12 Best Cordless Drills of 2026, Lab-Tested and Reviewed
Consumer Reports put cordless drills from DeWalt, Milwaukee, Ryobi, Skil, and other brands to the test. These models came out on top.
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Whether you’re hanging a shelf, installing a ceiling fan, or building a deck, a cordless drill is a must. We would even argue that it’s the single most important item in your toolbox.
In the past decade, cordless drills have grown lighter, more powerful, and more energy-efficient, making corded drills practically obsolete. These improvements are due to advancements in lithium-ion battery technology and the introduction of brushless motors, which are more powerful despite requiring less energy.
These Li-ion batteries can often be shared with other power tools from the same brand.
“You can use the same batteries for drills, chainsaws, string trimmers, leaf blowers, and the like,” says Allie Chilicki, CR’s market analyst for cordless drills. “Simply make sure you buy the bare tools that match your preferred battery platform [voltage and manufacturer] in order to reap the benefits without having to purchase additional batteries.”
That means your cordless drill choice can actually save you about one-third of the cost of a tool with a battery and charger. Of course, you’ll also be tied to one brand for all your power tools, something important to keep in mind as you shop.
Our full cordless drill ratings include more than 50 models from brands including DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Ryobi, and others. The best performers earn high scores on metrics including power and speed, as well as the amount of time they can last on a single charge and how long they take to recharge.
The high-scoring drills below are broken down into light-duty, general-use, and heavy-duty categories.
Best Light-Duty Cordless Drills
The voltage of a drill dictates the size of the job it can tackle. Light-duty drills are best suited for small jobs around the house, such as assembling flat-packed furniture, changing a light fixture, or drilling into drywall. Their batteries range in power from 12 to 20 volts, but their relatively small motors don’t spin or drive with the same force as heavy-duty or general-use drills even of the same voltage.
This DeWalt DCF610S2 drill will make quick work of many projects, boasting an above-average speed. But it lacks the power of many general-purpose and heavy-duty drills. It may need to be charged midway through a project, but the battery charges quickly, so there’s minimal downtime. This drill weighs 2.1 pounds, making it lighter than average.
What’s included: Two 1.3-amp-hour batteries and a three-year warranty.
Best General-Use Cordless Drills
Lower-voltage drills, which we call general-use drills in our ratings, typically use about 12 volts. They offer plenty of power for most household tasks, like hanging a shelf or tightening screws, and they can weigh as little as half as much as heavy-duty models.
This Hercules HCB91K1 drill has the power for the most demanding applications and exceptional speed. It can last through very long projects on a single charge and will charge very quickly. This drill weighs 4.3 pounds, making it heavier than average. The grip is comfortably sized.
What’s included: A 2-amp-hour battery and a five-year warranty.
This Milwaukee 3403-22 drill is extremely powerful and has a respectable speed. It can last through very long projects on a single charge and recharges quickly. This drill weighs 2.5 pounds, making it lighter than average. The grip is comfortably sized. It’s a little noisy, though.
What’s included: A 4-amp-hour battery and a five-year warranty.
This Skil DL6290A-10 drill is impressive, with powerful speed. While it has a shorter run time compared with the Hercules and Milwaukee drills above, it recharges very quickly, allowing you to complete projects with minimal downtime for charging. This drill weighs 2.6 pounds. The grip is comfortably sized. This model doesn’t come with a storage case or bag, though.
What’s included: A 2-amp-hour battery and a three-year warranty.
The brushless 12-volt DeWalt DCD703F1 delivers solid performance in CR’s tests overall. This lightweight 2.5-pound model earns strong ratings for speed, handling, charging time, and noise at ear level, plus a stellar rating for power. It’s a good choice that costs a bit less than the Milwaukee but still offers a battery that’s usable on a broad platform of other tools. It comes with a single battery, and it has a ⅜-inch chuck, so it can’t take the largest bits.
What’s included: A 2-amp-hour battery and a three-year warranty.
The general-use Makita FD07R1 is a 12-volt cordless drill that weighs just over 2 pounds and stands barely 6 inches tall. Despite its petite profile, this model shines in our power test, making it a solid alternative to some of the larger 18- and 20-volt models. It doesn’t rate as well as some others for run time, but the kit comes with two batteries and a rapid charger, which tops off an empty battery in an impressive 60 minutes. This option is slightly limited by a ⅜-inch chuck.
What’s included: Two 2-amp-hour batteries and a three-year warranty.
This DeWalt DCD701F2 drill has excellent power and above-average speed—plus, its handling is very good, too. It won’t take long to charge, nor will it be especially noisy while it works. This drill weighs 2.4 pounds, making it lighter than average. That said, it has a plastic chuck and doesn’t come with any bit storage.
What’s included: Two 2-amp-hour batteries and a three-year warranty.
Best Heavy-Duty Cordless Drills
Higher-voltage drills, which we call heavy-duty in our ratings, generally run on 18 to 20 volts, or more. Compared with general-use drills, they’re relatively heavy but also more capable of tackling difficult tasks like boring a large hole through studs or joists, or driving hundreds of screws on a single battery charge (something you’ll need to do when building a deck).
The 20-volt, heavy-duty brushless DeWalt DCD801QQ2 is one of our best performers, snagging top ratings for power, speed, and run time. The hefty 4-amp-hour battery makes this drill heavy, but the weight is fairly well distributed, so the drill handles comfortably.
What’s included: Two 4-amp-hour batteries and a three-year warranty.
The Makita GFD02D boasts a staggering 40-volt battery, which works in Makita’s outdoor lawn tools, too. It has above-average power and is fast to drill and drive, earning top marks in that test. It’s also fast to charge and offers exceptional run time. Weighing in at 4.2 pounds, it’s beefy and quite a bit heavier than lighter-duty models. For a little less, you can score the Makita XFD16T, which actually packs a tiny bit more power but takes longer to charge.
What’s included: Two 2.5-amp-hour batteries and a three-year warranty.
The 24-volt heavy-duty Flex FX1171T-2B features a half-inch chuck and a 5-amp-hour battery, providing long run times. At 5.1 pounds, it’s heavier than most of the competition, but it offers performance on a par with the pricier Makita model above. The Flex aces our tests for speed, power, run time, and charge time while costing less than many other models in its class. While most other drills in our ratings have two speed settings, this Flex is equipped with four speed settings, providing handy middle options for drilling into soft metals, such as aluminum.
What’s included: Two 5-amp-hour batteries and a five-year warranty.
The budget-friendly Kobalt KXDD 1424A-03 is a 24-volt cordless drill that aces our tests for power, speed, and run time. This brushless model also offers two speed ranges. On the downside, it takes around 85 minutes to charge an empty battery, which is longer than many other heavy-duty drills we’ve tested.
What’s included: A 4-amp-hour battery and a five-year warranty.
People already using the Ryobi battery platform should consider the 18-volt Ryobi PBLDD02K1, which earns high scores for speed, power, and run time. It’s also quieter than most models we’ve tested. Despite its heavier-than-average weight, its size and balance enable it to handle well. This model has a 1.2-inch chuck and a built-in LED work light. It comes with a carrying case.
What’s included: A 4-amp-hour battery and a three-year warranty.
How CR Tests Cordless Drills
For our cordless drill tests, we clamp each drill onto a device called a dynamometer and measure the revolutions per minute for each one, as well as the amount of torque. We translate those readings into scores for speed as well as power, which reflect how big a hole a drill can bore or how large a fastener it can drive.
To calculate run time, we cycle the batteries on and off to simulate the torturous nature of stop-and-go tasks, such as building a deck. We time how long it takes to drain each battery.
We also assess how long each model takes to fully recharge a discharged battery, how easy the tool is to handle, and how much noise it makes at the user’s ear.
Finally, we incorporate ratings for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction, based on data from CR’s member surveys.
If you’re unsure about what kind of cordless drill to buy, start with our cordless drill buying guide. CR members can also explore our comprehensive cordless drill ratings. You can filter dozens of drills according to your needs, including category, price, weight, and noise level.
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