- HelpMeLogin operates no balance checker and never will. Nothing here can look up, restore or refund a card.
- Type target.com yourself. Never reach a checker from a search result, email, text or ad. In December 2020 the fraud firm Bolster found a clone of Target's balance page on targetgiftscard[.]com, registered to an entity in New Delhi, asking for the same two numbers as the real one.
- Learn the tell. Bolster says the fakes never return a figure — they hang on a permanent "checking balance" or invent an error while the number is resold. It counted 6,881 new scam sites in November 2020, over 229 a day.
- Nobody legitimate is ever paid in gift cards. Gift cards carry no chargeback, so there is nothing to reverse afterwards.
Checking a Target gift card balance depends on which card is in hand, because MyBalanceNow is not where you check a Target GiftCard. Target's own help pages give two addresses for two products sold in the same aisle: a GiftCard goes to target.com/giftcard/check-balance or the automated line on 1-800-544-2943, while MyBalanceNow.com handles the prepaid Visa and Mastercard. The GiftCard check needs the 15-digit card number and the Access Number under the silver strip. Almost every guide conflates them, and a third card fits neither.
All Target guides on this site
What you need
11 itemsHow it works
Work out which of the three cards you hold
A Target GiftCard is red-and-white and spends only at Target. A prepaid card carries a Visa, Mastercard or American Express logo and spends anywhere. A merchandise return card comes from a receiptless return. Same aisle, three systems.
For a GiftCard, type target.com and use its balance page
Do not search for a checker. Enter the 15-digit card number and the Access Number. The automated line on 1-800-544-2943 reads the same balance plus your last five transactions.
Scratch the silver strip for the Access Number
The numbers come off by gently removing the silver strip on the back, per Target's own instruction. Any Event or Sequence Number printed openly is not part of a balance check.
For a prepaid card, MyBalanceNow is the right site
Target names MyBalanceNow.com on its own pre-paid gift cards page for Visa and Mastercard, and balance.amexgiftcard.com for American Express. Wrong destination for a GiftCard, not a fraudulent one.
Better: skip the numbers altogether
A GiftCard saved to your Target account shows its balance under My Target, then Settings, then Gift cards. Nothing typed, nothing to harvest.
If something goes wrong
MyBalanceNow will not accept the card
- Cause
- It is a Target GiftCard, not a prepaid Visa or Mastercard
- Fix
- Use target.com/giftcard/check-balance or 1-800-544-2943. Neither system recognises the other's cards, and neither says so.
No Access Number anywhere on the card
- Cause
- It is under the silver strip, not printed
- Fix
- Gently remove the silver strip. The Event or Sequence Number printed in the open is a different number and will not work.
A new prepaid card is declined
- Cause
- A delayed activation period is flagged in Target's own help
- Fix
- Check the till receipt, which Target says carries the detail. A GiftCard cannot buy one of these, so a receipt exists.
Zero balance on a card never spent
- Cause
- Gift card draining — copied on the rack, spent on activation
- Fix
- Keep the card and receipt, report it to Target, and tell the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov.
The checker spins on "checking balance" forever
- Cause
- A phishing clone, by Bolster's description
- Fix
- Close it and assume the number is gone. Recheck from target.com, then report the loss.
Someone demanded payment in Target cards
- Cause
- A scam, without exception
- Fix
- Refuse. FTC figures put Target cards at the top of this fraud, and no chargeback exists.
What’s fixed, and what actually varies
Stores are company-owned, so routes are identical nationwide. What varies is which card is in your hand.
Fixed
- A GiftCard checks at target.com or on 1-800-544-2943
- MyBalanceNow handles the prepaid Visa and Mastercard
- The GiftCard needs a 15-digit card number and the Access Number
- The Access Number sits under the silver strip on the back
- Target states GiftCards do not expire or lose value
Varies
- Which of three Target card products someone is actually holding
- Whether a prepaid card has cleared its delayed activation period
- The prepaid purchase fee, from $4 and rising with the load
- Whether the card was saved to a Target account
- Whether a card was drained on the rack before purchase
Read the logo. Plain Target branding means the routes here apply. A Visa, Mastercard or American Express mark means a prepaid card on a separate system with its own fees and address.
How Target compares
Every retailer here publishes a route. What separates them is the trap beside it.
| Chain | What the check needs | If the code is unreadable | The trap next door |
|---|---|---|---|
| Target | 15-digit number and Access Number | Guest services can look it up | MyBalanceNow is the prepaid card |
| Walmart | Card number and PIN | The service desk, or 1-888-537-5503 | Three rival addresses circulate |
| Amazon | Nothing — codes must be redeemed | Customer service, with the order | No standalone check exists |
| Lowe's | Number and PIN, on storedvalue.com | The customer service desk | 90 days at $0 kills the number |
Balance addresses change. Confirm against the retailer's own help pages, never a search result.
Target's trap is the sharpest here because both addresses are real and both are Target's. Nothing on the rack says which help article covers your card.
Why Target cards, specifically
Two Target help articles answer the same question differently, and both are right. The GiftCard article sends you to target.com/giftcard/check-balance with a 15-digit card number and the Access Number under the silver strip. The pre-paid gift cards article sends you to MyBalanceNow.com for Visa and Mastercard, and to balance.amexgiftcard.com for American Express. Nothing on the rack tells you which article your purchase belongs to.
That gap has a measured cost. The Federal Trade Commission's December 2021 Data Spotlight found that in the first nine months of 2021, nearly 40,000 people reported $148 million taken through gift cards, and more was reported lost on Target cards than any other brand — over twice as much. The median reported loss on a Target card was $2,500, against $1,380 for Walmart, $800 for Apple, $600 for eBay and $500 for Google Play. Across all brands the median rose from $700 in 2018 to $1,000.
The second exposure is the clone. In December 2020 the fraud-prevention firm Bolster documented targetgiftscard[.]com, a copy of Target's balance page registered to an entity in New Delhi, asking for the card number and Access Number — exactly what the genuine page asks for. Its tell is behavioural: a real checker returns a number, while the fakes hang on "checking balance" or invent an error while the details are resold.
Target Corporation, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, states that its GiftCards do not expire and do not lose value over time, even where an expiry is printed on the card. The money is durable. The number is not.
Questions people ask
Is MyBalanceNow the right site for my Target gift card?
Only for a Target prepaid Visa or Mastercard. A Target GiftCard checks at target.com/giftcard/check-balance or on 1-800-544-2943. Both are named, in two separate help articles.
What does the GiftCard balance check need?
The 15-digit card number and the Access Number, both under the silver strip. An Event or Sequence Number printed openly is not needed.
Is MyBalanceNow a scam?
No. Target names MyBalanceNow.com on its own pre-paid gift cards page. Wrong destination is a different failure from fraudulent.
Can I check a balance without typing the number?
Yes, if the card is saved to your account: My Target, then Settings, then Gift cards. Nothing is entered, so nothing can be harvested.
How do I know a balance checker is fake?
Bolster's tell is that fakes never produce a figure. They hang on "checking balance" or invent an error while the number is resold.
Why are Target cards named so often in scams?
The FTC found more money reported lost on Target cards than any other brand in the first nine months of 2021, at a $2,500 median.
What is a merchandise return card?
Credit for a return without a receipt. Neither balance address recognises it. Ask guest services.
Do Target GiftCards expire?
They do not expire or lose value, the company says, even if an expiry is printed on the card. Prepaid cards differ and carry fees from $4.