Petrol is what you buy when the cutting is serious: firewood by the cubic metre, felling, or any job where stopping to recharge is not an option. It runs as long as you keep mixing fuel, and above about 40 cm of bar it is the only realistic choice.
One warning about this market. Petrol chainsaws attract more no-name imports than any other garden tool, usually advertised as “62cc 20 inch” with no manufacturer behind them. They cut wood on day one. What they lack is a parts supply.
The best petrol chainsaws right now
| Chainsaw | Bar length | Power | Weight | Built for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gowe Strong power 105cc | 36 cm (14 in) | n/a | n/a | Home Owner | Check price |
| Stihl MS 170 Cylinder Chainsaw | 30 cm (12 in) | 1.6 | 4.6 kg | Home Owner | Check price |
| 62cc 20" Petrol Chainsaw | 20 in (51 cm) | 3.5 | 10.5 kg | Home Owner | Check price |
| Mitox 385CSX Premium Chainsaw | 35 cm (14 in) | n/a | 7.05 kg | Home Owner | Check price |
| Husqvarna HUSQ120-14 Review | 14 in (36 cm) | 19 | 4.8 kg | Home Owner | Check price |
| Hyundai Petrol Chainsaw, 62cc 20”, 2-Stroke Review | 20 in (51 cm) | n/a | 7 kg | Professional | Check price |
| Husqvarna 450 18-Inch 50.2cc X-Torq 2-Cycle Gas Powered Chain Saw | 45 cm (18 in) | 3.2 | 9.07 kg | Home Owner | Check price |
| Husqvarna 16 Inch 130 Gas Chainsaw | 40 cm (16 in) | 2 | n/a | Home Owner | Check price |
| 58cc 20" Petrol Chainsaw | 20 in (51 cm) | 3.1 | 10.3 kg | Home Owner | Check price |
| 26Cc 10" Petrol Top Handle Topping Chainsaw | 25 cm (10 in) | n/a | 4.72 kg | Home Owner | Check price |
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Matching the engine to the bar
Roughly: 30 to 40 cc suits a 30 to 35 cm bar and occasional use. 40 to 50 cc suits a 40 cm bar and regular firewood. Above 50 cc you are into felling and professional saws with 45 to 50 cm bars.
A long bar on a small engine is the classic bad buy: it cuts slowly, drags the chain speed down and wears the drive sprocket, which is why manufacturers publish permitted bar lengths per model.
Fuel, and why stale petrol kills saws
Nearly all modern saws run a 50:1 mix, which is 100 ml of two-stroke oil in 5 litres of fresh unleaded. Some budget machines specify 40:1, so check rather than assume. Never run neat petrol.
Mixed fuel degrades within weeks and the ethanol in pump petrol attacks fuel lines and carburettor diaphragms. A saw that will not start in spring has almost always been stored with fuel in it. Premixed alkylate fuel costs several times as much per litre and solves the problem completely for anyone who cuts a few times a year.
Safety kit is not optional
A petrol saw is the most dangerous tool most households own. Chainsaw trousers, chainsaw boots, a helmet with visor and ear defence, and gloves. Every saw here has a chain brake, but a brake only helps if the saw is held properly, with the left thumb wrapped under the front handle.
How this list is put together
The table above is generated from our review database every time this page loads. It is not a hand-written list that quietly goes out of date: if a model is discontinued or its buy link dies, it drops out automatically, and anything newly added to the relevant section appears without this page being touched.
Specifications come from the manufacturer or the retailer listing rather than our own bench testing, and we say so plainly. Where we hold a score it reflects how the saw compares with others at the same bar length and price, not an absolute verdict.
Prices are deliberately not printed here. They move weekly, and a stale price is worse than none, so the buy links take you to the current one.
Last updated November 2026