7 Insider Tips You Should Know When Shopping At Home Depot, According to Employees

The Home Depot is already a go-to resource for many, given that it’s chock full of products for every type of home and garden project imaginable, but if you’re looking to truly maximize your experience at the store, you’ll want to keep reading.

Here, three employees from The Home Depot share seven helpful insider tips that will help you make the most of your shopping experience, whether you frequent the retailer in person or shop its website. Get ready to learn about clever hacks, ways to save money, and more.

You Can Recycle Plant Pots

If you’re not sure what to do with your empty plant pots, know that you can bring them to The Home Depot Garden Center for recycling. They’ll either be reused by growers or recycled by The Home Depot’s partner, East Jordan Plastics, where they’ll be turned into new pots, baskets, and trays, David Graham, senior merchant of live goods at The Home Depot, explains.

This process keeps millions of pounds of plastic out of landfills each year, Graham adds.

“By recycling what would otherwise be discarded, we’re encouraging more sustainable gardening practices,” he says.

The Home Depot Will Assemble Your Grill

If you purchase a grill in-store at The Home Depot, you can choose to have it safely assembled in-store, too, Marc Becker, the vice president of merchandising at The Home Depot, shares.

This is an option that you select during checkout, and the process will just take a couple of hours in total, Becker explains. Customers who don’t need their grill assembled the same day can also choose to have it put together at home by a licensed and insured pro, who will schedule an appointment one to two days following the product’s delivery.

You Can Return Plants to The Home Depot

When you purchase plants at The Home Depot, you can rest assured knowing that the retailer offers a flexible return policy. Graham shares that most plants can be returned for up to 90 days for a full refund, and perennials, trees, shrubs, and roses are eligible for a store credit while also being backed by a one-year guarantee. If you order live plants online and they arrive in poor shape, you can return those, too.

The Home Depot Sells Drop-N-Decorate Plants

Looking for a simple way to add more greenery to your home? Purchase some of The Home Depot’s Drop-N-Decorate plants, which come in containers that are designed to be placed into larger planters to help you get the job done quickly, no repotting involved, Graham shares.

You Can Order Home Depot Items on Your Favorite Delivery Apps

These days, apps including Uber Eats, DoorDash, and InstaCart aren’t just for ordering takeout; you can also purchase items from some of your favorite stores, including The Home Depot, for quick delivery.

While The Home Depot already prides itself on its fast online delivery—many products ship same-day and next-day—this option makes it super easy to get what you need in as little as an hour, Jordan Broggi, executive vice president of customer experience and president at The Home Depot, explains. Best of all, there’s no membership required.

You Can Shop Major Deals Starting at Just $20 Right Now

Becker encourages customers not to miss out on the opportunity to take advantage of The Home Depot’s Spring deals event, which runs through May 7 and features under $20 deals in-store and online. S

peaking of grills, as highlighted earlier, there are many currently on sale, and grill orders over $399 come with free delivery. The event is also a great time to purchase items you might need for your spring refresh projects, ranging from affordable packs of microfiber towels to high-powered pressure washers.

The Home Depot Has a “Magic Apron” Tool

Wish you could contact a store associate for a bit of guidance as you shop online? Now you can! Magic Apron, which launched earlier this year, is an AI-powered tool on The Home Depot app that is built to assist customers in a multitude of ways in order to make shopping as efficient as possible.

“It can help answer specific questions, recommend the right tools, summarize reviews, and even calculate how much material you’ll need, from mulch to wood panels,” Broggi says. “It’s like having an associate at your side, ready to walk you through your project with confidence.”