2023 test13 productsHand Tools
Which Ratcheting Stubby Screwdrivers Brand Wins?
We compared 13 ratcheting stubby screwdrivers options head to head. PB Swiss came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
Winner
PB Swiss
Price shown in test: $80
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Runner-up
Snap-On
Price shown in test: $82
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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 | Weight | Working Arc Swing | Back Drag | Magnet Lift | Shaft Wobble Build Quality | Bit Retention Strength | Shaft Rotation Locked Position | Bit Failure Load | Screwdriver Destruction Test | Overall Average Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1PB Swiss$80 | 149.12 g | 8.6 passes to complete a full rotation within a 50 degree space, best result of all screwdrivers tested | 47.88 g, struggled in this test despite its excellent arc swing result | almost 200 g, best result of all screwdrivers tested | 0.023 in of side to side movement | 2,310 g, by far the strongest bit retention of all screwdrivers tested | 0.34 in, tied for the least rotation with Milwaukee | 145 in-lb, best result of all screwdrivers tested | handle tore away from the ratcheting mechanism at 152 in-lb, weakest result of all screwdrivers in this destructive test, excluded from the overall ranking | best average finish of 2.8, declared the overall winner |
| 2Snap-On$82 | 170.31 g | 8.7 passes, second best result, almost matching PB Swiss | 9.98 g, second best result, almost identical to LTT | 38.49 g, fourth best result behind Stahlwille | 0.0185 in, second best result, better than PB Swiss | 1,272 g, almost identical to LTT | 0.606 in, about the same as Klein Tools | 50 in-lb, a very disappointing result the presenter suspected may have been a bad individual bit | shaft finally broke at 507 in-lb, ratcheting mechanism still worked fine afterward, excluded from the overall ranking | second best average finish overall |
| 3LTT$60 | 122.09 g | 9.6 passes, third best result | 9.89 g, best result of all screwdrivers tested | just over 90 g, second best result; a separate stronger magnet tested for the LTT reached just over 620 g, about 1.4 lb, of lift | 0.0085 in, best result of all screwdrivers tested, described as straight as an arrow | 1,254 g, second best result behind SATA | 0.862 in, more rotation than Stahlwille or Wera | 140 in-lb, second best result behind PB Swiss | knurled shaft broke at 193 in-lb, excluded from the overall ranking | average finish of 3.7 |
| 4Stahlwille$29 | 139.34 g | 11.3 passes, a 48 tooth ratcheting mechanism with no onboard bit storage and no included bits | 29.38 g, second best result at the time behind Nocry | 68 g, made easy work of lifting the embedded screw | 0.021 in, best result at the time it was tested | 853 g | 0.641 in | not mentioned by name in the transcript's bit failure test section, no data available | 582 in-lb, the most torque any screwdriver survived in this destructive test, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 5Matco Tools$68 | 188.71 g, heaviest of all screwdrivers tested | 9.8 passes, tied for second place with Milwaukee, a 40 tooth ratcheting mechanism | 14.41 g, second best result at the time | bit tip not magnetized, unable to be tested | 0.049 in | 1,176 g | more than 1 in, exceeded the measurement range of the dial indicator | 138 in-lb, third best result | 566 in-lb, almost as much as Stahlwille, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 6MichaelPro$13 | just over 105 g | 9.9 passes, described as very good for a budget tool | 48.68 g, slightly better than Stanley | unable to lift the embedded screw | 0.0585 in, slightly better than Stanley | almost 1,200 g, about 2.6 lb, very good for a budget tool | 0.357 in, a lot better than Stanley | 131 in-lb, better than Stanley | 371 in-lb, handle broke loose from the ratcheting mechanism, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 7Milwaukee$22 | 152.42 g | 9.8 passes, tied for second place with Matco Tools | 89.98 g, worse than Klein Tools | unable to lift the embedded screw | 0.053 in | 1,239 g | 0.341 in, best result at the time it was tested | 124 in-lb, clean break without twisting the flutes | 313 in-lb, the ratcheting mechanism survived but the handle did not, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 8Wera$46 | 138.44 g | 11.5 passes, performed close to the same as Stahlwille | 34.89 g, about the same as Stahlwille | would not lift the embedded screw, offered only about 1.59 g of pull | 0.0595 in, quite a bit more movement than Stahlwille | 886 g, very close to Stahlwille | 0.655 in, close to Stahlwille | not mentioned by name in the transcript's bit failure test section, no data available | 543 in-lb, described as built to handle serious torque, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 9SATA$16 | 103.11 g | 10.5 passes, ahead of Nocry at the time it was tested | 39.08 g, second place at the time behind Nocry | unable to lift the embedded screw | 0.067 in, worst result at the time it was tested | 1,321 g, best result at the time it was tested | 0.401 in, about the same as MichaelPro | 116 in-lb, described as brittle, snapped without twisting | 360 in-lb, handle broke loose from the ratcheting mechanism, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 10GearWrench$70 for a 40 piece kit including both a t-handle and a regular ratcheting stubby | 170.15 g | 10.9 passes, a little less efficient than the top five brands at the time | 18.1 g, a light touch to advance | bit tip not magnetized, unable to be tested | 0.046 in, slightly better than Matco Tools | 186 g, worst result of all screwdrivers tested | more than 1 in, exceeded the measurement range of the dial indicator | 128 in-lb, described as extremely brittle, broke into several pieces | 475 in-lb, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 11Klein Tools$18 | 143.13 g | 11.6 passes, described as not as efficient as some other brands despite a very short ratchet | 69.35 g, worst result at the time it was tested | unable to lift the embedded screw | 0.0465 in, better than average | 769 g, a little below average | 0.621 in | 127 in-lb, almost as good as MichaelPro | grip destroyed, but the screwdriver was still working fine after the test, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 12Nocry$14 | 119.56 g | 10.8 passes, second place at the time it was tested | 18.28 g, a strong result despite struggling on the arc swing test | unable to lift the embedded screw | 0.025 in, by far the best result at the time it was tested | 922 g, second place at the time it was tested | 0.701 in, about the same as Stanley | 45 in-lb, worst result of all screwdrivers tested; does not include Phillips number two bits, only Posi Drive bits, which are softer and twisted before breaking | 243 in-lb, the main gear experienced quite a bit of damage, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
| 13Stanley$12 | 127.03 g | 11.5 passes, described as having quite a bit of slop in the gear set | 52.88 g, quite a bit of resistance | unable to lift the embedded screw | 0.064 in, quite a bit of side to side slop | 438 g, just under 1 lb | 0.775 in, quite a bit of rotation | 92 in-lb, bit sheared without twisting | 342 in-lb, handle broke loose from the ratcheting mechanism, excluded from the overall ranking | not tested |
How it was tested
- working arc swing efficiency within a 50 degree space
- ratchet back drag resistance
- magnet strength lifting an embedded screw
- build quality measured as side to side shaft wobble
- bit retention strength
- shaft rotation in the locked position
- bit failure load under increasing torque
- screwdriver destruction test until total failure, explicitly excluded from the overall ranking since the presenter judged it not representative of intended use
“by the numbers the PB Swiss had the best average finish of 2.8”