How long do refunds usually take?

Hello and thanks for getting in touch. I'm Aileen, and I'm here to provide you advice as an Independent Advisor.

I hear you — waiting over six months for a refund after it was already approved isn’t something that should happen, and it makes total sense to want answers at this point.

Here’s the usual refund timeframe:

Credit/debit card: 3–5 business days

Microsoft account balance: within 24 hours

PayPal and others: up to 10 business days

These are counted from the date the refund was approved, not the date you submitted the request.

Since it’s already been months, here’s what you can try now:

1. Review your Microsoft order history

Go to: https://account.microsoft.com/billing/orders

Find the item that was refunded

Check if it shows as Refunded, and take note of the approval date

This will confirm whether the refund was marked as completed on Microsoft’s side.

2. Double-check your payment provider

Look through your bank, card, or PayPal statements for that time period

Sometimes refunds post under a generic label or may show up a week or two after the approval date

If you don’t see anything, it’s likely the refund didn’t fully process through.

3. Contact Xbox Support for a refund trace

If you’ve confirmed that the refund was approved but the funds never showed up, it’s time to ask Microsoft to trace the transaction:

Visit: https://support.xbox.com/contact-us

Choose “Billing & subscriptions” > “Refunds” > “Talk to a person”

Let them know this was approved long ago but never arrived — they can check backend records to confirm whether it was processed or if it failed in transit

This isn’t a common issue, so you’re right to flag it. Hopefully, with a refund trace, they’ll be able to sort this out and get your funds where they should’ve gone.

Please let me know if you need any further assistance. Looking forward to your response.

I'd check your bank records you may have missed it

I know my mother misses refunds and it gets sucked up by another bill

Because she does paper banking rather then online

If it paypal balance keep in mind refunds goto your original payment method.

Hi there D.C_P, my name is Gerardo, and I'm an Xbox player, just like you. I'll be happy to assist you with any questions or concerns you may have.

Please take in mind that the time it takes for refunds to be reflected in your bank account after the refund is approved is generally between 3 to 5 business days (Saturdays, Sundays and holidays are non-business days). The time may vary depending on the bank, as some banks may take longer to process refunds while others may process them faster.

To confirm this information, please visit the following link and navigate to the "Games & apps" section:

https://support.microsoft.com/accou...r-refund-81629012-aa4f-f48b-2394-8596f415072b



I hope this helps and if you have further questions please let me know.

Kind regards,
Gerardo.

Hi, my name is Annanda, thank you for your question and for reaching out.

Refunds usually take from 3 - 5 business days ( sometimes it can be more depending on your bank institution ) to be completed and go back to your payment method, but in the last 3 weeks, the refund process suffered a delay. This delay most likely has been solved, but the refunds done by these weeks are slowly getting back on track, so there is a little delay to expect.

If your refund has taken 14 business days, I recommend contacting Support ( here in the community we have no access to account/billing information ) so they can help you address your refunds.

https://support.xbox.com/contact-us/

If the options you choose on the Support link do not give you access to Request a Call or Live Chat, select other options ( even if they do not match your current issue ) because what is important here is for you to contact Support, okay?

I hope I was able to answer your questions! Please, if you have any other doubts, we are here to help.

If the reply was helpful, please don’t forget to upvote or accept as an answer, thank you.

Best Regards, Annanda.

They can usually take up to 72 hours but due to the ongoing COVID situation it could take longer.