Whether you’re planning on sprucing up the paint in a bedroom or planning a major renovation, getting a credit card with increased rewards at home improvement stores can return a bit of cash back to your pocket.
Here are the cards that earn better than 2% cash back at home improvement stores that we think you should consider:
Annual fee: $0
Citi Custom Cash® Card
Best for up to 5% back at home improvement stores.
5% on the first $500 spent in your top eligible category each statement cycle. Eligible categories include home improvement stores.
Annual fee: $0 intro annual fee for the first year ($95/year thereafter)
U.S. Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® Card
Best for 6% cash back at select home improvement stores.
6% cash back on up to $1,500 spent each quarter in the two retailers you choose. Eligible retailers include Ace Hardware, Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Menards.
Annual fee: $0
Discover it® Cash Back
5% at home improvement stores from April – June 2026
5% cash back on up to $1,500 spent in rotating categories. Q2, 2026 bonus categories include home improvement stores.
Annual fee: $0
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card
Best for Bank of America relationship clients.
Up to 3% on on home improvement stores. (Up to 5.25% with Preferred Rewards with Platinum Honors.) Requires category selection.
Annual fee: $195
Ink Business Premier® Credit Card
Best for contractors and large purchases.
2.5% cash back on purchases of $5,000 or more. $2% cash back on other purchases.
What matters with home improvement stores?
In most cases, rewards are going to be the only thing that matters when it comes to selecting which card to use for your home improvement project. Credit card extended warranty benefits aren’t going to cover things like lumber and paint, though you might want to consider a card with an extended warranty when purchasing a major appliance.
But ongoing rewards aren’t the only things to cosnider.
Big welcome bonuses. Large home improvement projects can run into several thousands of dollars. If you’re planning a large project, your best bet might be to use your planned spending to go after a new cardmember welcome bonus. You can frequently get north of $750 with one of the best cash back credit card welcome bonuses, you can earn miles with a card from a major airline like Delta, United, American, or Southwest, hotel points with a hotel chain like Marriott or Hyatt, or transferable points through a program like Ultimate Rewards or ThankYou Points.
Gift cards. If you have a rotating category card like the Discover it® Cash Back, Chase Freedom Flex℠, or Citi Dividend Card, chances are that you’ll be able to earn 5% on home improvement stores at some point during the year. If your project timeframe doesn’t match up with a rotating category card’s bonus categories, you can still get an effective 5% on your purchases by purchasing a gift card to use later. You can also purchase $500 of gift cards during a month to maximize the rewards on a Citi Custom Cash℠ Card.
More on the best credit cards for home improvement store rewards
Citi Custom Cash℠ Card
The Citi Custom Cash® Card can be a good choice for occasional home improvement projects, since it offers 5% rewards on up to $500 spent in your highest eligible category each statement cycle.
If you know you’ve got a large home improvement project coming up, considering buying $500 gift cards ahead of time to maximize the category bonus for a few months, effectively pre-paying your project in exchange for 5% cash back rewards.
Citi Custom Cash® Card welcome offer
Welcome offer: Earn $200 in cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back.
This bonus is marketed as cash back, but earned as Citi ThankYou® Points. This card enables cash back redemptions at 1 cent per point.
Annual fee: $0
Rewards
- 5% cash back on your top eligible spend category each billing cycle on up to $500 spent.
- 5% on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked with Citi Travel®.
- 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Rewards are marketed as cash back, but earned as Citi ThankYou® points.
5% eligible categories
5% eligible categories include:
- Restaurants
- Gas stations
- Grocery stores
- Select travel
- Select transit
- Select streaming services
- Drugstores
- Home improvement stores
- Fitness clubs
- Live entertainment
Benefits
- Extended warranty
- Citi merchant offers
- Virtual account numbers
- Free FICO score
Rates and Fees
- Annual fee: $0
- Foreign transaction fee: 3% of each purchase transaction in US dollars.
U.S. Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® Card
The U.S. Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® Card includes several hardware and home-improvement stores in its list of retailers where the card can earn 6% cash back. Choices also include many furniture stores as well.
U.S. Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® Card welcome offer
Welcome offer: Earn a $250 bonus after you spend $2,000 in eligible purchases within the first 120 days of account opening.
The bonus is awarded as additional cash rewards
Maximum cash back rewards value applies only if you redeem rewards as a statement credit or a direct deposit into a U.S. Bank account.
Annual fee: $0 intro annual fee for the first year ($95/year thereafter)
Rewards
- 6% on your first $1,500 in combined eligible purchase each quarter with two retailers you choose.
- 3% on your first $1,500 in eligible purchases each quarter on your choice of one everyday category.
Eligible everyday categories include wholesale clubs, gas and EV charging stations, and bills and utilities. - 1.5% on all other eligible purchases.
Rewards are earned as cash rewards. Maximum Cash Rewards value applies to Cash Rewards redeemed for a statement credit or deposit into an eligible U.S. Bank Account.
Eligible 6% retailers
With the U.S. Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® Card, you can choose two retailers to earn 6% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined eligible purchases each quarter. Here’s the list of eligible retailers.
- Ace Hardware®
- Apple®
- Amazon.com®
- Anthropologie®
- Bed, Bath, & Beyond®
- Best Buy®
- Chewy.com®
- Crate and Barrel™
- Disney®
- Home Depot®
- Ikea®
- Kohl’s®
- Lowe’s®
- Lululemon®
- Macy’s™
- Menards®
- Nordstrom™
- Pottery Barn®
- QVC®
- Restoration Hardware™
- Target®
- Walmart®
- Wayfair.com
- Williams Sonoma®
Benefits
Consumer insurance benefits
- Purchase security.
- Return protection.
- Extended warranty protection.
Travel insurance benefits
- Travel and emergency assistance services.
Partner benefits and statement credits
- Free Shipt membership until 12/31/24 with enrollment. After free membership expires, you are automatically enrolled in an annual Shipt membership at then-current prices until you cancel.
Rates and fees
- Annual fee: $0 intro annual fee for the first year ($95/year thereafter)
- Foreign transaction fee: 3% of each foreign transaction
Discover It Cash Back Card
The Discover it® Cash Back card offers 5% cash back in Discover’s rotating quarterly categories and a dollar-for-dollar cash back match in your first year. The quarterly bonus categories in Q2 of 2026 include home improvement stores.
Discover it® Cash Back welcome offer
Welcome offer: Earn a $100 statement credit after you apply through a referral link and make your first purchase within 3 months of getting approved.
The $100 bonus is earned as a statement credit and the dollar-for-dollar cash back match is earned as additional cash back rewards.
Annual fee: $0
Rewards
- 5% on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in Discover’s rotating 5% categories each calendar quarter.
- 1% on all other purchases.
Rewards are earned as cash back, but can also be redeemed for gift cards. When you redeem for select gift cards, you’ll get better-than-cash-back value for your rewards.
Benefits
The Discover it® Cash Back card offers no substantive benefits.
Rates and fees
Annual fee: $0
Foreign transaction fee: None
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card
If you select home improvement stores as your choice category on the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card, you can get up to 3% rewards at home improvement stores—and up to 5.25% cash back if you’re a Preferred Rewards member with Platinum Honors or higher status.
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card welcome offer
Welcome offer: Earn 6% cash back for the first year from account opening in your choice category. Plus, get a $200 online cash rewards bonus after making at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of your account opening.
This bonus is earned as cash back rewards.
Annual fee: $0
Rewards
- 3% in the category of your choice.
- 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs.
- 1% on all other purchases.
You’ll earn 3% and 2% rewards on the first $2,500 in combined purchases each calendar quarter in the 3% and 2% bonus categories. Earn 1% cash back on these purchases thereafter.
Rewards are earned as cash back. If you have Bank of America Preferred Rewards, you’ll receive additional rewards based on your rewards multiplier of up to 1.75. Your rewards multiplier is based on your relationship with Bank of America and Merrill.
3% choice categories
Choose one of the following categories to earn 3% cash back:
- Gas and EV charging stations.
- Online shopping, including cable, internet, phone plans, and streaming.
- Dining.
- Travel.
- Drug stores and pharmacies.
- Home improvement and furnishings.
You can change your choice category once each calendar month. You’ll earn 3% and 2% rewards on the first $2,500 in combined purchases each calendar quarter in the 3% and 2% bonus categories. Earn 1% cash back on these purchases thereafter.
Benefits
Consumer insurance benefits
- Extended Warranty Protection.
Travel insurance benefits
- Travel and Emergency Assistance Services.
- Roadside Dispatch.
Rates and fees
- Annual fee: $0
- Foreign transaction fee: 3% of the U.S. dollar amount of each transaction
Ink Business Premier
If you’re a professional frequently making $5,000+ purchases at home improvement stores, the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card can get you 2.5% cash back on your home improvement purchases—probably the best rate of cash back available on unlimited spending without jumping through banking relationship hoops.
Ink Business Premier® Credit Card welcome offer
Welcome offer: Earn $1,000 Bonus Cash Back After you spend $10,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening.
Unlike the other Chase Ink cards, this card’s bonus is earned as points that can only be redeemed for cash back. This card’s points are not transferrable to other cards.
Annual fee: $195
Rewards
- 2.5% on large purchases of $5,000 or more.
- 2% on all other business purchases.
Rewards are earned cash back.
Benefits
Consumer insurance benefits
- Purchase protection.
- Extended warranty protection.
- Cell phone protection.
Travel insurance benefits
- Auto rental collision damage waiver.
- Travel and emergency assistance services.
Rates and Fees
- Annual fee: $195
- Foreign transaction fee: None
What cards I use for home improvement stores
Home improvement stores are, honestly, not places where I end up spending a ton of money. But I do try to leverage the best card whenever I go.
If we’ve got a (usually) painting project or minor landscaping project, I’ll use my Citi Custom Cash card, assuming that I don’t have a gift card to use up. But in the last few years, I’ve been cashing a steady stream of Home Depot and Lowe’s gift cards from various cash back portals and point redemption deals.
