How to cancel a GTA 6 pre-order and get a refund on PS5, Xbox and the Rockstar Store

Yes, you can cancel a Grand Theft Auto VI pre-order, and get your money back, until the game comes out on Nov. 19. The catch is on PlayStation: once you start downloading GTA 6, which digital pre-orders can do from Nov. 12, Sony won't refund it unless the game is faulty.

So if you're having second thoughts, cancel before you pre-load. The rules differ on each store, and they're below with the steps.

The short version

PlayStation Store: cancel before you pre-load

Sony's cancellation policy has two cases, based on when you paid:

• You paid more than 14 days before release (by Nov. 4 for GTA 6): you can cancel at any time before the release date and get a refund.
• You paid 14 days or less before release (Nov. 5 or later): you can cancel up to 14 days after the payment was taken.

Both come with one condition: you can't have started to download or stream the main game. If you have, the policy says you "will not be able to obtain a refund unless the item is faulty." The policy makes no distinction between a download you start yourself and one your console starts on its own.

GTA 6's digital pre-load opens Nov. 12, a week before launch, according to Rockstar. That makes Nov. 11 the last safe day to decide on PlayStation if you plan to pre-load the moment it opens.

How to cancel: Sony handles it as a refund request through PlayStation Support. Have your Online ID, your sign-in email and the name of the purchase ready.

Xbox: cancel any time before release

Microsoft's pre-order page says you can cancel any pre-order online. Here's how:

1. Go to your order history at account.microsoft.com/billing/orders and sign in with the account you pre-ordered with.
2. Find the GTA 6 pre-order and select Cancel item.
3. Tick the box beside it, select Cancel item again, and look for the cancellation email.

When you're charged depends on how you paid. With a card or any other payment option, Microsoft may charge you up to 10 days before the release date, so from Nov. 9 for GTA 6. Money in your Microsoft account is taken right away. If you cancel after you've been billed but before release, Microsoft processes it as a refund.

If the Cancel item option is missing, you've already been charged, and Microsoft points Xbox players to its refund request form instead. One more thing to know: if Microsoft can't take the payment, it tries twice more before launch and then cancels the pre-order itself.

Rockstar Store: Code in Box and the collector's box

The Rockstar Store sells GTA 6 as a Code in Box, a physical box that holds a download code and no disc. Rockstar's FAQ says to cancel a pre-order through its fulfillment partner, Xsolla, using the physical item form at help.xsolla.com. You'll need your order number and the email address you ordered with, and Rockstar Support can help if you get stuck.

Orders ship from Nov. 12. After that, Rockstar's refund FAQ is strict about physical items: you get a refund if your order never arrived, and an exchange or refund if it arrived damaged or faulty.

In the European Economic Area and the UK, you also have 14 days from delivery to withdraw from a purchase without giving a reason, though you pay the return postage. Rockstar's FAQ says that right doesn't cover sealed software you've unsealed. Your receipt shows whether Rockstar or Xsolla was the seller, and that decides whose refund policy applies.

Bought it somewhere else?

Retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop and Walmart set their own cancellation and return rules, and Rockstar's refund FAQ sends anyone who bought outside its own stores to the retailer's policy. Check yours before Nov. 12, when Code in Box copies become available.

Before you cancel

• To switch from Standard to Ultimate, you don't need to cancel: Rockstar sells an Ultimate Edition Upgrade. Our price and editions guide has the prices and what it adds.
• To switch between PlayStation and Xbox, cancel on one store and buy on the other. Rockstar hasn't announced any way to move a purchase between them.
• The bonuses come back if you buy again in time. The Vintage Vice City Pack comes with every pre-order and purchase before Nov. 20. The free month of GTA+ needs a PlayStation Store or Microsoft Store pre-order before Nov. 20, and you redeem it by March 31, 2027, on PlayStation, or within 180 days of buying on Xbox.

Our launch calendar has every confirmed date around Nov. 19, and the release time guide shows when the game unlocks where you live.