Even Fans Admit Harbor Freight Offers No Great Substitute For This Walmart Tool

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For many DIYers, Harbor Freight has become the retail outlet of choice when they find themselves in need of a high quality tool at a wallet-friendly price. The hardware chain is, of course, all the more appealing to budget minded shoppers, as Harbor Freight now counts a few very notable brands as in-house exclusives, with that list seeming to grow larger every year. 

The retail chain is sure to remain one of the go-to option for many smart-money shoppers for the foreseeable future. There are, however, plenty of other budget options available on the consumer tool market these days, with several big boxers out there introducing their own lines of low-priced hand tools and power tools. That list indeed includes one of the biggest of the big boxers, as Walmart's Hyper Tough brand has become a legitimate rival for many of those more revered Harbor Freight options.

In fact, there are some Walmart shoppers who have come to prefer Hyper Tough tools to some of the available in-house options at Harbor Freight. While that is not likely to be true across all Harbor Freight brands, there are a few Hyper Tough fans who would swear up and down that some of its tools provide far more bang for your buck. These include pry bars, and even a few 12V power tools that currently bear the HT logo.

These claims were made during a recent Reddit thread that was specifically dedicated to discussing Hyper Tough tools that users believe outperform the various options available at Harbor Freight. The original poster on that thread notes specifically that they felt Hyper Tough's Pry Bars are one such option, noting the likelihood that the handheld tools are manufactured by Wilde Tool Company as part of its private labeling operation. One Redditor quickly chimed in to confirm that the brand's pry bars are pretty unbeatable, particularly in the context of their price point.

Moreover, they point out that Hyper Tough's Pry Bars are made in America, which can be a big deal for some shoppers. Several other commenters agreed the pry bars are more than solid, with Redditors in other threads not only agreeing on their quality, but claiming they are equal to or better than those from Harbor Freight. One even claimed theirs, "Changed my whole attitude about Walmart tools."

The comments are even more positive in the user review section of Hyper Tough's 36-inch Pry Bar, which holds a 4.8-star rating. While few of those reviews call out HF specifically, they almost universally rave about the durability and heavy duty build of the Hyper Tough pry bars, with one user claiming theirs is, "one of the best made [sic] pry bars I've seen in my 41 years as a mechanic." As noted, price is also a big selling point for the 36-inch model, which Walmart is selling for $22.88, making pry bars one area you can skimp on if you're assembling a mechanic's tool kit.  

As you might expect, those made-in-the-U.S. pry bars are not the only Hyper Tough tools praised for their quality in that Reddit thread. Indeed, several of those HT loving Redditors were quick to point out that some tools in the brand's 12V Lithium-Ion powered lineup may be every bit as worth a look. 

Hyper Tough's 12V offerings get a mention pretty early on in the proceedings, though one user in particular put the HF comparison into perspective with the comment, "I would say the 12v brushless line they got is better than the Hercules 12v line." As a reminder, Hercules is also one of Harbor Freight's in-house brands. Meanwhile, a later post took Harbor Freight's Bauer brand to task, stating, "I've got the high torque impact and it's a beast compared to the Bauer." A couple of Redditors even point out that a study conducted by the Torque Test Channel proved the HT Impact Wrench is as impressive as any on the market.

In terms of quality hand tools, some in the Reddit thread also note that Hyper Tough's wrenches, ratchets, sockets and mechanic's tools are hard to beat at the price point. One poster specifically claims that HT's gear is "the best option" they'd found while pointing out that the brand's sizing options make them far more desireable than the more limited options they'd found from HF's Pittsburgh brand. It is worth noting, however, that many commenters still agree that Harbor Freight gear outdoes Hyper Tough in terms of warranty coverage, so that may be worth considering if you're on the fence.