TOP-10 best cordless chainsaws in 2020

What is the best cordless chainsaw? Choose a chainsaw made by a well-established company that has been operating on the market for decades. Using a branded product will ensure safety and high-performance. Also, make sure that the tool comes in a kit which includes a charger and batteries, otherwise, you will have to spend extra time and money on buying accessories. Pay attention to a charging time and the battery life. Another aspect to consider is the range of materials the tool can handle - the more the better. And last but not least, a high-quality cordless chainsaw should be powerful, made of durable materials, and lightweight enough. In our assessment, Makita XCU03PT1 Brushless Cordless Chainsaw Kit is the best option that fits all these criteria.

Why have we chosen it? This model is manufactured by Makita Corporation, a reputed company that was set up in 1915 to sell electric motors. At present, the company is represented in more than 40 countries and owns 10 plants worldwide. This model comes with a powerful outer rotor BL brushless motor and a variable speed trigger. The kit includes the chainsaw, four 5.0Ah batteries and a charger, with a charging time not exceeding 45 minutes. With this tool, you will be able to cut through any type of wood, including hardwoods.

I'd like to talk about chainsaws today - specifically cordless ones. When you think of chainsaws, thanks to popular culture, you probably think of either lumberjacks or some sort of campy horror movie. While this kind of cliché usually warrants a groan from me, when it comes to chainsaws, the dangers these movies imply, are of merit. Chainsaws are dangerous, but they’re also invaluable.

In my line of work where tools are involved, I rarely use chainsaws, though that doesn’t mean I don’t use one to keep my property line trimmed - because I do. I'd like to talk about how chainsaws work, how to use them safely, and share with you a very special story that only recently happened, that could have been resolved without issue had I had a far better chainsaw for the job.

Makita XCU03PT1 Brushless Cordless 14 Chain Saw Kit

I’ve made no secret about the fact that I admire Makita tools. As I’ve said before, though, a lot of people are more or less unaware of Makita because they’re high-end tools only contractors or dedicated craftsmen tend to have.

Even high-end construction sites rarely are graced with Makita’s presence, out of fear of temp workers running off with them or breaking them. The Makita I felled the accursed tree with wasn’t this one, but it’s pretty close, and I have to say, anything that can chew through that cement-like tree trunk is a force to be reckoned with.

This is a complete kit, with multiple batteries and an excellent charging station, meaning you buy this saw kit, you’re ready to go. Of course, it’s not cheap - Makita comes at a price. Then again, you get what you pay for, don’t you?

I like these kits like this, because a lot of times, when you buy a tool, you haven’t bought a job-ready thing, because you still need to get batteries, charging stations and other nonsense, meaning the price inflates exponentially. Not the case here.

Features

• Weight: 21.4 pounds.
• Brushless: Yes.
• Power Supply: Lithium-Ion battery.
• Includes Batteries: Yes.
• Includes Charger: Yes.
• Durability: Best in its class.
• Warranty: N / A.
• Construction: Steel and vulcanized plastics.
• Can be Corded: No.

Performance

Honestly, the way my Makita sliced ​​through that tree really speaks for the power of this chainsaw - electric chain saws, especially battery-powered ones, tend to be weaker than gas chainsaws. But, since nobody but myself and my neighbor witnessed that tree’s stubbornness, I suppose that’s not enough.

This thing can cut through any type of wood you can name, including hardwoods, and tricky, sappy wood from conifer trees. This is a serious chainsaw packing the kind of power you expect to see from a gas option, or a high-voltage corded saw.

It also charges rapidly, and gets surprising battery life - a charge on a battery tool tends to deplete quickly due to the demands. I don’t know how they got around that.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

If you need a chainsaw on at least a biweekly basis, you want this one.

Makita: Check the current price

How Does A Cordless Chainsaw Work?

So, first thing is first. How does a chainsaw work? As the name would suggest, it uses reciprocating chain along an oblong track, which has dragon-tooth style tiny blades that chew into something. A precision, surgical cut isn’t going to happen, as they basically gouge away material, meaning you’re not likely to do any craftsman-type projects with one.

Though, ice sculptors and some wood sculptors somehow manage to do that - how they do it, I couldn’t say, it’s something special.

There are two methods of power for a chain saw - gas or electric. When I say cordless, you probably assume I mean a gas chainsaw, but no, I mean a cordless electric one. This uses a strong electric motor, and a lithium-ion battery pack. This is, as I’ve pointed out in other pieces, the same battery concept used in wireless peripherals and various mobile devices.

A difference is that they deliver a higher voltage and wattage, thus lasting less time, but charging faster. You won’t see a USB chainsaw. Well, you may someday, that’d actually be pretty hilarious to witness.

Now, chain saws are very dangerous, so you want to choose a solid blade, and you want a good machine that can be stopped easily, and can’t run idle. Thus, you can’t cut corners with these.

Why You Should Use Only Brand-Name Cordless Chainsaws

Allow me to elaborate on the need for a good brand, as I regale you with the tale of the accursed tree.

I live in Florida, and some of the flora here is, shall we say, rather special. There exists a species of oak here called a heritage oak, which becomes truly massive and tough, and they’re a menace, because you have to get permission to cut them down.

A massive one was in my backyard, and oh, that thing was terrifying whenever a hurricane would blow through, and it was way too close to the house regardless. Luckily, a tree surgeon declared it unfit, and thus I was given the coveted permission to do away with the blasted thing.

Little did I know it was an evil tree.

Now, I’m actually not a superstitious man. I am science and reason all the way, but in spite of this, I swear this tree was evil and possibly cursed. I went through three chain saws taking the branches off the thing. And the trunk remained, a hulking, gnarled, ugly thing over ten feet tall, just... uglying up my backyard and defying me to fall it.

I had grown sick of buying chainsaws at this point, and had let someone at Lowe’s talk me into buying their off brand, because it was cheap but purported to be quite effective. Oh dear, was I wrong.

That chainsaw slowly but steadily chewed into what must have been the most indestructible tree trunk in history, until the blade literally snapped and the carriage came off the motor. It missed me by less than an inch and shattered the screen door behind me.

I wound up trying to burn that trunk down, didn’t work. By then less than six inches of the supporting structure remained and still, with a sledge hammer, it would not knock over. Eventually, I bought a Makita chain saw with optional cord, and went at the trunk from the base and finally felled the darn thing.

I burned the stump out, and today, my backyard is tree-free at long last. It took a week to burn all the wood I cut off of it, and I haven’t drunk that much beer around a fire since I was in college - and now I remember why I cut down on the booze intake, oh boy.

What I learned from this, and what I want to drive home is that you can’t cut corners on your chain saw, cordless, gas or electric. Not only will they break and become expensive prospects after a while, but they can be damn dangerous if something gives out - that chain snapping could have killed me, and it’s a wonder it didn’t.

I think one more little story is worth noting, about stopping power with these. Cutting my fence row one day, before the accursed tree incident, and with a cheap chainsaw, I got stuck in an Australian pine limb - this is a porous, dense, sappy wood, and I like those pine trees, but they have to be trimmed on a regular basis.

This saw had no reverse, and only a “dead man switch” for braking - in other words, it just stopped moving when you let go, passively. Gunning the trigger to loosen it, it finally came flying through the branch at ridiculous speed, and the still-spinning (in spite of being let go) blade hit my foot. It hit the steel toe of my boot, which is the only reason I’m not missing toes, or all or part of my foot.

Do you see why a good one, with proper structural integrity and safety measures in place, is absolutely a must? You just can't take your safety for granted to save a couple bucks, it's foolhardy.

Now that we appreciate this, and we understand what a good cordless electric chainsaw needs, let’s look at the ones for different budgets / use cases.

BLACK + DECKER 40V MAX Cordless Chainsaw

Black & Decker is a brand that pretty much everyone knows, being very commonplace among landscapers, forestry services, and well, anyplace where regular use of this kind of tool is needed.

It’s not Makita, and the price reflects that, but it’s probably the best runner up, and it’s going to be more practical for people who don’t quite need something as extravagant as Makita in the first place.

I have a habit of comparing tools to Makita, but that’s not a bias - they’re the pricier end of “high end”, so they set the upper bound bar. The lower bound bar, I won’t ever show, because I’m never going to review a truly garbage tool.

This is a good compromise, without too many corners being cut. However, the lack of additional accoutrements means you’re looking at another expense for charging and batteries, compared to the Makita. It may almost be as expensive at the end of the day. I say almost, it’s still probably a triple digit figure less, or close to it, but once you get past a certain threshold, big prices are big.

Features

• Weight: 10.4 pounds.
• Brushless: Yes.
• Power Supply: Lithium-Ion battery.
• Includes Batteries: Only one.
• Includes Charger: No.
• Durability: Honestly about the same.
• Warranty: N / A.
• Construction: Steel and vulcanized plastics.
• Can be Corded: No.

Performance

Black & Decker is an excellent brand. It’s a little more affordable than the highest-end, and it’s not quite as durable nor quite as powerful, but it has a solid reputation for a reason. I had one of these some years ago, and had I this saw when struggling with that tree, I wouldn’t have needed the Makita, and I would’ve felled the thing on the first try.

It's a powerful saw as far as electric battery saws go, with a surprisingly long battery life and fast charge time. It's packing some serious power, and it has good stopping ability, making it about as safe as a chainsaw can be.

I’ve never seen a blade chain slip off of one of these, and I’ve never really seen one get stuck like the chintzy ones I went through tended to do.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

If you need a chainsaw often, but don’t want to go as far as Makita, this is a good compromise.

BLACK + DECKER: Check the current price

Worx WG322 20V Cordless Chainsaw with Auto-Tension

Worx has been given an unfair bad rap as far as budget tools go, and I confess I’ve been guilty of contributing to this a little bit. The thing is, they’re actually pretty durable, reliable tools, but they feel cheap, a lot of the price cutting going into the trim / finishing which just makes for a dicey user experience on first use.

In all reality, they don’t need to have posh finishing to work, we’ve just come to associate that tactile feedback with signs of actual capability and power, regardless of whether or not it’s an accurate observation.

This particular one is actually surprisingly well-made for what it is, the auto-tension system meaning that it’s unlikely to slip or get stuck, and it actually has pretty solid stopping power, making it a lot safer than Worx saws have had a reputation for.

Don’t let people tell you that Worx tools are subpar. They’re not Black & Decker or Makita, but they’re not the kind of garbage I went through trying to destroy that tree either.

Features

• Weight: 6.19 pounds.
• Brushless: Yes.
• Power Supply: Lithium-Ion battery.
• Includes Batteries: Only one.
• Includes Charger: Yes.
• Durability: Mid-range.
• Warranty: N / A.
• Construction: Steel and standard dura-plastic.
• Can be Corded: No.

Performance

I’ve never owned one of these, but I have used them. One of my friends is an elderly woman, and I used to do her landscaping for her out of kindness, before I finally put my foot down, and decided I was barely tolerant of having to landscape my own property.

I used her tools, and she had a Worx chainsaw a lot like this one, and well, it worked fine. I did tell her that, given the degree of landscaping she had to do on a regular basis, that she should probably invest in tougher, longer-lasting tools, because one problem with Worx is that they don’t have the lifespan that other tools may have.

Still, if you don’t need a top of the line saw, this one is actually fine for the budget, and it is a nice price for what you get.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

If you only use a saw now and then, this is a good compromise.

Worx: Check the current price

Scotts LCS31224S Cordless Chainsaw

Scotts is a bit of a conundrum, because I would say they’re superior to Worx for the most part, but they’re actually a bit cheaper. I think, and I could be wrong, that this is because they sell enough volume to be cheaper, without having to sacrifice quality in order to do so.

Now, the thing with Scotts is they’re more of a “slow burn”, not packing quite the immediate power of some other tools, but with a staying power and consistent tension that makes up for it.

This may sound counterintuitive, but trust me, if you have something needing a lot of tenacity to cut, immediate burst power isn’t quite as effective as slightly reduced, sustained power, most of the time.

Scotts is very popular among landscapers here in Florida - a place where landscaping is an unrelenting, endless task due to the lack of real, traditional winter. Plants here perpetually grow like, well, weeds in this tropical climate, and I see a lot of these saws around.

Features

• Weight: 7.7 pounds.
• Brushless: Yes.
• Power Supply: Lithium-Ion battery.
• Includes Batteries: Only one.
• Includes Charger: Yes.
• Durability: Mid-range.
• Warranty: N / A.
• Construction: Steel and standard dura-plastic.
• Can be Corded: No.

Performance

I’ve used a Scotts chainsaw before, though I admit I’ve never owned one myself. This is only because, until I moved to where I am now, and even still, I tend to avoid landscaping and yard work like the plague. I have regular weekly maintenance handled by a very affordable service, only handling the costlier fence row trimming myself.

My service uses Scotts tools almost exclusively, and when I inquired on whether they had some kind of deal with the company, they said that no, they just like their durability and affordability. Well, the experts know what’s best, don’t they?

So, while they’re cheaper than other brands, it’s definitely volume as I thought - landscapers trust Scotts, and that means they sell like hot cakes, and allow for quality to still be provided at a price you wouldn’t expect something like this to have.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

This is a good budget saw, and if you use one as infrequently as I do, it's a good choice.

Scotts: Check the current price

Remington RM4216 Gas-Powered Cordless Chainsaw

Remington is a name most have heard of, though it’s more often associated with guns than tools. But, Remington tools are a rugged choice, about on par with Black & Decker, though they tend to have better warranties, and they tend to be ever so slightly less expensive.

This one is a pretty good mid-size saw, and while I’ve never owned one, I’ve seen one used before to take down seriously tough trees, and trees are not as easily felled as the movies make them appear to be.

Remington is a vetted brand, they’ve been around for quite some time, and that kind of experience is actually just as valuable.

Like Scotts, they’re a “lasting power versus staying power” concept, but as I said in regards to Scotts, that’s actually a good thing, and it tends to make for a safer overall experience.

This isn’t the beefiest saw, but it’ll certainly get the job done if you stick with it, and dependability is king right?

Features

• Weight: 22 pounds.
• Brushless: Yes.
• Power Supply: Lithium-Ion battery.
• Includes Batteries: Only one.
• Includes Charger: Yes.
• Durability: Mid-range.
• Warranty: N / A.
• Construction: Steel and standard dura-plastic.
• Can be Corded: No.

Performance

I do have a couple complaints about design choices with this one. I don’t like the grip bar’s design, it makes you want to hold the saw wrong, I prefer the traditional approach to grips on these sorts of things.

I also don’t like the color Remington uses, and okay, that’s a superficial and trivial thing, but see, I’m color blind, and orange just looks awful to my eyes, and you know what? That's distracting.

Aside from those mild complaints, there’s nothing really wrong with this saw, though if you’re not going to use it on a regular basis, it may be more saw than you need. It’s not cheap, but it’s cheaper than the highest-end model I showed (yes the Makita), but it doesn’t sacrifice much by way of quality to achieve this.

I see a lot of Remington products out there.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

If you have to do frequent trimming and the like, or the occasional land clearing job, this is a good saw.

Remington: Check the current price