Target GiftCards: access numbers, store and online use, and replacements

Target cards turn up at birthdays and in work-recognition programs, and they have one quirk people trip over: the access number. Everything else about them is generous. This guide is for the standard Target GiftCard, physical or digital. A promotional GiftCard earned on an order behaves a little differently, and we cover that below.

Check your balance

You need two things: the card number and the access number hidden under the silver strip on the back. With both, you can check the balance on Target’s gift card balance page or by calling the Target GiftCard team at 1-800-544-2943.

If the card is saved to your Target account, the balance shows under Gift cards in the app (My Target → Settings → Gift Cards) or on Target.com (Account → My Target → Gift cards). Saving the card is the easiest way to stop checking the back of it.

Redeem your card

In store: hand over or scan the card at checkout. The cashier will need the access number too, so scratch it off before you reach the register. A digital card saved to your Target account can be paid from the app’s Wallet.

On Target.com or in the app: add the card under Gift cards using the card number and access number, or enter them at checkout. Email and mobile (text) GiftCards must be opened inside a Target account before they can be used anywhere, including in store.

Target GiftCards also work at Starbucks, Target Café, and CVS Pharmacy locations inside Target stores, and in person at Target Optical.

Use a small remaining balance

Target GiftCards can be redeemed for all or part of their value, and they are always used as the first form of payment before your credit or debit card. So a $3.40 leftover simply comes off the top of your next basket, in store or online, with no special request.

You can also combine up to 10 cards in a single transaction, which is how to clear several small leftovers at once.

Understand restrictions

• Where: Target stores and Target.com in the United States.
• Not for: other Target GiftCards, Visa, Mastercard or American Express gift cards, iTunes or specialty gift cards (gaming, restaurants), digital game download codes, Target Circle Card payments, Minute Clinic visits, or Target Optical online.
• Expiry: none, and no loss of value over time, even if a date appears on the card.
• Promotional GiftCards: the ones you earn on an order are added to your account automatically and are designed to be combined; ordinary cards saved to your wallet cannot be merged into one.

Troubleshoot

• Damaged or unreadable barcode: call the GiftCard team at 1-800-544-2943 with your original receipt. If the barcode is intact and the access code is legible, a store may be able to scan and replace it on the spot.
• Lost card with a balance: the same team can replace it for the remaining balance, again with the original receipt. Keep gift receipts for this reason.
• Email or text card never arrived: ask Target.com Guest Services (1-800-591-3869) to resend it.
• Old “PIN account” mobile cards: those accounts have been retired; Guest Services can move any remaining funds to a Target account.

Target reserves the right to deactivate cards it suspects of fraud, so a card bought from a stranger may stop working through no fault of yours.

Protect your card

The access number is what lets money leave the card, so keep the silver strip intact until you are ready to use it and never read it out to anyone who contacts you. A photo of the back of the card is as good as the card itself; don’t keep one in your camera roll.

Saving the card to your Target account is also a protection: Target can see it is yours, and you stop carrying a piece of plastic that anyone could spend. When you file it in your cabinet, note the balance and the purchase receipt location, not the access number.

Checked against Target’s GiftCard help pages on Nov 1, 2026. If Target’s page says something different today, go with Target.