Lowe's - statistics & facts
The second largest home improvement retailer in the United States, and in the world, Lowe’s humble origins began in 1921 as a small town hardware shop selling a big variety of items. Since then, it outgrew most of its competitors and until 1989, before The Home Depot took over, it was the largest hardware store in the United States. Though once expanded to other countries, such as Mexico and Canada, Lowe’s now solely does business in the United States. As of 2024, the retail giant operated 1,748 stores, employing approximately 270,000 people across the country.
With constantly rising real estate prices, the role of home improvement stays relevant, along with hardware retailers, to provide customers with equipment for DIY projects around the home.
Financial performance
As of 2025, the company’s brand value reached over 30.2 billion U.S. dollars, a massive increase compared to nine years ago, when it was less than half, only around 13 billion U.S. dollars. Besides brand value, Lowe’s generated more than 83 billion U.S. dollars in net sales, appliances being its top product category. Seasonal & outdoor living, lumber, as well as lawn & garden were also popular product categories, all reaching above 6.5 billion U.S. dollars in sales. Other products sold by Lowe’s were building materials, tools, and equipment for painting and electrical work.Lowe’s vs. The Home Depot
The biggest rival of Lowe’s is the home improvement retail giant Home Depot, which has been leading the hardware market for the last few decades. While Lowe’s net sales amounted to around 83 million, net sales of Home Depot were almost double, close to 160 billion U.S. dollars in 2024. Home Depot also dominated in terms of customer transactions, with double the amount of Lowe’s. Interestingly, when it came to the average amount spent by customers during a store visit, shoppers spent slightly more at Lowe’s than at Home Depot, 89.3 and 103.4 U.S. dollars, respectively.With constantly rising real estate prices, the role of home improvement stays relevant, along with hardware retailers, to provide customers with equipment for DIY projects around the home.
