Does Home Depot Cut Wood For You? How It Works

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If you need a 10-foot piece of plywood from Home Depot, how the heck do you fit it in your car? No, you don’t need to pay for a truck rental to get the job done. Home Depot cuts your wood for free in the store.

But not every store has the same policy. So when you ask “does Home Depot cut wood,” you’ll get a dozen different answers from online sources. And you may end up more confused than before.

I personally reached out to Home Depot stores across the country to set the record straight. I asked each store answered the same questions: what type of wood do you cut? How many cuts can you get? And is it free to get your wood cut at Home Depot?

Using their responses, I laid out all the major rules and limits for getting your wood cut at Home Depot. Here’s what you need to know and how policies differ from store to store.

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Does Home Depot cut wood for you?

Yes, Home Depot will cut wood for you — if you buy the wood from Home Depot, of course.

The number of pieces they’ll cut and how much it costs depends on the policy at your local store. And policies can change from one store to the next.

Will Home Depot cut your wood for free?

Most Home Depot stores will cut your wood for free without limiting how many pieces you get. If it’s a busy day and you’re not the only one in line, they may limit you to 10 cuts.

Only a few Home Depot stores charge you for extra wood cuts. For example, the Hyde Park Home Depot in Los Angeles only gives you one cut for free. And they charge an extra $1 per cut after that.

But the majority of store locations KCL reached out to said they’ll cut as many pieces as you need for free.

KCL TIP: Keep in mind, Lowe’s will cut wood for you, as well. So be sure to compare policies at both your local stores.

How to Get Your Wood Cut at Home Depot

You don’t need an appointment or anything that fancy to get your wood cut at Home Depot. You can ask an employee to cut your wood for you while you shop in-store.

With that said, it’s best to shop when there’s less in-store traffic. Home Depot stores are usually less busy before 9 a.m. and after 6 p.m. local time.

Once you pick out your lumber in-store, here’s how to get it cut for you:

Bring your wood over to the cutting station (located in the lumber department). If you can’t find anyone by the station, ask a nearby employee for help.
Tell the employee what cuts you’re looking to get.
Wait while they cut your wood.
Take your lumber purchase to the checkout area and pay.

Home Depot Wood-Cutting: Rules and Limits

Since wood-cutting policies differ from store to store, we reached out to 10 different locations to get a pulse on the rules. These are the main limits to wood-cutting at Home Depot:

Home Depot wood only

This goes without saying, but Home Depot will only cut your wood if you buy it from Home Depot.

No cuts under 12 inches (most stores)

The main goal of Home Depot’s wood-cutting services is to make sure lumber fits in your car. They don’t offer fancy project cuts or anything overly intricate. That means no angled cuts, no engraving, and no carving. And most stores won’t make cuts under 12 inches in length.

The 12-inch limit is a simple matter of safety. Smaller pieces are more likely to get stuck or caught up in the saw. So most Home Depot locations only offer straight, rough cuts.

$1 per additional cut (some stores)

Most Home Depot stores don’t limit how many cuts you can get.

But some stores (where in-store traffic is almost always booming) limit you to 10 wood cuts per shopping trip. Any additional cuts will cost you $1 each.

But when we spoke to workers at these locations, they explained this isn’t a strictly enforced policy. In my experience, being kind and asking nicely goes a long way.

No compressed wood (most stores)

Home Depot is pretty flexible with the types of wood they cut. But when we reached out to various locations, one exception came up the most: compressed wood.

However, they’ll typically cut plywood, particle board, and regular old two-by-fours. Some locations even cut pressure-treated wood. Again, it helps to call your local Home Depot and confirm their policy before you head to the store.