person to ask them for something today. Giving up though not only makes you lose out on the 10% bonus, and the Reward Zone points (as well as credit towards your Elite Plus status), all it does is make sure the employee doesn't know what they are doing for the next customer either.  You paid for the bonus, make sure you get it. 

Do we get MyBestBuy (Reward Zone) points for trade-ins??
Yes. You get one point for every pre-bonus dollar traded in. So if your TIV was $100 before bonuses, you get 100 Reward Zone points. Gamers Club Unlocked members (and possibly standard Gamers Club members) get double points for everything gaming, including trade-ins. So in the same example you would wind up with 200 Reward Zone points. To get Reward Zone points you must have them include your Reward Zone membership information (easiest to look up by phone number) with your trade-in (this is required for the Gamers Club Unlocked bonus anyway).

Can I use my Best Buy gift card to purchase Amazon Kindle Gift Cards or Visa Gift Cards?
Yes, although some employees may not be aware of this and incorrectly refuse to do so. Visa Gift Cards have a $200 limit and a $6 activation fee. Amazon Gift Cards are available in $25, $50 and $100 depending on your store selection. Some states, or even localities (county, city, etc.) may not allow the sale of Amazon Gift Cards. Yes, Kindle Gift Cards are good for anything on Amazon.

The value on the site doesn't match the store, why?
Sometimes the page may not update immediately. This is fairly rare though. The store's trade-in values are definitive though, so what they say is what you get. 99.99% of the time they will match up.

The value on the iPhone/Android app is way off, why?
The app often sucks for updating values (and some games simply don't show up), don't rely on it if you don't have to.

The game I want to trade isn't on the site, what gives?
While rare, there have been some games recently not showing up in the online estimator. You can always check in-store to see if the price is in their system and simply not online, but that is unlikely to be the case (as in, it is possible that has never been the case). When Best Buy doesn't have a game on file they can offer $1 as a generic SKU, but that's it. New releases appear to be added on Tuesday evenings. Many new releases are taking upwards of a week or more to be added to the site.

How come the GOTY/complete version doesn't show up in the estimator?
Best Buy doesn't differentiate between the vanilla and GOTY/complete versions of a game 99% of the time. This is largely a cover-all policy due to the fact that many GOTY editions include the game's DLC and bonus content as one-time use codes; meaning that the game has no extra value on the 2nd hand market and honestly, Best Buy probably doesn't trust their employees to make sure all the extra content is included. So no extra TIV for your GOTY games. The plus side is that GOTY and vanilla versions sell at the same price, so if the DLC is located on disc and you find a GOTY version in-store it will be the same price as the vanilla one.

When do trade-in values update?
No one knows for sure, but updates can and do happen at any time. Sometimes an update will happen at an atypical time, such as when GameStop has an advertised sale for a game well below Best Buy's trade in price.

What will be the TIV of Game X tomorrow/next week / next month/ etc
Nobody knows.

If I locked in a trade online, and the value drops, will I still get the locked in value when I mail it in?
Yes. You will get the locked in TIV as long as the item is received within 14 days of you locking it in (and the item is in the condition you described it as). Again, the item MUST BE RECEIVED within 14 days. It is not enough to simply ship it within the 14 day time period (like Amazon). Be mindful of this if you are trying to trade in a game that you are waiting to ship/arrive from an online store. If you miss the receiving deadline and then complain about it in the thread you will probably be made fun of. You have been warned.

Can you lock in the price online then trade it in-store?
No. Online and in-store are completely separate in every way but their base trade in values.

Do I get the XX% bonus or my 10% GCU bonus when trading online?

No. All bonuses, including GCU member bonus only work in-store.  The value listed on the website is the value you will receive, nothing more.

How do I get my giftcard for online trades?

Online trades will receive a E-Giftcard.  E-Giftcards can be printed and used in store, you can also go in store and ask a cashier to "transfer" it to a real giftcard, i.e. buy a real giftcard with the E-Giftcard funds if you wish. Apparently the online system states they will mail a giftcard but this is not accurate. 

Is there a limit to how many games I can trade in?
Officially, Best Buy recently changed their policy on this then changed it back. You can trade up to 3 copies of a title per platform. The system will not automatically stop you from trading in more than 3 copies of a game, some have done so frequently without issue but many others have been banned for trading over the limit in the past so it is not recommended if you wish to keep Best Buy as a trade in option in the future. Obviously it is YMMV, but do so at your own risk. If you regularly re-buy games at lower prices and trade in a lot it may be wise to keep track of all that you trade in.


Can I trade game disc only, or do I need the case and manuals, too?
Best Buy accepts disc only games (for the same value as complete games). The trade in will take longer though as the employee will have to look up the games individually. Yes, this also applies to DS, 3DS, PSP, etc. If you have the manual and artwork you should trade it in though anyway to improve the quality of the selection for people who may want to buy the game in the future (you can't know if the game will be complete when you buy online for example).

Can I trade in games that say "Not for Resale" on the back?
Yes, since the only thing that matters is the disc. Some employees will fight this though, and in that case, just trade the game in as disc-only. Employees have gotten much better about knowing this policy though, and busier stores are more likely to have employees that have done more trade ins and know the rules.

Does Best Buy accept game hardware?
Currently Best Buy only accepts various versions of the Nintendo DS in store, but some stores apparently accept consoles as well. Call ahead before bringing it in. That said, the TIV for most hardware is lower than competitors.

Does the **% bonuses apply to game hardware?
No, games only.

When I do a in-store trade, I am asked: to be fingerprinted, to have my photo taken, how much I weigh, etc. What's the deal?
Pawn shop laws regulating trade-ins and resale of used goods varies from state to state or even city to city. It is not Best Buy's rule, and varies from store to store depending on where you live. At a minimum you'll need a government issued ID (passport, drivers license, military ID, etc.).

I went to a store to do a trade-in and they asked for a Best Buy receipt. WTF? 
Some stores are required to have receipts to accept trade-ins, again this is due to local Pawn shop laws and could vary from city to city. You can always check if the store(s) near you require a receipt on Best Buy's trade-in site.

Can I trade sealed games?
Yes. You must present your receipt for the sealed games you are trading in. It is ok if the purchase was made from another store. You do run the risk of drawing extra attention to yourself as trading in sealed products is often a sign of theft. Do not be surprised if this is questioned by an employee, or you are asked to leave, open the items and return. You might even be flat out denied by the employee or manager despite the official rule. It is their right to do so.

How does the get **% with pre-order bonus work?
After trading in your games, the employee SHOULD then sell you the pre-order for $5.

How much is a pre-order at Best Buy?
Pre-ordering at Best Buy cost $5, in fact, you aren't supposed to pay any more than that (and most employees won't let you if you ask). Yes, you can use the gift card you just received from your trade-in to purchase the pre-order.

Can I cancel a pre-order and keep the bonus?
Yes, the trade-in and the pre-order are completely separate transactions. Nothing will prevent you from returning to the Best Buy canceling the pre-order and receiving a refund. Some users have claimed that they were flagged for doing this multiple times though and were denied, so be aware of how many pre-orders you are cancelling. Also keep in mind the obvious facts that this is not how the program is intended to work and over abuse will negatively affect the program long-term. Lastly, returns are tracked on a personal level by a third party. (Read: try not to cancel a bunch of pre-orders)

Do I have to cancel the pre-order at the same store where it was made?
No, this can be handled by any BBY. Don't be surprised if you get a customer service employee who says otherwise though.

Can I pre-order once and get the pre-order bonus on my next trade-in as well?
YMMV. Officially, the answer is no, but there is nothing that actually requires the employee to sell the pre-order in order to apply the bonus so if your blue shirt is in a friendly mood they may be willing. Doesn't hurt to get to know the employees at your store. That said, expect that you will have to pre-order another game and be surprised if you don't.

Can I combine a 3 games for **% and a pre-order for **% bonus?
No. Bonuses do not stack, and you must pick one or the other. The only bonus that stacks with other promotions is the 10% you receive if you are a Gamers Club Unlocked member.

Remember, all trades are technically at the discretion of Best Buy and they can refuse to accept a game for whatever reason they want (outside of you being black, woman, Jewish, etc.).

 
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Hm, have a printed coupon for Dying Light, but really wondering if I want to pay full price for it with lack of reviews ... also feel like I should be trading something else in to further off-set the cost, but all the games I could trade seem better than Dying Light.
I really hope I like it, especially cuz I have nothing else to play except for cod aw, which sucks, ufc that also sucks, and the first episode of GoT I bought today. From what I skimmed of the ign first impressions for the review in progress I'm still not sure if it'll be good. For basically $30 I pretty much can't lose cuz if it sucks I'll just trade it in ASAP and make some money
 
You guys think trading in COD AW for $27 is worth it to help off-set the risk w/ Dying Light? Hoping that if it isn't all that, I can still flip it back to BB or sell on Amazon this week for a bit more than I paid (people seem to eat up these zombie games, regardless of reviews for some reason).

 
You guys think trading in COD AW for $27 is worth it to help off-set the risk w/ Dying Light? Hoping that if it isn't all that, I can still flip it back to BB or sell on Amazon this week for a bit more than I paid (people seem to eat up these zombie games, regardless of reviews for some reason).
reviews should go up after midnight/early morning. TIV should hold for a couple weeks at least on best buy.com. My plan is to play threw it and trade it in before evolve drops.

I'm just worried it's not gonna be a 40/44 GCU game (after the 30% bonus) at first because of that ten dollar trade in coupon but I'd be happy if I get 30-35 for it.

Edit:

acutally just did a search for reviews and I guess they promised no review embargo but reviewers didn't receive their copies until this morning.............

 
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Yeah, that's why it seems shady. Dropping review copies a day before the game is released feels like the same sort of tactic movie studios use when they release terrible movies without screening them for critics. But given the interest in that Walking Dead game that was panned by just about everyone and the fact it still sold at a fairly high price for awhile, I feel like the risk in grabbing this for the GCU discount, plus $20 off (coupon & pre-order bonus) is relatively minimal when it comes to getting your money back.

 
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reviews should go up after midnight/early morning. TIV should hold for a couple weeks at least on best buy.com. My plan is to play threw it and trade it in before evolve drops.

I'm just worried it's not gonna be a 40/44 GCU game (after the 30% bonus) at first because of that ten dollar trade in coupon but I'd be happy if I get 30-35 for it.

Edit:
acutally just did a search for reviews and I guess they promised no review embargo but reviewers didn't receive their copies until this morning.............
Madden had a coupon deal too and I got the usual $40/44 for it, but Madden is a much more popular game than this will be though. I think basically all xbone/ps4 $60 games will start at around that value so we should be good for at least a couple weeks
 


Yeah, that's why it seems shady. Dropping review copies a day before the game is released feels like the same sort of tactic movie studios use when they release terrible movies without screening them for critics. But given the interest in that Walking Dead game that was panned by just about everyone and the fact it still sold at a fairly high price for awhile, I feel like the risk in grabbing this for the GCU discount, plus $20 off (coupon & pre-order bonus) is relatively minimal when it comes to getting your money back.
oh yea you should be able to get your money back and then some with the coupon.

They did cancel the ps3/360 versions pretty late in development, if they were concerned with trying to "trick" people I'm sure they would've found a way for those versions to work to get more sales. The fact they canned those versions makes me think they are out to make a good game that plays well across all platforms available.

I really don't see this game being too far off from dead island, just better looking, more story driven and hopefully less buggy. Either way I'm just getting this to hold me over until evolve. Will most likely flip it by the 10th unless it is an amazing game.


 
dying light is on the best buy trade in site @ $31 and with the 30% trade in it comes to $40.30 with GCU it comes to $43.40.

How long is the 30% active, just this week? 

 
giantbomb quick look gives good glimpse of game.  takeaway...if you want open world RPG set in zombie infested location (a la Dead Island), you'll be quite pleased.  

if you didnt like dead island...i'd probably stay away from this one.

 
dying light is on the best buy trade in site @ $31 and with the 30% trade in it comes to $40.30 with GCU it comes to $43.40.
That's only for the xbox one version right?
I can't find :ps4: Dying Light

the base is $27 @ Gamestop...i can't find the $40 guaranteed promo in the site though

I really hope this game doesn't disappoint
 
That's only for the xbox one version right?
I can't find :ps4: Dying Light

the base is $27 @ Gamestop...i can't find the $40 guaranteed promo in the site though

I really hope this game doesn't disappoint
yea it's only showing xbone right now but I'm sure ps4 will be the same once it's updated.

wow $27 is pretty damn low even for GS.

 
Well, retrained another bb employee tonight on disc only trades...
Did you walk to the game section and grab a preowned disc only game then go back and say "ok so what is this then"? I had to do that a week or two ago. He retracted so quick and was like "oh they must have just changed it" and then went ahead and added it.

 
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giantbomb quick look gives good glimpse of game. takeaway...if you want open world RPG set in zombie infested location (a la Dead Island), you'll be quite pleased.

if you didnt like dead island...i'd probably stay away from this one.
Yep, I just beat the prologue and its a LOT like Dead Island aside from the parkour elements. Gonna give coop a go later tonight when my buds sign on. I hope you can do all the story missions with friends and have it carry over to your game.

 
Did you walk to the game section and grab a preowned disc only game then go back and say "ok so what is this then"? I had to do that a week or two ago. He retracted so quick and was like "oh they must have just changed it" and then went ahead and added it.
Nah, I said "check SOP for trade ins and you'll see that cases aren't required"

He called someone over the headset who confirmed what I said.

 
I dont know if this is the right section to ask this question but I got an email from bestbuy for 10 percent off any one item for joining rewards/ gamers club   is this the same thing as  the "movers coupon" cause i have one of these from the post office and was wondering if they stacked on each other if they are different things would like to pick up a xone cause i have 150 in credit at bestbuy right now but been waiting on a couple deals since microsoft store deal last month to add some credit. 

 
I dont know if this is the right section to ask this question but I got an email from bestbuy for 10 percent off any one item for joining rewards/ gamers club is this the same thing as the "movers coupon" cause i have one of these from the post office and was wondering if they stacked on each other if they are different things would like to pick up a xone cause i have 150 in credit at bestbuy right now but been waiting on a couple deals since microsoft store deal last month to add some credit.
I have never heard of such coupon. other than trade-ins, i'm not sure bestbuy allows stacking of coupons. at lease i've never heard of any success story.

the mover's coupon is different and can only be obtain at usps or on their website.

 
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yeap every month it changes on me. mine supposed to expire last month but when i check it again it expires next month.
 
Has anyone been unbanned lately?  I was banned bout a year and a half ago....I did unspeakable things.  Anyway just wondering what the latest is as far as unbannings have gone?

 
So... I just started playing Metro 2033 on PS4 and I dunno im just not feeling this game. Should I skip and go to the 2nd one? Is the 2nd one much better? If not I might just dump this off for close to 17 before it goes even lower

 
So... I just started playing Metro 2033 on PS4 and I dunno im just not feeling this game. Should I skip and go to the 2nd one? Is the 2nd one much better? If not I might just dump this off for close to 17 before it goes even lower
It's more of the same, just more polished. If you're not digging the first, I doubt you'll enjoy the 2nd truthfully.

 
So... I just started playing Metro 2033 on PS4 and I dunno im just not feeling this game. Should I skip and go to the 2nd one? Is the 2nd one much better? If not I might just dump this off for close to 17 before it goes even lower
Yea if you're not liking 2033 then you are not going to like LL.

 
Its not that its bad or anything, i like the story and setting but some of it just seems more annoying than fun. Think I might be better off just reading the book lol

 
looking at trading a 160 ps3 to BB for $100.  They don't care if the playstation auxiliary cable is missing do they?  I'll be bringing in the ps3, power cord and a controller

sorry for the dumb question! 

 
looking at trading a 160 ps3 to BB for $100. They don't care if the playstation auxiliary cable is missing do they? I'll be bringing in the ps3, power cord and a controller

sorry for the dumb question!
Not dumb at all. BB console trade in is odd. The only thing you need officially is the power cord. They're supposed to only turn it on to see if it turns on or not. You don't need a controller nor HMDI or a/v cable. BUT some employees might not take it without either of them. So YMMV.

EDIT:

Sunrisecityrider beat me to it.

 
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Dang that sucks. I was gonna trade dying light and GTA in later today so hopefully it isn't down for long
online search still works, to me that makes me think that the down time was probably isolated to that best buy, and not a national thing. at least that is how it has been in the past.

 
Confirming East Coast is back up, just did a trade. Pretty impressed, I traded in a bunch of games from the GS deal along with GTA and AW for PS4 and was done in less than 10 minutes with no issues getting GCU bonus. Wish all BB trades went that smooth!
 
Since someone asked about converting credit...I assume those prepaid Visa cards you can buy with BB credit (if the cashier doesnt stop you) can be used at most other retailers?

 
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