What Amazon Gift Certificates Are and How to Use Them
An Amazon gift certificate is a prepaid balance you load onto an Amazon account that works like cash in the Amazon store. You can buy one for someone else, or receive one as a gift, and then spend that balance on anything Amazon sells—books, electronics, groceries, clothing, or anything else in their catalog. The certificate never expires, so the recipient can use it whenever they want.
When you redeem a gift certificate, the balance appears in your account as "Amazon.com Gift Card Balance" and automatically applies to your next purchase. You don't need a separate code or card to carry around—it's tied directly to your Amazon account. If you buy something that costs less than your balance, the leftover amount stays in your account for future purchases.
Key Takeaways
- Amazon gift certificates are prepaid balances that never expire and work on almost everything Amazon sells, including physical items, digital content, and Prime memberships.
- You can buy a gift certificate as a physical card, a digital code sent by email, or a printed certificate, depending on how quickly the recipient needs it.
- To redeem a certificate, you enter the code on the "Redeem a Gift Card" page in your Amazon account, and the balance is when ready available for purchases.
- The balance stays in your account until you spend it, and you can combine multiple gift certificates on one account.
- Gift certificates purchased from Amazon.com work only on Amazon.com, not on Amazon's international sites or third-party sellers outside the Amazon platform.
How to Buy an Amazon Gift Certificate
You can purchase a gift certificate directly from Amazon.com in three formats. The digital option lets you buy a code and send it by email when ready—useful if you're buying last-minute or the recipient lives far away. You choose the amount (from $1 to $500 per transaction), write a custom message, and pick the delivery date. The recipient gets an email with a claim code they can redeem when ready.
The physical card option ships a plastic gift card to an address you provide, usually arriving within a few business days. This works well if you want to give something tangible or hand it to someone in person. You can also buy a printed certificate—a decorative PDF you read and print yourself, which you can present in person or mail.
All three formats work the same way once redeemed. The amount you choose is the amount you pay—there are no hidden fees or expiration dates. You buy directly from Amazon, not from third-party retailers, to may support the certificate works properly.
Redeeming a Gift Certificate on Your Account
To redeem a certificate, sign into your Amazon account and go to the "Redeem a Gift Card" page (you can find this by searching "redeem" in the Amazon help section or looking under "Your Account"). Enter the claim code from your certificate—this is a long alphanumeric string that came with your physical card, email, or printed certificate.
Click "Redeem," and the balance appears in your account when ready as "Amazon.com Gift Card Balance." You don't need to do anything else. The next time you buy something, Amazon automatically deducts the purchase from your gift certificate balance before charging any payment method you have on file.
If you have multiple gift certificates, you can redeem them all to the same account, and the balances combine. For example, if you redeem two $25 certificates, you'll have a $50 balance available.
What You Can and Cannot Buy With a Gift Certificate
You can use your gift certificate balance to buy almost everything on Amazon.com: physical products like books and electronics, digital content like Kindle books and movies, groceries through Amazon Fresh (where available), and even Amazon Prime memberships. The balance works the same as a credit card—it's just a prepaid account.
There are a few exceptions. You cannot use a gift certificate to buy another gift certificate, and you cannot use it to pay for certain third-party marketplace sellers who require payment methods other than your account balance. In rare cases, some restricted items (like certain medications or alcohol in specific states) may have payment restrictions, but these are uncommon.
Gift certificates purchased on Amazon.com work only on Amazon.com. They do not work on Amazon.ca (Canada), Amazon.co.uk (United Kingdom), or other international Amazon sites. If you need a certificate for a different country's Amazon store, you must buy one from that country's site.
What Happens to Your Balance and How Long It Lasts
Your gift certificate balance never expires. Once you redeem the code, the money stays in your account indefinitely until you spend it. This is different from some retail gift cards that expire after a certain period—Amazon certificates have no time limit.
The balance is tied to your account, not to a physical card. If you lose the card itself, the balance is still safe in your account as long as you remember your login information. If you forget your password, you can recover your account using your email address or phone number, and your balance will still be there.
If you have a balance remaining after a purchase, it stays in your account. You can check your current balance anytime by going to "Your Account" and looking for "Gift Card Balance" in the payment section.
Transferring or Gifting Your Balance to Someone Else
Once you redeem a gift certificate code, the balance is locked to your account and cannot be transferred to another person's account. Amazon does not allow you to send your balance to someone else or convert it back to a code.
If you received a gift certificate code but haven't redeemed it yet, you can give the unredeemed code to someone else, and they can redeem it to their own account. But once the code is claimed, only that account can use the balance.
If you want to give someone money to spend on Amazon, you need to buy them a new gift certificate code rather than trying to transfer your existing balance.
Common Issues and How to Fix Them
If you enter a code and see an error message, the most common causes are typos in the code itself or trying to redeem a code on the wrong Amazon site. Double-check that you're on Amazon.com (not a different country's site) and that you've typed the code exactly as it appears, including capital letters and numbers.
If the code was supposed to arrive by email and you don't see it, check your spam or junk folder. Sometimes promotional emails get filtered. If it's been more than a few hours and you still haven't received it, contact Amazon customer service with your order number.
If you see a message that the code has already been redeemed, someone else may have already claimed it. This can happen if the code was shared or if there was fraud. Contact Amazon customer service when ready with proof of purchase, and they can investigate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use an Amazon gift certificate to buy things for other people?
Yes. Once you redeem the certificate to your account, the balance is yours to spend however you want. You can buy gifts for others, and the items will ship to their address. The balance doesn't have to be used all at once—you can make multiple purchases over time.
What if I received a gift certificate code but it says it's already been used?
Contact Amazon customer service with the code and proof that you received it as a gift. If the code was fraudulently redeemed before you could claim it, Amazon can sometimes issue a replacement. Have your receipt or email confirmation ready.
Do Amazon gift certificates work on Prime Video or Kindle Unlimited?
Your gift certificate balance can be used to buy individual Kindle books, movies, and TV shows. However, it cannot be used to pay for recurring subscriptions like Kindle Unlimited or Prime Video memberships. You can use it to buy a Prime membership one time, but not for the monthly renewal.
Can I reload or add more money to a gift certificate after I've redeemed it?
No. Once you redeem a certificate code, that specific balance is set. If you want to add more money to your account, you need to buy and redeem another gift certificate code. There's no way to "top up" an existing certificate.
What happens if I return something I bought with my gift certificate balance?
The refund goes back to your gift certificate balance, not to a credit card or bank account. If you return a $20 item, you'll see $20 added back to your Amazon.com Gift Card Balance, which you can then spend on something else.