UK’s best cordless lawn mowers TESTED: Makita, Bosch, Flymo, Ryobi, WORX, Greenworks

Are you surprised to hear Makita cordless lawn mowers the best? No I didn’t think so, Makita are always producing commercial grade kit and hobbyist gardener prices. For just £149.00 , which is less than the Greenworks Tools 2504707 Lawnmower, it blows the competition away. The only lawn mower in its range is the Bosch Rotak 43 LI Ergoflex Cordless Lawn Mower, but even then it can’t keep up with the Makita cordless lawn mower on value.

The Makita out performs every single cordless lawn mower in my opinion on value making it the absolute best cordless lawn mower available for home use. This is easily the best battery lawn mower and the one I use at home and at work sometimes!

Makita DLM380Z Manual 36V Cordless Lawn Mower: simply the best, cuts great, can do a mid-sized garden on one charge, longer grass handled well, great functionality

The Makita DLM380Z Cordless Lawn Mower is the best cordless lawn mower UK in my mind. It weighs 15kg, will cut a lawn over 500m2 if the grass not too long before, it has six cut height adjustments from 25-75mm and is powered by 2 * 5Ah batteries that you purchase separately. These batteries will be ready to go in 15 minutes with a fast charger..amazing. In the video you’ll hear me down rate that sizing to 3-400m2 – to be honest take your pick – it’s really more about how many batteries you have. You could always go with the considerably largely and more robust Makita DLM460Z if size is an issue and you want really heavy duty.

The machine cuts effortlessly and has absolutely no trouble at all with medium length grass . This machine will even cut 15cm long grass relatively well but note you will have to clear the odd blockage – you will notice a bit of a power dip on particularly thick and heavy grass though but when I compare this to the other cordless lawn mowers available this certainly is right up there for performance / power / price. Here’s a look at that cut power:

The bad bits: hardly surprising really and the bulk of the bad reviews I’ve received have been people comparing their old corded electric lawn mowers to cordless lawn mowers. They are two completely different things. If you want the freedom you get from petrol without the smell and noise then a little power sacrifice is just fine by me!

It’s highly manoeuvrable and extremely lightweight compared to a petrol lawn mower. Obviously, it makes considerably less noise and doesn’t smell either. There’s no need to maintain it like a petrol lawn mower, I can tell you I’ve had mine for a couple of years and all I’ve done is sharpen the blade! And here we are comparing it to a petrol lawn mower, that says a lot about this mower….

Could they improve the Makita DLM380Z Manual 36V Cordless Lawn Mower?

I almost felt bad writing that occasionally a Makita cordless lawn mower fails. In all my time selling them I have literally had a couple back faulty in total. Sure, I’ve had complaints where people are comparing petrol and electric mains mowers to this cordless, but they are not the same thing. This is not a manufacture error for sure. The handle to adjust heights has too much flex – you’ve got to support the machine if you’re raising the height – from my video let me show you that more closely:

Makita have smashed it with this cordless lawn mower and if you can’t get on with this one, cordless lawn mowers are regrettably not for you! The Makita DLM380Z Manual 36V Cordless Lawn Mower for my money is easily the best cordless lawn mower in the UK at the moment when it comes to pound for pound value. If they aren’t giving you sensible value when you go to buy, try the DLM382Z instead!

The Flymo Mighti-Mo 300 Li cordless battery lawn mower needs little introduction and prices at £208.95, it’s one of the cheaper cordless lawn mowers. After completely dominating the hover mower market, and what is more, creating it themselves, I might add. They are now going after the well priced cordless lawn mower market too. This is probably of considerable concern to most manufactures seeing that they completely dominate hover mowers and I personally just rated the Flymo Speedi-Mo 360C Electric Wheeled Lawn Mower the best corded electric lawn mower this year. It’s going to be interesting as we go through this review to see how the Flymo cordless lawn mower stacks up here.

Flymo Mighti-Mo 300 Li Cordless Battery Lawn Mower: ‘Very powerful, easy to use, good battery life, light weight, reasonably quick battery charge time but has its flaws’

I’m going to start right off the bat by saying this Flymo cordless lawn mower has its flaws. Firstly, you will never please everyone, especially those who are used to well priced, high performing Flymo hover mowers. Battery technology does not allow us to create the same power and performance as a corded version.

In fact, you could probably say that battery lawn mower technology, to match that of corded electric corded lawn mowers, is going to set you back at least eight times the price. If you’re looking for good value for money, you’re in the wrong place and should be looking at the Flymo Turbo Lite 250 Electric Hover Lawnmower which is a phenomenal bargain. Otherwise, if you still want cordless and huge performance, I am afraid to say it’s a petrol lawn mower that you need.

However, if you have a small garden and you cut the grass frequently, you’re not expecting to have overly long grass often, and you want an environmentally friendly solution that doesn’t involve petrol, then the Flymo Mighti-Mo 300 Li cordless battery lawn mower is worth giving some thought for sure.

Where this Flymo cordless lawn mower is really clever, it’s the cutting span. At only 30cm its small which sounds like a problem, but actually, the smaller cut gives far more power to deliver a good cut. This means you’re not going back and forth over the same patch. The battery is very easy to remove and charge, which by the way, only takes a couple of hours which is pretty good based on the other models.

The blades are easy enough to adjust and had cutting heights from 25-65mm which is more than adequate. The handle folds away and stores neatly. The cordless lawn mower itself is lightweight at 9.9kg and very easy to use. A nice little feature is the safety key, which if removed will totally immobilise the unit. Very handy if you have kids not quite old enough to understand and need to leave the mower unattended.

Overall, I would say if you have a little garden and you cut the lawn frequently, this is a huge upgrade to a petrol lawn mower for you in terms of ease and lack of noise it makes when compared to petrol.

If you’re garden is medium ish sized then you’ll need to charge the battery to get all the way round, it all depends on you as to how you feel about that. A small garden will be fine from one battery charge though and I’ve noticed that you’ll get a solid 15 to 20 minutes from one battery.

I’ve also noticed that you’ll need to strim the edges after. It won’t quite go right up but of course, that’s what a strimmer is designed for!

Could they improve the Flymo Mighti-Mo 300 Li Cordless Battery Lawn Mower?

The Flymo cordless battery lawn mower isn’t that old. It hasn’t been fully tested and developed like their range of hover mowers. It is definitely a work in progress that is worth buying now. If I have to pick a couple of faults then one is the battery release switch which will occasionally jam on you.

The other issue I have is the off machine fails quickly, though I will say, Flymo are instant to replace any valis warranties so just inconvenient, not a deal breaker.

Overall it’s a very nice, but probably not the best battery lawn mower though.

The Ryobi OLM1833H ONE+ cordless lawn mower is a very nice piece of kit. As a budget tool manufacturer with a pretty solid reputation, they have definitely gone above and beyond their average tool range with this cordless lawn mower. Before we go any further. WARNING: I should mention that the Ryobi OLM1833H ONE+ 18V Lawnmower does not come with a battery. That should be factored in the overall price when reviewing this cordless lawn mower.

Ryobi OLM1833H ONE+ 18V Lawnmower: ‘Cuts right to the edge, batteries last plenty enough time, 33cm cutting span, easy to use and cuts really well’

The Ryobi OLM1833H ONE+ cordless lawn mower is a smashing piece of kit and although more expensive at £584.61 than the Flymo Mighti-Mo 300 Li Cordless Battery Lawn Mower, in my mind it is a better piece of machinery and much better value for money. Firstly, it cuts right to the edge which reduces any strimming you might have to do. It also collects grass very well. The batteries will work for long enough to mow a small garden comfortably, if you go for the new 9 Ah battery you might even get round a medium sized garden.

It’s light enough at 12.2kg and very easy to use. It’s a rotary cutter and doesn’t leave a stripe down the lawn which is fine for me. Overall if you’ve got a small to small – mid-sized garden then the Ryobi cordless lawn mower is a solid buy.

It does have a couple of flaws though as you would expect from a budget tool manufacturer. Firstly if you get unlucky you could end up with a manufacturer production dud. This means it’s just not very good but you can send it back for a refund or replacement so not all sad. It will definitely lack power when it comes to long grass but don’t blame the Ryobi cordless lawn mower for that alone.

This applies to all cordless lawn mowers though so not a design fault from Ryobi. Apart from that, it’s a very sensible bit of kit to cut your lawn and eliminates the need for power cords and petrol engines.

Could they improve the Ryobi OLM1833H ONE+ 18V Lawnmower?

One thing I’d like to see is them change the way the product is marketed. Whilst someone in the industry will know of Ryobi, ‘ZeroTool’ doesn’t really mean anything to anyone unless you specifically know it means no batteries. You can easily buy this without realising there’s a battery and charger cost to come. That’s fine, but it is sure annoying when it arrives and you have to wait again to cut the lawn.

By contrast, the Makita range always mention ‘bare unit’. Now, OK, you might not follow that but there’s something there to investigate further. My best guess on ‘ZeroTool’ is you don’t need any tools to set it up. Food for thought Ryobi. Other than that, this is a step up from the Flymo cordless lawn mower in my opinion and would easily be classed as a solid battery mower worth buying for small gardens.

Greenworks have really popped up from nowhere. They are making some really cracking cordless tools, not just the Greenworks cordless lawn mower. I really quite like this mower and it’s definitely a mid-sized garden and up piece of equipment. It comes with plenty of features that we will discuss in more detail and generally, a very good cordless mower.

Greenworks 40V Cordless Lawn Mower: ‘very powerful cordless lawn mower, good battery, safety immobiliser key but manufacturer teething issues’

The Greenworks 40V cordless lawn mower is essentially one of the best cordless lawn mowers money can buy at this price. Being £179.99, it’s pretty much the same cost as the Ryobi OLM1833H ONE+ 18V Lawnmower, but the standard battery gives a longer cut which needs to be purchased separately. It’s a much bigger machine than the Ryobi cordless lawn mower too. Overall I prefer it to the Ryobi and it does the job well.

Changing the depth of cut is really easy. You just adjust it via the lever on top. The battery charges fast enough. It weighs 15kg so can be pushed around pretty comfortably and has a really cool mulching feature as well. It also has an anti vibration system that appears to work well too. I feel like the ride is comfortable so to speak. It has two battery options, 2Ah or 4Ah. If you’re doing heavy work don’t skimp, buy big batteries. I have not reviewed the version with batteries on purpose, as it’s for sale with only a 2Ah batteries. Even for light work stump up and buy the big ones. Honestly, that’s a real pro tip!

Everything points to a very nice piece of kit and well priced. But I can’t help but be a little disappointed.

Firstly let’s be reasonable and point out only a tiny percentage of the Greenworks cordless lawn mowers are faulty. The chances of you getting a dud one are slim. The main reason is; no one is perfect. We know that. It’s how we handle a problem that defines us. You can’t find a contact number for Greenworks easily if something goes wrong, and being a low cost, good value tool range, it invariably does have the odd hiccup. There’s even one report of a customer waiting literally over six months for a refund.

For all of the performance and many many happy customers, Greenworks need to work a bit on their customer care side. Certainly it’s holding back sales. Essentially they have a great product but reduced confidence; that takes it down a few notches for me.

Could they improve the Greenworks Tools 2504707 Lawnmower?

I really don’t feel like the Greenworks 40V cordless lawn mower owes us anything else for the £179.99 price tag. They’ve done a brilliant job of the machine itself. Where they need to improve is the after sales care. If that means they can’t maintain this fantastic price then so be it. They shouldn’t sell the overall package short in an attempt to get customers through the door. Overall, as long as you’re not one of the tiny minority that get a dud, this is a total steal as cordless lawn mowers go. When price considered it’s a definite buy but not ahead of the Makita DLM380Z Manual 36V Lawn Mower.

I’m going to shoot right off the bat and say the WORX WG779E.2 cordless lawn mower is the best cordless lawn mower I have reviewed so far. It was built to be used by you, the customer. Now that sounds silly if you read it, but what I mean is they have tried to think about what you need from a cordless lawn mower and deliver it to you. Read on and I’ll clear this all up!

WORX WG779E.2 Cordless Lawn Mower: Very well designed, great performance, cuts close to edges and a decent sized collection bag

It sounds simple but it’s genius. So far it’s the only lawn mower that delivers a close cut to the edge, technology that’ll ramp up power consumption if you hit a heavy patch of grass to keep it going, twin batteries for a more stable 40V delivery overall, and a pretty sensible 30 litre grass collection box. Well done WORX. You’ve hit the nail on the head, for a cheap cordless lawn mower, this genuinely works. If you think this is only £20 or so more than the Flymo Mighti-Mo 300 Li Cordless Battery Lawn Mower, you would have to say this is an absolute bargain.

It has variable height cutting adjustment from 20-70mm which is easy to do via a lever, it only weighs 12kg so getting around is easy, tt even folds away nicely for small storage spaces. In short, I am pretty impressed with the overall package provided by the WORX WG779E.2 cordless lawn mower. It’s built with a rear roller so you can make a simple stripe effect too.

It does have a niggle or two though. You need to realise this mower won’t cut a lawn that is maintained poorly. If you cut your lawn once every 6-8 weeks then it’s not for you. You’ll need to stick with an electric lawn mower with power cord.

If you keep your lawn cut every couple of weeks or so this will be a great tool. It’s just not designed for the heavier work. WORX cordless lawn mowers are pretty powerful for your average small garden. They also are not very clear about about battery life. I would say the 2Ah batteries will give you a solid 15 to 20 minutes and probably cut just under 150m2 in one go. But, they will do that very well and it’s a solid buy.

Could they improve the WORX WG779E.2 Cordless Lawn Mower?

I don’t think it’s fair to ask anymore from the WORX WG779E.2 cordless lawn mower. It’s priced brilliantly at £199.99. You have to appreciate the constraints of a cheap cordless lawn mower. You will not be able to cut really long grass easily. So bear it in mind and you dan’t go far wrong. As with all cordless lawn mowers, one does go wrong from time to time but they put it right so not much to worry about.

After talking up the Makita DLM380Z Manual 36V Cordless Lawn Mower so much, it was hard to get myself to write about the Bosch Rotak 43 LI Ergoflex cordless lawn mower. Don’t get me wrong, I think this is a great bit of kit, and in fairness they sell more than the Makita too I believe. In my mind though, it’s just not as good pound for pound. If you think about the fact it’s nearly double the price of the Makita and doesn’t offer much more performance, it is definitely left in trouble. But in the interests of being fair I shall review it on it’s own merits!

Bosch Rotak 43 LI Ergoflex cordless lawn mower: ‘Powerdrive assisted cutting, 50 litre grass box, grass combs to get edges, and the batteries charge fast’

The best thing about the Bosch Rotak 43 LI Ergoflex cordless lawn mower is without doubt it’s cutting ability and the speed the batteries charge. It’ll handle a mid-sized garden quite comfortably and will probably do so in just one charge if the grass isn’t too long.

Where it does score well too, is the grass combs which really help you to get the edges and save on strimmer and tidying in when you’re done. The other nice thing about the Bosch Rotak 43 LI Ergoflex cordless lawn mower is the fact Bosch have embraced the fact batteries offer limited power and so they supply two as their recommended package.

They have basically said they will not allow people to run on one battery and be disappointed. So they sacrifice sales by charging more money to deliver a quality product. If you can’t respect that, what can you respect? It’s good ethics and exactly how you would expect Bosch to work. On that note, Bosch cordless lawn mowers are easily the second best pick for me, so for whatever reason, if you don’t like Makita. This is the fall back plan for sure. Bear in mind, the product reviewed is without batteries!

Could they improve the Bosch Rotak 43 LI Ergoflex Cordless Lawn Mower?

They really haven’t got anything to improve here, the Rotak 43 LI Ergoflex cordless lawn mower is the finished article offering excellent power and performance. You might argue that getting the price down a bit would make them competitive with Makita but as the price stands, these guys appear to be selling more than Makita anyway, so I suppose, why change a winning plan?

The buyers guide to the best cordless lawn mower