Professional Cordless Drills

Lithium-ion drills for construction jobs or building furniture

The sweet spot for full-size cordless drills seems to be right in the $200 range with compact 18-volt Li-ion batteries. The half-inch chucks in these drills take a wider range of large bits, but still close down for smaller ones. Lithium-ion batteries hold their charge longest between uses, an advantage for homeowners who might not use a drill very often. Pros often prefer big 3.0-Ah batteries to minimize the number of battery changes, but fast chargers mean that compact Li-ion drills using 1.5-Ah batteries have minimal downtime. These compact drill/drivers are lighter, less tiring to use and cost a lot less.

Among 18-volt compact Li-ion cordless drill drivers, objective comparison tests give the Makita BDF452HW (*Est. $185) a firm lead as the top-ranked cordless drill for big jobs. A November 2009 comparison at Fine Woodworking ranks the Makita BDF452HW as both the "best overall" cordless drill and the best value; plus, it's an Editor's Choice cordless drill at Popular Woodworking magazine. The Makita BDF452HW is lightweight, has a good LED light, easy battery changes, and recharging takes just 15 minutes. Makita's three-year warranty is another plus. The Makita LCT200W kit (*Est. $250) adds an impact driver, useful for driving big fasteners like lag screws.

The Milwaukee 2601-22 (*Est. $180) cordless drill edges the Makita in both the 2010 and 2011 surveys of Fine Homebuilding and Fine Woodworking readers and tops the Makita at Tools of the Trade. There, testers find the Milwaukee's fuel gauge easier to read and like the way the speed and clutch selectors work. Milwaukee provides a five-year warranty, and as a brand, outranks Makita in two major surveys. On the other hand, several comparison tests elsewhere find the Makita BDF452HW significantly more powerful than the Milwaukee 2601-22, with better battery life.

Budget Li-ion drills for big jobs

Comparison tests and owner-written reviews highly rate the Ryobi P815 (*Est. $140) 18-volt Li-ion drill/driver. At 3 pounds, 12 ounces, the Ryobi weighs six ounces more than the top-ranked Makita BDF452HW, and its 50-minute charger is less convenient for long jobs. Fine Woodworking rates the Ryobi a notch down from the Makita on three different factors: torque, battery life and comfort.

The cheaper 19.2-volt compact Li-ion Craftsman 17310 C3 (*Est. $120) isn't included in comparison tests of cordless drills, but it earns above-average reviews from more than 30 owners reviewing it at Sears.com. Its main drawback is that it includes only one battery. The included 30-minute charger likely overcomes this to an extent, and owners don't complain about run time.

You can find other inexpensive Li-ion cordless drills, but performance can be very inferior. For instance, Popular Woodworking says that the 3/8-inch Skil 2815-02 (*Est. $105) takes three or four hours to recharge, and lacks the torque to seat a lag screw.