Best Buy’s Upgrade Plus program is gone. No announcement, no warning — just quietly removed. If you were hoping to upgrade your Apple device under the plan, you’re out of luck.

What was Best Buy’s Upgrade Plus program?

Upgrade Plus launched in 2022 as a way to finance Apple tech over three years. It started with MacBooks, but eventually included iPads, Apple Watches, and desktop Macs. The program offered a low monthly payment with a balloon payment in month 37, which could be handled in three ways:

1. Return the device and upgrade to a new model under a fresh three-year plan.
2. Return the device and exit the program entirely.
3. Pay the balloon payment and keep the device.

If you chose to return the Mac, Best Buy covered the final payment, making upgrades seamless. You could also exit the program at any point but paying off your full balance. In theory, it was a great deal — but the program didn’t even last long enough for a single upgrade.

Best Buy has quietly killed Upgrade Plus

Now, Upgrade Plus is no longer available. Best Buy has removed all references to the program from its website, and it isn’t an option at checkout anymore. There’s been no official announcement, leaving customers wondering what happened.

The only official response has come from Citizens Pay, the program’s financing partner. In an email, they confirmed that customers must continue making payments and remain responsible for the balloon payment at the end of the term. The associated line of credit has been closed, preventing any new purchases. However, it remains unclear whether Best Buy will still honor the Upgrade Plus trade-in policy to waive the final payment.

Why did Best Buy shut down Upgrade Plus?

While Best Buy hasn’t publicly addressed the shutdown, the most likely reasons include:

• Low adoption: If not enough people signed up, it wouldn’t make sense to continue the program.
• Low profitability: Covering final payments for returned devices may have proven too costly.

Online discussion about the program is limited, and there appears to be some confusion about how it actually worked. In response to a Reddit user’s question, some commenters dismissed the program as a waste of money for participants.

While the program implied 0% interest, it’s unclear if every customer who qualified received that rate. Those who did effectively divided a large upfront cost into 36 smaller monthly payments, with a larger payment at the end to keep the device.

What does this mean for Best Buy’s future?

The discontinuation of Upgrade Plus isn’t just about a failed program — it’s a red flag for Best Buy’s future.

The company has struggled to adapt to the adoption of eCommerce. While its stock price has remained stable, its revenue has been declining since 2022. The company got a temporary boost from the pandemic, but now it faces a lack of differentiation. Upgrade Plus was one of the few incentives encouraging customers to buy Apple products from Best Buy instead of more direct or convenient alternatives.

Without a clear strategy to set itself apart, Best Buy risks following the path of Blockbuster — a once-dominant retailer that failed to adapt before it was too late.