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Top Impact Drivers of 2024

Editorial Team June 10, 2024 546

Reviews based on Rigorous Performance Testing and Real-World Results

We started our Impact Driver Tests thinking that there wouldn’t be much of a difference between the top brands and the rest… but we were wrong – Very Wrong

What’s the difference between Impact Drivers and Drills?

Comparing drills and impact drivers is like comparing pushing something to punching something. When you push an object, you generate a constant amount of force, meanwhile when you punch, you exert a higher amount of force but its not constant. The impact driver uses a little hammer that keeps on punching – creating a much higher maximum torque than a drill would – making it ideal for tough lug nuts and serious screws.

Making the perfect impact driver is no easy task – you have to find a way to balance size, speed, strength, handle, and cost. That’s why we tested for Results, Durability, Build Quality, and Design. We met with our team of professional builders and average homeowners to get a holistic view on which impact drivers are really the best in the business.

Before we get into our list of top picks, it’s important to know what differentiates the top impact drivers. We ran a series of tests to figure out which impact driver has the best speed, handle, durability and battery life. Some of these impact drivers passed with flying colors, meanwhile others could barely get past stage one.

We also took note of some perks and features that we think every impact driver must have, and made sure to include it in our rankings.

Testing Results

DeWalt 20V MAX XR - 214.99$

The DeWalt would’ve blown us out of the water if it was any other brand – but we expected top notch from DeWalt and they delivered. DeWalt smashed our Lug Nut Test out of the Water, with the fastest average time to screw in a lug nut of 7.19 seconds – compared to an average time of 18.82 seconds obtained by the Craftsman. We also noticed that the DeWalt didn’t budge or vigorously shake our arm while we were driving those lug nuts in. Results were practically the same with the time it took to screw out the lug nut – Dewalt just edging out Milwaukee by 0.15 seconds

PROS:

CONS:

Milwaukee 2953-20 18V - 262.02$

Neck and Neck in our tests with DeWalt – The Milwaukee was a very close second. The handle of the driver felt very nice and the weight balance was perfect. Like the DeWalt – the Milwaukee also did a great job in not vigorously shaking our arm and tiring our arms out. One interesting thing we noticed in our test results is that the Milwaukee actually got slower while we did our tests. On the first attempt – the Milwaukee recorded a time of 6.54 seconds – the fastest time in the combine, meanwhile on the third attempt, it recorded a time of 8.32 seconds.

PROS:

CONS:

Ryobi ONE+ 18V (Battery Pack Sold Separately) - 130.79$

Ryobi claims our bronze medal with a distant third place. The Ryobi found it difficult to balance the Cost, Speed, Size, and Handle. Although cheap – the Ryobi performed an average of 5 seconds more than both the Milwaukee and the Craftsman. We also noticed that Ryobi has an awkward design – making it difficult to use in tight spaces. Unlike the Milwaukee, the Ryobi actually got better, performing its worst race on the first attempt, and then got significantly faster. Another important thing to note is that when we first picked it up – due to the interestingly shaped battery – the weight balance felt a lot more awkward than the top 2 brands.

PROS:

CONS:

Craftsman V20 - 139.00$

While having a much better design than the #3 Ryobi, the Craftsman, was definitely lagging behind the other three in terms of results. More than 2.5x slower than the Milwaukee and the DeWalt – its fastest time was 16.50 seconds and then got significantly slower on the second and third attempts at 20.50 seconds and 19.47 seconds. Not only were the results poor, the handle was also not great. After the third lug nut – it felt like our arms were put through a high intensity work out.