Does Walgreens convert VHS tapes to DVD?

Yes. Walgreens offers VHS to DVD conversion at many of their stores. But they don’t do the work themselves. They ship your tapes to a company called iMemories, which handles the actual conversion.

Whether that’s the right move for your tapes depends on what you’re looking for.

How the Walgreens VHS to DVD service works

You bring your tapes to a Walgreens photo counter, fill out an order form, and leave them there. Walgreens packages your tapes and ships them to iMemories, a digitization company based in Scottsdale, Arizona.

iMemories does the conversion and ships your finished DVDs back to the store. You pick them up when they’re ready, usually 3 to 5 weeks later.

Not every Walgreens location offers this service. Before you load up a bag of tapes and drive over, check the Walgreens store locator to make sure your local store participates. The service covers VHS, Hi8, MiniDV, and several other tape formats.

What it costs

Walgreens charges around $34.99 per tape for DVD conversion. That price can vary by location, so confirm at your local store before committing.

You can also choose Blu-ray or cloud storage through iMemories if you want something besides a physical disc. Those options may cost extra.

For reference, CVS offers a similar service through the same company (iMemories) at about $25.99 per tape. Costco used to offer tape conversion too, but they discontinued it in 2023 when they switched their photo services to Shutterfly.

What you actually get back

The finished DVD has your footage on it, and that’s about it. No menus, no chapter markers, no way to skip between different recordings on the tape.

The video quality is standard DVD resolution, 480p. That’s roughly the same quality as the original tape. The conversion copies the footage as-is, without any cleanup, color correction, or sharpening.

Online reviews mention missed clips, long wait times with no status updates, and quality that varies between orders. Walgreens isn’t doing the work directly, so your experience depends on how iMemories handles your specific tapes.

The real question: do you want a DVD?

DVDs made sense 15 years ago. Today, they’re on their way out. Most new laptops don’t have DVD drives. Many smart TVs don’t either. If you’re converting old tapes just to end up with another format you can’t easily play, that’s worth a pause.

DVDs also degrade. They scratch. They’re not as fragile as VHS tapes, but they’re not permanent either. If the disc gets damaged, you’re back where you started.

Digital files are more practical for most people. MP4s play on phones, tablets, computers, and smart TVs. You can back them up in multiple places, send them to family, and they don’t scratch. If you’re going to spend the money on converting your tapes, digital files give you a lot more flexibility than a stack of DVDs.

What to look for in a conversion service

If you’re shopping around, the things that actually matter are pretty straightforward.

Per-tape pricing is the easiest to understand. Some services use bundles or charge by the hour, which makes it hard to know what you’ll actually pay until the work is done.

You want digital files back, not just a disc. MP4s are easier to store, share, and play on anything.

It’s also worth asking whether the service does any video cleanup. A straight copy of a 30-year-old tape looks like a 30-year-old tape. A service that cleans up noise, corrects color, and sharpens the picture gives you something you’ll actually want to watch on a modern screen.

And make sure your originals are insured during shipping. These tapes can’t be replaced.

How we handle it at VHS+

We’re a mail-in tape conversion service. We do the work ourselves and we deliver digital files instead of DVDs.

Three tiers:

Digital Transfer at $20/tape. Professional capture, basic cleanup, and an MP4 delivered through a 30-day download link. Your originals shipped back insured.
Plus at $35/tape. Everything above, plus HD restoration to 1080p, noise cleanup, and color correction. Every tape gets reviewed by a real person. This is our most popular option.
Heirloom at $55/tape. Everything in Plus, plus audio cleanup, a quality report, a USB drive, and priority 5–7 business day turnaround.

Volume discounts start at 5 tapes. Standard turnaround is 2 to 3 weeks.

The difference between us and Walgreens comes down to what happens after your footage is captured. Walgreens gives you a straight copy on a DVD. We clean up the picture, sharpen it, correct the color, and deliver HD digital files you can watch on a modern screen.

More details on our services page, or check pricing for your tapes.

Walgreens can get your tapes onto DVD. It’s a fine option if you want to drop off your tapes locally and don’t mind waiting a few weeks.

If you want digital files, or you want your footage to actually look better than the original tape, a dedicated service will get you there. We’d love for you to choose us, but whatever you pick, just don’t let those tapes sit in a box any longer than they already have.