Just a few hours ago, I wrote about H-E-B finally bowing to pressure and rolling out Apple Pay to all of its stores. As it turns out, H-E-B isn't alone in making this change. According to multiple 9to5Mac readers and social media posts, Home Depot has also recently begun rolling out support for Apple Pay.
Update, October 9, 2024:Home Depot spokesperson Beth Marlow confirmed the news in a statement to 9to5Mac:
“We've begun rolling out contactless as a payment option in our stores in the U.S. We expect the rollout to be complete in the majority of our stores and checkouts by the end of this year.”
Home Depot has been a major opponent of Apple Pay, resisting pressure from its customers to add support for Apple's tap-to-pay platform. Notably, Lowe's—Home Depot's biggest competitor—began rolling out Apple Pay support last December. It's possible that Lowe's move put pressure on Home Depot to change its strategy.
Home Depot hasn't commented on this policy change, and the details of the rollout are unclear. It appears to be a very gradual rollout that began at a small number of locations over the summer and recently picked up steam. Your mileage may vary, though.
Best comment from Krugler
How are we still seeing holdouts? This isn't just a novelty for early adopters of iOS anymore; every debit and credit card I've gotten in the last few years has tap-to-pay built in.
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According to at least one report, Home Depot only supports Apple Pay at its self-checkout terminals, not at traditional checkouts. Of course, some Home Depot stores offer the self-checkout option exclusively anyway.
Walmart remains the biggest opponent of Apple Pay by a wide margin, and the company shows no signs of changing its stance. Kroger, the largest supermarket chain in the U.S., began supporting Apple Pay in all of its stores last year.
Walmart has largely focused on its own Walmart Pay and Walmart+ platforms rather than contactless platforms like Apple Pay. The company tried to justify its decision with the bizarre claim that Walmart Pay is more popular than Apple Pay. However, a quick search of social media shows that shoppers are growing weary of Walmart’s lack of Apple Pay support.
Have you been able to try Apple Pay at your local Home Depot yet? Are there any other places you shop that don’t support Apple Pay? Let us know in the comments.
