Home Depot Return Policy and Return Windows by Category
Most items can go back to Home Depot within 90 days with proof of purchase.
The Home Depot return policy cuts that to 30 days for furniture, TVs and gas yard tools, and to 7 days for generators and air conditioners.
Major appliances get 48 hours. Purchases on a Home Depot credit card get a full year.
Home Depot Return Windows
| What you bought | Return window |
|---|---|
| Most new merchandise | 90 days |
| Furniture, TVs and computers | 30 days |
| Gas-powered yard tools | 30 days |
| Dehumidifiers, AC units, gas generators | 7 days |
| Major appliances | 48 hours |
| Perennials, trees, roses, shrubs | 1 year |
| Home Depot credit card purchases | 365 days |
Those windows come from Home Depot’s official Return Policy page. Anything in the 30-day and 7-day groups also has to be unused and in its original factory-sealed packaging.
For everyday hardware and supplies, 90 days with a card lookup is about as easy as big-box returns get.
The catch is timing. The shortest windows land on the things people buy in a hurry: a generator before a storm, an air conditioner in a heat wave, a fridge on move-in day.
30 Day Returns
The 30-day group is wider than most summaries admit. Home Depot lists these categories:
- Furniture
- Tractors, plus framing and roofing compressors
- Consumer electronics, meaning TVs and computers
- Paint sprayers
- Gas-powered trimmers, blowers, chain saws, mowers, outdoor augers, tillers, chippers and log splitters
Read the last line closely. Home Depot names only the gas-powered versions of those yard tools, so by the policy’s own wording a battery or corded mower falls back to the standard 90 days.
7 Day Returns for Generators, Dehumidifiers and AC Units
Home Depot’s shortest window for everyday products is 7 days. It covers dehumidifiers, gas pressure washers, window and portable air conditioners, and gas generators other than whole-house or stationary units.
Gas generators are where many return guides fall out of date. Plenty still list them at 30 days, but the 7-day list Home Depot made effective June 16, 2025, includes them.
A generator bought ahead of a storm has 7 days to go back, unused and sealed, even on a Home Depot credit card.
Items reported added in July 2026
Home Depot added pumps, portable evaporation products and portable heaters to the 7-day list in July 2026, SlashGear reported in August. The same report says holiday decor is now limited to 30 days.
Home Depot didn’t announce the change, and the newest archived copy of its policy page I could review dates from May 2026. Until the official page lists those items, I’d treat a space heater bought this winter as a 7-day purchase and leave it sealed until you’re sure it stays.
Major Appliance Returns
Refrigerators, washers, dryers, ranges, dishwashers and over-the-range or built-in microwaves must be returned within 48 hours. That includes unopened, factory-sealed units.
- Inspect the appliance before you accept delivery or leave the store with it.
- Refuse the delivery and tell the driver if anything is damaged.
- Report damage you find later within 48 hours of delivery or pickup, weekends excluded, by calling Customer Solutions at 1-800-455-3869 or texting “Support” to 38698.
Online appliance orders can’t simply go back to a store like other online purchases. The phone call starts the return and settles whether a home pickup applies.
Home Depot Credit Card Return Window
Purchases on the Home Depot Consumer Credit Card, the Pro Xtra Credit Card or a Home Depot Commercial Account get 365 days for a full refund.
The fine print is the important part. The year-long window doesn’t extend the 48-hour, 7-day or 30-day categories, so the card stretches a 90-day item to a year but leaves a generator at 7 days and a refrigerator at 48 hours.
Plant Returns
Most plants follow the 90-day rule. Perennials, trees, roses and shrubs carry a 1-year guarantee and can be returned after 90 days for store credit, while live plants ordered online that arrive damaged or dead need a call or text to Home Depot within 3 days of delivery.
Returns Without a Receipt
A receipt isn’t strictly required, but it changes the outcome.
Home Depot asks for a valid driver’s license or other government-issued photo ID on returns without a receipt, and every return runs through a third-party refund verification system.
Without proof of purchase, the refund may come as store credit at the item’s lowest advertised price. On something you bought at full price, that can be noticeably less than you paid.
The card you paid with often works as the receipt. Associates can look up online orders by credit card, order number or email, and in-store mobile wallet purchases may need the physical phone you paid with.
Online Order Returns
Most homedepot.com orders can go back to any store for free. To mail one instead, start the return from Order Details in your account, print the emailed UPS label and drop the box at a UPS Access Point.
Anything that runs on flammable liquids or gases, like a lawn mower or leaf blower, has to go back to a store, even drained. Orders paid with eStore Credit are store-only returns too.
Refunds at a store go through on the spot. Mailed returns take about 7 business days to process, then up to 10 more business days to show up at your bank, and the original shipping charge comes back only when Home Depot made the mistake.
Special orders may carry a 15% restocking fee and must go back to the store where you bought them. Purchases from The Home Depot Design Center can only be returned to the Design Center.
What to Bring for a Home Depot Return
- The item, with all its parts and accessories
- The receipt or the shipping confirmation email
- The card you paid with, so the store can find the purchase
- A valid photo ID, which is required for returns without a receipt
Opened items in the 90-day group are usually fine as long as they aren’t damaged. The policy doesn’t spell out a box requirement for them, though the 30-day and 7-day items do need their sealed packaging.
Returning a gift works too, for store credit. Returns run while the store is open, which at most locations means 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and the Home Depot hours guide has Sundays and holidays.
