Clearance Tag Codes: What's Reported vs a Myth
What public sources report about Target, Walmart, Home Depot and Lowe's clearance tags, which popular codes are disputed, and a free one-page Quick Card.
By Sloane Glitchford, Founder. Updated Nov 12, 2026. Links on this page are plain links, not affiliate links.
Search for "clearance tag codes" and you will find confident decoders that do not agree with each other. This guide does not add another one. It lays out what public sources report about clearance tags at Target, Walmart, Home Depot and Lowe's, each with its link and date, and names the places where those sources disagree. Every source below was re-opened on Nov 11, 2026.
On this page: Advertised prices vs tags · What a tag can tell you · How to read a tag · Target, official vs reported · Target · Walmart · Home Depot and Lowe's · Lowe's, official vs reported · Free Quick Card · What we are not claiming
Advertised Black Friday prices vs in-store clearance tags
An advertised Black Friday price and a clearance tag are two different kinds of price. An advertised price is a store's published offer on a listing or in an ad. A clearance tag is a shelf price at one store, set locally, and the same item can carry a different tag at the next store. If you are checking whether an advertised discount is real, start with Are early Black Friday deals real? and how to verify a deal is real. This page is only about reading shelf tags.
What a tag can tell you, and what it can't
- The percent badge. RebelDealz reports that Target clearance tags show a percent-off number in the upper-right corner (15, 30, 50 or 70) and a date at the bottom (published Sep 2, 2026, updated Sep 4, 2026). Honey Shopper reports the same corner number (Sep 15, 2026).
- The date on the tag. ZipDealFinder says Walmart yellow tags carry a date for when the markdown was applied (updated May 2026), and Savings.com says the same (Jul 22, 2025).
- The cents ending. This is where sources split. Some present endings as a code; others report that the ending is arithmetic. See each store below.
- No published rulebook. ZipDealFinder says the Walmart system "isn't officially published" (updated May 2026). PennyLoot says Home Depot "has never published anything about price endings" (updated Oct 20, 2026).
What a tag cannot tell you on its own: what the price will be next week, or how much stock is left. The same-day check that does work is the live price for that store, the date on the tag, and the percent off the original.
How to read a clearance tag
Start with what is printed on the tag, then confirm the price in the store app, then confirm it at the register. A tag can show a price, and sometimes a percent off or a date. It cannot tell you what the price will be next week, or how much stock is left. Stores often have not published a decoder for the last two digits of the price, and public sources disagree on what those endings mean. Treat popular "codes" as reports, not store policy.
How to read Target clearance tags: official vs reported
Target's own 2026 holiday pages do not publish a clearance-tag decoder, a cents-ending code, or a post-Black Friday clearance calendar, and they do not use the word "clearance." Target's official Oct. 21, 2026 holiday release and its holiday fact sheet, updated 6:00 a.m. CT on Nov. 5, 2026 (both checked Nov 12, 2026), announce a Deal of the Day from Nov. 1 through Dec. 24, Early Black Friday deals Nov. 5–7, weekend limited-time offers, and sales for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Those pages are the place to check what Target has published.
ABC News, checked Nov 12, 2026 (published Sep 3, 2014, updated Sep 4, 2014): Target said the "ending digit of a clearance price is determined by several factors…. It is not possible to determine the final markdown or timing of the price change …."
Reported by CBS Texas, checked Nov 12, 2026. This is not Target policy. In a report dated April 25, 2014, that station described the number in the right-hand corner of Target clearance tags as the percentage off the original price.
Reported by Warehouse Watcher, checked Nov 12, 2026. This is not Target policy. In a guide dated November 9, 2026, that site says the number in the corner of a Target clearance tag is the percent off, and that Target has denied that the ending cents tell you whether a lower markdown is coming, and has never officially confirmed the popular day-of-week markdown chart.
Reported by Allrecipes, checked Nov 12, 2026. This is not Target policy. In an article dated January 15, 2023, that site says prices ending in .04 "are the final clearance price and will not get lower." That report conflicts with the Target statement published by ABC News. We are not stating a cents code as fact.
For the longer reported ladder and weekday write-up, see the Target section below and our Target clearance markdown schedule.
Target price endings: the percent badge vs the .04 myth
The disputed claim. Allrecipes reports that Target prices ending in .04 "are the final clearance price and will not get lower" (published Jan 15, 2023). RebelDealz reports the opposite: that the ending digit is the result of the original price and the discount, and it quotes a Target spokesperson's 2014 statement that "it is not possible to determine the final markdown or timing of the price change from the item's current price" (published Sep 2, 2026, updated Sep 4, 2026). These two sources disagree, and Target's own pages are the place to check what Target says today.
The weekday schedule. Honey Shopper reports that Target usually marks prices down on set weekdays (Tuesdays women's clothing and home décor, Thursdays housewares, Fridays cosmetics and accessories; Sep 15, 2026). RebelDealz reports that Target told a consumer advocate in 2017 it isn't accurate that markdown dates for specific products or categories occur on specific days of the week. Again the sources disagree.
For our longer read, see Target's clearance markdown schedule.
Walmart yellow-tag endings: where decoders disagree
Three sources, three different stories. The table shows what each reports, in its own terms.
| Ending | ZipDealFinder reports (updated May 2026) | PriceWatchPro reports (Jan 15, 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| .00 | Initial markdown, first-pass clearance | Manager special or price reset |
| .03 | Mid-stage, second markdown | Final markdown, system-only clearance |
| .97 | Not clearance on a blue or red tag (everyday low price or rollback) | Clearance in progress, early to mid stage |
| .01 | Manager override, last call | Not listed |
Savings.com (Jul 22, 2025) reports something thinner: that Walmart clearance prices "tend to end in $.00 or $.01," and that many full-priced items, and some rollbacks, end in $.97. On .00, .03 and .97 the first two sources contradict each other, so treat any single Walmart decoder as one outlet's report, not a store rule. For our own read, see Walmart hidden clearance.
Some Walmart stores now use digital shelf labels; see how to read Walmart and Kroger clearance tags and digital shelf labels.
Home Depot and Lowe's: what dated sources report
Home Depot. Reported by PennyLoot, checked Nov 11, 2026: the popular shopper theory runs .00 for a first markdown, .06 for "roughly six weeks until the next one," and .03, .02 and then $0.01 for later steps, and PennyLoot adds that Home Depot has not confirmed it (PennyLoot updated Oct 20, 2026). In its own scans of 270,165 clearance listings at 562 stores, PennyLoot reports fewer than 1% of prices ended in .03 and fewer than 1% in .02. Reported by Endless, checked Nov 11, 2026: the cents chart is "mostly a myth" based on its tracking (Jun 15, 2026). So the ladder is widely repeated, and the two price-tracking sites we read report that it does not hold up in their data. These are not Home Depot store policy. Our own read is Home Depot clearance price endings. ABC News, checked Nov 12, 2026 (published Sep 3, 2014, updated Sep 4, 2014): Home Depot said it does not discuss details of its pricing systems.
Lowe's. Reported by Endless, checked Nov 11, 2026: it has "no evidence that the last two digits encode where an item sits in the sequence," based on a sample of about 33,000 Lowe's store clearance prices recorded Oct 3 to Nov 2, 2026 (published Aug 27, 2026, updated November 2026). That is one outlet's report, not Lowe's store policy.
How to read Lowe's clearance tags: official vs reported
Lowe's official fall deals page, Find the Best Deals at Lowe's This Fall, by Holly Honeycutt, published September 28, 2026 (checked Nov 12, 2026), points shoppers to the Lowe's Deals page for items on sale or clearance, to The Back Aisle for clearance items, and to the clearance center. That official page does not publish a cents-ending decoder, a markdown ladder, or a chain-wide tag-reading code. It is the place to check what Lowe's has published.
Reported by Endless, checked Nov 12, 2026. This is not Lowe's policy. In a guide published August 27, 2026, and updated November 2026, that site says it has "no evidence that the last two digits encode where an item sits in the sequence."
Get the free Clearance Tag Quick Card
What we are not claiming
- We are not saying any clearance code is real or reliable. Every code claim on this page is what the named source reports, as of the date shown.
- We are not saying any outlet above is right or wrong. Where they disagree, we say so and leave it there.
- These are not store policies. Target, Walmart, Home Depot and Lowe's each decide their own markdowns, and their own pages are the place to check.
- We do not predict when a price will drop, and this is not a deals list.
Sloane Glitchford, Founder
Quick answers
Does a Target price ending in .04 mean final clearance?
Sources disagree. Allrecipes (published Jan 15, 2023) reports that .04 is the final clearance price. RebelDealz (published Sep 2, 2026, updated Sep 4, 2026) reports that the ending digit is arithmetic and quotes a 2014 Target statement that the final markdown or its timing cannot be determined from the item's current price.
What do Walmart yellow-tag price endings mean?
Sources disagree. ZipDealFinder (updated May 2026) reports .03 as a mid-stage markdown, while PriceWatchPro (Jan 15, 2026) reports .03 as a final markdown. They also differ on .00 and .97. Walmart's own pages are the place to check.
Do Home Depot and Lowe's price endings show the markdown stage?
Reported by PennyLoot, checked Nov 11, 2026: the popular shopper theory for Home Depot runs through endings such as .06 then .03, and Home Depot has not confirmed it (PennyLoot updated Oct 20, 2026). Reported by Endless, checked Nov 11, 2026: the Home Depot cents chart is mostly a myth in its tracking (Jun 15, 2026), and for Lowe's it has no evidence that the last two digits encode the markdown stage (updated November 2026). These are not store policies.
Is the Clearance Tag Quick Card free?
Yes. The Clearance Tag Quick Card is our own product, a free one-page phone card covering Target, Walmart, Home Depot and Lowe's. You claim it with an email on Whop.
What can a clearance tag tell me?
Sources report a percent-off badge on Target clearance tags and a markdown date on Walmart yellow tags. None of the sources we read cites a store policy that decodes the cents ending.
How do I read a clearance tag?
Start with what is printed on the tag, then confirm the price in the store app, then confirm it at the register. A tag can show a price, and sometimes a percent off or a date. It cannot tell you what the price will be next week, or how much stock is left. Stores often have not published a decoder for the last two digits of the price, and public sources disagree on what those endings mean. Treat popular "codes" as reports, not store policy.
Has Target published a guide to its clearance tag codes?
Target's own 2026 holiday pages do not publish a clearance-tag decoder, a cents-ending code, or a post-Black Friday clearance calendar, and they do not use the word "clearance." Target's official Oct. 21, 2026 holiday release and its holiday fact sheet, updated 6:00 a.m. CT on Nov. 5, 2026 (both checked Nov 12, 2026), announce a Deal of the Day from Nov. 1 through Dec. 24, Early Black Friday deals Nov. 5–7, weekend limited-time offers, and sales for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Those pages are the place to check what Target has published.
Does Lowe's publish a cents-ending code for clearance tags?
Lowe's official fall deals page, Find the Best Deals at Lowe's This Fall, by Holly Honeycutt, published September 28, 2026 (checked Nov 12, 2026), points shoppers to the Lowe's Deals page for items on sale or clearance, to The Back Aisle for clearance items, and to the clearance center. That official page does not publish a cents-ending decoder, a markdown ladder, or a chain-wide tag-reading code. It is the place to check what Lowe's has published.