Home renovations can add value to your property and allow you to enjoy a newly remodeled space, but they're often costly. If you don't have the cash for home improvements, you may consider opening a credit card from Home Depot or Lowe's to benefit from discounts and/or special financing offers.
Both home improvement retailers offer store cards you can use to your advantage when renovating a home. The cards have similar perks, making it hard to choose a card if you don't prefer one store over the other.
Below, CNBC Select compares the Home Depot Consumer Credit Card and the MyLowe's Rewards Credit Card so you can choose the best card for your next home improvement.
MyLowe's Rewards Credit Card
Rewards
5% off eligible purchases
Welcome bonus
For a limited time, new accounts get 20% off a qualifying purchase, up to $100
Annual fee
$0
Intro APR
None
Regular APR
Standard APR is 31.99%
Balance transfer fee
Not applicable
Foreign transaction fee
Not applicable
Credit needed
Not applicable
Terms apply.
Pros
- No annual fee
- 5% off eligible purchases
- Variety of special financing offers
Cons
- High standard APR
The Home Depot Consumer Credit Card doesn't earn rewards, which makes it a difficult card to consider unless you highly value the extended return window.
- Extended return window for eligible items
- No annual fee
- Deferred interest financing can be expensive if you don't pay off the full balance by the offer end date
- Doesn't earn rewards
Home Depot Consumer Credit Card vs. MyLowe's Rewards Credit Card
Welcome bonus
When you open a new Home Depot Consumer Credit Card from now until July 31, 2024, you can save up to $100 on a qualifying purchase made within 30 days of opening your account. The amount of money you save depends on the price of your purchase: You get $25 off purchases worth between $25 and $299, $50 off purchases between $300 and $999, and $100 off your purchase of $1,000 or more.
The MyLowe's Rewards Credit Card offers a one-time 20% discount (up to $100) on a qualifying purchase when you open and use your new card from now until Jan. 31, 2025.
Winner: It's a tie, since the answer depends entirely on how much you plan to spend on the qualifying purchase. If it's $126 or more, then the MyLowe's discount will save you more money. Anything cheaper than that, and you'll get more with the Home Depot card. Just remember that the maximum you can save with either card is $100.
Rewards
The MyLowe's Rewards Credit Card offers a 5% discount on eligible purchases, but there's a catch: The discount can't be combined with other credit-related promotional offers. If you want to get 5% off, you won't be able to finance a purchase with an available special financing offer.
The Home Depot Consumer Credit Card does not offer a discount other than its welcome bonus offer. The welcome bonus offers for both cards are worth up to $100.
Winner: MyLowe's Rewards Credit Card, for its everyday discount (despite the inability to receive 5% off along with a special financing offer).
Special financing offers
For the Home Depot card, you get a financing offer of no interest if purchases of $299 or more are paid in full within six months. If you fail to pay what you owe before the promotional period ends, you'll have to pay all of the interest that accumulated during those six months, so make sure you don't take on more than you can pay back.
The Lowe's card, however, offers you a choice of two financing options:
- No interest on purchases of $299 or more if paid in full within six months
- Select 84 fixed monthly payments at 9.99% APR for purchases of $2,000 or more
If you choose to use one of these offers, be diligent with your repayment plan. Similar to the Home Depot card's financing, you'll need to have the balance paid in full before the promotional period ends in order to avoid interest charges. Continuing to carry a balance after the promotional period will cause you to incur deferred interest, which is a charge for all the interest you accrued since the date you made your purchase.
Winner: Because the MyLowe's Rewards Credit Card gives you more options in terms of financing, it comes out on top.
Fees
The Home Depot card and Lowe's card both have no annual fee, but different interest rates. The Home Depot card provides a 17.99% to 29.99% variable APR, while the Lowe's card has a 31.99% variable APR.
Winner: Home Depot Consumer Credit Card, if you can qualify for an APR less than 29.99%.
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Information about the Lowe's Advantage Card and Home Depot Consumer Credit Card has been collected independently by Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of the card prior to publication.
