Mowing a lawn isn’t all you have to do keep up a beautiful landscape. Leaf blowers have come to be pretty impressive nowadays with the advancement of technology, and even though they’ve grown over the years, still offer solid models for a decent price. As compared to other popular power tools and lawn/garden equipment, they’re well worth the investment since they’re so affordable. We recommend grabbing one to keep in handy just in case. Let’s take a look at the top 10 best leaf blowers on the planet.
What is a leaf blower?
A leaf blower is a tool used in gardens and yards and it propels air out of the nozzle in order to move debris like grass or leaves. The leaf blower is powered by gasoline and electric motors. The gasoline models traditionally have two-stroke engines, but there are four-stroke engines that have been introduced recently in order to address the concern of air pollution.
The leaf blower is a very popular piece of machinery you’ll need when it comes to lawn and garden maintenance, aside from perhaps string trimmers or chainsaws. They’re typically a self-contained and handheld unit as well as backpack mounted units with a handheld wand. The latest models are developed ergonomically to ensure longer usage. Larger units can rest on wheels and they can even use a motor for propulsion.
How to choose the best leaf blower
- Price point – We love the price range leaf blowers come in because even highest-quality models come in at a decent price. This however will determine which direction you’ll go, considering one for the most expensive blowers in here is for almost two hundred bucks, while others can go under $100 or even $50.
- Air speed – When it comes to leaf blowers, there is a decent range when it comes to overall speed of the air it produces out of the nozzle. For most home-use and common tasks leaf blowers encounter, grabbing a unit that offers at least 150+ MPH is preferred.
- Gas or Electric? This all up to the user and preferences, but electric (especially if you go cordless) leaf blowers are becoming a bit more popular as time goes on. For gas powered, you’re usually getting some more power in the unit but need to hassle with keeping gas handy and refilling it every and now and then. With electric, you’ll have to charge it up, but get some more convenience with the blower.
- Corded vs cordless – This cordless vs. corded debate is pretty common among power tool and lawn/garden enthusiasts, so which is best? With leaf blowers, versatility is pretty important, so going cordless is almost usually preferred. However, if you aren’t up to hassling with a battery and charger if you grab a cordless leaf blower, you could always choose a corded model instead.
- Additional features? Some come as a backpack to help with ease of use (check out our best backpack leaf blower article for more info), cruise control for convenience, speed control for custom usage, and more. Which additional features are worth adding a few extra bucks to the price tag?
The 10 best leaf blowers on the planet
Toro Ultra 51619
Toro is a very top-rated brand when it comes to leaf blowers, and this one can deliver the versatility and power that you wish to have in order to tackle most clean up chores. It has a rugged metal impeller with variable speed air control. It also has blower inserts for multiple applications and it allows the tackling of a wide variety of spaces. It is powerful with over 250 mph air streams that are able to clear the debris, including heavy leaves and sticks. It can also convert into an aggressive vacuum and it reduces over 88 percent of the mulched debris that can fit in the bag. The product comes with a 2 year warranty and is near the lower price point, so you’ll be saving some stress on your wallet while you’re at it. It was one of the best listed in Sweet Home’s best leaf blower guide, too. If you wanted an immediate answer for the very best leaf blower, here it is.
Black & Decker LSW36
We all know that Black and Decker brand name. This is a lightweight leaf blower with a low noise design. It can sweep fast and clear most commonly found debris from hard surfaces (this includes sidewalks, decks and patios). It has a power command that lets the user choose the maximum run time with the maximum power. There are many things that you will have to do when it comes to clearing the debris, but when you have this leaf blower, you are going to be able to do all or most of them with just one charge. The tool can clear the debris in garages and driveways as well. The battery is made with lithium-ion, and it ensures a long run time. The charge indicator is used in order to show the battery charge level. If you want one of the best leaf blowers at an affordable price that a lot of users can back up it’s longevity, grab this one.
Hitachi RB24EAP
This is a very solid leaf blower and is a bit more expensive than the others but well-worth the money if you have it within our budget. It produces the impressive air velocity of over 170 mph using a taper nozzle. It has a 2 stroke engine for outstanding power and longer life. It is lightweight and well-balanced for comfortable use with less user fatigue. It has been built to make quick work for big clean up tasks and has a well-built commercial grade engine, featuring the pure fire low emission with a two finger throttle lever. It has an auto return stop switch and it offers the air volume of 441 cubic feet per minute while it delivers the air speed of over 170 miles each hour for the best debris removal. This made it into Popular Mechanic’s best leaf blower article as well.
GreenWorks 24252
This leaf blower works with a simple push of the button, and you can get started in just a few seconds. It is not hard to manage the gas pull cords or the mixing of the oil and other hazardous fumes. Regardless if you are hedging, trimming or mowing away the debris, this blower is going to make everything easy with its range of cordless tools. You can choose from different power options or a package with an additional string trimmer for a few extra bucks, so if you were looking for something extremely specific, this is one to take a look at. We love the options GreenWorks offers with this popular leaf blower. It’s battery is backed up by the 4 year warranty. The user reviews back up the stability of it — just read them for yourself.
Husqvarna 952711925 (125B)
Hopefully everyone has heard of Husqvarna when it comes to high-quality lawn and garden tools. This is a very highly rated leaf blower that combines high power with its impressive ergonomic design. A blower tube has been engineered to be in line with its handle, which minimizes the handle force at the wrist. The blower is the perfect option for every homeowner if you can afford a model within the middle price-point. It has an auto return stop switch with automatic resets for the on position for easy starting and the nifty cruise control with the fan speed may be set to offer easy handling. Lastly, it has a tube length which can be adjusted to offer some custom fit for the different jobs you may encounter.
Black & Decker LSW20
Here’s another B and D leaf blower to check out and this model is a cordless sweeper, which is a great option to clear the debris from hard surfaces like decks, porches and patios. The unit is lightweight at only 7 lbs with a battery. It has a 20-volt lithium-ion battery and comes with a charger in the box. It has an efficient design that can clear debris much easier for hard surfaces like garages, drives, walks, decks and patios. Its battery provides even longer battery life year after year compared to other models. Although it is not recommended to be used on flower beds or in grass, it’s quite compatible for nearly any hard surface job you’ll encounter. The sweeper is easy to handle and is not going to twist the wrist.
DeWalt DCBL720P1
This is a product that uses an innovative axial fan design, which maximizes the air output and the run time. It’s the most expensive leaf blower in here but for good reason — it’s most importantly brushless, has a variable speed trigger with the speed lock that gives maximum control to the user, and it ensures the best performance of over 400 cu ft per minute. The air volume is a bit lower than others and offers 90 mph for the air speed but that’s not always the most important factor as we’ve learned. It is extremely light weight with its ergonomic design, is easy to control and minimizes the stress on the user. It has low volume and has been designed to withstand heavy-duty everyday use. It has a variable trigger with a speed lock and includes over a 5 hour battery back and the charger comes with it in the box. I mean, it’s a DeWalt model, so you know you’re getting one of the highest quality tools out there (albeit for a price).
Makita BHX2500CA
This blower has a soft grip to ensure less vibration with a convenient cruise control lever to achieve reduced operator fatigue. It has a compact design and mechanical automatic engine with decompression for quicker and easier starts. It has a large capacity muffler that ensures quieter operation and also provides dual stage air filters that are easily accessible and can be replaced easily. It meets the CARB and EPA exhaust standards, so if that was an important factor for you this is a safe bet. It is efficient with its 4 stroke engine that has lower emissions. It also has a high air volume and air speed for commercial duty performance. Lastly, the leaf blower comes with an extension pipe, tool kit and round end nozzle. When it comes to known brands, Makita is up there in terms of competing with the best.
Toro Power Sweep 51585
Here’s another one of Toro’s most popular leaf blowers. This one is one of the best budget-friendly models not only by them but in the market since it’s super cheap but pretty solid as well. This one is known to be perfect when it comes to clearing the leaves and the debris away from driveways, decks and sidewalks and is barely under $50 (usually). The model is able to generate 160 mph for its air speed, and this is more than enough power to do most common tasks at hand. It is lightweight at only 4.6lbs for decreased user fatigue. It is easy to store or transport where it has to be used. It also has 2 options for speed control does not have too much vibration, which means that it can be used for a long period without the hassle of sore hands.
Husqvarna 965877502 (350BT)
To top off our list, we have another Husqvarna model that many people rave about. This is the perfect option for the contractors who want to clean a large landscape or a large land area. If you were looking for the best backpack leaf blower, here is our choice. The blower uses their latest powerful X-torq engine (ensures increased power with better fuel economy and reduced emissions). The tube mounted throttle and the harness have been designed ergonomically to ensure high-capacity with ease of use. The powerful and easy to use ‘X-torq’ offers an efficient fan design, and it delivers air speed with sufficient air flow. It includes an ergonomic handle which may be adjusted to fit the operator with the rubber inserts for a more comfortable grip and the harness is comfortable and ventilated with a load-reducing harness, hip belt and wide shoulder straps.
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