Every Major Pruning Saw Brand Ranked Worst To Best

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Pruning saws come in many shapes, but they all have one thing in common: They are all saws. Manual or not; gas, battery, and corded; small-handed tools and telescoping pole shafts. If it helps you saw off a bad branch from a tree, it's a pruning saw to us, and we probably put it in this list. The only exception is the hand pruning saw, which we won't consider for this ranking. The reason is simple: They are basic tools that accomplish one thing in more or less the same way. Even if that weren't the case, they're so cheap that there'd be no reason to rank them. If you need a hand pruning saw, buy one. Just make sure it has good reviews and is made by a reputable brand.

At the same time, we're not going to exclude a company from this ranking just because it didn't name its mini chainsaw for cutting branches no larger than 4 inches "pruning saw." For similar reasons, we're going to point out which companies make good pole saws and other saw-based power tools for pruning, as well as handheld chainsaws. Finally, while there are pros and cons to gas and electric yard tools, we're going to focus on battery-powered tools whenever it makes sense. Those tend to be much easier to use and require less maintenance, which makes them very appealing to a large number of people.

DeWalt is a popular brand among DIYers, hobbyists, and, in some work areas, professionals. However, there are some DeWalt products you should steer clear of, including the company's compact 12-inch chainsaw. If user reviews are to be believed, we can now add the 8-Inch Brushless Cordless Pruning Chainsaw to the list. On paper, this seems like a great tool for pruning: It comes with a brushless motor, and it's much lighter and more compact than an equivalent DeWalt chainsaw not dedicated to pruning. However, users on DeWalt's website are less than pleased with the tool. Some claim that the unit leaks oil (or sometimes that it doesn't pump oil) and that it can break after just one year.

The brand also offers a variety of power pole saws: fixed and telescoping, of various lengths, with a straight saw or one positioned at an angle. The 20V Max XR Telescoping Brushless Cordless Pole Saw is the only one with a good number of reviews, and they're not great. Like the pruning chainsaw, this tool has poor reviews on DeWalt's website and good reviews on Amazon. Can you trust Amazon ratings over those on the toolmaker's own website? It's hard to say, but when different users claim the product leaks oil or stopped working after a few days of use, some skepticism is natural. Since DeWalt's pruning saws sit at 3.1 and 3.6 stars out of 5, we can't recommend this brand.

Ryobi's 18V ONE+ HP 6-Inch Compact Brushless Pruning Saw is discontinued, but it can still be bought on Amazon. That's not a great start for the green toolmaker, but at least this isn't one of those Ryobi tools you should avoid, like the brand's bigger 40V 10-inch chainsaw. Users seem to like this pruning saw enough to give it a 4.5 out of 5 stars average, even if it doesn't seem to hold much charge. According to the item's description, an 18V/2Ah battery will only cover you for "21 cuts per charge." Ryobi sells the battery for about $40, but you can always get a bigger one, like the Ryobi 18V/4Ah, priced around $100, which should let you make roughly twice as many cuts.

If you're looking for something bigger, another option is the Ryobi ONE+ 18V 8-Inch Cordless Battery Pruning Chainsaw. It's more expensive and has an 8-inch-long chainsaw. Overall, it seems like a fine brushed tool for occasional use, and users agree. It's just a little weird that this tool alone costs $165, close to the $199 of the Brushless 6-Inch Compact Pruning Mini Chainsaw Kit, which includes a battery and charger.

Worx doesn't make a dedicated pruning saw, but it does sell a tiny 5-Inch Cordless Brushless Chainsaw that users find great for occasional pruning though limited for other tasks. This is obviously a pruning saw, even if it doesn't have that name. So how does it hold up? While 5 inches aren't a lot to work with, users seem generally satisfied with it when it comes to cutting small branches and even some trees. The product comes with a small 2 Ah battery, but if you need a spare or want to upgrade to a bigger one, Worx sells them for relatively cheap.

There's no problem with this mini chainsaw, but there might be an issue with the brand Worx. It's not as widely recognized as some bigger tool brands. That doesn't mean it can't make good tools; one of the best screwdrivers on the market is made by Worx. But what happens when you need a spare part? Big brands usually have repair centers and even third-party parts. Meanwhile, Worx replacement parts can be harder to find, according to some reviews. 

Worx makes another unique pruning saw of sorts: the 20V Power Share 10-Inch Cordless Pole/Chain Saw with Auto-Tension. It's a hybrid between a small-ish chainsaw and a pole saw. They've basically stuck a 10-inch chainsaw on a retractable telescopic pole. It's a weird one, and we can't judge it without trying it, but it seems like a solid alternative to both pole saws and pruning saws.

Echo makes just one handheld pruning saw, the DHS-3006 Handheld Pruning Saw. Sure, at just 14 reviews, it's not Home Depot's most popular pruning saw, but those reviews are extremely positive. The only reviewer to give it less than five stars opens with, "I haven't used it yet" — basically a parody of a perfect product. However, you would do well to take a second and think about whether this is the right tool for you. Do you need 56 Volts of power just for a small pruning chainsaw? Are you ready to spend $179.99 on the tool alone, or $249 for the kit that includes a 56V/2.5Ah battery and charger? And don't even think about using an old Echo battery you've got lying around; this pruning saw is compatible only with Echo's 56V battery system.

On the other hand, this tool promises to deliver precise, efficient cutting for pruning and some limbing, even though it has a relatively small 6-inch bar. The 120 cuts on 4x4 inches of timber it promises outshines most competitors. Echo makes other pruning tools as well, including pole saws like the DPPT-2600H. Now, it might be true that this telescopic pole saw is made for professional landscapers, but does that justify the cost of $679.99 for the tool alone? The DPPF-2100 Fixed Shaft Pole Saw at $509.99 doesn't do much better, and while it's the cheapest of the line, it's one of the few aimed at consumers.

Craftsman sells just one handheld pruning saw, the V20 Cordless Pruning Chainsaw, which, while not widely reviewed yet, is worth seriously considering. After all, there are a lot of Craftsman tools worth adding to your outdoor power equipment collection, including electric pruners, pole saws, and yes, a cordless pruning chainsaw. This last one isn't quite the most popular, but it is affordably priced at just $139. A 6-inch chain might not seem like a lot, but it's more or less equivalent to what the other brands offer. Plus, this mini chainsaw promises up to 85 cuts when using a 2Ah battery: not bad for such a small battery on such a portable tool.

The V20 Cordless Pruning Saw has other advantages as well, like the oil-free design that makes maintenance easier. However, Craftsman makes a few not-quite-pruning-saw tools that are still close enough to take a brief look at. Tools like the V20 8-Inch Cordless Pole Chainsaw, a pole saw like many others, which, at $125.90, comes with the advantage of being quite cheap by the tool's standard. It's not a very popular tool, with just 60 Amazon reviews and six on its own website, but the users seem happy about their purchase. We can say the same about the 8 Amp 10-Inch Corded Pole Chainsaw With Extension Pole, a somewhat rare example of a corded yard tool that is almost certainly stronger than the alternative while also being a little cheaper.

Black+Decker tools have found themselves in one of our rankings multiple times, but unlike some other tools, the company's chainsaws weren't the most highly ranked. However, Black+Decker's pruning saw is an exception, with good user ratings. The brand makes just one pruning saw, the Black+Decker 20V MAX Pruning Chainsaw, and at $129, it's reasonably priced while not being suspiciously cheap. The 6-inch chainsaw bar is comparable to that of other brands, and the oil-free design is a nice detail. Plus, Black+Decker's batteries are relatively cheap, at about $85 for a 20V/4Ah battery, even though many users claim they don't last as long as expected.

Black+Decker offers plenty of other chainsaws that are great for pruning, like the Cordless Chainsaw Alligator Lopper. This one has a shape that makes it look like it was designed exclusively for pruning. Delightfully, it also looks like an alligator. The 6-inch bar lets it cut through mid-sized branches just like the other mini chainsaws, while the alligator design helps you grip onto what you're cutting. There's also a corded version of this tool, if you think you need more power for longer and happen to have a cord running through your yard. Finally, Black+Decker sells the Black+Decker 20V Max Cordless Pole Saw, also available in a kit version. The bare tool is sold at about $100.

Bosch is a big brand, with manufacturing facilities all around the world making a variety of tools. Of course, that includes a pruning saw, even though the company calls it the EasyChain Cordless Chainsaw. This tool looks positively tiny, but in reality, the chain bar is a full 6 inches. Okay, 6 inches doesn't sound like a lot either, but that's more or less the default for pruning saws. And of course, being such a small tool helped shave some weight off the tool, bringing it to a total of 2.87 pounds. The toolmaker promises a "high-speed pruning performance" of 6.95 m/s, or 273 inches per second, and up to 150 cuts with an 18V/2.5Ah Bosch battery.

Speaking of batteries, there are a few non-Bosch power tools that use Bosch batteries, so there's a chance you might not even need to buy one for this cordless pruning saw. If you don't, make sure you get one with the tool, or you might end up having to import one or use an adapter. At least, that's what one user claims in the overwhelmingly positive Amazon reviews of this product. That battery (the Power For All Alliance 18V/2.5Ah) seems to be available on Amazon.com, but the claim might be worth investigating further if you're going to buy this pruning saw. By the way, that user ended up leaving a five-star review, too.

Skil offers a surprising variety of pruning saw equipment, from the SKIL Brushless 20V 6-Inch Mini Chainsaw to the 40V 10-Inch Telescoping Pole Saw. The most unique item is a mix of the two, the Brushless 20V 6-Inch Telescopic Mini Chainsaw, which can be operated normally but extends up to 2.8 feet. Let's start with the first, since it's the simplest of all. This mini chainsaw comes win a kit that includes a 20V/2Ah battery and a charger, and it's cheaper than most of the bare tools featured on this article. However, unlike other cheap tools of this kind, you can buy important replacement parts like the chain of the chainsaw and the saw bar directly from the item's Amazon page.

What about the other two tools? The pole saw has a brushless motor, a telescoping shaft that reaches up to nine feet, and an angled head, all for $169. If you want a battery and charger with your tool, you can get the kit that includes the 18V/2.5Ah one for a total of $199. Finally, there's the weird one. For a suspiciously low $149, you too can reap the benefit of a compact power tool and a long pole tool in just one package. Sure, the pole only extends to 2.8 feet, and the included 18V/2Ah battery is small for one task, let alone two. But you have to hand it to Skil, it looks really cool. Plus, Skil promises up to 115 cuts per charge with the included battery, which is not little.

Milwaukee is a respected toolmaker with a rich history. There are probably a few tool technologies you don't realize Milwaukee invented. However, what makes this brand a little special for us now is that it sells two, not one, pruning saws. The first and smallest of the two is the M12 Fuel Hatchet 6-Inch Pruning Saw. "Fuel" is the name given to Milwaukee's top-of-the-line brushless tools, but in this case, it needs to be contextualized. The M12 pruning saw is a 12-Volt tool, so of course it's a little weaker than the 18-Volt one. Still, Milwaukee promises that its smallest pruning saw is capable of delivering 120 cuts on one charge of the 12V/4.0Ah battery. This tool is surprisingly affordable, at least by Milwaukee's standards, being priced at $149.

The big M18 Fuel Hatchet 8-Inch Pruning Saw is a little bigger than most, with a chainsaw bar of 8 inches, and is presumably stronger than the M12 version. The M18 promises to cut faster than a 25cc gas chainsaw, while the smaller one makes no similar comparison. Meanwhile, the bigger pruning saw makes no promises about its autonomy, but it's hard to imagine it lasting less than the M12 when equipped with a higher voltage battery. The kit featuring the M18 pruning chainsaw, a charger, and a 6.0Ah battery is available for $300, but can often be found at a discount.

Makita makes two types of pruning saws, one for the LXT system and one for the CXT. What's the difference between LXT and CXT? Simply put, they use different battery types. LXT means the tools and the batteries are 18V, meaning they can last longer and can take on more demanding tasks. Starting with the smallest of the two, the CXT Brushless 100mm Pruning Saw boosts an absolutely tiny bar of less than 4 inches. Portability is the name of the game with this tool, as the weight of 3.7 pounds confirms. The price of $294 seems appropriate for a product like this, and while Makita batteries are usually not cheap, the 12V/2Ah is, coming in at just $54.

The 6-Inch LXT Pruning Saw is obviously quite a bit bigger than the CXT one. It's not massive, mind you; it's still designed for pruning. The LXT Pruning Saw's biggest advantage is that it can host a big 18V battery, like that found in the Makita Starter Set 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Battery and Charger (4.0Ah). This makes it potentially more powerful or, if it's used for similar tasks, gives it a higher autonomy. The product's Amazon page promises up to 140 cuts with an 18V/2Ah battery, but you could easily get one twice as big and have it last much longer.

We selected those tools based on how many pruning saws and accompanying tools each brand has, their stats and user reviews, and the brand itself. Well-known brands with good return policies and generous warranties ranked higher than lesser-known toolmakers.