Electric lawnmowers in 2026 - any good?

[czarins]

Anybody using an electric lawnmower? I'm coming up on purchasing one and am wondering which ones are worth buying.

All the reviews seem to point to the Ego's, but somehow the online discourse feels a little one sided and almost astroturfed. They also look more like a consumer electronic than a tool - lots of plastic and not much metal.

The traditional brands (Husqvarna, Stihl) seem like they have better lawnmower-bits, but I'm wondering about the electrical side as these companies make great gas powered tools but are newer to the electric side.

Anyone have any good or bad experience with any of them?

 

[tncatadjuster]

EGO for the win, fifth year still great, string trimmer 6 years, still good too.

 

[velocipede]

EGO here too...four years and only one complaint...it sometimes unexpectedly surges forward and I have to drag it back and redo the section. Read it was a common, but uncorrected error with this model. It wouldn't stop me from buying another, more recent model though. Might change my mind if the battery craps out and a replacement costs almost as anew mower.

 

[whateg01]

Ego. I don't think they sell the speed iq or whatever it was so you shouldn't have trouble avoiding it

 

[brothernov]

I have the milwaukee and love it.

 

[Gordonjuan]

Another vote for Ego. Trimmer for 4 years and a mower for three. No trouble. I don't miss keeping gas and all of the maintenance that goes with it.

 

[tncatadjuster]

Another vote for Ego. Trimmer for 4 years and a mower for three. No trouble. I don't miss keeping gas and all of the maintenance that goes with it.

If it quits tomorrow I'll replace it, the lack of noise and fluids are fundamental to my happiness. I replaced the auto feed head once, and the battery for the trimmer just this year, mower battery going strong. Average use on my commercial building and then my fathers yard weekly. I snapped this pic just now, really happy about my decision and investment.

 

[Beerhippie]

Stihl RMA 510, 36 V:



I mowed the lawn at the pub through snow squalls last week and it never bogged and even did a fine job of mulching. It has no problem dealing with 8" tall, rank, wet spring weeds in the back forty.

This is year three on it.

We have the leaf blower and a bicycle-bar trimmer in the same battery platform. I badly want a chainsaw, too. Once you use battery-electric OPE, you'll never go back. Lack of vibration, smoke and noise makes them so much more pleasant to use.

 

[YesIHaveAHammer]

I've been helping out using a Husqvarna LC142is for close to 10 years now. No problems except the self drive speed a brisk walk pace (spec says 4kpm (2.5mph)) and it doesn't have the power to cut 2-3 weeks' growth at that speed.

I've been looking at cordless options myself to replace petrol/gas but there's little information available about power levels:

• Husqvarna gives power levels in kilowatts, e.g. LC 251iS, 51cm (20"), 0.9kW (1.2hp)
• Milwaukee 10ft/lb "more torque than a 200cc"
• Metabo 0.8-1.2kW (1.1-1.6hp)

The best petrol/gas mower I used was an Oleo Mac with a 196cc engine making 3.3kW (4.4hp). That thing smashed though everything while not sounding like it was even aware of it.

 

[YesIHaveAHammer]

We have the leaf blower and a bicycle-bar trimmer in the same battery platform. I badly want a chainsaw, too.

OPE seems to me an area where (especially beyond the core tools), it's worth being on an OPE-oriented brand and battery platform.

Better designed tools and a wider range - of different tools, and different sizes/capabilities of each. Many of those companies have been making those tools for decades in petrol/gas, and over a decade now in battery too.

 

[Beerhippie]

OPE seems to me an area where (especially beyond the core tools), it's worth being on an OPE-oriented brand and battery platform. Better designed tools and a wider range - of different tools, and different sizes/capabilities of each. Many of those companies have been making those tools for decades in petrol/gas, and over a decade now in battery too.

Stihl has a bit of a record for producing high-quality OPE.

We went with the Stihl vs Ego as the shop that works on them is where I bought ours, right here in town. No problem with warranty, especially as the guy who runs the shop is an old buddy. EGO has to be sent off for work or warranty.

 

[kngelv]

I have an EGO that works great. No issues at all.

James

 

[d.mcfarland]

A whole discussion and nobody asked how big the yard is? Nice.

 

[MileHighRover]

This will be my 5th season with a Toro. Looks and feels like a regular mower. No complaints. Leaves a phenomenal cut and bags better than almost any mower available. It will fill the bag to the brim. The Personal Pace self propelled system is also the best I've used. I figured with Toro only being in the lawn business for over 100 years, I'd take a chance on them. So far, so good.

 

[Beerhippie]

a consumer electronic than a tool - lots of plastic and not much metal.

I'm afraid that's what you get with modern battery OPE. Not that it's necessarily a problem--engineering grade plastics are pretty amazing these days.

No rust; not as prone to fatigue cracking as sheet metal, especially mower decks.

 

[gtae07]

I've been using a Greenworks 60V one for 8 years and counting. No issues.

 

[Wrench97]

I have a Ego, works Okay but don't let the grass get too long or thick, it's not the best mulching mower I've ever had and if I ever buy another it'll be gas.

 

[MattV]

I have an Ego mower and leaf blower (for light snow on sidewalks) and I'm not crazy about it. The battery from the mower has started giving me grief just past warranty. The leaf blower took a drop from about knee height and doesn't work anymore. This one is still within warranty, so hopefully they replace it and I'll be satisfied. The tools themselves are nice to use, but I'm disappointed by the durability.

 

[Beerhippie]

I have an Ego mower and leaf blower (for light snow on sidewalks) and I'm not crazy about it. The battery from the mower has started giving me grief just past warranty. The leaf blower took a drop from about knee height and doesn't work anymore. This one is still within warranty, so hopefully they replace it and I'll be satisfied. The tools themselves are nice to use, but I'm disappointed by the durability.

I don't know how many times I've dropped my Stihl blower from table height--set it down forgetting the odd center of balance. It still works just fine.

No complaints about the power of the mower, either. It'll chip branches up to about 1" dia just fine. It might not do quite as good of a job mulching as my old Honda with the double-blade, but it does a fine job of it even in wet grass.

 

[16again]

Let me be the odd man out. HONDA!
Picked this bad boy up about 5 months ago. Worth every penny. Buy once, cry once.
Everything about it is great.
Had a Stihl and a Ryobi. They can’t hold a candle to this thing.

 

[MattV]

I don't know how many times I've dropped my Stihl blower from table height--set it down forgetting the odd center of balance. It still works just fine.

No complaints about the power of the mower, either. It'll chip branches up to about 1" dia just fine. It might not do quite as good of a job mulching as my old Honda with the double-blade, but it does a fine job of it even in wet grass.

To be fair, there's a digital screen on the top of the blower that was impacted and I believe that's what the issue is. Still, the screen shouldn't be on the tool if it can't take that mild of an impact, as OPE is always going to see some amount of abuse.

 

[gahrajmahal]

We have a 1/2 acre lot that is very steep and has lots of trees and flower beds so after watching lots o videos I went with Ryobi and their 40 volt all wheel drive. It uses two batteries and runs off of one at a time so when one drains down the other has charged up allowing me to continue for as long as I can go on. It can side discharge, mulch and bag. In the spring and fall I bag to catch the seed heads from the weeds in the spring and to mulch the leaves from our twenty odd trees including pin oak, which are very tuff. I even raise the height fully and cut the ground cover under the trees.

No matter which electric mower you choose, the secret is really sharp blades so the electric motor doesn’t have to work too hard. The Ryobi has an automatic “turbo mode” if the cutting gets too heavy. I can travel uphill one handed while the mower pulls itself up our hills. Once completed cutting or traveling between grassy sections I can turn off the cutting blades and use just the all wheel drive system to “mower to the next section.

This is my third year with it. I liked the Ryobi system so well I bought a 14” chain saw that uses the same battery. I have an ECO weed wacker and am less impressed with it. I plan to get an electric snow shovel that can change out the tool with the power supply. I’ll then get the weed wacker that goes with that and sell my ECO or give it away.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Let me be the odd man out. HONDA!
Picked this bad boy up about 5 months ago. Worth every penny. Buy once, cry once.
Everything about it is great.
Had a Stihl and a Ryobi. They can’t hold a candle to this thing.

I just picked up a Honda, but it's been raining since it showed up this week. Glad to hear you like it......Lord knows ot wasn't cheap.

 

[BTL-A4]

+1 more for the EGO. I have about 2600 sq ft of grass and can get about 3-5 mows out of one battery. If the battery dies in the middle of mowing, it takes about 20 minutes to get enough charge to finish. I don't care for the plastic-y design, but a another poster pointed out this is less prone to rust and cracking. The bag gets pretty full and it has enough power for my needs. I have a level lot, but I got the power drive, which I like having when it's hot here.

 

[bluedog225]

I want the Ego riding mower (not the zero turn). But I can’t find anything good about their customer service in case of an issue.

 

[boom_bap]

I got a "free" greenworks mower. I absolutely abuse the thing. Its still going strong after 4 seasons. It was horribly abused by the person who bought it..

I'm tempted to get an m18 mower or an ego, but fwiw, the greenworks is pretty darn robust. They are pretty simple little machines.

 

[tiredoldironworker]

greenworks 60v still going strong after 5 years and still on original batteries.

 

[Paycheck]

I started out with the HF Atlas pusher and 4 years later it’s still working fine. Cheap mower but batteries are expensive (they go on sale about once a year).

 

[Slkay944]

Anyone with a Dewalt or Milwaukee mower? I have those battery systems and was wondering about their mowers, weedwackers….

 

[gahrajmahal]

Another check list item for the OP and others using this thread for their purchasing decision. Another big plus for electric vs gas is the ability to store folded up. I keep a lot of tools and two vehicles in our two car attached garage so compact size for storage was a big item for me. The Ryobi has a one latch folding handle that is very robust. My mower lives next to my air compressor which is right up against the wall. My 1968 Chrysler 300 lives on this side of the garage and it is large too. It is a sort of Tetras puzzle fitting everything in my space. Mimicking Beerhippie’s many creative projects I built a cart out of unistrut. It has four locking swivel wheels and allows me to sneak the mower past the Chryslers quarter panel and bumper without scratching it. Once out in the driveway I can lock it so it doesn’t roll down the driveway into oncoming traffic! Have a look at the photos.







Baseball cleats for the steep hills. Buy some! They work great!



Got to thread the needle to make the exit space in the rear

 

[Gordonjuan]

A whole discussion and nobody asked how big the yard is? Nice.

Very good point. Mine's about 4,000 sq ft and flat. No problems. I just don't mow after heavy SE Texas storms.

 

[Beerhippie]

I just don't mow after heavy SE Texas storms.

Takes a while to clear the lawn of trees and building debris?

 

[tarbellb]

Costco 80V Greenworks for $450- been awesome

4ah battery cuts nearly 1/3 acre, has 2 batteries

 

[Wamsutta]

Nothing beats a gasoline powered commercial grade string trimmer.

 

[Ohio Andy]

I know people who have turn and love them, mostly with rather small areas to more. I know people who went back to gas, mostly with longer grass or taking longer than 30 min.

 

[pcrov]

Another big plus for electric vs gas is the ability to store folded up.

Weirdly enough my Toro gas mower stores folded up like that too. They call it smartstow: https://www.toro.com/en/smartstow

If I was buying today I'd go electric, but it's nice that the option is out there.

 

[WildBill]

I'm on year 7 or 8 with my Greenworks mower, still cuts great and the two batteries that came with it are still working fine. 21" Self propelled with a steel deck. I have a large, hilly, crappy yard that takes about two hours and 1.5 6ah batteries to cut.

The Ego ones are usually considered the best though, but my Greenworks was about 50% less money and has worked really well for me.

 

[kngelv]

+1 more for the EGO. I have about 2600 sq ft of grass and can get about 3-5 mows out of one battery. If the battery dies in the middle of mowing, it takes about 20 minutes to get enough charge to finish. I don't care for the plastic-y design, but a another poster pointed out this is less prone to rust and cracking. The bag gets pretty full and it has enough power for my needs. I have a level lot, but I got the power drive, which I like having when it's hot here.

3-5 mows out of one battery? I love my Ego but theres no way you’ll get that many mows on 2600 square feet of grass unless possibly if you push only. No way with the drive activated.

James

 

[Gordonjuan]

Takes a while to clear the lawn of trees and building debris?

Only those rainstorms they give a name to! Otherwise, ground gets very spongy.

 

[moab11]

I've got a Ryobi 40v mower and love it for my small yard, can typically get two mowings out of a 6ah battery. Also have the string trimmer, blower and just picked up the hedger last year. Really nice just grabbing a battery off the charger and go.