The best cordless drills are frequently marketed to professionals, which makes sense since those people probably make up the bulk of their customer base. However, they’re also among the most useful tools any individual can have in their tool chest in the garage. From mounting shelves and big screen TVs to doing minor repairs around the property, it’s something every homeowner will find incredible handy at one point or another. If you like taking on any kind of handyman tasks around the house, the best cordless drills can help you finish those jobs faster, while helping you get more professional-looking results.
For this list, we’re focusing on the best cordless drills that make sense for home DIY users. As such, we put less emphasis on heavy-duty impact and hammer drills, instead focusing on more standard models that will be better suited to majority of the DIY crowd who are likely to use it for various home installation, light repair, and more basic woodworking tasks. While some of the included models will have powerful motors and more advanced features, we also included models with lower RPMs aimed specifically at casual home users, since we’ve found them sufficient enough for the bulk of most DIY tasks.
These are the best cordless drills to keep in your handyman toolbox.
Black+Decker 20V Max BDCDD120C
Pros
- Lightweight and compact
- Very easy to handle
- Comes with battery and charger
Cons
- Takes longer to drill
Max speed: 650 RPM
Weight: 2.5 pounds
The most inexpensive option in the list, this cordless drill is extremely lightweight, compact, and easy to control, making it an absolute breeze to use. While it doesn’t have as much power as other drills in the list, it’s absolutely enough for most home tasks, whether it be drilling holes for a wall shelf, attaching new handles to cabinet door, or assembling a new piece of furniture. It does take noticeably longer to drill holes compared to other cordless drills in the list, so you might want to go for something more robust if you plan to do a lot of that. For most people, though, this has enough muscle to get you through most common tasks, even throwing in a built-in LED light for those times you’re working in dark spaces. It comes complete with battery and charger, too, so no extra purchases necessary.
Skil Pwr Core 20 DL6293B-10
Pros
- Compact size fits in tight spaces
- Powerful drilling and driving with smaller bits
- Very bright work light
Cons
- Struggles with larger drill bits
Max speed: 1800 RPM
Weight: 3 pounds
At just three pounds, this is impressively lightweight for an 1800 RPM cordless drill, so you get a good amount of power without having to deal with plenty of heft. It has enough power to handle most driving tasks with ease, while being compact enough to fit inside tight spaces (the head is just 6.1 inches long). While it drills well enough, too, it did struggle when we used the larger paddle drill bit (included), requiring you to go to a slower speed to get the necessary torque. Basically, it will require some finessing when drilling, but it can get the job done. The integrated work light is also much brighter than what we’ve seen on most drills, which was a nice surprise. We’re also stoked that the battery can be charged via USB, instead of forcing you to exclusively use the included charger.
Bosch PS31-2A 12V Max Drill/Driver
Pros
- Variable speed trigger gives excellent control
- Easy-to-adjust 20-position clutch
- Very lightweight
Cons
- Drops power when it gets hot
Max speed: 1300 RPM
Weight: 2.1 pounds
Not a fan of those large batteries at the bottom of the grip on cordless drills? Maybe you’ll have a better time working this Bosch model, which uses a cylindrical battery that slots into the handle instead. Because of the smaller battery, it’s insanely lightweight, tipping the scales at just 2.1 pounds, all while offering up to 1300 RPM, giving you a decent amount of power in such a compact rig. We like the variable speed trigger that gives users a great sense of control, as well as the 20-position clutch, which was impressively easy to adjust. It drives screws pretty impressively, making easy work of driving even on hard wood, although we did notice it started heating up and dropping power before we finished the two dozen screws we were planning to put in. At this point, you can continue using it at lower speeds or let it cool down a bit. It also handles drilling well, albeit at slower speeds than you would get with more powerful professional-grade drills. What we didn’t like is the position of the work light, as it doesn’t properly illuminate the target area, so you might need to use a dedicated work light in some instances.
DeWalt DCD701F2 Xtreme 12V Max
Pros
- Comfortable ergonomics
- Handles common drilling and driving tasks easily
- Plenty of power in small package
Cons
- Won’t handle heavy-duty jobs
Max speed: 1500 RPM
Weight: 2.4 pounds
With a head that measures under six inches long (5.97 inches, to be exact), this cordless drill is incredibly compact, while also being lightweight at just 2.4 pounds. Despite the size, we’re impressed with how well this thing drills, carving a hole much faster than anything we’ve seen under $100. More impressively, though, it felt very comfortable to use, more so than any other drill in the list. The grip just feels very ergonomic, working well with both bigger and smaller hands alike, while the whole thing feels perfectly balanced. It’s quite the feat. We also liked the easy-to-adjust clutch settings, the LED that stays on for 30 seconds after you stop pulling the trigger (so you can check the hole or screw you just finished), and the efficient battery usage (we put in 60 screws and it still had plenty of juice). Simply put, it’s about as perfect a home DIY drill as you can ask for, only falling short if you try to use for more heavy-duty jobs.
Milwaukee 3601-22CT M18
Pros
- Powerful drilling capability
- Capable of tougher tasks
- Very compact head size
Cons
Max speed: 1700 RPM
Weight: 3.2 pounds
We tried out a bunch of 12V and 18V cordless drills from Milwaukee and this one was our favorite of the lot. For one, it has an impressively short head measuring just 5.7 inches, allowing it to fit into spaces other drills might not. Despite the compact size, it’s surprisingly powerful, drilling holes and driving long screws in, at least, twice the speed of the sub-$100 drills in the list. Seriously, the darn thing bore through hardwood like it’s nothing. Suffice to say, this is the one you get if you want to take on tougher jobs. Despite all that power, it uses power pretty efficiently. We drilled 30 one-inch holes, for instance, and barely made a dent in the battery, so you can do a lot of drilling and driving with a single full charge in this thing.
Bosch GSR12V-300FCB22
Pros
- Unique right-angle and offset-angle attachments
- Good drilling power
- Very compact and lightweight
Cons
- Not as powerful as similarly-priced options
Max speed: 1300 RPM
Weight: 1.8 pounds
The most compact option in the list, this cordless drill has a head that measures just 4.5 inches long, with the whole thing weighing well under two pounds with the included 2Ah battery in tow. Yep, it’s that compact. It has decent power, too, driving screws and drilling holes very capably, while the 20-position clutch made it easy to dial in the torque. However, that’s not even its biggest selling point. Instead, it’s the selection of quick-change attachments that allow it to drill in creative angles. One attachment, for instance, lets you put the bit at a 90-degree angle to the head, while another puts it at an offset angle for those times you’re drilling right along the edges of a surface. It even has an optional rotary hammer attachment that turns it into a hammer drill for boring holes on masonry. While it’s not replacement for a pro-grade cordless drill (it’s only 12V, after all), it’s an absolutely incredible addition to any DIY toolbox.
