This Old House Reviews Team

Leaf blowers not only blow leaves out of your yard, but they can also clear your driveway or patio of unwanted dirt and debris. Before purchasing a leaf blower, consider how much weight you can carry, how large of an area you’ll be blowing, and what type of power source you want, all of which will affect the model you choose. Read our guide on the best leaf blowers below to learn about your different options.

 

Scoring Metrics

We scored these leaf blowers by looking at type, power, and speed. 

• Type: A portable, handheld leaf blower received full points, while a less portable backpack or wheeled option lost 0.5 points or 1 point, respectively.
• Power: A leaf blower received full points if its CFM and MPH ratings were within the normal range for its type and lost a quarter of a point for each 50 measurements it was outside of that range.
• Speed: A leaf blower received full points for having a variable speed lever as opposed to only two speed options.

 

Types of Leaf Blowers

Leaf blowers can be divided into handheld, backpack, and wheeled types, with handhelds having corded electric, cordless electric, and gas subcategories.

• Handheld: Handheld leaf blowers are lightweight and easy to maneuver. They aren’t as powerful as backpack and wheeled blowers, but they can blow loose leaves, dirt, and debris off of your yard, patio, or driveway.
  • Corded electric: Corded leaf blowers are relatively lightweight and weigh around eight pounds. Because they need to be plugged into an outlet, their reach is limited to how long their cord is.
  • Cordless electric: Cordless blowers look similar to corded ones, with the main difference being that they use a lithium-ion or nickel cadmium battery. Because of their battery, cordless electric blowers can weigh a few extra pounds and need to be recharged every 30 to 45 minutes.
  • Gas: Gas-powered blowers are more powerful than electric ones, which makes them better at removing denser piles of leaves or debris. However, their gas tank makes them weigh 10 pounds or more, and they have two-stroke engines, which require a mixture of oil and fuel that you can either mix yourself or buy pre-mixed.
• Backpack: Backpack leaf blowers are typically gas-powered and weigh between 15–25 pounds due to their large gas tanks. They come with shoulder straps, making it easy to carry them during use. This type of blower is loud, considering its proximity to your ears, and they’re powerful enough for larger yards that have a lot of leaves or debris.
• Wheeled: Wheeled blowers are gas-powered machines that weigh around 100 pounds. Their large size makes them best for those with several acres of land. As opposed to the gas handhelds that have a two-stroke engine, wheeled leaf blowers have a four-stroke engine, which means they don’t require a fuel mixture and just use gasoline to operate.

 

Buying Guide

In addition to the type of leaf blower, here are a few other features to look for before purchasing a product.

 

Nozzle

The nozzle on a leaf blower is either rounded or flat. A rounded nozzle is best at blowing loose leaves, while a flat nozzle loosens dirt or wet leaves. Some leaf blowers offer both nozzle types and allow you to switch, depending on the type of job you’re doing.

 

Speed control

Leaf blowers typically come with two speeds or a variable speed lever. If given the choice, a variable speed lever is preferred because it allows you to tailor the speed to the type of task you’re doing. For example, if you’re blowing the sidewalk near a flower bed, you’ll want to be able to turn the speed down so that you don’t uproot the plants.

 

Weight

Lightweight leaf blowers weigh only a few pounds and can be comfortably carried for long periods. Heavier models, on the other hand, may require frequent breaks and leave your arms feeling tired.

 

Air intake

A leaf blower either sucks in air through the bottom of the machine or through the sides. Look for a model that takes in air from the bottom, because an air intake on the side of the blower could suck in your clothing during use.

 

Noise level

The noise level of leaf blowers is measured in decibels, with a lower decibel rating indicating that the leaf blower makes less noise. Leaf blowers with high CFM and mph values are often louder than their less powerful counterparts. If you live in a crowded area with neighbors close by, consider buying a quieter leaf blower to prevent disturbing them. However, if you end up choosing a louder leaf blower with a noise level above 60 to 65 decibels, also buy ear protection to prevent hearing damage.

 

Balance

You’ll want a balanced machine that evenly distributes its weight from the handle to the nozzle. A leaf blower that’s imbalanced will put more stress on your hands, wrists, and arms, making it uncomfortable to use.

 

Power

The power of electric leaf blowers is sometimes measured using voltage, with a common voltage being 20 or 40 volts. However, gas blowers aren’t measured using voltage, so we’ll discuss cubic feet per minute (CFM) and miles per hour (MPH), which are two measurements used by both electric and gas blowers.

CFM is a measurement of how much air passes through a leaf blower in a minute. The higher the CFM, the more area the leaf blower can clear. MPH measures how quickly the air passes through the nozzle and tells you how forcefully your leaf blower can clear an area. When looking at the power of a leaf blower, look at these two measurements in conjunction with each other.

To give you an idea of how much power to expect from a leaf blower, here’s a breakdown of the average measurements for each blower type:

	Electric Handheld	Gas Handheld	Gas Backpack	Gas Wheeled
CFM	349–605	358–460	360–907	1,090–8,500
MPH	95–250	145–195	145–251	153–200

 

Leaf Blowing Tips and Tricks

Once you’ve found the best leaf blower for your needs, you may be wondering how to get the most use out of it. Though blowing leaves sounds intuitive, there are a few pointers you should know so that you don’t have to go over the same area several times. 

• • Blow leaves in the direction of the wind, not against the wind. Consider the direction of the wind before you start blowing your leaves. 

• Make sure the leaves are dry. Wet leaves will be too heavy to move, sticking to the ground. 

• Pick an appropriate time of day to blow leaves. Though quieter models exist, they still produce a considerable amount of noise. 

• Don’t forget to wear safety gear. Work gloves, eye protection, ear plugs or ear muffs, and durable working clothes are smart to wear while blowing leaves. We also recommend wearing an air-filtering mask to prevent breathing in dust, pollen, and other airborne particles. 

 

 

FAQs

• Are there any leaf blowers that are quiet?

Every leaf blower makes noise, but the quietest models are cordless or corded electric blowers. We recommend not using your leaf blower early in the morning or late at night to avoid disturbing your neighbors or family members.

• How do I protect myself while using a leaf blower?

We recommend wearing ear muffs to protect your ears and goggles and dust masks to protect your face from any debris that gets kicked up during use.

• What leaf blower is best for a yard covered in leaves?

If your yard is covered in leaves, consider purchasing a gas-powered blower, which is better at moving densely packed leaves than an electric counterpart. Unless you have several acres of land, a backpack blower should suffice.

• How are cordless leaf blowers better compared to other types of leaf blowers?

Cordless leaf blowers are battery-powered, preventing them from releasing smelly, toxic emissions like gas leaf blowers do. Additionally, they offer greater freedom of movement compared to corded models. They’re also smaller and more lightweight than both of the other types, making them easier to handle. 

• Can my leaf blower also be used to clear snow? 

Cordless or corded leaf blowers can be used on their highest speed setting to clear light, powdery snow that’s less than one inch in thickness. However, they can’t be used to clear dense, wet snow because they lack the power. If this is the type of snow your area gets, consider a traditional snow shovel or a dedicated snow blower instead. 

 

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This Old House has empowered homeowners for more than four decades with top-notch home improvement content in the form of television programs, print media, and digital content on its website and social media platforms. The This Old House Reviews Team focuses on creating in-depth product and service review content to help inform your purchasing decision for just about any item or resource that you might need for your home. The This Old House Reviews Team has written over 1,000 reviews on products in the home space, from cordless drills to kitchen trash cans, lawn mowers, and dining room decorations. 

We recommend products in each review using an intensive research process, spending hours combing through the best available models on Amazon. For a product to make our list of top picks, it must hold a solid sales record on Amazon, have consistently positive customer reviews, and offer unique features, among other factors. After narrowing down our list of recommendations, we conduct additional research and sometimes in-person testing to ensure that the products meet our standards. Once we conclude the research phase, we craft a well-rounded, user-friendly article that includes our recommended products and additional information to help homeowners like you make the right purchase.

 

 

The This Old House Reviews team provides overviews of select products that are top-selling on Amazon and/or popular in consumer searches. Our team evaluates the products based on industry research, consumer reviews, pricing data, hands-on testing in select cases, and other objective criteria unique to a given product line. Unless otherwise noted, these product reviews are intended to help inform buying decisions for DIY or other non-pro users only. Editor’s picks are made by members of the Reviews team, and do not imply an endorsement by the experts on This Old House or Ask This Old House.