Google Play Refund: How to get/ request Google Play Store Refund online, check status, and more

Over the years, Google Play Store has diversified from being just an app store to selling Books, Rent Movies, TV Shows and Music. Much like the way you buy a physical product and get a refund if you’re not satisfied, you can also get a refund on digital products. Did you know you can request a Google Play Store refund? Let’s now discuss what Google Play Store actually is before getting into the refund aspect. To put it in simpler terms, Play Store is Google’s platform for offering various digital content. It is not just limited to apps, which people will gather from the name. Instead, Google Play Store is home to music, movies, TV shows, books, games, and yes, apps.

Google Play Store comes pre-installed on all Android smartphones with Android’s current market share, the Play Store is actually on billion+ devices. This makes the Play Store among the largest content distribution networks. In this post, we will guide you through the process of getting a refund on your Google Play store purchases, including Apps, Books, Movies, TV Shows and Music. For various product categories, the terms of refund are different so keep an eagle on the post.

Also Read: Update Play Store: How to update apps and Google Play Store on Android

Google Play Store refund policy

Depending on the circumstances, Google might provide a refund against your purchase. The refund policy changes from product and region to region. But for a general rule, you get refunds instantly within 2 hours of the purchase, and the max duration for the refund is 48 Hours. Anything beyond that time will be a remand for a thorough review.

As a general rule, you could get a refund if:

  • Purchase was accidentally made by a friend or family member using your Account.
  • You find a Google Play purchase on your card or other payment methods that you didn’t make and that wasn’t made by anyone you know.

There is no hard or fast rule, and the refund policy is straightforward, with no questions asked, but you might face issues with refunds against some products. For example, to get an easy Google Play refund, you have to open the Google Play Store, make your way to the app page you refund for and click the ‘Refund’ button. This button is present for the first 2 hours, and after that, you need to fill up a form to get your money/chargeback.

For Books, you get a 7-day return period, the same time for TV Shows, Music and Movies and an additional 65-days’ time to get a refund for a defective clip.

How to get/request a Google Play refund

Google’s policy is straightforward for the most part. For example, if you buy an Android app or game and you aren’t happy with it for any reason, you can claim an instant full refund with the 2 Hour window. After that, you get a 48 Hour window wherein you need to fill this form for Google to process the refund, or you could follow the steps mentioned below.

To claim a refund within 48 hours of purchase:

  • Open a web browser and go here
  • Scroll down to “Order History” and find the order you want to return.
  • To the right of the order, click More.
  • Select Request a refund.

The points mentioned above are only for apps/games, and after that 48 Hour window, it is totally up to the developer to issue a refund.

Similarly, you get a 7-day return period for Books, but there are exceptions, such as the only available books for a brief period. For Movies and TV Shows, you get the same 7-day return period, but if the clip you got is damaged, you are entitled to a refund in under 65 days from the date of purchase.

Except for the app and games purchases for which you get a dedicated Google Form for refunds, all the entertainment-related product refunds are requested via the Google Customer Support team.

How to request a Google Play Store refund after 48 hours of app/ game purchase

If you’ve missed the 48-hour window, don’t lose hope just yet. There is still some possibility for a refund, but it varies from developer to developer.

The option you are left with now is to contact the developer. You could write to the developers explaining your case for a refund. It is then entirely upon them to give you your money back.

You could follow these steps to get the necessary developer details.

  • Open the app or game’s landing page on the Google Play Store.
  • Expand the description by tapping on ‘Read More.
  • In the Developer details section, you should see the necessary details, like the address and email.

How to get a refund for in-app purchases

In specific free to use apps and games, the developers hide content before a pay-wall; in those cases, the purchases made are termed as in-app purchases. Google can give you refunds for these kinds of transactions, but you need to fill this form

While going through this method, make sure that you’re signed in to the same Google account on which the purchase was made. After filling the form, you should hear back from Google within two business days. If this process takes longer, you will have to contact the developer using the steps mentioned in the above sections.

How to check Google Play refund status/ time taken for the refund

For apps and games, including in-app purchases, the refund time is within 48 hours. But for other products, this time varies.

  • The refund period is seven days in most countries.
  • For movies and TV shows, requests put up for a refund within 7-days are considered for a refund.
  • If the video playback is defective, not working, and if a book doesn’t work, you can request a refund at any time.

Tracking the refund progress is relatively easy. For starters, once a refund request is generated, you get an email from Google with the necessary details.

You can check the refund status by:

  • Opening the Play Store app
  • Tapping the menu
  • Choosing Account> Purchase History
  • Selecting the purchase, you applied the refund for
  • Tracking the request status.

How to contact the Google Support team for a refund

If you haven’t got the refund or don’t have a status, or the developers don’t reply to your emails. There is one last option of contacting their support team and asking for help.

But before you go through this, make sure that you haven’t received the last reply from Google and the developer. Getting through to the Support team is always the last resort and should be perused carefully.

The bottom line is to make purchases carefully, and refund requests are put up either within the first two hours or the 48-hour window. Going past that makes the task tedious, and your success rates plummet.

Have you tried to get a refund recently? How was the refund process? Were you rejected? Let us know in the comments!