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Not every exterior upgrade has to be expensive—even if it looks like it. With a little planning, some smart shopping, and a bit of elbow grease, you can transform the look of your home for less than the cost of a nice dinner out.
Here are 10 curb appeal update ideas under $100 that all make a major impact.
Display Your House Numbers
Pinky Design Custom Metal House Number Sign
Photo: Etsy
Faded, mismatched, or hard-to-read house numbers are an easy thing to overlook—until a first-time guest or delivery driver can’t find your address. Star Seller Pinky Design fixes that with these custom metal house numbers that come in six sizes (10 to 30 inches) and 14 colors (from oil rubbed bronze, copper, or gold to white, black, or red). Whether installed on your siding, landscaping, or mailbox, they’ll attract just the right amount of attention.
Update Existing Light Fixtures
Photo: Amazon
Pay attention next time you’re drawn to a house at dusk. It’s likely the lighting that caught your eye. With a matte black frame and clear glass panes, Pia Ricco’s Yorand outdoor wall lights have a clean, modern look that still feels completely classic. You can pair them with vintage Edison bulbs for an antique-industrial feel or keep it simple with standard LEDs. These lanterns are also low-maintenance: Their aluminum alloy build resists rust and corrosion, and their dusk-to-dawn sensor turns them on and off automatically.
Powerwash Your Hardscaping
Westinghouse ePX3050 Electric Pressure Washer
Photo: Amazon
Sometimes curb appeal isn’t about adding, it’s about taking away. Washing the salt off sidewalks, the mildew off siding, and the dust off porch furniture is a quick way to refresh a well-loved home. In our tests of the best electric pressure washers, the Westinghouse ePX3050 was perfect for exactly those kinds of jobs, handling both light cleanup and heavy-duty tasks alike. To be fair, it’s just over our $100 threshold (unless you snag it on sale), but we have a good feeling that the extra $10 will be more than worth it.
Trim the Hedges
Fiskars Powergear2 23-Inch Hedge Shears
Photo: Amazon
While we’re on the topic of tidying, let’s address that overgrown front yard. With the Fiskars PowerGear2 23-inch shears, the Most Comfortable award winner in our best hedge shears tests, you can cut back greenery to a more manicured state without your hands ending up sore. The SoftGrip handles are commended by the Arthritis Foundation for ease of use, while the PowerGear mechanism multiplies cutting leverage so you can trim with a lot less effort. The precision-ground steel blades also resist rust and stay sharp through heavy cutting, ensuring this isn’t a tool you’ll be replacing next season.
Create a More Inviting Walkway
Designed By Gorovaya Front Landscape Layout
Photo: Etsy
A walkway lined with carefully-chosen plants can turn a plain path to your front door into something people actually notice. This premade landscape layout from Designed By Gorovaya gives you a full plan for exactly that: a digital download with a detailed layout, spacing guide, and care instructions, all suited for zones 5 through 9. You don’t need a design background to use it, either—just follow the blueprint and swap in substitutes if a specific plant isn’t available at your local nursery.
Replace Your Doormat
Fleur De Lis Living Nonslip Outdoor Doormat
Photo: Wayfair
Your doormat won’t make or break curb appeal from the street, but since it’s one of the last details guests see before stepping inside, a worn-out one can undermine the work you’ve put into everything else. As our pick for the best design in our best outdoor doormats guide, this Fleur De Lis Living doormat isn’t just attractive, it’s also functional. The curlicue scrollwork’s open pattern traps dirt, mud, and water while scraping shoes clean, and the 100 percent rubber construction is naturally nonslip and fade-resistant.
Plant a Tree
Southern Planters Aurora White Flowering Kousa Dogwood
Photo: Lowe’s
Almost every curb appeal update you can make has an immediate payoff, but not every one keeps getting better with time. Sold as a mature 7-gallon tree, Southern Planters’ Aurora White Kousa Dogwood looks stunning right away—with green foliage that turns red in the fall and large white flowers that bloom in the spring—making it a one-time investment you’ll be grateful for in every season. It also requires watering only about once a week, is naturally resistant to diseases that commonly affect dogwoods, and tops out at a manageable 20 feet tall and wide.
Pattern Your Porch
Stencil Space Reusable Tile Stencil
Photo: Etsy
A concrete porch floor can look tired even when it’s structurally sound, and painting it is one of the least expensive ways to change that. But why stick with a solid color when you can choose one of Stencil Space’s tile stencils for only about $10? The mylar stencils come in six sizes (from 4 by 4 inches up to 12 by 12 inches), and they’re reusable so you can cover your entire space without paying for more materials (aside from paint). There are also over a dozen designs to choose from, whether you prefer geometric shapes, floral patterns, or something in between.
Paint the Front Door
Photo: Amazon
Your front door is one of the first details people notice, and a bold color can do more for curb appeal than many other updates. Pre-mixed and ready to use, Rust-Oleum’s Advanced Dry Door & Trim water-based paint comes in six shades, including Nantucket Navy, Vermont Green, and Cranberry Red, all with a satin finish that resists fading, cracking, and peeling. One quart covers 40 to 65 square feet, which is plenty for most standard doors and trim, and it dries to the touch in 45 minutes so you’re not stuck avoiding your own front door all afternoon.
Add Wall Art
Fairy Metal Studio Abstract Tree Metal Sign
Photo: Etsy
Most home exteriors have plenty of blank space, and adding a bit of pizzazz to one of those places is an easy way to up its architectural appeal. Made from powder-coated steel that resists rusting and fading and ready to hang with just a nail or two, this abstract metal tree from Fairy Metal Studio screams eye-catching style. This gorgeous piece is available in nine colors and 11 sizes, with prices for the 12- by 12-inch version starting at $40. If you’ve got a slightly bigger budget, there are several sizes above our $100 threshold that will turn even a massive plain wall into a dramatic focal point.
The post 10 Curb Appeal Updates for Under $100 That Look Like They Cost Way More appeared first on Bob Vila.