BarkBox
ConsumerAffairs Accredited BrandBarkBox is a monthly subscription box with special toys and treats for your dog! Every box is designed to entertain and bring joy to your pup. With a new theme every month, BarkBox includes toys, treats and chews. Select from our 12 month, 6 month or 1 month subscriptions with the option to cancel your subscription plan length renewal at any time. Visit our website today to learn more about our service and products!
439 BarkBox Consumer Reviews and Complaints
A link has directed you to this review. Its location on this page may change next time you visit.
My labrador Mila, has had BarkBoxes coming her way since the first month we brought her home. She is now 4 years old and still loves them! The treats are great and the only ones she gets besides fruits or veggies. Mila loves the toys, but tends to destroy the stuffed ones within a month or two, other than that, great job BarkBox!
Hi Jessica!
Thank you for the valuable feedback! We're so happy to hear that Mila has been loving the boxes and that she has grown up receiving them. We love spoiling her!
I did want to let you know that we have options for more durability. I do see Mila is already receiving our free more durable option. I hope this is helping the life of those toys! We also have our Super Chewer Barkbox that includes tough plush free, rubber toys! If you would be interested in learning more about Super Chewer please let us know. We always want to ensure Mila is having the best BarkBox day every month!
Take care!
My dog gets so excited to open his BarkBox and once I cut the tape, he can actually do it himself now because he's so thrilled. The toys, in my opinion, are THE BEST. I was extremely skeptical because they are stuffed toys and my dog is a toy destroyer. I don't think he's ever had a stuffed toy last longer than a day without getting to the stuffing. But these toys are shockingly resilient and extremely well made.
I've had BarkBox 5 months now and there's only two toys he's put a tear in since then and I get three toys each time. What's really awesome is that most of the toys have toys inside of them as well. For example, a stuffed toy has a spiky squeaker ball in it that you can give your dog if he/she was to rip the fabric. The themes are amazing and the box I just got made me love BarkBox a thousand times more. It's Grinch themed with many toys, awesome treats and Max "antlers" for your dog. BarkBox really has a special thing for dogs and their owners! Also, if you are concerned about getting your money's worth, I can attest that for the quality of toys and treats you are getting, it is worth it (from a poor college student).
Hi Amanda!
We're so happy to hear that Kodah has been loving every box. He is such a cutie. We love getting to spoil him every month, and we are thankful for this great feedback. Although, it seems Kodah is loving it all I did want to let you know that we can customize your pups box to include more "spiky ball" toys, and certain treat indigents. We want to ensure every barkbox continues to be perfect for your special pup.
Please don't hesitate to reach out if there's ever anything we can do. Take care & have a great day!
BarkBox has been without doubt the BEST company to deal with. Customer Service is absolutely TOP NOTCH! If you have a concern or question, BarkBox always gets back to you in record time, if they have a question or concern, they reach out to you in record time. This is exemplary customer service and the best proactive caring team I have ever been associated with. BarkBox is easy...you sign up, they remind you you're year is nearly up then you re-sign...it is that easy!. Our pets look forward to the BarkBox arrival each month, it's Christmas each month! The toys match the chew strength of your pet, that is stellar. The treats are top quality, I do not worry about feeding them to our pet.
I love the fact that BarkBox recognizes your pet's birthday with the option of a cake. I accidentally missed my notice, (due to attending a funeral out of state) and was sad about that, but will look for it next year for sure. I love the option (occasionally) to add a toy to your pet's box. This is a stellar idea, with top quality products, that I can count on...
Hi Priscilla!
We are absolutely thrilled to hear that Charlie (and you!) loving the goodies each month. Our #1 goal is ensuring every toy and treat are absolutely perfect for each and every pup. We love spoiling Charlie, and we can't wait for your special pup to see the fun surprises and themes we have in store. We appreciate you as a member of our pack!
As always, please don't hesitate to reach out if there's anything we can do to help. Have a great day!
I had reservations at first about buying a monthly subscription for dog toys. The first box came, and Wookie the Golden Retriever was so excited about his new toys and treats. He always goes crazy when I walk in the door with the box. I don't know if he smells the toys and treats or just recognizes the box, but he knows when it is a BarkBox.
What I liked about it after a few months, I was no longer buying quick impulse dog treats and toys at the grocery and other stores. These usually didn't last long, were not healthy, and were overpriced. Because Wookie likes to destroy plush toys instantly. I went with the Super Chewer option for the first 6 months. The toys were very durable, and he liked most of them. I noticed that he was missing the plush toys and some of the harder chew toys were not always played with, because he had some obvious favorites.
After taking a follow up survey, one of their representatives reached out to me and offered to go with a middle grade option that had tougher plush toys. These have been a hit with him and he loves these toys. The treats are always really good, they have strong smell and seem fresh and healthy. Wookie will do any and all of his tricks to get the treats. He always likes the treats. Lastly, their customer service has been great. They care about my issues and worked to make it the best experience.
Hi William!
We're thrilled to hear the barkbox has worked out so well for your special Wookie. The more durable classic is a great option for pups who need something tougher, but still like the fluff. We hope Wookie is excited for all of the fun surprises we have to come!
Please don't hesitate to reach out if there's anything we can do to help.
Mabel our pup loves her BarkBox. She always knows when a package is for her and gets so excited when she sees it! We love the variety of treats as well as the “allergy” option to prevent her from receiving treats she’s allergic to. The treats are high quality and made in the US. The toys are also amazing! We started with a year-long subscription, but since there a girl isn’t a big chewer or toy destroyer her a little toy box was soon overfilled. We contacted customer service and they were more than happy to help us reduce her subscription to an every other month one so we have more time to go through the treats and toys. We’ve had a few minor issues in the past, but they were always quickly resolved and everyone has been extremely helpful and provided extraordinary customer service.
I even contacted them recently regarding a toy from a BarkBox over year ago that our cat had fallen in love with hoping to replace it since a puppy friend had destroyed it. He seriously carried that toy everywhere and loved to play with it so we really wanted to get him a new one. Not only we're lucky enough that they still have the item in stock, but they Are sending us two free! It wasn’t necessary or asked of them, but it was greatly appreciated. They’ve definitely got a loyal subscriber.
Hi there, Carolyn! Thanks so much for reaching out and letting us know about your entire fur-family's BarkBox Day experience! It sounds like it has been a real hit! Isn't it funny how they learn that the box is for them? Our office pups are the exact same way! Some even get cranky later in the month if their BarkBox has not yet arrived. We are absolutely thrilled to have you and Mabel (and your kitty, of course) in the pack! If you should ever need anything at all, please don't hesitate to reach out at happy@barkbox.com! Have a wonderful weekend!
When our girl arrived at 8 weeks old and a mouth full of little piranha teeth she cut through everything! Including tennis balls, wooden chairs, trees and people like butter! Soon after... This mystery box arrived in the mail! From her favorite far away Auntie! Her first BarkBox! Each box containing themed treats and toys! She absolutely adores them! In fact now when a box arrives she knows it's hers!
And to date, after 7 months she has worried a couple small holes in a couple of the toys but I don't know if it's because they are heavier made than her store-bought toys or just that she loves them more but so far all toys are still viable! I do believe the auntie did request for a heavy chewer. Definitely got us through her puppyhood with much less damage to all else! And she does like variety so different treat choices is always fun for her, and I like knowing they have healthier ingredients! For our girl these boxes have arrived like clockwork to date and we could not be more satisfied!
Hi there, Linda! Thanks so much for reaching out and letting us know about your sweet girl's BarkBox Day experience! She looks like a big ball of sass! What breed is she? Looks like a Cattle Dog? I am glad to hear our More Durable toys are working for her! Much rather those chompers be used for good instead of evil (aka eating every stranger that walks through the door)! If you ever have a toy that doesn't fare so well, don't forget about our Scout's Honor Guarantee! This replaces that toy absolutely free! Please do not ever hesitate to reach out to happy@barkbox.com if you should ever need anything! Have a wonderful weekend :)
Every month the box comes and I am literally clobbered by my pups in anticipation. I’m pretty sure the themes are more exciting for me but helps me stay engaged and as excited as they are. It’s a 5 star experience for them but I only gave four stars Because the toys are often too big for little Milo and he will only play with them for a little bit but since he can’t escape with them fast enough cuz of their size the bigger dogs take them. The treats are always a big hit but I won’t give them the bully stick or hard treat because it’s often so hard I can’t even break it and I’m afraid one of them might choke on it so I stay on the cautious side and throw that one away. The last 3 or 4 months I’ve had to do this. Otherwise I love this monthly fun time with my little ones!!
Hey there Christy and pack! We are so happy to hear that you guys are loving the monthly goodies and we don't blame you at all. They are just that good. I'm so sad thought to hear that some of the toys are not the perfect size for Milo! We want to keep those tails wagging and to make the boxes as special for you guys as we can. So what we can do is customize your monthly boxes to better cater your whole pack! Then we can also customize the chews so you don't get them in your boxes or we can customize them so you don't get the harder ones. We would love to help with this and can do so if you email us directly at Lindz@barkbox.com!
- 1,781,268 reviews on ConsumerAffairs are verified.
- We require contact information to ensure our reviewers are real.
- We use intelligent software that helps us maintain the integrity of reviews.
- Our moderators read all reviews to verify quality and helpfulness.
For more information about reviews on ConsumerAffairs.com please visit our FAQ.
Resolution In Progress
I subscribed to BarkBox a few months ago and was so excited to get started. Unfortunately, I have had quite a few negative experiences. To start, I’ve needed to contact customer service just about every month since I started for a number of different reasons, including late shipment (up to a month late) on two occasions, as well as failure to follow my puppy’s preferences. This past incident, I reached out to the company reporting how unsatisfied I was with the service and that I would like to cancel my subscription. It has been more than 24 hours without any response or indication of receiving my concerns, further supporting their poor quality of service. With most “trendy” start-up companies and subscription services, I’ve found customer service to be excellent; however, BarkBox falls far short of those previous experiences. I truly expected so much more from BarkBox.
Hi there, Jen!
Thank you so much for taking the time to reach out and let us know what is going on. This is absolutely not the normal experience here at BARK and we always want to try our very best to make it up to you and your Benjy! Sometimes our email lines can get a bit backed up with the many pups in our pack, but we try our best to get to everyone as quickly as possible! The quickest way to get a hold of one of our Happy Ambassadors is by Chat or Phone!
With that being said, it does look like you were able to get through to one of our wonderful humans and they have reshipped a new box in addition to coordinating with our Fulfillment Team to look into what's going on! We are also going to have someone personally reach out to you in order to provide updates on the status of that reshipment! Let Benjy know that his toys and treats are on the way and should be in his paws soon :)
Again, we can not apologize enough for this frustrating experience and we hope to prove to you and Benjy that your happiness is our top priority! Please do not hesitate to reach out if you should need anything else!
Resolution In Progress
I purchased a 6 month subscription of the super chewer box. After 3 months, we figured out my rescue pup didn’t like the treats and had an allergy to something we are figuring out with our vet. I contacted Bark Box and used the chat feature. I wanted to cancel at the end of the 6 months. They asked why and made some offers. They customized my remaining boxes, which I thought was awesome. Then I found my credit card was charged and my subscription was not cancelled. I contacted Bark Box again and the response was I am required to complete my commitment but was directed to log in and cancel for future renewal. I already cancelled and was still renewed. They didn’t do their job and cancel it the first time I asked. Now I am contacting my credit card company to get my money back that way because it was not an authorized charge. Very frustrating. That is how subscription boxes steal your money. Not worth the hassle.
Hi there, Holli!
Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention. We truly are so sorry that you and Hailey have had such a frustrating experience. That is absolutely not the norm here and we want to make sure to get you and your pup completely taken care of!
We are going to have someone reach out personally to make sure that you and Hailey are all set moving forward! Please keep an eye out for that. If you should need anything in the meantime, please do not hesitate to reach out to lyndz@barkbox.com!
I signed my dog up for the 6 month subscription. This is $29 a month which is not cheap. My dog is a dachshund and yet is able to destroy the toys within the same day of receiving them. Also, I’ve always been charged and then like a week later received the box. This month (May) I was charged on the 3rd of the month and it is now the 20th and I have not received the box or even a tracking number. I reached out to customer service and after waiting about a week for a response, which is unacceptable, I was told that BarkBox always charges around the 3rd of the month, ships the 15th of the month and boxes are received around the 23rd of the month. This is not true as my dog has always received his box BY the 13th/14th of each month.
I’ve used the email, phone, and chat option and have received no apology or offer to fix this situation. They do not care and I refuse to continue to pay $29 a month for something that is ruined within hours of receiving. As much as these toys are they should not be made so cheaply that this happens. They should be very durable but when they is said to them their only suggestion is to pay $10 more every month for the Super Chewer plan. I will never pay more for these crap toys. It’s sad because my dog enjoys opening his box but I’ll find another company to switch to. One that has ethics, good customer service, and better made products that last. Save yourself money and a headache by not signing up for BarkBoxes.
Resolution In Progress
Absolute worst experience I have ever had dealing with a company. I joined a 12 month subscription because they say their toys are indestructible and if they get destroyed, they will replace them for free. My 70lb lab mix chews through these toys in less than 5 minutes, and every time I ask for a replacement, I get the same toy. He gets the same treats over and over. I have called and complained twice to try to cancel, and they constantly give me the runaround saying they already have the toys for his next box. Then all of the sudden they can switch him to just treats. I thought you already had the toys so I couldn't cancel? Then they tell me they can let me cancel after two more months which I wasn't told TWO MONTHS AGO when I asked to cancel in the first place. I was reasonable and nice and voiced all my concerns and they still won't let me cancel.
It is 2019. What kind of company doesn't let a very upset customer out of a crappy subscription? This company needs to get it together. People don't put up with this crap anymore, especially not the millennials that are probably their biggest customers. We assume good companies will take care of us when we're dissatisfied, but THIS ONE DOES NOT. I am paying $30 per month for JUNK. My dog is not that strong at all. I don't know how this company has any good reviews. Take your money and get good stuff at PetSmart or something. THIS IS A SCAM.
Hi there, Taylor.
Thank you so much for taking the time to let us know about your experience. We can not apologize enough that you and Enzo have had to go through this frustration. BarkBox is supposed to be fun and stress-free and it has been anything but for the two of you. Please know that our only goal is to make sure that Enzo is completely taken care of and able to enjoy his toys and treats.
When we offer those 6 or 12-month commitments, we are able to plan ahead when it comes to inventory and such. However, we always want to make sure that each dog is on the best plan for them, so we offer those customizable options!
We absolutely want to make sure that this is the case, so we are going to have someone personally reach out to ensure that you and Enzo are all set! If you should have any questions in the meantime, please reach out to us!
Resolution In Progress
Signed up for a special $5 monthly box, little did I know, that I signed into a 12 month subscription. Emailed company explaining the situation and that the box wasn’t working for us because the toys and treats were too big for our chihuahuas. Lady basically told me I’m out of luck that I can’t cancel. So here I am paying a ridiculous amount of money each month for stuff we can’t even use.
Hi there, Heather!
Thank you so much for reaching out. We are incredibly sorry that those toys and treats have been a bit too big for your little Ellie and her fur-siblings! This is absolutely not what we want for you guys.
It does look like you and Ellie signed up with our special $5 First Box promotion. This was only applicable to our 6 and 12-month commitments. We do offer the 1-month plan during checkout, however, the promotion does not apply. We are so sorry for any confusion with this. We definitely want to make sure you and Ellie are completely taken care of!
The good news? We do have many tailoring options to help get Ellie our smallest toys and treats available each month! In addition, we have a Scout's Honor guarantee that promises to replace the items that do not work at all!
We are going to have someone personally reach out and make sure that you and your little girl are completely taken care of! If you should have any questions in the meantime, please do not hesitate to reach out to lyndz@barkbox.com!
The customer service and passion these pup-folks have for doggies and their owners is simply outstanding. It passes every other pet subscription company by a league, and is infinitely better than Petco's "PupBox". PupBox is basically items that Petco can't sell and is barely worth the shipping cost. BarkBox is amazing, creative and with the best customer service you'll receive the industry. Our pups have the regular box, but have also tried out the Super Chewer box. Woof! Thanks BarkBox folks!
I have had Barkbox since December. In February my dog died and I lost my job a few weeks later. Barkbox has refused to let me end my contract. DO NOT SIGN UP with this company, they obviously do not care about their customers or the customer's owners. The sad part is, when I am ready to get another dog I would have probably signed back up.
Hi there, Kimberly
We are so very sorry to hear about the loss of your sweet pup. We can only imagine the pain you are going through. We would absolutely never expect you to continue your subscription with the passing of your pup. It looks like both times when you reached out to cancel your pup's passing was not mentioned so we were not aware. Again, we can not apologize enough for this.
We are going to have someone reach out personally to ensure that this gets taken care of. Please take care of yourself while you go through this difficult time and we send the very best to you and your family <3
I travel a lot with my dog in my motor home and make sure that current address is up to date. I left CA to head to MD and changed my address in advance. Bentley's BarkBox was mailed to the CA address instead and unfortunately, was lost when forwarded. I emailed Barkbox to tell them the problem and never received a reply. Plus he never received his last BarkBox which I paid for. Customer service is awful. He really enjoyed his boxes each month but because I never heard back from them and paid for something I never received I cancelled my subscription.
Hi there, Lynn!
We are so sorry to hear that Bentley has not received his last 2 boxes! We have to have all addresses updated by the 5th of the month before we begin the packing process and it looks like Bentley's was changed on the 11th. This is absolutely not what we want and would be happy to help! After digging through your account, it doesn't appear that we ever received your email :(
We are terribly sorry about this and would love to make it right! We are going to have someone personally reach out to make sure we get those boxes reshipped to the correct address!
Please keep an eye out for that and if you should have any questions in the meantime, let us know!
Resolution In ProgressAfter ordering a one month subscription I decided it was overpriced for what you got so I emailed to cancel and manually canceled my order. This month I received an email charging me again. I shared my email canceling the order and the company is now saying that they did not receive my request. DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR CREDIT CARD. You will never get out of the subscription even if it's just a one time month subscription.
Hi there, Danielle!
We are so very sorry that you had this frustrating experience. This is absolutely not the norm here! It appears that you Nimis did sign up for that 1-month plan, however, all of our plans do automatically renew, much like a magazine subscription! This is our way of making sure our addicted dogs don't miss a single BarkBox! We try to make this apparent on the site when you order or log into your account, but sometimes it gets missed.
It looks like we were able to get Nimis all taken care of and refund your May BarkBox. We always want to make sure both pup and pup-parent are as happy as they can be and will do our very best to make sure that you guys are taken care of! You should have seen that refund hit your account by now - please let us know if it hasn't!
Again, we are so sorry about this, but we hope that Nimis enjoyed the few boxes he had! Please let us know if there is absolutely anything else we can do to help!
Resolution In Progress
I didn't receive my April 2019 BarkBox. After emailing hundreds of times, Ellen (A BarkBox Ambassador) emailed me saying that it is either delayed or lost in transit - (obviously!). She said she will ship out a new one. It is now May 3, 2019, and no new Bark Box has been shipped out to me. YET, this morning I wake up to a new charge for May 2019's BarkBox. Wouldn't it be respectful and professional for you to figure out if I got my April 2019 box shipped out first? I am about to issue a charge back with my credit card company if I don't receive an update about this soon. It doesn't take this long to ship out a box, if they indeed sent a 2nd box. I got scammed.
Hi there, Melannie!
We are so very sorry that Spot's April BarkBox was lost in transit. This is absolutely not the experience we wanted for the two of you! It looks like you chatted in on April 30th and we placed the order that day! For our Canadian pups, there is a 2-3 day processing window and then a 4-12 day delivery window once that box ships out!
You can use the link below to keep an eye on that box! It looks like it is on the way to our Distribution center and should be heading to the border soon! We are going to have someone personally keep an eye on that box to make sure it arrives in a timely manner! Keep an eye out for an email from them!
If you should need absolutely anything in the meantime, please do not hesitate to reach out.
I placed my order for my first BarkBox in the beginning of April and it had some hiccups in the process. I got the 12 month subscription with extra toy and I noticed on the 17th it still hadn't shipped so I use the chat option on their website. They told me it would ship by Friday that week at the latest and not to worry. I contacted them again Friday and talked to Danielle who was super awesome and got my order straightened out. We did get disconnected on the phone but she responded with an email and promised my box would ship the following Monday since it was Easter weekend but they would send me a bonus to make up for my delay. So my box was late but they gave me extra toys and discount on this box which more than made up for the inconvenience of a late box. :)
Hi Kelly,
We hope your sweet pup is absolutely loving the goodies so far! We're so sorry for the trouble you had in the beginning, but we're happy it was fixed and resolved quickly.
We have so many fun surprises and themes to come, we can't wait for your pup to see! Please don't hesitate to reach out to us if there's ever anything we can do to help.
Take care!
I have contacted them at LEAST a dozen times. Text, email, instant chat. If you have a problem, you won’t get any customer service. The one time I got to talk to someone, they gave me an option to resolve the issue... But I responded back immediately and that was it. They didn’t do anything we talked about, didn’t respond back... Nothing. Unbelievable. Since then I have reached out more times than I can count and get nothing. This was a service I thought could be fun. It’s terrible.
Hey there, Christine!
We are so incredibly sorry that you were not able to get a hold of one of our Happy Ambassadors right away. This is absolutely not the norm here and we definitely want a better experience for you and Maui!
It does look like you were able to speak with one of our representatives yesterday and Maui has been all taken care of! We look forward to continuing to spoil your sweet girl! We know she deserves the very best :D
If you should ever need anything at all, please reach out! The quickest way to get a human is through our Phone line, but we do our very best to get to everyone as quickly as possible through our other channels as well! Please give Maui some belly rubs from us!
Resolution In ProgressI ordered BarkBox for 6 months. They sent items that were were very inappropriate for my small dog. The items were wrapped tennis ball enclosed in plastic holder. My dog hates the treats. I attempted to cancel this service and the company refuses. First when I sign up nowhere did it indicate I would be forced to keep paying for these boxes. This company is deceptive by saying a subscription service. Every subscription I've had I could cancel. They stall and send you replacement items just as bad as the first ones. I do plan on following up with a lawyer to prevent others from being deceived by this company. This company can't be trusted to do the right thing, and it has refused to give me customer service. Very disappointed I trusted them.
Hi there, Chelia!
Thank you so much for taking the time to reach out and we sincerely apologize that Nolee's first box was not a huge hit. This is definitely not what we want! Our one and only goal is to ensure that your girl has the best experience possible! This is why we have our Scout's Honor guarantee. We want to make sure that every item Nolee receives works for her.
We try our best to make it clear through the sign-up process that canceling refers to the renewal at the end of the discounted commitment period you and your pup signed up for. We do have a 1-month option, however, this plan is not available with the awesome Free Extra Toy promotion you and Nolee signed up with.
We definitely want to make sure that you guys are completely taken care of, so we are going to have someone personally reach out! If you should have any questions in the meantime, please do not hesitate to reach out.
They sent a terrible box! Not at all appropriate to my dog's size. Everything was huge and not for a small dog. Their policy is no returns or refunds, even if they send the wrong items. They did offer to send new items but I wasn't interested due to the lackluster box.
Hi there, Virginia!
We are so sorry to hear that Cleo and Oliver's box was not everything you hoped for! This is definitely not the experience we wanted for you guys. This is why we have our Scout's Honor guarantee! We always want to make sure that your pups are completely satisfied with their toys and treats! We have many tailoring options available in order to try our best to make each box as perfect for Oliver and Cleo as possible! We even have an option to get you guys more of those multi-part toys for small pups!
It does look like a replacement has been sent out and you guys decided to discontinue service. We will definitely miss getting to spoil those pups, but hope you guys return in the future! If you should ever need anything at all, please don't hesitate to reach out and we would be happy to help!
The toys are cute, but the customer service is unbelievably bad. In October my BarkBox was shipped and was clearly damaged and never left the FedEx facility. It took several ugly emails before BarkBox would send out another. They kept telling me that they ‘were sniffing out the problem.’ A couple months later my dogs didn’t like any of the toys. I responded to an email asking me to rate the BarkBox and I replied that they hadn’t liked it. Someone reached out to me to ask what they had liked in the past and said he would send more toys. I sent a detailed email naming past toys that they loved in response. Never received a thing. In February I got an offer to double the BarkBox for an additional $18.
I have three dogs, so I paid the $18 and my dogs were very happy. I emailed to ask if I could just upgrade to a double box each month without having to wait for the offer. The answer was no, I would have to wait for the offer each month, but that I would definitely get the offer each month. In early April I emailed to ask about it. I was told that it was too late for April. I responded by sending a screenshot of the email that stated that I would receive this offer every month. Another rep wrote back and said that she could charge my credit card the $18 and send the additional toys separately. I responded and asked her to do that. Nothing. No charge to my credit card and no additional BarkBox. This company is clearly very disorganized. While my dogs love the toys and treats, it’s not worth the hassle. As soon as my subscription runs out I am going to find another subscription service.
Hi there, Maureen!
We are so sorry to hear that your experience with our Happy Team has not been in line with our normal stellar customer experience! We absolutely understand wanting to get your pups goodies in an easy and pleasant way! Please know that this is not the norm here at BARK and we always want to make sure that you, Rocky, and his fur-siblings are completely taken care of!
It looks like we were waiting to get this month's theme in-stock in order to send out a second box for your pups! Since this was not made clear to you, we are going to go ahead and ship out it out free of charge!
In addition, it looks like we have you on a list to receive an email from us each month to check if you would like that Double Deluxe add-on! This way you don't have to worry if you receive the normal add-on offer we send out :)
For the headache, we have also added a free month onto Rocky's account! We truly hope to be able to continue to help spoil your pack! Please don't hesitate to reach out to happy@barkbox.com if you should ever need anything at all!
Accidentally ordered the wrong size box - within 1 minute of placing order I contacted customer service. Took them THREE DAYS to respond and it had already shipped by then. I asked if I could repurchase the correct size and NEVER heard back. Box came in & my dog ripped up the toys in 2 seconds - contacted customer service again and it took a full day for them to tell me they upgraded me to stronger toys. Next month - my dog ripped up the toys AGAIN. Contacted customer service and took a full 24 hours to upgrade to Super Chewer box which is $10 more than the original BarkBox. Such a great concept but TERRIBLE customer service response time. And I feel like I wasted $40 on 2 boxes that have 0 toys my dog can play with (mind you my dog is a 20 lb cockapoo - not a crazy strong jaw).
Hi there, Kate!
Thank you so much for reaching out and bringing this to our attention! We truly do apologize for the bit of a wait. Sometimes our volume does get a bit high with the many spoiled pups reaching out and we aren't able to get back to you guys as quickly as we hope! If you ever need to get into contact with us ASAP, we recommend giving our Happy Team a call or reaching out via Chat! :D
We definitely do not want Wilson stuck with some destroyed toys he can't use until that plan switches next month! We have gone ahead and sent out a few of our Super Chewer toys to hold him over until then! Hopefully, they are a huge hit!
Please keep us updated on how the Super Chewer box works out for your boy! If you should need anything in the meantime, do not hesitate to reach out!
They do not allow you to cancel your subscription and will charge you for a full year after cancelling no matter what you do. DO NOT USE THIS SERVICE. Awful customer service, so rude. I lost my dog in an accident and now I have to get charged every month and receive painful reminders. Awful.
Hi there, Kate.
First, we can not apologize enough for your loss and the experience you have had. Normally, canceling stops the renewal at the end of the commitment period you signed up for, however, when a pup passes, we are absolutely able to close that out early. Because we were not aware that Dipper had passed, we did not know we needed to close it out.
We have gone ahead and closed out the account immediately and issued a refund for both March and April's boxes. Our hearts go out to you and your family as you work through this loss. We wish there was more we could do. Dipper was obviously very lucky to have you in his life, to love and spoil him as much as we are sure you did. Losing a pup is much like losing a member of the family. Please take care of yourself during this time and let us know if there is absolutely anything we can do to help.
Resolution In Progress
For starters, my dog absolutely LOVES getting his BarkBox in the mail. He knows the package as soon as he sees it. We first started the subscription & everything was great (our only complaint is I wished we got more squirrel toys, but not the end of the world). My pup loved his toys & treats, so obviously I was absolutely going to renew, anything for our fur babies, right? Well this is where everything has gone downhill & seems to have been nothing but issues! The first error was a mistake I made when renewing, I contacted BarkBox & explained the situation & they told me they corrected the account error. So we renewed with a 6 month subscription plus the extra toy for free. When I renewed they sent us the March themed box (we renewed in Feb). So when it came time to get out box in March they tried to send me THE SAME EXACT box.
I contacted customer support & after numerous emails they finally understood what I was trying to explain. They were saying I didn't get the box even though I had. So I now received a duplicate box. They told me they'd send a replacement box, so when we got that box they sent me an even OLDER theme. The prom theme (which happened to be my LEAST favorite) & it was missing our free toy. We had already received this box when it was the original theme back in June 2018. So again, I had to send another email to correct this issue. I was then told we would get another box to replace the issue. They sent it, but I guess realized they forgot a toy so then sent a separate toy the following day.
After multiple complaints I was told they wouldn't charge me for the April box. Now all of a sudden my app has seemed to stop working. It will not update from March, with the incorrect theme. I even logged into the website version & it does not have any updated information for April. I'm not entirely sure why things have changed. Like I said; We were off to a great start & then things just took a turn for the worst. It has taken numerous emails to try & fix simple things that just have not been corrected. It is very frustrating having to constantly try to resolve issues, especially because my poor pup is the one that loses out here. My dog enjoys getting his BarkBox so much & half the time nothing is right. I was looking forward to renewing our subscription but lately it's been more of a hassle then anything. Extremely frustrating.
Hi there, Kayla!
First, we want to sincerely apologize that the last couple of months have been such a headache. This is absolutely not the experience we want for you and Lucas!
It looks like April's box is still in the packing stage, which is why your account has not updated with any information yet! One thing we would like to note is that we are in the process of revamping our app and it is currently no longer available for download. If you previously had it downloaded, it still works, but it can be a little finicky (hence the revamp!).
In an effort to make up the last couple of hiccups with your boy's box, we have added a free month onto Lucas' account, making May also on us! In addition, we have a special surprise heading his way directly from one of our members of the Happy Team! :)
Moving forward, Lucas should not have any more issues regarding box themes! We look forward to gaining your confidence back and spiling Lucas for many months to come!
Bark box contacted me and sent new toys in hopes that Tessie would be able to enjoy them longer.
Tessie Mae had lots of fun for a few minutes. She promptly lost the soda can and we can’t find it anywhere and the other toys were torn up within minutes, although she still had a little ways to go on the corn cob. But she loved them and she had fun so that’s what counts. I would rate the Super Chewer box at a 3 because while Tessie had fun she destroyed the Super Chewer toys.
Hey there, Chandra!
We are so happy to hear that Tessie had some fun with her first Super Chewer box! So sorry those toys didn't hold up for too long though! Did you know about our Scout's Honor Guarantee? It is our promise that if your pup chews through a Super Chewer toy too quickly, we will get a replacement out free of charge to hold your pup over until the next month! All you have to do is reach out to our Happy Team at happy@barkbox.com! We also recommend for those pups that can demolish a toy pretty quickly, to give each toy in waves throughout the month in an effort to prolong the experience!
For now, we have a couple of new toys on the way for your girl to enjoy! I hope they are a hit! Please let us know if you have any questions at all and welcome to the pack!
Frustrated with no way to cancel subscription. Apparently when I signed up, I selected the 12 month subscription. I did not realize this locked me in for a whole year. I should have read the fine print, but went through the sign up too quickly. While the boxes are cute, they are truly overpriced, and generally one of the toys gets shredded within the first day. We really want to end BarkBox, but no matter how many times I have tried to get customer service to help, I get the same answer that there is nothing they can do. I will never recommend BarkBox to anyone for this reason.
Hi there!
We are so sorry for the confusion and frustration with our cancellation process. We do try our best to make it apparent upon sign up that by opting into a discount 6 or 12-month commitment rather than the 1-month plan, you are committing to receiving all 6/12 boxes! Our promise is to make those the best possible boxes for your pup in return! We would love to reach out and see how we can get you and your pup taken care of! If you wouldn't mind providing the email address associated with your account, we would appreciate it! Thanks!
Kudos to whoever designed this month's Bark Box. It is the best one yet. I thought last month's was clever, but this month's was better. Toys are great; Haddie hoards each new one. Now every time we go out and try to find THE spot, I'll be thinking of "To pee or not to pee!"
Hi Ann!
We're so happy you and Haddie are getting a kick out of the themes each month. We have so many fun surprises to come, and we hope Haddie is excited and loves all of the goodies.
If there's ever anything we can do to help, please don't hesitate to reach out. Take care!
Resolution In ProgressThe only reason I periodically renew my subscription is bc my dog does absolutely love the treats and toys and gets so excited when it's 'mail day'. However the last two subscription I've had, have been nothing but problems month after month. While everyone else I know who has BarkBox gets their app updated around the 10th of the month and gets their box by the middle of the month. My app never updates until days before the end of the month and we are lucky if we even get our box during the month it was supposed to be delivered, most times it comes in the beginning of the following month.
We've also had numerous issues with missing toys or pieces. And our newest problem is now we aren't even getting the new themes bc they "run out". For example last month was the 2nd month in our 6 month subscription and in February we received the current theme but then in the March box we got an outdated theme. I don't understand why we aren't receiving the same boxes as everyone else and why ours is consistently delivered weeks behind everyone else's.
Hi there, Hannah!
We are sorry that you and Oliver have had such a frustrating experience the last few months. This is definitely not what we want for the two of you! All of our boxes ship out in waves starting around the 15th of the month, sometimes earlier! The last wave usually ships around the 19th of the month, give or take a few days depending on weekends and holidays! But it is our promise to have that box in Oliver's paws by 8 business days after the 15th. It sounds like you have been experiencing some delays past this deadline, so we want to make it up to you! We have added 2 free months onto Oliver's subscription!
In addition, we have sent out a couple of toys from March's theme that Oliver missed out on! The reason we are bringing back some of our top themes is so those who have never experienced the fun of our top-rated themes get that opportunity!
We are definitely going to pass your experience along to our Fulfillment Team in an effort to improve Oliver's BarkBox Day moving forward! Again, we can not apologize enough for the frustration.
Please let us know if there is anything at all we can help with in the future!
We moved into temporary housing until we buy a home in another state which is job related. They said we could put our Subscription on hold. They emailed me back something totally you're irrelevant Of what I asked them to do. I Then called them and they said no problem. Two weeks later I hear they’re shipping my BarkBox to my old address. We have no permanent address at this time. It is a very poorly ran company and we will not renew. Also there are toys are mostly stuffed. My dog tears out all the stuffing and luckily has not eaten yet. My trainer’s dog had to go to the emergency vet hospital and it cost $300 to get the stuffing out of him. It is a total waste of money as I will not let my dog play with a stuffed toy. Highly recommend not joining.
Hi, Sarah!
Thank you so much for reaching out and bringing this to our attention. We are so very sorry for the frustrating experience. It looks like our Happy Team was waiting for confirmation before placing Arya's account on hold!
What we have gone ahead and done is refund you for April's box which was shipped to the incorrect address. In addition, we are sending out some of our Super Chewer toys for Arya to try out! These are our toughest toys available for our pack. We are going to have someone reach out personally to follow-up with you guys and ensure you are completely taken care of moving forward!
If you should have any questions in the meantime, please don't hesitate to reach out to Lyndz@barkbox.com!
I had a great experience with BarkBox before, when my dog loved the toys and he was not a huge biter, so the durability of the toys was not an issue. After he passed, I adopted another dog, who bites through the toys so quickly. He ends up eating parts of the toy when it comes apart, so it was too dangerous. I thought it was a waste of money to keep paying for this subscription when the toys are not durable and fall apart. I have asked for more durable toys, and they said they would provide more durable toys but they are the same. They told me they will provide a replacement if my dog chews through the toys but that means I will have to ask for a replacement toy every month, but it's the same problem - it's still not durable enough.
I have asked to cancel, and they said I am unable to because I have signed up for a 12 month commitment. So now I am paying for toys my dog cannot use! The company suggested signing up for "super chewer" instead BUT that does not change the fact that I am still stuck paying for toys my dog CANNOT use for longer than a few minutes because they are not durable enough - until August 2019. I am very disappointed with this company and do not suggest anyone sign up unless they have a dog who does not bite their toys a lot.
Hi there, Mai!
We are so sorry to hear that Remy has been going through those Classic and More Durable Classic toys too quickly! We definitely would never want you guys to be stuck with something that does not work for Remy. For this reason, we offer our Super Chewer plan! This would replace your current plan, so you would not be finishing that Classic commitment, but instead switching it out for a Super Chewer one!
In order to make up for the frustrating experience, we are going to reach out personally and make sure that Remy is set up on the best plan for him! If you should have any questions in the meantime, please don't hesitate to reach out to Lyndz@barkbox.com!
Avoid these guys like the plague! I cannot get them to stop billing me. I've spoken with three different individuals and nobody can give me a straight answer as to what's going on. I did the trial box and honestly there was maybe 1 decent toy in there for my dogs- the rest were way too big or just not that great. I called and had them stop the service, but I've been billed 4 times since then! These toys are way too big for my dog anyway, so I'm not even using them. If I don't get a response from the company soon, I'm going to have to cancel my credit card. This is ridiculous that I have to resort to that! Try operating your company in an honest manner rather than simply not allowing people to stop the service. Once folks find out about what you're doing- nobody is going to sign up for this. If you guys don't straighten up soon, this business won't last- I guarantee it.
Hi there, Harrison!
We are so sorry for the confusion without cancellation process! It looks like you, Gordo & Mostaza signed up with our special $15 First Box promotion. This was only applicable with a discounted 6 or 12-month commitment. We do offer a 1-month option during sign up, but it is not applicable with that promotion. We definitely would never want you guys feeling stuck with something that doesn't work for you though, which is why we offer many different tailoring options to get that box perfect for Mostaza and Gordo!
We are going to have someone personally reach out in order to make sure you and your fur-family are completely taken care of moving forward! If you should have any questions in the meantime, please reach out to Lyndz@barkbox.com!
BarkBox expert review by ConsumerAffairs
BarkBox is a subscription service for all-natural treats and toys. You sign up for a plan and receive a themed BarkBox every month based on the size of dog you have. BarkBox launched in 2012 as part of BARK, an online pet treat and toy store.
Personalized box: When you sign up for BarkBox, you choose plans based on the size of your dog. BarkBox has surprises for three different dog sizes: small, up to 20 pounds; medium, 20-50 pounds; and large, 50 pounds or more.
Package contents: Each package includes at least two toys, two bags of all-natural treats and a chew. Contents change every month, so your dog won’t get the same thing twice.
Fun themed packages: Each BarkBox comes with a fun theme like Sniffin’ Safari, Chewrassic Park and New York City. The BarkBox theme is a different surprise every month, ensuring that your dog never gets bored.
Free replacement: If your pup doesn’t like an item they got, BarkBox will send your dog a replacement toy for free. This way, you never have to pay for a toy your dog doesn’t use.
Subscription options: BarkBox costs $29 per month if you pay on a monthly basis. However, you can pay in advance to save money. Paying for six months at a time costs $25 per box, and paying for a full year costs $21 per month.
Best for: owners and dogs who like surprises every month.
The ConsumerAffairs Research Team believes everyone deserves to make smart decisions. We aim to provide readers with the most up-to-date information available about today's consumer products and services.
BarkBox Company Information
- Social media:
- Company Name:
- BarkBox
- Website:
- barkbox.com