18 Of The Best Lawn Mower Models You Can Buy For Cutting Tall Grass

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

The lawn mower is a tool that you probably lean on often for heavy yard maintenance. Grass may take up the bulk of the space in your lawn, so getting a quality lawn mower that can slash through the growth with ease is essential. This tool is even more important when cutting grass after a lengthy absence. Perhaps you've just come back from an extended summer vacation or own a large property and can't realistically cut all the growth around your homestead on a regular basis. When complications like these come into the picture, a very good mower that's capable of handling plenty of tall grass can help get the job done with far less hassle.

If you're in a bind, you can often perform a "first cut" of the lawn while lifting the cut deck (by pushing down on the handle of a push mower). But ask anyone who has ever resorted to this tactic — myself included — and you'll find an unhappy homeowner. The task is hard to perform, and it leaves a nasty job in its wake. Instead of resorting to half measures and stopgap solutions, consider one of these alternatives. Each one is purpose-built to easily mow dense, tall, and otherwise unruly lawns. And while some of the most specialized tools on this list cost significantly more than a standard lawn mower, others are quite affordable.

String mowers operate as a tool straddling the divide between a traditional push-style lawn mower and a string trimmer. Naturally, they feature the same kind of string line as a weed whacker, but they generally work with thicker strings and run on much larger engines. The tool features a powerplant oriented in largely the same way as a traditional mower, but instead of running a metal blade that needs resharpening throughout the growing season, there's a replaceable cutting line. These tools also tend to utilize a more open structure that makes it possible to push the tool directly against what you're looking to cut. With a peppy rotational energy and more versatile cutting capabilities, this can be an ideal tool for gaining control of overgrowth throughout the yard.

A solid option in this class is the Earthquake 22-Inch 160cc String Mower, which you can find at Tractor Supply or Home Depot for around $400. It's one of the more obscure lawn and garden tools you'll find there, using a 160cc Viper engine and cutting a 22-inch swath with a heavy-duty nylon line. The mower rolls on 14-inch wheels, notably larger than those of a standard mower. This makes it more capable in tall and dense growth. Another Tractor Supply option is the Toro 22-Inch, 163cc String Mower, coming in at $480, which runs on a Briggs & Stratton engine and offers a very similar spec sheet.

The flail mower is a heavy-duty cutting tool that's generally used for field management. It's pulled behind a tractor or other landscaping vehicle. This tool utilizes free swinging blades, known as flails, to perform its cuts. They're attached to a drum that spins horizontally, allowing the flails to rapidly fire across the ground and pummel unruly growth. The cutting tool is powered by the power take-off system (PTO), a power transfer shaft that utilizes the tractor's engine to lend power to the attachment. These tools can operate with different blades attached, allowing for finer cutting and mulching or for the complete destruction of mixed shrubby material like low-lying bush growth.

Two interesting models of flail mower are the MechMaxx NAM60 60-Inch PTO Driven Flail Mower (the smallest of six options from the brand) and the John Deere 360 Flail Mower. The Deere model is rated for use with tractors producing between 30 and 75 hp while the NAM60 is recommended for use with tractors ranging from 30 to 60 hp. The John Deere model offers a slightly shorter 58.5-inch cut width and an adjustable height ranging from 0.5 to 5 inches, and operates with 108 cutting flails. The NAM60 operates with 24 flail blades and features a blade ground clearance ranging from 0.6 to 2 inches. Both are very expensive, with an asking price of over $2,000.

The traditional gas-powered mower can be a useful tool here, but only under the right circumstances. You'll want to opt for a gas model, specifically one with a large engine that produces a high max torque. In dense growth, you'll need a serious output to continue shearing through the grass, since it will slow your blades' rotation more than typical lawn grass.

Finding a sufficiently powerful mower isn't going to be a problem for a motivated shopper, but it's worth noting that the self-propelled feature may be a necessity, as pushing the tool around in thick grass can be extremely taxing. You'll also want to get a model with a wider range adjustable heights that what most mowers offer. The higher, the better, since that lets you cut down the growth in more steps rather than hoping for the best while shearing it down in one or two passes.

There are plenty of great options when it comes to powerful mowers. The YardMax 201cc Self-Propelled Mower is $379 at Home Depot, while the Toro Recycler 163cc Self-Propelled Mower comes in at $569 at Lowe's. Both are powerful cutting tools with multiple self-propelled speeds and a 22-inch cut deck. The YardMax model rolls on spike tread rubber tires for improved traction and offers cut heights ranging from 1.38 to 3.55 inches across seven settings. Meanwhile, the Toro model produces a significant 7.25 ft-lb of torque and can be positioned at a height ranging from one to four inches.

The riding lawn mower, or lawn tractor in its more versatile form, takes much of the physical labor out of the equation without vaulting you into the truly expensive sphere of pro lawn maintenance equipment. Homeowners with large yards often rely on lawn tractors to make quick work of their mowing tasks, and people who are worried about managing overgrown segments can also get a lot of value out of this sort of tool. Riding mowers and lawn tractors feature a deck that lowers down to the height required, and that usually has a wide range of cutting heights. That can be a major boost to your work, as it allows you to trim down the lawn in multiple passes.

As with most popular lawn tools, there are plenty of good lawn tractor options, like the Cub Cadet XT1 Enduro LT, a 22 hp lawn tractor featuring a V-Twin Kohler engine ($2,599 at Home Depot) and the John Deere S110 ($2,599 at Lowe's), featuring a 19 hp engine. Both tractors can operate numerous attachments via their PTO functionality. The Cub Cadet model offers greater yard coverage (up to two acres versus the John Deere's one acre rating), as well as a tighter turning radius. Both feature multiple blades and have a one-inch minimum cutting height.

The rough cut mower is another towable tool that is usually reserved for lawn care professionals rather than homeowners. They typically rely on the PTO system of the tractor they're hooked up to in order to start cutting. They feature blunt, swinging blades that smash though dense weeds, brush, and grass. As the name suggests, this tool delivers a "rough" cut designed to chop unruly growth down to size. This tool is used ahead of a finish mower, which is not as powerful but produces a nicer lawn.

When professionals are handling extreme levels of growth, the rough cut mower is an essential part of their work. These tools are great for roadside cuts along rural highways, large agricultural plots, and other areas that may not have been mowed for years.

Some notable tools in this category include the Swisher 11.5 Horsepower Classic Rough-Cut Mower. This is a towable unit that's made in Missouri and offers a 44-inch cutting width. It can cut grass in a range between three and seven inches from the ground, which is what you'd expect for a first-cut tool for overgrown area. It rolls on 16-inch pneumatic tires and carries heavy-duty blades that can cut grass and thin stems. The blades can be safely engaged from a distance, thanks to the operation console. For an even more potent rough cut mower, the Earthquake 17.5 Horsepower Tow-Behind Rough Cut Mower offers the same 44-inch cut width with a height range between 3.5 and 7.5 inches. It can also be horizontally offset to four feet on either side of the vehicle towing the unit. Both units come in at well over $3,000.

Sickle bar mowers can be operated as push tools, but many are made to be pulled by a tractor. The latter usually runs on the accompanying tractor's PTO system, like many other heavy-duty lawn tools. Essentially, a sickle bar mower operates in much the same way as a hedge trimmer, albeit with a significantly larger blade.

The tool features multiple small blades that cut in a reciprocating action, just like a hedge trimmer or a hair trimmer for your body. The rapid side to side movement of the tool is a great way to cut through high growth quickly because it bogs down less often than a blade that spins through the material. Tractor-pulled models are more powerful and even less prone to suffer from this.

BCS America offers sickle bar mower attachments in four cutting sizes, with the smallest 30-Inch Sickle Bar Mower listed for $1,900 (and its largest 53-model priced at $2,180). The mower can handle saplings and other dense growth up to 1.5-inches thick, and it offers a cutting height of up to three inches off the ground. Another good option is the MMS 47-Inch Sickle Bar Mower, available at Walmart for about $2,200. This one is not an attachment but an autonomous tool, and runs on a 13.5 hp engine. Both tools feature cutting blades that extend far wider than the main tool body, allowing for plenty of sweeping action around slopes and obstacles.

Rotary brush cutters can be found as push tools or tractor attachments. They feature a series of spinning blades that essentially operate like a more aggressive push mower, to tear through dense grass and bushes with ease, as their name suggests. These tools don't always do a great job of fully mulching woody and large material, but they are a great starting place for those struggling with clearing an overgrown plot.

The Bush Hog 2107 Series Multi-Spindle Rotary Cutter, usually priced at around $7,500, is capable of operating with lower horsepower tractors, making it a viable option for homesteaders with lots of land but a smaller vehicle to manage the growth. It features over seven feet of cutting width alongside a sloped deck that the brand claims is easy to clean. A smaller and cheaper option is the Ignite Attachments 48-Inch Rotary Cutter, an attachment priced at $1,950 that offers an adjustable rear wheel to deliver a cutting height ranging from 1.5 inches all the way up to nine inches. This makes it possible to roll straight over low-lying stumps and other uncuttable growth without worrying about damaging the tool. It's also available in larger models, up to 72 inches in cut width.

An upgrade to the standard riding mower, a zero turn riding mower is a more capable and often larger riding cut tool. They will frequently showcase cut decks of 60 inches or larger, and feature a tight turning radius that allows them to get significantly closer to obstructions than the more rudimentary lawn tractor can offer. They offer a more sophisticated mow in virtually every way when compared to a standard riding lawn mower, but this of course comes with a notable price hike. Unless you're managing a large plot or engage in professional lawn care services yourself, this tool is often filed away in the 'overkill' category. Even so, their mobility, the large cutting deck, and the massive power output that these tools create make them a worthy adversary for an overgrown lawn.

The Toro TimeCutter 22 Horsepower V-Twin Zero Turn Riding Mower is a $3,499 purchase at Lowe's. It's suited to yards up to two acres large and features a cut height ranging from 1.5 to 4.5 inches. The tool offers a top speed of 7mph (3mph in reverse) and can slow down significantly to accommodate precision trimming. Home Depot carries instead the similar Cub Cadet 21.5 Horsepower V-Twin Zero Turn Riding Mower, sold for $3,599. Both offer s 42-inch cut width, and the Cub Cadet can handle cuts as low as one inch. It's suited to yards of up to four acres and runs with a Kawasaki engine.

If all else fails, the trusty weed eater you keep in the garage can be a solid option to blast through high grass. Weed whackers run a stringline to cut through growth. No matter its height, grass stands in no real opposition to the speed and power that a nylon rope attached to a trimmer tool can produce. For large brushes and hardened growth hidden within the high growing grass, it's better to swap to a brush clearing blade. There are plenty of weed whacker models that can accommodate either attachment, and this blade turns your trimmer into something akin to a long range angle grinder. The intense power paired up with a metal cutting blade designed to handle woody and dense material can make the weed eater a formidable, affordable option to handle a yard that's been left to its own devices for too long.

There are quite a few great grass trimmer brands out there, but two standout models are the Echo 21.2cc U-Handle String Trimmer/Brush Cutter ($329 at Home Depot) and the Husqvarna 21.7cc Straight Shaft String Trimmer ($199 at Lowe's). Landscapers who anticipate dealing with heavy growth on a regular basis will want to lean toward the Echo model. The U-handle makes it easier to manage through long, difficult cuts, and the interchangeable string trimming and brush cutting heads make it ideal for handling seriously unruly growths. Husqvarna's straight shaft model is more to the speed of a typical, residential homeowner, albeit with a wider cut swath than is typical for most run-of-the-mill string trimmers.

Our list contains examples of tools that are often used in difficult mowing conditions, especially tall grass, plus a handful that are more rarely seen. All the highlighted products come from reputable brands and are very popular with users. Some of these products are highly specialized, and therefore user ratings are fairly hard to come by. However, the vast majority of these tools are available at your typical big box hardware stores and feature at least 100 user ratings, with an average score of four stars out of five or above.