Discuss finds at Home Depot

This is the best idea for a thread. Thank you OP.

Anyone who knowingly takes a 1-cent item to a cashier is a dolt.

Automated checkout line FTW


Here's the way I would use this thread: If I were going to HD for some other reason I would print out the wiki before I went and would try my chances.

Fun and (possibly) profitable

Quote from Barfdogg : Items that are marked 1 cent are actually supposed to be removed from the sales floor, to be either RTV'd or destroyed, and not sold, but due to laziness/errors sometimes they are overlooked, and when a customer tries to buy the item, and it rings up as one cent. The manager "usually" will let the customer buy it for that even though they are not supposed to be sold, just to make the customer happy, but SOMEONE from that item's department WILL be getting yelled at. I wouldn't call this type of thing a repeatable slick deal so much as a random bit of luck due to an error.

That's good to know. Repped!

If you see an item with a yellow clearance tag and it looks old/dusty, take it to the self checkout area and hit the price check button. Scan the item and it will say the price..outloud unfortunately. It then gives you the option to add to the transaction or cancel. I think the cashier in charge of this area can also see your transaction so be quick about it. Pay and get the heck out of dodge before anyone notices!!!!

Quote from JohnnySuperHero : Scan the item and it will say the price..outloud unfortunately.

You can turn off the sound.

Actually I worked at homedepot. Alot of the items with yellow or red tags were suppose to be sent back to receiving, but when they get dumped, sometimes they end up on the floor. Receiving gets in trouble, but they lose count of things alllll the time. The sales associates really dont care.

Always remove the yellow/red tags. They do not need to be scanned. RED tags are saved for damaged or defective items btw. But most costumers say anything is defective just to guarantee their refund.

Self Checkout can look and stop your transaction, so buy 10 or so random small times like gum, paint brushes, nails, etc. They wont look twice. Return the stuff when you are done.


The reason they are one cent is usually because they get returned, once an item is returned without a receipt and we no longer carry it, it is only worth a penny. Or recalled items and product upgrades etc.


The sku for the item is 933106. Brooklyn has one left at gateway drive. Just confirmed with 2 stores it is a clearance item for a penny in new york

Quote from colonel00 : Just for the sake of asking in case this really did happen, who is the rocket surgeon cashier that rings that up and doesn't think to at least ask a supervisor?

..."rocket surgeon"? To quote Zapp Brannigan (a rocket captain, not a rocket scientist or, for that matter, a brain surgeon), "If we can hit that bullseye then the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards... Checkmate."

will these show up as $0.01 with a phone UPC scanner (via Droid or some of the smart phone apps)?

Quote from Barfdogg : Items that are marked 1 cent are actually supposed to be removed from the sales floor, to be either RTV'd or destroyed, and not sold, but due to laziness/errors sometimes they are overlooked, and when a customer tries to buy the item, and it rings up as one cent. The manager "usually" will let the customer buy it for that even though they are not supposed to be sold, just to make the customer happy, but SOMEONE from that item's department WILL be getting yelled at. I wouldn't call this type of thing a repeatable slick deal so much as a random bit of luck due to an error.

So in my experience, EVERY Home Depot store has items on the floor that will ring up for a penny. My luck is somewhere around 90%, but the biggest problem is when they have cases of marked down items; they rarely let them go, even though their alternative is throwing them in the dumpster. All major stores in MA have scanners in the aisles (it's part of an agreement that they made with the AG to settle some of the lawsuits because they weren't pricing every individual item), so checking prices is easy.

I don't know for sure, but I believe in MA they are required to sell items for the price they ring up at if they are not individually marked (assuming that price is lower than the shelf tag, if there is one.) And since it's not a "price mistake", I'm not sure of any legal grounds they'd have for refusing the sale.

Quote from mikep7777 : I don't know for sure, but I believe in MA they are required to sell items for the price they ring up at if they are not individually marked (assuming that price is lower than the shelf tag, if there is one.) And since it's not a "price mistake", I'm not sure of any legal grounds they'd have for refusing the sale.

Also from MA and I'd like to know if that' correct. Couldn't find anything to verify online. Anyone know for sure?

No go for $0.01 router table - IN. Still rings up as $39.99.

Also does anyone know which barcode to scan at self-checkout? Is it the yellow price tag or the original barcode on the package or does it even matter? I scaned the router tables yellow price tag and it said "please wait for cashier". She scanned the original code and it came up $39.99.

Quote from andreg3000 : No go for $0.01 router table - IN. Still rings up as $39.99. Also does anyone know which barcode to scan at self-checkout? Is it the yellow price tag or the original barcode on the package or does it even matter? I scaned the router tables yellow price tag and it said "please wait for cashier". She scanned the original code and it came up $39.99.

Read 4 posts up.

Quote from WhoMeCheap? : This is the best idea for a thread. Thank you OP. Anyone who knowingly takes a 1-cent item to a cashier is a dolt. Automated checkout line FTW Here's the way I would use this thread: If I were going to HD for some other reason I would print out the wiki before I went and would try my chances. Fun and (possibly) profitable

This is also what I would do, so I think it is a GREAT idea!

Quote from thisismatt : Read 4 posts up.

That would be 5

Does anyone happen to know when this product was marked down to $.01 (or does this vary by store)? I'd just like to know so I have a tiny bit better of an idea what my chances are (I realize this isn't the main determining factor, I just want an idea though)

My HD carries two Ryobi router tables, neither of which are this model. n/a at my local HD