2022 test10 productsPower Tools
Which Cordless Circular Saws Brand Wins?
We compared 10 cordless circular saws options head to head. FLEX came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video. Shoppers cross-shopping milwaukee circular saw, skil saw, battery circular saw and circular saw blade land here for the head to head that settles it.
Winner
FLEX
Price shown in test: $300 for the saw, the battery, and the charger (no tool-only option was found)
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Runner-up
Milwaukee Fuel
Price shown in test: $274 for just the saw and not the battery and charger
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Budget pick
Craftsman
Price shown in test: $70, described in the transcript as the same price as the Ridgid
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | Motor | Measured RPM | Weight | Noise | Blade Brake Stop | CuttingSpeedTest (5 lb pressure, 3 cuts) | Pressure Test | CyclingTest (5x zero to max RPM) | Vibration Test | Bevel Accuracy | Country Of Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1FLEX$300 for the saw, the battery, and the charger (no tool-only option was found) | 24V brushless, claimed 5,800 RPM | 5,925, the highest of all saws tested | 8 lb 13.2 oz or 4,002 g | 90.3 dB | 0.5 seconds | 1.31, 1.31, 1.31 seconds, average 1.31 seconds, fastest of all brands at the standard test weight | 7.5 lb: 0.85 seconds, took the lead; 10 lb: 0.8 seconds, fastest of the saws that could handle 10 lb using a 4 to 5 amp hour battery; with the kit's included 8 amp hour battery: 0.65 seconds, the fastest time recorded across all brands and battery sizes tested | 7.6 seconds | 25 mm per second squared, noted as quite a bit of vibration | accurate | made in China |
| 2Milwaukee Fuel$274 for just the saw and not the battery and charger | brushless, 5,800 RPM stated at introduction | 5,848, described as the fastest spinning saw at that point in the video (measured figure exceeds the 5,800 figure stated at introduction; kept verbatim, not reconciled) | 8 lb 11.8 oz or 3,965 g | 98.3 decibels, by far the loudest of all saws tested | 0.45 seconds | 1.61, 1.6, 1.66 seconds, moved into second place behind the Kobalt at time of testing; recap segment later lists it at 1.62 seconds | 7.5 lb: 1.16 seconds, tied with the Makita for second in the standard pressure ranking; 10 lb: 1 second, third place; tested out of curiosity with a 12 amp hour battery: 0.75 seconds, 0.15 seconds faster than the DeWalt with its Flexvolt 12 amp hour combination | 7.24 seconds, faster than six other brands despite having the second highest RPM | 11.4 mm per second squared | accurate; no positive bevel stops, host notes adjusting the bevel may take an extra couple of seconds | made in China |
| 3Craftsman$70, described in the transcript as the same price as the Ridgid | brushless, claimed up to 5,000 RPM, marketed as up to 75 percent more power | not spoken as an exact figure; transcript states it 'came up about 500 short of his advertised RPM rating', which against the stated 5,000 RPM claim implies approximately 4,500 RPM. Derived from that single cross reference, not spoken directly, so flagged rather than stated as measured fact. | 6 lb 13.7 oz or 3,112 g | 89.9 decibels | 0.35 seconds | 1.82, 1.82, 2.12 seconds, average 1.92 seconds; described as about 37 percent faster than the Ridgid on the first cut | 7.5 lb: 1.51 seconds, lost a lot of blade speed but completed the cut; 10 lb: 1.26 seconds, host expected it to stall but it held on for the fastest cut recorded up to that point in the video; finished 5th in the taking-into-account 5/7.5/10 lb overall pressure ranking | 5.72 seconds; transcript notes a delay before the motor engages once the trigger is pulled | 15.72 mm per second squared | accurate | made in China |
| 4Kobalt XTR$150 for just the tool and not the battery and charger | brushless, 24V (higher voltage than most competitors' 18 to 20V), claimed 5,500 RPM, marketed as up to 50 percent extra performance | 5,331 | 8 lb 14.9 oz or 4,051 g | 84.4 decibels | 0.6 seconds | 1.51, 1.41, 1.51 seconds, took the lead from the Worx at time of testing; recap segment lists it finishing second overall in the standard 5 lb test at 1.48 seconds | 7.5 lb: lasted nearly a second and almost completed the cut before stalling out, did not complete; not listed among the saws that could handle 10 lb | 8.67 seconds, nearly identical to the Worx | 3.41 mm per second squared, very smooth, second smoothest of all saws tested | accurate | made in China |
| 5WORX Nitro$118 for just the tool and not the battery and charger | brushless, claimed up to 6,100 RPM | 5,646, described as the fastest spinning saw up to that point in the video | 6 lb 8.6 oz or 2,968 g | 84.7 decibels | 0.65 seconds | 1.66, 1.51, 1.71 seconds, moved into the lead over the Craftsman at time of testing | described as very fast at 5 lb, but 7.5 lb was too much pressure, did not complete | 8.57 seconds; transcript notes it spins about 1,000 RPM faster than the Ryobi and still outperformed it in this test | 28.3 mm per second squared, noted as quite a bit of handle vibration | accurate | made in China |
| 6Bosch$219 for just the saw and not the battery and charger | Core 18V brushless, claimed 5,000 RPM | 4,977 | 8 lb 8.3 oz or 3,866 g | 83.5 decibels, described as fairly quiet | 0.55 seconds | 1.76, 1.87, 1.66 seconds, average 1.76 seconds | 7.5 lb: 1.46 seconds, described as more than enough torque to handle it; 10 lb: 1.06 seconds, easily managed; finished 4th in the taking-into-account 5/7.5/10 lb overall pressure ranking | 7.3 seconds | 3.71 mm per second squared | accurate | made in Hungary |
| 7Makita$170 for just the saw and not the battery and charger | brushless, claimed 6,000 RPM, uses two 18V batteries for 36V total with dual battery level indicators | 5,812, described as the third most of all brands | 7 lb 11.9 oz or 3,514 g | 91.4 decibels, described as the loudest yet at that point in the video | 0.75 seconds | 1.97, 1.76, 1.71 seconds, average 1.81 seconds | 7.5 lb: 1.16 seconds, tied with Milwaukee; 10 lb: 0.9 seconds, described as very impressive with plenty of power to handle 10 lb; finished second in the taking-into-account 5/7.5/10 lb overall pressure ranking | 9.07 seconds, about half a second longer than the Worx and Kobalt despite having the third highest RPM | 1.05 mm per second squared, described as incredibly smooth, the smoothest of all saws tested | accurate | made in China |
| 8DeWalt$150 for just the tool and not the battery and charger, described in the transcript as the same price as the Kobalt | brushless, claimed up to 5,500 RPM; Flexvolt system allows a 20V or 60V battery | 5,275 | 7 lb 15.5 oz or 3,616 g | 91.1 decibels, described as the loudest yet at that point in the video | 0.55 seconds | 2.12, 2.22, 2.02 seconds, average 2.12 seconds | 7.5 lb: 1.41 seconds, completed; 10 lb: too much for the stock battery, stalled; retested with a 5 amp hour battery matching the Flex's for a fairer comparison, made a little more progress but still stalled; retested with a non-standard 12 amp hour battery costing about twice as much as the saw itself, completed in 0.9 seconds | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 9Ryobi One+ HP$115 for just the tool and not the battery and charger | brushless, claimed up to 4,300 RPM, marketed as up to 325 cuts per charge and up to 40 percent faster cutting | 4,193 | 6 lb 9.3 oz or 2,986 g, described as the lightest yet at that point in the video | 87 decibels | 1.06 seconds, described as about three times longer than the Craftsman and Ridgid | 2.27, 2.32, 2.22 seconds; described as about 15 percent slower than the Craftsman | stalled about halfway through the board at 7.5 lb, did not complete | 11.15 seconds, nearly twice as long as the Craftsman despite the Craftsman claiming only 300 more RPM; transcript notes a very noticeable trigger lag and slow brakes | 5.03 mm per second squared | accurate | made in China |
| 10Ridgid$70 for just the saw and not the battery and charger | brushed motor, claimed up to 3,700 RPM | 3,401, about 300 RPM short of the 3,700 claim | 8 lb 5.3 oz or 3,780 g | 80.1 decibels | 0.3 seconds, the fastest stop of all saws tested | 2.88, 2.73, 3.08 seconds, average 2.9 seconds | lasted about 2 seconds at 7.5 lb before the saw gave up just a few inches from completing the cut, did not complete | 4.1 seconds, the fastest and most responsive of all saws tested despite having the lowest RPM | 14.3 mm per second squared | off by 2 degrees, the only saw of the ten that was not accurate | made in China |
How it was tested
- standard cutting speed test: 5 lb pulling force through a 12 in 2x4, 3 passes per saw, new Diablo framing blade on each saw, blade depth set to 2 in, bevel set to 0 degrees
- torque and pressure test: additional weight in 2.5 lb increments (7.5 lb then 10 lb) to find each saw's stall point, with supplemental higher amp hour battery swaps tested on the DeWalt and, out of curiosity, the Milwaukee
- manufacturer claimed RPM versus measured RPM
- blade brake stop time, full speed to full stop
- noise level in decibels
- weight
- responsiveness cycling test: 5 consecutive zero to max RPM and back to zero cycles per saw
- vibration test with the blade removed, measured in mm per second squared
- bevel adjustment accuracy
- blade depth adjustment accuracy
- blade guard hang up test on the edge of a board
“Looking at just saw performance, the Flex came out on top with an average finish of 2.6, but the Milwaukee finished in a close second.”