Reviewed 2026-09-30 · quarterly cycle

Return simulator: domestic return, international return, or abandon

Is returning this item worth it, and at which point does it stop being worth it?

Inputs and defaults

• Item price in US dollars (default 85)
• Whether the item is still at the warehouse (default yes)
• Whether the item has already shipped abroad (default no)
• Domestic return shipping in US dollars (default 8.00, editable)
• International return shipping in US dollars (default 32.00, editable)

How it computes

1. Three paths are costed independently. A domestic return costs the domestic return shipping and applies only while the item is at the warehouse. An international return costs the international return shipping and applies only after export. Abandonment costs the item price, because that value is not recovered.
2. Each path reports a net loss and a qualitative cost: how long it takes and how likely the seller is to accept it.

What you get out

• Three cards, one per path, each with net loss and the additional cost that is not money
• A one-line conclusion naming the cheapest path that is actually available

Boundaries and failure behaviour

• Where the item has neither reached the warehouse nor shipped, the result states that cancellation is still possible at no shipping cost.
• A path that is not available in the current state shows that it is unavailable and why, rather than being greyed out without explanation.
• Return acceptance is described qualitatively, because seller behaviour is not published and we will not invent a probability.

Used with

• Line picker
• Fee comparator

Background reading: Returns: domestic return vs international return vs abandoning