Michaels Review: Birthday Party Supply Stores

If you're the kind of party planner who loves to add a personal, creative touch to every detail, Michaels might just be your perfect match for birthday supplies. Best known as a go-to craft store, Michaels goes beyond paint and glue guns to offer a wide range of decorations, DIY kits, and themed party essentials that let you bring your celebration vision to life. Whether you want to hand-make centerpieces, customize your own invitations, or just pick up a ready-to-go balloon arch kit, Michaels has both the supplies and inspiration to help you do it your way. It's especially great for anyone planning a birthday with a unique theme or a handcrafted flair - and with regular sales, coupons, and in-store pickup options, it's as practical as it is creative.

Not just for the crafty crowd

But, let's say you want a little less DIY and a little more done-for-you. Is Michaels still a good choice for birthday party supplies? Surprisingly, the answer is yes - with over 7,700 items in the party section! We were stunned at the variety of themes on offer, from basic "Happy Birthday" balloons to full University of Georgia tailgate party packs with service for 16 and decorations to boot.

Use filters to save time

To make your life easier, you'll want to use the filters to narrow down the options at Michaels. Maybe your birthday girl loves Dr. Seuss, or the birthday boy is a huge fan of Baby Shark: those are just some of the choices you'll find in the Character filter. It may take a little more browsing to find exactly what you need, though: the filters aren't quite as robust at Michaels as we've seen elsewhere.

Great pricing, especially on themed sets

But, we can't argue with the prices! We spotted a 171-piece set in a somewhat generic "Happy Birthday" balloons-and-confetti design for $61.99, which included 24 place settings (large and small paper plates, cups, spoons, forks, straws), a banner and a tablecloth. That price dropped by 30% with a seasonal promo code that was helpfully displayed at the top of the site and right underneath the price of every item on the site. How about something a little more grown-up? The "Cheers" themed decoration set for $30.49 is all about the balloons: not just 24 latex balloons and several star- and heart-shaped foil balloons, but also 2 foil balloons in the shape of a champagne bottle and a whiskey bottle! (Thankfully, it also includes the balloon pump.)

Free shipping on orders of $50+

As you're shopping, pay attention to the delivery options. While it's possible to get in-store pickup or even same-day delivery on some birthday party supplies, most of the items that caught our attention were only available via shipping - mostly because they're coming from third-party partners of Michaels. In general, shipping is free if your order is at least $50, so it might be worth it to round out your cart with some extras, if your balloons and banners aren't quite enough to meet that threshold. However, some of those third-party partners may give you free shipping regardless - like that "Cheers" set of balloons we described.

60 days for returns

Overall, you can expect a 60-day return window on any party supplies you buy at Michaels. They don't get into too many details about your options for returning online orders to a local store, though, or if you're going to have to foot the bill for the postage. We'd love a bit more clarity there.

Could use more reviews on party supplies

And reputation? Michaels has an "A+" from the Better Business Bureau, which isn't surprising for such a big-name retailer that's been around since 1973. We do wish that there were more reviews on the individual birthday party supplies, though: we only saw a handful, if any, on most products (and typically none on the ones sold by third-party partner retailers). That's part of the reason we don't rate Michaels as highly as some of its competitors on our list.

Good retailer but not extraordinary for birthday party supplies

If you see something at Michaels that you love for your next birthday bash, go for it! We don't have any concerns about this store's reliability or customer service. But, when we look at how Michaels compares with rival options we evaluated, this craft superstore comes in a bit behind our top picks. The selection is vast but a little harder to shop, and we'd really need to see a bit more feedback on the party supplies to get a better read on what people think after they put their plates, backdrops, or balloons to use. Michaels is above average overall, but maybe not likely to be your go-to favorite the next time you're preparing for a birthday party.

On the Michaels website