Target Cat & Jack Sandal Recall (July 2026): Who's Affected + Refund Steps

Target pulled 211,000 pairs of Cat & Jack children's sandals after decorative pearls started falling off. The loose pearls are a choking hazard for young kids. Here's how to check yours and get your money back.

Is your pair affected?

The recall covers one specific summer 2026 style of Cat & Jack sandal. Match on all four points before you panic or before you assume you're clear.

• Color and material. Tan uppers with two raffia (natural woven straw) straps.
• Hardware. Gold-tone buckles and small plastic pearls sewn or glued onto the straps as decoration.
• Size. Toddler sizes 5T through 12T. Adult and older-kid sizes are not part of the recall.
• Brand mark. "Cat & Jack" printed on the sole and the bottom of the shoe.

Bought at Target between January and May 2026, in-store or on target.com, for roughly $20. That window and that retailer are the whole footprint. If yours came from anywhere else, it's not this recall.

If even one pearl on the pair is loose or missing, treat the whole pair as recalled. Target reported 23 cases where the pearls fell off, which is what triggered the CPSC action.

Check any other product you own

While you're already thinking about it, run a check on anything else in your house. This search box hits the live CPSC and FDA databases, no signup, no email:

How to get the refund

Target is offering a full refund on every pair sold, and you don't need the receipt or the box. Two ways to claim it:

1. In store. Bring the sandals to guest services at any Target. Say they're the recalled Cat & Jack sandals, CPSC recall 26-629. A refund goes back to the original payment method if the store can look up the purchase, or as a Target gift card if it can't.
2. By mail. Contact Target through target.com or call Target Guest Services (1-800-440-0680) and ask for a prepaid return label for the recalled sandals. Drop the pair in the mail. Refund posts once Target receives them.

Do this before you keep letting your child wear the shoes, not after. Take them out of the closet and out of the diaper bag right now. The whole point of a stop-use recall is that a pearl could come loose on the next wear, not the tenth.

You can also read the official CPSC recall notice for the full description and Target's contact info.

Save your kid's stuff in kept and every future Cat & Jack recall gets flagged automatically

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Why this recall matters

A pearl the size of the ones on these sandals sits right at the choking-hazard threshold for a child under three. That's why the CPSC uses the small parts cylinder test to draw the line. Sandals aren't a category parents typically think of as a choking risk, but the pearl is decorative, easy to miss, and easy for a curious toddler to pull off and put in their mouth.

Target has received 23 reports of pearls detaching. No injuries yet, and the recall was issued before one happened, which is how these are supposed to work. But 211,000 pairs is a big footprint, and Cat & Jack is Target's largest kids apparel brand, so the odds are meaningful that a pair is sitting in a closet nearby.

Never miss the next one

Kids products are the single most recalled category the CPSC tracks. If you have kids in the house, checking once for the Cat & Jack sandals doesn't solve the general problem. A different toy, sleep product, or shoe could get pulled next month, and you'd have no way to know unless you happened to catch the news.

Two options that actually work:

• Turn on CPSC email alerts. Free. You get a daily digest of every recall. Our guide to CPSC recall alerts walks through the setup and other options.
• Save your kid's stuff in a home inventory that watches for recalls. kept stores the brand, model, and photo of each item once, then matches new CPSC and FDA recalls against your list on its own. If a car seat, crib, stroller, or brand-name product like Cat & Jack gets recalled, the item in kept shows a red [ recall ] pill with the hazard and the remedy. No weekly checking required.

For a wider look, see our guide to baby and kids product recalls and the piece on hidden product recalls that stay in circulation for years after they're pulled.

Frequently asked questions

Which Cat & Jack sandals are recalled?

The recall covers tan Cat & Jack children's sandals with two raffia straps, gold buckles, and decorative plastic pearls, in sizes 5T through 12T. They were sold at Target stores nationwide and on target.com from January 2026 through May 2026 for about $20. The brand is printed on the shoe's sole and bottom. CPSC recall number is 26-629 and the recall was announced July 16, 2026.

How do I get a refund for the recalled Cat & Jack sandals?

Stop letting your child wear them, take them away, and return them to any Target store for a full refund. You can also request a prepaid return label from Target and mail them back. You do not need the receipt. Target's guest services line and target.com order history can both handle the refund.

Have any children been injured by the Cat & Jack sandals?

Target has received 23 reports of the decorative pearls falling off the sandals. No injuries have been reported as of the recall date, but the CPSC notice warns that a loose pearl poses a serious choking hazard for young children. That is why the recall covers every pair sold, not just the ones where a pearl already came loose.

How do I check if the shoes in my kid's closet have been recalled?

Search cpsc.gov/Recalls by brand and product, or use a free CPSC and FDA search tool like kept's at getkeptapp.com/recall-check to look up any product you own. Match by brand, model or product name, and the size or date sold, since recalls almost always cover a specific production run. Save the products you own in a home inventory so new recalls get flagged automatically instead of relying on the memory of what you bought.

Can I still resell or donate the recalled Cat & Jack sandals?

No. It is illegal under federal law to resell a product that is subject to a CPSC recall, and reselling or donating recalled kids products moves the hazard to another family. Return the sandals to Target for the refund. If you would rather destroy them yourself, cut the straps first so the pair is unwearable, then throw them away.