5 Harbor Freight Yard Tools That Outshine Ryobi's In Price And Quality

One of the go-to shopping spots for amateur DIYers and trade professionals is Harbor Freight, thanks to the careful balance between quality and affordability in everything the hardware retailer sells. At Harbor Freight, you can find a wide assortment of hand tools, power tools, storage solutions, small accessories, and more, and you'd be hard-pressed to find many products rated below 4 stars. Harbor Freight customers are generally pleased with the quality they receive, especially at such low prices.

Harbor Freight is able to keep prices so low by simply cutting out the middleman and engineering its own tools. That's why the majority of the brands you'll come across are actually owned by Harbor Freight, and why power tool prices here tend to be lower than at Home Depot, Lowe's, and other hardware retailers when you shop bigger tool brands like Makita, DeWalt, or Ryobi. Even better, many of the tools that are cheaper at Harbor Freight are also more powerful or offer more features than alternatives from larger tool brands. After browsing through the online store, we've gathered five Harbor Freight yard tools that outshine Ryobi's.

If you're in need of an auger to dig holes for a new fence or for ready-to-plant trees, choosing one from Harbor Freight could save you money without skimping on performance. The Atlas 80V Cordless Auger retails for $289.99, delivers 70 ft-lbs of torque, and comes with a 6-inch bit, though it's compatible with most auger bits between 2 and 8 inches. It's equipped with ergonomic handles that help reduce vibration during use, anti-kickback technology for when you accidentally hit rocks or roots, and a quiet brushless motor. On a single charge with an Atlas 80V 4Ah battery (sold separately), it can drill up to 54 6-inch holes.

Compare this to Ryobi's 40V Cordless Auger, and the Atlas model above clearly wins. This Ryobi tool retails for $369 and offers "more power than a 52cc gas auger." This isn't a direct power comparison, but generally speaking, it's less powerful than the 70 ft-lbs of torque offered by the Atlas auger above. As an example, this 52cc gas-powered auger by Predator only offers 45 ft-lbs of torque. Ryobi's auger is powered by a 40V 4Ah battery (sold separately), so it can dig up to 30 holes per charge. Compared to the Atlas model, this Ryobi model does share a similar anti-kickback system, large handles, and a brushless motor.

The Portland 18-Inch Chainsaw at Harbor Freight is a great gas-powered yard tool, priced affordably at $189.99 and equipped with a 42cc, two-stroke engine and an 18-inch Oregon bar and chain that let it seamlessly cut logs up to 36 inches in diameter. It also features metal bucking spikes, an inertia-activated chain brake, an ergonomic handle, an anti-vibration system, an automatic oiler, and a side-access chain tensioner for easier adjustments.

Ryobi's Two-Cycle 18-Inch Chainsaw is more expensive at $229 and features a less powerful 38cc engine that's capable of slicing through a max diameter of 32 inches, a diameter 4 inches smaller than the Portland model can cut through. It does share a lot of the smaller, quality-of-life features the Portland model offers. Ryobi highlights its inertia-activated chain brake, anti-vibration handle, automatic oiler, side-access chain tensioner, and, unique to the Ryobi model, a Safe-t-tip bar that protects the user from rotational kickback, plus a carrying case. If the Portland model features anything equivalent to the Safe-t-tip bar or the carrying case, Harbor Freight's listing doesn't mention it.

When it first launched and only had three reviews, the Bauer 20V Cordless Pruner was deemed a worthy buy by customers. At the time of writing, Bauer's Cordless Pruner has amassed 75 reviews and maintained a perfect 5-star average and 100% recommendation rate. It's equipped with an efficient, brushless motor, hardened steel blades, an ergonomic grip, and a 20V battery that delivers up to 2,000 cuts on a single charge. Perhaps most impressively, the pruner offers a 1.1-inch diameter cut capacity, perfect for thin branches and shrubs.

This Bauer pruner is incredibly affordable, retailing for just $64.99, less than half the price of Ryobi's equivalent cordless pruner model, the 18V One+ Pruning Shear, which is currently set for sale at $149. Ryobi's battery-powered pruning shears are also powered by a brushless motor and offer a comfortable handle, but this power tool promises a slightly smaller 1-inch cutting capacity and doesn't have a published estimate for how many cuts it could make on a single battery charge. However, the 18V battery is less powerful than Bauer's 20V battery.

A pole hedge trimmer is certainly a more niche yard tool, but incredibly helpful nonetheless for those who need it. This Atlas 40V Cordless Pole Hedge Trimmer is priced at just $84.99 and comes equipped with a plethora of helpful features and powerful specs. It can cut branches up to 5/8 inch in diameter with its 20-inch dual-action blade, strong motor, and easy-to-maneuver eight-position articulating head. For taller shrubs, it can extend up to 10 feet, and it's fairly comfortable to hold for longer trimming sessions, thanks to an overmold comfort grip.

This Harbor Freight tool outshines Ryobi's 40V Pole Hedge Trimmer, which has shorter 18-inch dual-action blades, a less maneuverable four-position articulating head, and extends up to 8 feet for taller hedges. Ryobi's hedge trimmer also has a 5/8-inch cut capacity, but because of its more limited reach, the Harbor Freight tool is a better buy. Plus, the Ryobi hedge trimmer retails for $149, nearly $65 more than the Atlas model at Harbor Freight.

Harbor Freight seems to know what makes a good chainsaw, and this $84.99 Bauer 20V Cordless 10-Inch Chainsaw is one outdoor tool worth adding to your collection. It's fitted with a low-kickback, 10-inch bar and chain that allows for a 9-inch diameter cut capacity, ideal for tackling thicker branches or even small trees and logs. For ease and comfort, it features an automatic chain-tensioning system, an automatic oiler, a viewing window to check oil levels, and a lightweight design that's easier to use for longer cutting sessions.

Ryobi has a similar tool priced at $179: the 18V One+ 10-Inch Chainsaw. To be clear, one of the biggest differences between this chainsaw and the Bauer tool (and one of the reasons for such a significant price increase) is that this Ryobi chainsaw has a brushless motor, which can be quieter and more efficient than brushed motors. Beyond the brushless motor, it has a 10-inch bar and chain that can make cuts up to 8 inches in diameter, one inch less than the Bauer chainsaw. The Ryobi model mentions a push-button oiler but doesn't note an automatic chain-tensioning system or an oil viewing window.

To find these five Harbor Freight yard tools that outshine Ryobi in both price and quality, we first headed to Harbor Freight's website, specifically to the Outdoor Power Tools section and the garden sprayers page. We looked at each and every tool on these pages to find ones that directly compared to a Ryobi product, identified by a 'Compare to' callout near the item's price.

To narrow our list further, we searched for the Ryobi tool competitor that Harbor Freight had listed. With the Harbor Freight and Ryobi tools side by side, we compared their specs, prices, and ratings. Then, we selected five Harbor Freight tools that were better than Ryobi in price, features offered, and overall quality.