Every Klein Modbox Toolbox, Ranked Biggest To Smallest

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Portable modular toolbox systems seem to have gotten quite popular since Festool and Bosch brought the idea to the market. It's a good idea, after all. For a cost comparable to that of any other toolbox, you get a container that safely stacks onto others and transports in bulk with ease. The trick, of course, is that all those boxes have to use the same modular toolbox system, and each company has its own. If you own any cordless power tools, you'll have had a similar issue with battery lines.

Milwaukee is among the most popular maker of modular toolboxes, but there are a lot of alternatives to its Packout toolbox system. A lot of those systems are made by well-known and respected brands, too, like Makita and its MakTrak and MakPac or Klein Tools' Modbox, and many have the added benefit of being quite a bit cheaper. However, you're unlikely to gravitate towards major brands because of convenience. Klein Tools makes one of Lowe's best rolling toolboxes, but it's also the most expensive of such products in the store. Since money is unlikely to be your first preoccupation when browsing Klein Tools' Modbox line, we've arranged this article not in order of price but according to size, from biggest to smallest.

The Two Drawer Rolling Toolbox is the biggest of the toolboxes in Klein Tools' Modbox modular system. It's also the biggest of the two rolling toolboxes, with an impressive size of 16.5x22.3x23.5 inches. The height, 16.5 inches, is measured with the handle removed, but when it's fully extended, the whole thing measures about 44 inches. That's about as tall, or perhaps a little more, than the pile of boxes you can expect to be able to stack on top of the Two Drawer Rolling Toolbox before the handle becomes purely decorative. While this is a big toolbox, it might not be the best place in the Modbox line to store your bulkiest tools.

You can see something similar happening with Milwaukee's biggest Packout toolboxes like the Drawer Toolboxes, which don't have as much free space as the technically smaller Large Tool Box. You might want to compare Packout and Modbox rolling drawers before deciding on Klein Tools' version. That's because drawers take up some space by just being there. Drawers need tracks to roll over and some space between them if there is more than one, and they don't take kindly to being overstuffed. That said, the biggest of the drawers in the Two Drawer Rolling Toolbox appear to be about as big as the one in the Single Drawer Toolbox. There's no official information about this that we could find, but if that's the case, it would make the drawer's volume 1.23 cubic feet, more or less.

Slightly smaller than the Two Drawer version, the regular Rolling Toolbox doesn't have a drawer but opens instead with a lid placed on the top. Of course, this makes it a little harder to access when there is other equipment sitting on it, but that doesn't make it worse, just a little different. The Rolling Toolbox is, ultimately, a slightly different version of the Two Drawer Rolling Toolbox that is, however, a bit cheaper. 

Another difference is what kind of tools you can fit into those two boxes. The two drawers are great for placing a few small but mighty power tools (or, once the inserts are removed, a single large tool) in the lower drawer. The smaller one can be used to keep some hand tools or a lot of tiny components, and both can be accessible even if the roll toolbox is currently transporting other boxes. The single Rolling Toolbox is more like a traditional toolbox, with a single large space that can host a large tool, up to 1.9 cubic feet of volume and 250 pounds in weight. It can also carry a number of medium-sized tools, if one decides to use some of the inserts that the box is compatible with, but which must be bought separately. When fully extended, the handle is 44 inches tall, similar to the Two Drawer Rolling Toolbox.

Klein Tools' Single Drawer Toolbox is the first of three drawer toolboxes in the Modbox system that share the same dimensions to the decimal point (14.4x22.3x16.4 inches). It's likely that they are literally made of the same mold, and even if that wasn't the case, their purpose in the Modbox system is the same: store more tools in one or more drawers like you would with the Two Drawer Rolling Toolbox. We're going to talk about the single drawer box before the other not because it's bigger, but because it seems natural to start from number one and count up to three.

The Single Drawer Toolbox comes with two dividers that can make the interior of the drawers into three equally spaced sections. That might make the container more useful to you or only be a hindrance, but you don't need to decide once and for all. Those inserts are easy enough to remove and reintroduce as needed. A more serious limitation might be that the drawer can only safely support up to 50 pounds at a time. The Single Drawer Toolbox comes with side rails compatible with some Klein Tools attachments, locking bars for safety, and support for a padlock.

The Two Drawer Toolbox is pretty much like the single-drawer toolbox, with the obvious exception that it has two drawers, each about half as high as the single drawer. Otherwise, the two share the same stats, with two small exceptions. The two-drawer toolbox loses 0.03 cubic feet of volume compared to the previous one; a minimal change that isn't enough to affect the functionality of the toolbox. However, the 2 pounds of increased weight brought by the extra drawer bring the total to 22.5 instead of 24.4 pounds, which might be enough for some to prefer the alternative.

This two-drawer box comes with plenty of dividers (eight per drawer) and pretty much every feature present in the single-drawer and three drawer versions, including a place to put a padlock and a safety locking bar. Like many other Modbox toolboxes, this one features a rail system compatible with some Klein Tools accessories. Those are a big part of what makes the Klein Tools Modbox mobile workstation so beloved, and while we won't cover them now, you might want to investigate those attachments yourself with the toolmaker's Buildverse webapp.

The drawers of the Three Drawer Toolbox are each about one third of the height of the single-drawer toolbox, and the total volume they can contain is ever so slightly lower than the one of the two-drawer version. The weight increases by another 2.6 pounds compared to that model, reaching 27 pounds. Aside from the number of drawers and those small differences, the three drawer toolboxes are identical. That doesn't mean those aren't good products, but seeing how much is similar between them, one might expect to find them a little lower down on the list of the most expensive modular tool boxes with drawers. Instead, all the Klein Tools drawer boxes are sold at around $180.

Unlike Milwaukee's three and two-plus-one drawer Packout toolboxes, which are available with equally-sized and multi-depth drawers, Modbox only has the equally spaced version. The box comes with a few dividers (24 in total) that are bound to help in keeping the drawers in order. One detail that was also present in the other drawer boxes, is the presence of a reinforced channel on the lowest drawer. While the space taken by it is negligible in any other Modbox product, here it risks taking away from the already small first drawer.

The Modbox Medium Toolbox by Klein Tools is the first of the company's modular storage solutions on this list that looks like an actual toolbox. This box opens with a lid, it comes with a removeable tray, and it's compatible with other Klein Tools attachments and internal accessories. And while it's called the Medium Toolbox, it's pretty big. At 11.7x22x15.5 inches, it's slightly shorter than the drawer boxes, but the volume saved from removing the drawers makes it as spacious. It comes with plenty of positive reviews, and the price oscillates between $70 and $80, making it a good choice for a toolbox even if you're not interested in the Modbox system.

Grab some essential tools for compiling your own kit and you'll have a great standalone toolbox. Of course, the more you let the Medium Toolbox interact with other Modbox tools and accessories, the more useful it will become. It has built-in brackets for the Klein Tools headlamp, for example, so if you plan to add illumination to it, you'd be better off doing it with the brand's own accessory. The same is true for the box's side rails, compatible with parts and tool bins, more lights, and even a cup holder.

The Hybrid Toolbox is a tall and slim box than is about as high and long as the others, but only half as wide. This lets you place two of them next to one another, making for two separate but spacious containers for equally large tools. Of course, you probably wouldn't get two thin toolboxes instead of a large one just because you don't feel like using dividers.

Chances are that if the Hybrid Toolbox is appealing to you, it's because you're thinking about what you could place next to it. You could use the spare inches to fit an electrician's backpack or any other kind of tool bag or totes bag. You could even use the space to fit the Klein Tools Modbox Cooler, or three half-width Tall Component Boxes. Beyond giving space to those and other companions, the Hybrid Toolbox is capable of turning into a crate, thanks to its removeable lid, and comes with two dividers that can be stacked or placed side by side, as well as an organizer tray.

The Klein Tools Small Toolbox is, well, small. At 6.6x22x15.5 inches, it's the smallest box in the Modbox line that isn't a component box, coming in at about the size of the Medium Toolbox, but with half the height. If you go any smaller than this, it starts being difficult to store anything that might be called a tool, which is why the smaller Modbox products are called component boxes. But even if this looks more like those mini toolboxes you can get on Amazon than anything you'd associate with this brand, there are a lot of useful (and small) Klein hand tools to add to toolboxes like this one.

Another use for the Small Box might be as an extra-spacious component holder. The tiny organizer bins it comes with have their own dividers, which can turn this product into a customizable hybrid component box/toolbox that is easy to stack onto another one, giving you plenty of space for the smallest parts of your kit. While each Small Box only comes with one organizer bin, you can install up to two per box. The side rails of the Small Box aren't the most adaptable, since they're quite small, but they can host a lot of attachments, up to two per side.

With a height of 5.2 inches, the Tall Component Box is only tall for the standards of a box meant to hold screws, bolts, and other small parts. The height is about 5 inches, and it opens with a lid. The Tall Component Box comes with plastic organizers that divide the space into many small compartments, which is ideal for holding small bits and fasteners. The box is clearly made with those organizers in mind, since the lid works like a top for those tiny boxes, keeping the contents from spilling out.

Width and length are more or less the same as you'd expect from every other Modbox toolbox, with the exception of the half width model. The Half-Width Tall Compartment Box is about half the price of the full-size model, and is half as spacious. The only thing you'd be missing out on by buying two half-width boxes instead of one regular-sized one is the awkward little space between the two halves, which promotional images show being used to store cable ties. That, and the ease of use of having a single box to move instead of two.

The Short Component Box is like the Tall Component Box, but shorter (2.9 inches high). Besides this obvious difference, the two are quite similar. They both come with a transparent lid that keeps the content and many inserts safe when being moved. There are eight inserts in total, which together create 20 positively tiny spaces for your smallest gear. The Half-Width Short Component Box model is half as wide and a little over half the price, letting you fit two of them (or a mix of tall and short half-width boxes) one next to the other.

As with the other half-width Modbox products, stack those component boxes tall enough and they will stand shoulder to shoulder with Modbox refrigerators, tool bags and backpacks, and the Hybrid Toolbox. You might even be able to fit some of Klein Tools' smallest and cheapest tools, if you remove some of the dividers. It's worth mentioning that even those dividers have inserts, to help you further adapt the box to your needs. That's worth highlighting because, with the exception of the smallest Modbox bit sets and tool kits, you can't add accessories to this box as you can with most others.

The Tool Bag, Tote, and Backpack Component Box is similar to the Short Component Box, with almost exactly the same size of the half-width version. It comes with far fewer compartments, just four without inner inserts, meaning you can't choose to have a lot of tiny compartments but are stuck with four long ones. It doesn't seem like this box is compatible with any of the Modbox inserts or accessories except for the Tool Bag, the Tool Tote, and the Electrician's Backpack. The best reason to choose this storage solution over the Short Component Box is if you use one of those bags and want to be able to attach a box to it.

The curve of the transparent lid that covers the Tool Bag, Tote, and Backpack Component Box adapts perfectly to that of the Modbox backpack, and can support the other boxes as well, as part of a modular toolbox or alone. Of course, it's fully compatible with most Modbox product, meaning it can be placed above any other toolbox or component box and below any half-width one. Perhaps by virtue of being the smallest box in the Modbox line, there aren't a lot of reviews for this product, but if you're already bought into the Modbox universe, it's not a huge investment if you envision a need for it in your kit. 

For this list, we only considered toolboxes that are part of Klein Tools' Modbox line of modular toolboxes. The Modbox Wire Spool Dispenser, for example, was excluded because it is not categorized as a toolbox on Klein Tools' Buildverse website. It was also excluded because it cannot be closed entirely, preventing it from being considered a box, let alone a toolbox. We arranged those toolboxes by size, based on the dimensions reported by the toolmaker. When we had to break from this rule, for example when a number of toolboxes ended up being exactly the same size, we explained our rationale in the relevant sections.