Home Depot Affiliate Program: How It Works and How to Join

The Home Depot affiliate program pays you a commission when someone buys on homedepot.com through your tracked link, and it runs on the Impact platform. As of 2026, the main way in is the Home Depot Creator program, launched at the end of 2025 at creators.homedepot.com, which is free to join and approves creators at Home Depot's discretion.

This guide covers what Home Depot pays, what doesn't count, how to apply, how payouts work and the rules that get affiliates removed. It's written for beginners who make home, garden or DIY content and want to know whether the program is worth the effort.

How does the Home Depot affiliate program work?

You get a tracked link to a homedepot.com product or page, share it in your content, and earn a percentage of qualifying orders placed through that link. Home Depot pays through Impact, and Impact's dashboard reports your clicks, orders and commissions.

Here's the program at a glance, based on Home Depot's own pages:

Sources: the Home Depot Creator site, its terms and FAQ, and Home Depot's affiliate program FAQ.

If affiliate links are new to you, the mechanics are the same as any retail program: click, cookie, purchase, commission. Our affiliate marketing guide for beginners walks through the whole route from picking a niche to the first commission.

How much does Home Depot pay affiliates?

It depends on what you're approved for, and Home Depot's public pages don't agree. The Creator program page advertises "Earn 8% on everything" plus bonuses during the year. Home Depot's affiliate FAQ has listed 1% on most products, mobile and buy-online-pick-up-in-store orders, 1% on appliances and 8% on select home decor.

The terms settle the question in Home Depot's favor: the commission rate "may be changed from time to time," and a creator can be put on an individual rate through an insertion order. Treat any public figure as a starting point and go by the rate shown in your Impact contract.

A few details shrink what you actually receive:

• Exclusions. Gift cards, installation services, custom-created products, delivery fees, product protection plans, select special orders and in-store purchases are not eligible.
• A short window. The affiliate FAQ describes a 24-hour window: the order has to happen within a day of the click.
• A per-click cap. The terms pay a maximum of two orders per click. Extra orders from the same click don't earn.
• Reversals. Home Depot can reverse commissions for cancellations, returns, duplicate tracking, disputed charges, rule violations and orders it suspects were placed for resale.

Example (hypothetical): a reader clicks your link in a patio makeover post and buys a $400 outdoor rug and lighting set the same evening. At 8% you'd earn $32. If the same reader had bought a $1,200 refrigerator at a 1% appliance rate, you'd earn $12, and nothing if they picked it up in store or returned it.

How do you join the Home Depot affiliate program?

Make content first, then apply. Home Depot approves creators "in Home Depot's sole and absolute discretion," so an empty profile is a weak application.

1. Publish home and DIY content first. Project tutorials, room makeovers, tool comparisons and garden guides show reviewers what you make and who watches it.
2. Apply through the Creator site or Impact. On creators.homedepot.com you complete the application and link your social channels. If you already have an Impact account, Home Depot's affiliate FAQ says you can apply to The Home Depot from inside it.
3. Wait for a decision. Home Depot notifies you through Impact whether you've been approved.
4. Accept the terms and set up payouts. Approved creators accept the terms, add payment details and create links with the program's tools.

The Creator portal also lists brand campaigns you can pitch for. Those are separate from ordinary link commissions: the FAQ describes flat-rate or performance-based pay set per campaign, after the brand approves your content.

Home Depot's program is built around homedepot.com shoppers. Home Depot Canada has its own affiliate program, so Canadian creators should check homedepot.ca for its current terms.

When and how does Home Depot pay you?

Through Impact, after your commissions clear. The Creator FAQ says you set a payout threshold, with a $10 minimum, or choose fixed payout days on the 1st and 15th of the month. Payment goes out by PayPal or bank transfer.

Campaign work is paid differently. The FAQ says campaign payments are typically issued within 45 days after your deliverables are submitted and approved by the brand.

Plan for the gap between a sale and the money arriving. Returns and cancellations can still reverse a commission, so a strong weekend of sales isn't spendable income yet.

What rules can get you removed from the program?

The terms are long and specific, and Home Depot can end your participation on three days' notice, or immediately for serious breaches. These are the rules beginners trip over most.

The FTC's guidance points the same way. It says a disclosure on your homepage alone isn't enough, and that "the closer the disclosure is to your recommendation, the better." For wording that works on each platform, see how to promote affiliate links.

What kind of content earns Home Depot commissions?

Content tied to a project, where a reader needs several items at once. A short window and a per-click cap reward content that gets people to buy soon after reading or watching.

• Project tutorials with a materials list. "How to build a raised garden bed" naturally links lumber, hardware, soil and tools.
• Room and outdoor makeovers. Decor-heavy projects are where the higher advertised rates have applied.
• Tool comparisons for a specific job. "Best cordless drill for occasional DIY" helps a reader decide, then buy.
• Seasonal checklists. Spring garden prep, winterizing a house, holiday lighting.

Be honest about what the links can earn. Big-ticket appliances and tools can carry low rates, and many shoppers check prices in store, where your link earns nothing. Results depend on your audience, niche and consistency, and most beginners earn little at first.

Is the Home Depot affiliate program worth it?

It can be, if your audience already shops at Home Depot and you publish project content consistently. It's a poor fit if you need income quickly or your readers mostly buy in person.

Many home creators join more than one retail program and link the store their audience prefers. Compare the details in our Walmart affiliate program guide and our Amazon Associates guide before you build your content around a single store.

Next steps

Pick one home or DIY topic, publish a handful of genuinely useful project posts or videos, then apply through the Creator site and read the terms in full.

• For the step-by-step route from niche to first commission, see our page on how to make money with affiliate marketing.
• Weighing affiliate work against other ways to earn online? Start with our guide to making money online.