Usually yes — but it is the store that decides, and it is written on the listing.
Each store sets its own return conditions in its own words. "Unused, in original packaging" is the common one, and where it is set, it applies.
Where to read it
On the listing, with the store's returns policy. It is there before you buy, which is the point — a condition you can read in advance is not a surprise afterwards. How returns work
The exception that matters
A store's conditions cannot override your protection on a faulty item. Damaged, faulty, wrong or not as described comes back for 7 days whatever the policy says — and a condition about packaging does not defeat that.
Which makes sense: if a thing arrived broken, requiring the box it broke in to be pristine would be an argument rather than a condition.
So the question is really two questions:
Changed your mind? The store's conditions apply in full. No box may well mean no return.
Something wrong with it? Raise it. Keep the packaging if you have it, but do not assume its absence ends the conversation.
Why stores ask for it
Not to be difficult. A returned item without its box is often unsellable, or sellable for less — so the store is carrying the loss rather than recovering the sale.
For boxed collectibles and sneakers the box can be a real part of the value. "Deadstock, with the original box" and "deadstock, no box" are different items at different prices. What does deadstock mean?
The practical habit
Keep the packaging until you are sure. Not for ever — until you have looked at the item properly and decided.
That is also the right habit for the other reason: if it arrives damaged, the outer box is the evidence, and people throw it away before photographing it. The courier damaged my parcel
If you have already thrown it out
Say so when you ask. A store that would have said yes often still will, sometimes with a deduction for the box. A store that finds out when the parcel arrives will not.
Honesty here costs you less than the alternative, and the alternative is a dispute decided on what the listing said. How refunds work
For sellers
Write the condition in plain words and keep it short. "Unused, with the box" is enforceable. A paragraph of conditions reads as a store looking for a reason to refuse — and it will not help you on a faulty item anyway. How to set your return policy
More: how returns work, who pays return shipping, can I have longer to decide.