Menards vs Home Depot: Which is a Better Choice? - UpDweller (2024)

Ensuring that you can buy high-quality materials and tools for your home improvement projects is important. This is why we are going to look at Menards vs Home Depot and compare these two retailers.

You will no doubt have heard of both Menards and Home Depot as they are pretty big home improvement chains. How do they stack up against each other, though? Well, this is exactly what we are going to find out. We’ll explore the main features of these two stores, how they compare with pricing, their pros, and cons, as well as some alternative home improvement outlets you can look at.

First, let’s get into the main differences between Menards and Home Depot.

Main Differences Between Menards vs Home Depot

The main differences between Menards vs Home Depot are:

• Home Depot has over 2000 stores across the USA, whereas Menards has 335 stores located throughout the Midwest
• Home Depot does not have a design tool on their website, whereas Menards does
• Home Depot allows you to voice search on their app, whereas Menards does not
• Home Depot has a live chat function on their website, whereas Menards does not

Menards vs Home Depot – In Detail

Store Locations

Both of these outlets have a large number of physical store locations – although one has a lot more than the other.

Menards has 335 stores which are spread out across the Midwestern United States. You’ll find Menards stores from Wyoming to Pennsylvania and from Missouri to North Dakota. They have stores in 15 states in total.

Home Depot had the largest amount of home improvement stores in the US. They are a massive company. Currently, they have 2,296 physical store locations nationwide. Unlike Menards which is geographically limited to the Midwest area of America, you can find Home Depot stores right across the country.

When it comes to physical store locations, Home Depot is by far the largest out of these two home improvement retailers. We’ll look at online services in a minute but in terms of visiting a store, you’ll need to be in the Midwest area for Menards whereas Home Depot is nationwide.

Online Services

Both of these retailers allow you to buy a wide range of home improvement materials and tools online.

Menards, even though their physical stores are geographically limited, ship nationwide and they even ship to Canada as well. They have the option to buy a product online and pick it up at a Menards store if one is close by to your location. You can choose to go to a Menards Store and choose to get the items from the shelf yourself or pay a small fee and your order will be ready at the store.

Not every item in Menards is available for this service but it does cover a large number of products. Shipping costs vary depending on what you have ordered, its size, weight, and where it is being delivered too. You can also track your orders online too.

Menards offers good online resources. They have how-to videos and their design center. With this, you can design a project – a garage for example – and select all the different materials and tools that are required. It is a really good online service so you can plan and design your next DIY project and get all the tools and materials you need for it.

Home Depot also allows you to order online and then pick up the item in-store. This is a free service although in some cases there is a minimum purchase requirement.

Like Menards, Home depot delivers nationwide and they have various delivery options. This includes standard delivery, priority delivery (1 – 3 days), expedited delivery, and express delivery (next day).

They also offer other options such as curbside delivery and you can schedule their delivery options for a time that suits you. There is a free delivery option for over one million products on orders over $45.

You can also track your order online with Home Depot. They don’t have a design center like Menards, but they do offer various online resources. This includes several calculators for different projects like tiling, wallpapering, fencing, gardening, and painting. It helps to calculate the number of materials you need for a project.

Apps

While you can easily access both Menards and Home Depot via a mobile device with your browser, what about apps? A dedicated app can really improve functionality and accessibility when buying items online.

Menards offer their own app which is available on both iOS and Android devices. It features a cool Augmented Reality function which means you can virtually place items inside your home to see how they look. You also get access to various product calculators and you can create wish lists too.

Home Depot offers an app too which is available on both iOS and Android. It also offers an Augmented Reality function (like the Menards app) as well as the ability to make wish lists and also check product inventory in different stores. You can search by voice with the Home Depot app.

Finance Options

Sometimes buying home improvement items – such as flooring and other materials that can be a bit expensive – requires you to take out credit to finance it.

Menards offer various finance options. This includes the Menards BIG Card which allows you to use finance on orders over $299 for 6 months interest-free and you get a rebate on Menard purchases too. They also offer finance options and credit cards for contractors and commercial purposes.

Home Depot also provides various credit options. They have a Consumer Credit Card which offers 6 months of interest-free finance on purchases of $299 or more.

Their Project Loan finance option allows you to take out a loan of up to $55,000 for all the materials and tools you need for a home improvement project. There are also commercial accounts available with Home Depot.

Range of products

The final thing to look at before we move onto the pricing of both outlets is the range of products that they offer.

Both Menards and Home Depot feature a wide range of items and materials. It covers everything from power tools, building materials, furniture, electrical items, and much more. We wouldn’t say that there is much between Menards and Home Depot in general.

That being said, some people do prefer one over the other for certain items. For example, many people prefer Home Depot for garden products while others prefer Menards for building and construction materials.

Menards vs Home Depot – Customer Service

If you run into any problems with your orders – whether it is for power tools, DIY materials, or whatever you buy – having a good level of customer service and contact options can make all the difference.

Menards allow you to contact them via email or you can contact the individual store if you need to take it up with them directly. It is pretty easy to use their store locator and find contact details for each department.

They do also offer a help center on their website where you can find out answers to common questions such as shipping, returns, and other information.

Home Depot has various contact methods including a handy live chat feature on their website. You can also contact them via phone as well. In terms of accessibility, it is slightly harder to find their contact information on their site (apart from the live chat which is prominently displayed). They also offer a text contact option and the store finder lets you see the contact details for each Home Depot outlet.

You’ll also find information on various topics in the help center section of their website too.

Menards vs Home Depot – Pricing

Given the vast amount of products that both Menards and Home Depot offer, it can be difficult to directly compare their pricing.

That being said, sometimes items are a bit cheaper with Menards than they are with Home Depot. Some people do comment that the quality of certain items is better at Home Depot than it is with Menards but this can very subjective.

Both Menards and Home Depot offer sale and clearance items so you can potentially get a bargain. They also both offer price matches. This means that if you find an identical item at a cheaper price with a competitor, they will match that price which is really handy.

Pros and Cons

Menards

Pros

• Offer competitively priced DIY and home improvement products
• Good online services including design-builder and various how-to videos
• Online help center with answers to many common questions
• Offer various finance options for personal and commercial buyers
• A varied range of products available in-store and online

Cons

• Physical stores limited to American Midwest

Home Depot

Pros

• Very large retailer with outlets nationwide
• Good variety of products at good prices
• Various online services including calculators for materials
• Provide a selection of finance options including loans for entire projects
• Offer many different delivery options

Cons

• Don’t have a design tool on their website like Menards

Are there any alternatives?

Lowe’s

Lowe’s is one of the biggest home improvement retailers in the USA (they also have some outlets in Canada too).

They have over 2000 locations and offer a ton of different DIY and home improvement products. This includes power tools, furniture, plumbing tools, paint, and outdoor materials to name just a few.

Lowe’s also provides credit and finance options and you can use their Android and iOS apps to shop easier as well. They have a handy store locator on their website so you can find your nearest outlet while you’ll also find good resources online. This includes project ideas, buying guides, and calculators.

They are mainly aimed at home DIYers however they do cater to professionals too.

Target

Target is another alternative to both Menards and Home Depot as they stock a lot of home improvement products.

They are pretty reasonably priced as well and in their home improvement category, you’ll find nearly one million items so it shouldn’t be difficult to find what you need.

Target has nearly 2,000 stores that are spread about the country. They also offer in-store pick-up and delivery services too. You can apply for credit with their RedCard while there are also both iOS and Android apps so you can shop online too. Their apps don’t have the full range of functionality as Menards and Home depot but they are ideal for finding what you need and making a purchase.

If you want to look at alternative stores to find a product you need for a DIY job, Target is a pretty good option.

IKEA

Finally, we have IKEA.

They are a bit limited in physical stores – they are just over 50 in the USA spread over 27 states – but you can get home delivery. If you are taking on a bathroom or living room DIY project, their Scandinavian-inspired flat pack furniture is great.

They also offer assembly services if you don’t fancy building furniture yourself.

While IKEA is generally aimed at furniture and different accessories, they also stock some tools and materials. Even though this is not the same amount as the likes of Home Depot or Menards, they are useful for picking up some basic bits and pieces that you might need.

Frequently Asked Questions about Menards and Home Depot

Our Verdict: Menards vs Home Depot – choose Home Depot if you want better physical store access

It is pretty difficult to pick one from Menards and Home Depot because they stock many of the same products. Some people prefer Menards for certain items while they will also head to Home Depot for particular tools or materials.

So, how do we choose between the two?

In an age when buying online is becoming more popular than it ever has been, it is still important to a lot of people to visit a physical store. This is why we are going to choose Home Depot.

They have a lot more physical store locations than Menards. While Menards is geographically limited to the Midwest, you’ll find Home Depot stores right across the country.

There are things that both those retailers have we really like. Their apps – especially the AR feature is great – and Home depot just edges this too by having voice search enabled.

Customer service is good with both – Menards probably edges this slightly with having more resources on their site – and they also both have good finance options.

In the end, it is close but the advantage of being relatively nearby to a Home Depot store regardless of where you live is what wins it for us. It makes browsing in-store easier, picking up the items you have ordered online more straightforward and they offer a ton of great home improvement products are good prices.