Can DeWalt Batteries Be Used On Black & Decker Tools?

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One of the tricky things about product branding is that it's a little tough to determine who actually owns which brands and companies, as well as those brands' respective technologies. It's a bit of a tangled web of subsidiaries and acquisitions, but you can usually find information on a parent company's website. Did you know, for example, that the DeWalt hardware brand is actually owned by Stanley Black & Decker, the same company that owns the standalone Black & Decker brand of tools and household appliances? Stanley Black & Decker has owned DeWalt lock, stock, and barrel since 1960.

Although DeWalt is a subsidiary of Stanley Black & Decker, this doesn't mean it dances to the latter's tune exclusively. Both DeWalt and Black & Decker have their own specific technologies, and that includes the proprietary battery packs they use. While it would be understandable to think you could use a DeWalt battery on a Black & Decker tool due to their common parentage, it is unfortunately not possible officially. Technically, you could circumvent this limitation through the use of a third-party battery adapter, but this may end up causing more problems than it solves.

DeWalt and Black & Decker use similar kinds of 20V rechargeable battery packs, which snap and lock onto their respective tools to provide 2Ah of power. Whether by coincidence or intent, both battery lines even have the same name, the 20V MAX series. Unfortunately, that name and their amperage are the only things these battery packs have in common.

DeWalt batteries are not compatible with Black & Decker tools or vice versa due to their differences in physical connectors. The tops of the battery packs, which facilitate their connections, look similar at a casual glance, but have a couple of vital differentiating points. Black & Decker's MAX battery has five terminals on top, plus a connecting rail on the side with a hard right angle. DeWalt's MAX battery, meanwhile, has six terminals on top, and its connecting rail has a gentler curve to it.

Due to differences in connecting rails, it would be impossible to force a DeWalt battery onto a Black & Decker tool. Even if you could somehow shove one onto a Black & Decker tool's receiver, the differences in terminals would prevent it from being recognized as a battery, and it wouldn't be able to deliver any power.

Although it's officially impossible to use DeWalt batteries on Black & Decker tools, some outside the Stanley Black & Decker family would like to see these brands brought together, specifically through battery adapters manufactured by third parties and sold on platforms like Amazon — for example, this adapter from the XFYBZN brand.

Such adapters basically duplicate the receivers and terminals used on two specific battery types to enable a bridged connection. With the right adapter latched onto a DeWalt battery, you could plug it into a Black & Decker tool, and power would flow. On paper, this seems like a perfect solution, but you should always treat "perfect" solutions with a bit of skepticism.

All power tool batteries, including both DeWalt and Black & Decker, contain a small circuit board that helps to regulate the flow of electricity and keep it safe and optimal for a connected tool. Using a battery adapter forcefully bypasses that circuit board to deliver power in an uncontrolled manner. Without those safety controls, your tool may receive less power than it needs to properly operate, or worse, it could receive entirely too much power, overloading and burning out. If you end up damaging your tools or batteries using third-party adapters, neither DeWalt nor Black & Decker will provide service or replacements, as third-party accessories are prohibited by their warranties.