My observation on branding is it depends more on where the tool is made. A Makita made in China doesn’t compare with a Makita made in Japan. A metabo made in China is not as good as a as one made in Germany.
From what I have seen, all of the DeWalt are made in China. I have no doubts that someday the very best tools in the world will be made in China. They have the most billionaires. Anyway, I get what works and if I need something else I buy it! I spent money on far worse things in tools in my past.

I’ve pretty heavily invested in Makita over the last several years and I haven’t been disappointed yet. You’re right about the 18v x2 line when more power is needed. I have the 2 battery circular saw for work and then a 2 battery weed eater and leaf blower for home. All 3 tools were purchased as kits with 4 batteries each (5ah), for less than the retail price of the batteries alone. They all have great power and run time. The single battery tools have been great too. I try to always get the brushless for the extra runtime and power, and it seems to pay off. When I’ve been able to compare, there is a big difference to the brushed counterpart.

All that being said, I won’t be going to their 40v line. It’s not worth the price in my book.

I also have a few M12 plumbing tools which have been excellent.

Ohhhhh, HD = High Demand…sorry, my mistake.

I have in the past heard statements that what is sold at Home Depot (HD), is inferior to what you can buy elsewhere…same model & part number. Which I always thought was borderline paranoia of HD.

https://toolguyd.com/milwaukee-m18-cordless-power-tool-battery-sizes-explained/

Current M18 HD (High Demand) batteries have 15 Li-ion cells in a 5-series 3-parallel configuration.

What are you implying, Milwaukee tools sold at HD are different than ones you can buy elsewhere? Even if it is the same model and part number?

Milwaukee is amazing overall… but HD line is way out of its league against others with higher voltage. M18 HD is a joke. Melting batteries and line trimmers. 14 and 9 inch saws and grinder. Chainsaw and 1 inch impact gun are a waste for most.

Dewalt slow with mechanic tools and new 12v… flexvolt is a dream to work with. Top notch leader overall in my opinion.

Just a mention.flex and ego are amazing. Powerhead line iq line trimmer is life changing.

oh wow, I didn’t even know there was 12v HO. Thanks!

If I had a fire and was forced to start over, I’d consider DeWalt. I like Makita, but they don’t offer enough variety.

It helps that I have nearby family who also use Milwaukee, and we trade tools now and then – I can borrow a weedeater twice a year for a day.

I don’t understand why so many harp on Makita batteries and their size in the 18v LXT line.

Not even counting the 6ah, which I do not have, but many complain it is expensive and has problems…I can’t say. But with their 4 & 5 ah, I never have tools underpowered or don’t last long enough. Do I need or want Makita to make a 12ah or 15ah cement brick…no.

The odd tool that can need extra power or runtime, they have typically made 36v (18×2).

Then others complain that you need 2 batteries plus 2 extra to change out. But paying the price of 12 & 15 ah bricks is OK. Anyone that has the real needs of 36v typically have an abundance of batteries.

There are just too many that repeat the same things, usually with little or no experience, just repeating for the sake of repeating.

For the record, as much as I like Makita and believe they are overall the best, they have some duds, and the others have great tools also.

My M18 2720-20 Fuel Sawzall is a beast. It cuts great and fast, and never slows down. I can’t speak to a continuous work session, maybe my batteries would heat up, maybe not. (8.0 & 6.0).But it cuts fantastic. My previous cordless was a Makita from 2010, non brushless. Worked OK but drained batteries bigtime. This M18 is great!

The M18 Surge Impact driver, super smooth, and excellent power. I have the HPT triple hammer, works great, Metabo 602396890, the Dewalt DCF887, a 15 yr old Makita , Ryobi, M12 and other impacts I can’t recall at the moment. They are all great, but the M18 Surge is a beauty to use.

I have some 6 1/2″ saws and an HPT rear handle 7 1/4, but my favorite is my Dewalt Flexvolt (Gen 1) 7 1/4 is my favorite. The blade, many would say is on the wrong side for a right handed person but I have cut like this all my life and prefer the saws motor and weight on the supported side of the cut. The HPT rear handle is a nice saw, loved by many, but I prefer my Dewalt 60v.

All brands are good, which is best? Depends on your preferences & needs as Stuart and others have said. My overall, as stated above is Makita. But other brands have certain tools which I find better.

Again, comments like I see below, Makita is slow to adapt. They came out with more tools, earlier than all the others. 15 years ago, Milwaukee had just released the M18 series, hoping to put behind them the fiasco that was their V series (I had some). Dewalt was still on their non-slide battery, with Nano this & that.

10 years ago, Milwaukee was hitting their stride with M18 and Dewalt had joined the slide battery and also confused everyone with 20v MAX!

The majority of what Dewalt and Milwaukee introduced in the last 5 years, Makita has had for years…they basically caught up (almost) to Makita’s offerings.

Makita has not offered much “new” in recent years, because they already had it, so every now and then they offer a newer updated model. As for the microwaves, outdoor camping stuff, and coffee makers; they have everything else. so they try these options, which I suspect aimed at a market…just not here.

Before saying they don’t have this or that, or newer tech…first check if they offer it globally; they just might not offer it in the US. Then as far as tech, they might not have everything, but offer lots of new tech as well as tech others still have to adopt.

My kit I bought in 2008 had batteries that charge twice as fast as the competitors, and chargers with cool down fans. Some still do not have fans on the chargers.

No one, including Makita, is “BEST”. But my overall preference has been for 15+ years Makita, then Dewalt also. Milwaukee is good, but not great. I know many that have had tool failures with Milwaukee (I have had 3). Milwaukee cares more about specs and driving 50 screws, 5 seconds faster than anybody else.

All the “team red” drinkers, enjoy bragging about their red tools. My HD says they are a Milwaukee “house”.

I have seen and heard from enough serious pros that there are many great tool brands, but Milwaukee is usually preferred by about much fewer than sales and forums would indicate. Even Fred, a retired pro/enterpeneur; the best he could say for Milwaukee just above was…Milwaukee: Garden lopper (2534-20), cable staple gun (2448-20) and fence stapler (2843-20). (Fred, I hope this is not out of context)

Anyway sales are important, so I guess Milwaukee is the BEST in sales (in the USA). Everyone should choose their own best or favorite and worry less what others think (including big mouths like me).

It was just announced in the last week. I need a new one, because my old one can’t provide enough juice to jump start my current car (heck, last year the repair shop left the lights one, and it took TWO NiCd jump starters to get the engine going!).

The Ryobi looks like a good fit for me (I keep a Ryobi battery in my trunk anyway), but I’ll probably wait for it to go on sale, and for reviews (overall Ryobi is pretty good, but they do have produced some duds).

https://www.ryobitools.com/products/details/33287215362

What benefits would that provide?

I would say the 2.5Ah and 5Ah are better choices for most users’ varied needs.

What about the 6ah? I assume there is a 3ah too.

I can honestly say I have had very good results thus far. Especially once I made sure it was going to be strictly brushless where available as the majority of their brushless tools are just red DeWalts.

Although, if I were to start over, I would more than likely go with either Kobalt or Ryobi.

Whoa, I hadn’t heard of the jump starter. That looks fantastic!

The M12 grip isn’t great, I agree. But like you I have large hands so it’s not a big deal for me either. And for some mechanic’s tools I really like how the smaller M12 batteries fit completely inside the tool’s handle so there is no brick hanging off the back. That is a huge benefit when you have to reach the tool into tight quarters.