Coleman Cosby, a project manager and landscape design specialist at Yardzen, an online landscape and design company, recommends, “If you’ve been using a regular drill to drive screws, do yourself a favor and invest in an impact driver. These powerful tools save a lot of wear and tear on your hands and wrists and make it much faster to drive multiple screws. For most general purposes, a cordless impact driver with a ¼-inch chuck will work great.” We researched the top impact drivers on the market, evaluating power, ease of use, weight, and overall value. Our favorite impact driver is the DEWALT DCF885C1, which is compact yet powerful. Read on for our reviews of the best impact drivers. The best impact driver does not need to be the most expensive or complicated. In fact, many top-tier options come with a no-frills approach since the driver and a battery is really all you need. The top pick for this list takes just that approach with the addition of a handy charging station to keep the driver going as long as you need it for any indoor or outdoor job you can imagine. This is the ideal tool for just about any fastening task you’re likely to encounter around your home, yard, or garage. The DEWALT DCF885C1 impact driver is a great option for anyone looking for a first-time or replacement power fastener. Coming with an independent charging station and the standard ¼-inch hex shank, this driver is small enough to fit into tight spaces without sacrificing on the power and torque—up to 1,400 inch-pounds—it can produce. The driver head also includes three LED lights for illuminating the space you are working on. Use it to drive fasteners into wood, metal, and even concrete; it won’t shirk at the task. Price at time of publish: $189 The Milwaukee 2462-20 embodies the “small but mighty” adage with a 12-volt power supply and a maximum of 1,000 inch-pounds of torque and 2,500 rpm of speed. The small size of the driver makes it easy to carry it around on large job sites where the ambidextrous belt clip will keep the power tool close to you at all times. To monitor the power level of the driver, a handy LED power level meter is accessible on the side any time you want. Price at time of publish: $99 For anyone starting from scratch with a new impact driver, this set from Craftsman will give you everything you need to handle most fasteners. The 20-volt, variable-speed impact driver delivers up to 1,460 inch-pounds of torque and a top speed of 2,800 rpm and comes with one of Craftsman’s interchangeable batteries and charging stations. But the real magic of this kit comes in the form of the 26-piece driver set that includes a variety of impact-rated bits for most types of fasteners. Price at time of publish: $89 The Milwaukee M12 has a unique design that makes it much easier to work in tight or awkward spaces. Using a right-angled head, rather than the typical straight-angled design, this impact driver allows you to get past obstacles and into cramped areas more readily than standard options. Other than the right-angle bend in the head, however, the power tool is a typical impact driver capable of delivering up to 600 inch-pounds of torque for secure fastening. Price at time of publish: $99 The BLACK+DECKER BDCDMT120IA multi-tool takes a different approach than typical combo kits. Instead of including a separate impact driver and drill, this power tool has a swappable attachment system that fits on the same base. The impact driver is capable of delivering 1,375 inch-pounds of torque and up to 800 rpm of speed. In addition to the driver and drill attachments, BLACK+DECKER also sells other attachments such as an orbital sander and jigsaw in its expansive Matrix Quick Connect System. Price at time of publish: $143 The BLACK+DECKER Drill/Impact Combo Kit is not only a great combination kit that includes an impact driver and drill, it is also one of the most affordable options around. For the great price, you will get a 20-volt impact driver capable of delivering around 1,375 inch-pounds of torque. Both the driver and the drill use the same BLACK+DECKER battery that is compatible with most other cordless power tools in the lineup. Price at time of publish: $100 Plus, the Ryobi ONE+ is no slouch when it comes to efficiency and speed. Using Ryobi’s popular 18-volt batteries that power the companies 80+ power tool line, the impact driver can handle most fastening tasks with ease. It has a maximum of 2,000 inch-pounds of torque and top speed of 3,100 rpm. The ¼-inch quick-connect hex shank holds most driver bits securely while a magnetic tray holder provides a space to keep spare bits when not in use. Price at time of publish: $99 Both tools are reasonably compact in size, making them perfect for situations where fasteners are difficult to reach or you don’t have a lot of room to maneuver. The included impact driver provides up to 1,700 inch-pounds of torque and two speed settings. The set includes two 20-volt batteries, as well as a charger and handy carrying bag. Price at time of publish: $219 Twelve-volt impact drivers are compact and lightweight, making them easy to tote along while you work. They have enough power to drive average-sized screws into soft to mid-weight wood, making them a fine choice if you only expect to use the tool for small projects around the house, such as putting together a swing set. Eighteen-volt impact drivers are a little larger and heavier, but also have more power, making them the better choice for projects that require large screws or involve hard wood. If you take DIY seriously, you’ll find an 18-volt impact driver is the most versatile choice. Twenty-volt impact drivers are the big boys; these heavy-duty tools don’t hesitate at driving even oversize screws into the hardest wood over and over again. While it’s most often contractors that choose these powerful—and more expensive—impact drivers, they might be the right choice for a DIYer tackling a very large project, such as adding a room to the home or building a large deck.
Torque and Impact
Impact drivers are all about torque, which is a measurement—usually stated in inch-pounds—of the tool’s turning power. As a general rule, the more battery power, the more torque, which is why 18- or 20-volt tools handle harder wood much more easily than a 12-volt impact driver. A lightweight 12-volt impact driver might deliver as little as 800 inch-pounds of torque, while a 20-volt beast might have a top capacity of more than 2,000 inch-pounds of torque. For most typical DIY tasks, however, the lower-to-midpoint of that range is sufficient. Another important number is the rate at which the impact driver delivers an extra “blow” of power during use. This is measured in impacts per minute (ipm). Note that the manufacturer’s stated ipm is the tool’s “no load” ipm, meaning what it delivers when run in the air, not actually driving a screw. Lower-powered impact drivers generally deliver around 2,000 ipm, while more powerful tools might boast as much as 3,700 ipm.
Speed
Another important measurement is the impact driver’s rpm, or rotations per minute, referring to the speed at which the bit turns. Obviously, the faster the rpm, the quicker you’ll get the job done, but keep in mind that going too fast can strip screws or damage the wood. You’ll also find that as torque increases, speed decreases. Still, as a general rule, most higher-end impact drivers today have multiple settings for rpm; usually the lowest setting delivers 600 to 800 rpm, the middle setting up to 1,800 to 2,000 rpm, and the highest setting up to 3,000 or more rpm. Note that this number is usually the tool’s “no load” capacity, meaning the maximum it can deliver when running in the air, not actually driving a screw.
Why Trust The Spruce?
This article is edited and updated by Michelle Ullman, the tool expert for The Spruce. She has extensive experience not only in writing about all things related to the home, but also in carrying out various DIY projects, including landscaping, painting, flooring, wallpapering, furniture makeovers, and simple repairs. Impact-driver bits have to withstand the tremendous torque of the tool. Because of this, they are made of metal with a bit more flexibility than regular bits, which are prone to shattering if used in an impact driver. Impact-driver bits also have a slightly narrower shaft than regular bits, and the end of an impact-driver bit is hexagonal in shape, unlike the rounded end of most regular bits. For this roundup, she considered dozens of impact drivers, evaluating each for basic features, extras, and customer evaluation. Coleman Cosby, a project manager and landscape design specialist at Yardzen, an online landscape and design company, contributed further input. Additional research for this article was provided by Lauren Murphy, a long-time writer and editor who specializes in DIYs, home upgrades, and other topics related to the home.
