VR Headset Demo Locations

See also: Virtual Reality and Guides

VR Headset Demo Locations is a guide to the retail stores and brand showrooms where members of the public can try a virtual reality (VR) headset, mixed reality device or display-equipped smart glasses before buying. Programs are run by the hardware maker, either in its own stores or with retail partners; some require an appointment booked online, while others accept walk-ins.

In 2016, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR demo stations appeared in electronics and game stores across North America. Writing about Best Buy's 2016 expansion of Rift demos, TechCrunch's Darrell Etherington noted that VR "has to be experienced to impress, especially if you're the average consumer." Several of the demo programs from that period have since ended because the product was discontinued or the store closed. The programs listed below as current are run by Apple, Meta, Samsung (with Google) and HTC.

Reviewed 27 September 2026. Checked every cited source for the demo programs (Apple Vision Pro, Meta stores and Meta Ray-Ban Display, Samsung Galaxy XR, HTC Vive, 2016-2020 retail programs), their dates, store counts and current status as of September 2026, and confirmed the original locator links were kept. About review dates.

Current demo programs

The table summarizes programs that were running as of September 2026. Availability varies by store, so each maker's own locator or booking page is the authoritative list.

Device	Where to try it	Booking
Apple Vision Pro	Apple Store locations in the US (from February 2024) and in 12 further countries and regions (added between June and December 2024)	"Book a demo" on Apple's website
Meta Quest 3, Meta Quest 3S and Meta AI glasses	Meta Lab stores	Meta's demo page
Meta Ray-Ban Display with Meta Neural Band	Select Meta Lab, Ray-Ban, Best Buy, LensCrafters, Sunglass Hut and Verizon stores in the US; retail stores in Vancouver, Toronto and London from September 23, 2026, with cities in France, Italy and Germany scheduled for October 13, 2026	Meta's Demo Scheduler
Samsung Galaxy XR	Samsung stores and select Google Stores in New York and California (from October 2025); Samsung KX and three Samsung Experience Stores in the UK (from June 2026)	Demo sign-up with Samsung or Google
HTC Vive products	Stores listed in HTC's Vive store locator	Check with the retailer

Apple Vision Pro

Apple Vision Pro arrived in Apple Store locations across the US on February 2, 2024, and Apple said customers could book an in-store demo, which it described as a guided demo experience available only in Apple Store locations. From February 2 to 4, customers could sign up for a demo only in person, on a first-come, first-served basis. From February 5, 2024, customers could reserve a slot up to seven days ahead through Apple's website or the Apple Store app. MacRumors described the session as a 30-minute demo guided by a retail employee, who checks the fit and supplies ZEISS optical inserts when a visitor needs vision correction (see Prescription lens inserts); the demo covers navigating visionOS and built-in apps such as Apple TV, Photos and Safari.

On June 27, 2024, Apple announced that the headset had arrived in Apple Stores in China mainland, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore, where it again offered the guided demo and let customers book a one-on-one session online. Demos in Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the United Kingdom began on July 12, 2024, on a first-come, first-served basis for the opening weekend. South Korea and the United Arab Emirates followed on November 15, 2024, with 30-minute demos offered at Apple Stores in South Korea, and Taiwan became the thirteenth country or region on December 17, 2024, with 30-minute demo sessions at Apple's two stores in Taipei. Apple's product page for the M5 version of the headset still carries a "Book a demo" link.

Meta

Meta opened its first physical store, the Meta Store, at 322 Airport Blvd in Burlingame, California, on May 9, 2022. The roughly 1,550-square-foot store let visitors try Meta Quest 2, Ray-Ban Stories and Meta Portal. Its Quest area had a wall-to-wall curved LED screen showing what the headset wearer saw, a choice of games including Beat Saber, GOLF+, Real VR Fishing and Supernatural, and a 30-second mixed reality clip of the demo that visitors could share.

From November 8 to December 31, 2024, Meta ran a temporary store called Meta Lab at 8600 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, built around demos of Ray-Ban Meta glasses. In September 2025 UploadVR reported that Meta would open a 20,000-square-foot permanent flagship on Melrose Avenue, a 560-square-foot pop-up inside the Wynn in Las Vegas and a 5,000-square-foot pop-up on Fifth Avenue in New York, all stocking the full hardware line including Meta Quest 3 and Meta Quest 3S. UploadVR reported the Los Angeles flagship open in November 2025, describing it as Meta's second permanent store after Burlingame. As of September 2026 Meta's store directory lists nine Meta Lab locations:

Location	Address
Ala Moana (Honolulu, Hawaii)	1450 Ala Moana Blvd.
Burlingame, California	322 Airport Blvd.
Houston, Texas	5085 Westheimer Rd
Las Vegas, Nevada	Wynn Plaza Shops, 3131 Las Vegas Blvd S
Los Angeles (flagship)	8600 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood
New York City (flagship)	697 5th Ave.
American Dream (East Rutherford, New Jersey)	1 American Dream Way
Tysons Corner, Virginia	1961 Chain Bridge Rd
Waikiki (Honolulu, Hawaii)	2220 Kalakaua Ave

The Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses went on sale in the US on September 30, 2025, and Meta required an in-person fitting and demo before purchase so that both the glasses and the Meta Neural Band wristband could be sized correctly. Appointments were made through Meta's Demo Scheduler, and Meta noted that only select stores offered demos. Engadget reported at launch that most demo slots were booked several weeks out. Best Buy, the exclusive big-box retailer for the glasses, began demos on October 3, 2025, and placed dedicated Meta specialists in more than 300 stores, where Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 2), Oakley Meta Vanguard and Oakley Meta HSTN glasses could also be tried. On September 23, 2026, at Meta Connect, Meta added online ordering in the US, Canada and the UK along with a digital sizing tool, and began retail sales in Vancouver, Toronto and London; retail sales in Paris, Milan, Rome, Frankfurt, Hamburg and Munich were scheduled to begin on October 13, 2026.

Samsung Galaxy XR

Samsung Galaxy XR, the first Android XR headset, launched in the US and South Korea on October 21, 2025. Google's launch post said it could be bought on Samsung.com or in Samsung Experience stores in the US and Korea, and that people could sign up for a demo in Samsung's stores or at select Google Stores in New York and California. In the UK, Samsung opened pre-orders on June 17, 2026, ahead of sales from July 8, and offered hands-on demonstrations from June 17 at its London KX store and at Samsung Experience Stores in Westfield London, Westfield Stratford City and Manchester Trafford Centre.

HTC Vive

HTC's Vive store locator, the page this guide has long linked for the HTC Vive, remains online and covers regions including the US, Canada, the UK, the European Union, Japan, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong and Australia/New Zealand. It is a general store finder and does not say which stores run demos.

Historical demo programs

Oculus Rift at Best Buy (2016)

Best Buy was the first US retailer to offer Oculus Rift demos. Free demos began on May 7, 2016, at 48 stores, in the stores' Intel Experience areas, with an Oculus expert guiding each session; visitors could reserve a time or drop in. The two demo programs were Dreamdeck and The Climb. In August 2016 Best Buy said it would expand Rift demos to 500 stores for the holiday season and demo PlayStation VR in 200 stores on a rotating basis. In April 2021 Facebook said it planned to stop selling the Oculus Rift S that year. The old Oculus demo-search address listed below now redirects to Meta's current demo page.

HTC Vive at Microsoft Store, GameStop and Micro Center (2016)

HTC began live Vive demos in April 2016 at Microsoft Store locations and GameStop. The first Microsoft Stores were the Fifth Avenue store in New York, Bellevue Square in Washington and City Creek Center in Salt Lake City, with more stores added later that month; GameStop demos started on April 16. Fortune reported that each session lasted 10 minutes and used theBlu, Space Pirate Trainer, Job Simulator and Tilt Brush, running on Alienware PCs from Dell. In June 2016 HTC said demos were expanding to 100 North American locations: Microsoft Stores from 29 to 51, GameStop from 10 to 40 and Micro Center from 5 to 10, with the full list on vive.com.

PlayStation VR (2016)

Before PlayStation VR launched on October 13, 2016, Sony set up demo stations at Best Buy and GameStop. Thirty locations were running by June 17, 2016, with expansion to 300 locations in the US and Canada planned from June 24. Demo titles included PlayStation VR Worlds, EVE: Valkyrie, Headmaster, Battlezone and SUPERHYPERCUBE, and Sony also toured an 18-wheeler with PS VR demos to music festivals and public events.

Windows Mixed Reality at Microsoft Store (2017-2020)

When Windows Mixed Reality headsets launched in October 2017, Microsoft invited customers to demo headsets from Acer, Dell, HP and Lenovo at Microsoft Store locations, noting that the devices on show varied by store. On June 26, 2020, Microsoft announced it would close its physical Microsoft Store locations and keep only Microsoft Experience Centers in London, New York City, Sydney and on its Redmond campus. Windows Mixed Reality itself was removed in Windows 11 version 24H2; Road to VR reported that headsets would keep working with SteamVR through November 2026 only for users who stayed on version 23H2.

Daydream View

Google discontinued the Daydream View headset in October 2019, when the Pixel 4 launched without Daydream support; a Google spokesperson said the platform had not seen the "broad consumer or developer adoption" the company hoped for.

Legacy demo locator links

The links below were collected when this guide was first written. Several belong to the discontinued programs described above.

Windows Mixed Reality - Demo Locations

HTC Vive - Demo Locations

Oculus Rift - Demo Locations

PlayStation VR - Demo Locations

Daydream View - Demo Locations

See also

• Location-based virtual reality
• VR arcade