Home Depot vs Lowe's 401(k) match: 3.5% vs 4.25%
+0.75 pts
Winner on the headline number: Lowe's, at 4.25% of pay against Home Depot's 3.5%. Both filings disclose the full formula, so the two numbers compare like for like; vesting, true-up and enrollment defaults still differ line by line below.
On a $60,000 salary, that gap is worth $450 a year more in employer money from Lowe's.
Filings lag by design and formulas can change between them. Why filings lag
Which 401(k) match is larger, Home Depot or Lowe's?
Lowe's offers the larger 401(k) match: up to 4.25% of pay against Home Depot's 3.5%, per each company's SEC Form 11-K for the plan year ended December 31, 2025.
| Home Depot | Lowe's | |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum employer matchThe most the employer adds, as a share of your pay. | 3.5% of pay | 4.25% of pay (the larger maximum match) |
| Match formula | 150% of the first 1% of pay, then 50% of the next 4% of pay | 100% (dollar-for-dollar) of the first 3% of pay, then 50% of the next 2% of pay, then 25% of the next 1% of pay |
| Contribute to collect it allWhat you must put in to earn the full match. | 5% of pay | 6% of pay |
| Vesting of the match | Cliff: 100% vested after 3 years of service | Immediate: employer match is 100% vested when contributed |
| Automatic enrollment | Not mentioned in the filing | No |
| Plan year | Ended December 31, 2025 | Ended December 31, 2025 |
Read from each company's most recent SEC Form 11-K filing. When a filing does not disclose something, we say so instead of guessing.
Useful links
- Home Depot: full 401(k) plan facts
Formula, vesting, eligibility and the verbatim filing sentences.
- Lowe's: full 401(k) plan facts
Formula, vesting, eligibility and the verbatim filing sentences.
- Compare any two companies side by side
Pick your own pair from every company in the data.
More comparisons
- Best Buy vs Home DepotBest Buy by 0.5 pts
- Home Depot vs Macy'sboth 3.5%
- Home Depot vs KrogerKroger by 1.5 pts
- Home Depot vs O'Reilly AutomotiveHome Depot by 0.5 pts
- Best Buy vs WalmartWalmart by 2 pts
The figure is the gap between the two maximum matches, in percentage points of pay.