Cordless and battery chainsaw mean the same thing, and this is the fastest-moving corner of the market. We have 113 battery models on file, from 18V saws that live in a shed next to the drill to 36V and 40V machines that will fell a small tree.
The quick version, by what you are cutting:
Before you compare specs, decide the battery question first. The pack is often more than half the price, so if you already own Makita LXT, Ryobi ONE+, DeWalt XR, Bosch 18V or Einhell Power X-Change batteries, the bare-tool version of that brand is usually the cheapest good saw you can buy.
Cordless chainsaws by bar length
Current models we hold a review for, shortest bar first. Bar length is the honest guide to what a saw will cut; voltage is not.
Voltage, amp hours and what the numbers mean
Three numbers get quoted and only two of them matter to you.
- Voltage (18V, 36V, 40V, 56V, 80V) sets the ceiling on power. Higher voltage platforms drive longer bars and stall less in hardwood. Note that a "36V" saw running two 18V packs is the same thing as a 36V saw, just with the batteries split.
- Amp hours (2.0Ah, 4.0Ah, 5.0Ah) is the fuel tank, not the engine. A bigger pack runs longer, not harder, and weighs more.
- Brushless describes the motor. Brushless saws are more efficient, so they cut more wood per charge and last longer. On a saw you will use regularly it is worth paying for.
Realistic expectations on runtime: a 2.0Ah 18V saw will cut for perhaps fifteen to twenty minutes of actual trigger time, which is a lot of pruning but not much firewood. A 5.0Ah pack on a 36V saw will get through a decent pile of logs. If you plan to work for an afternoon, budget for two batteries and a fast charger from the start.
What a battery saw will and will not do
Will do: pruning, limbing, cutting up fallen branches, bucking logs to the width of the bar, tidying hedging and storm damage, and all of it without earplugs, fuel cans or a cold engine that will not start in March.
Will not do: a full day of continuous felling, hardwood much thicker than the bar, or anything where stopping to charge is not acceptable. For that you still want petrol. The gap has narrowed a lot though. A 36V brushless saw with a 5Ah pack outcuts a cheap petrol saw on everything except endurance.
Battery saws still need bar oil
This surprises people often enough to be worth saying plainly: cordless chainsaws have a bar and chain oil reservoir exactly like a petrol saw, and it must be kept full. There is no fuel to mix, but the chain still runs on a steel rail at speed and still needs lubrication. Standard bar and chain oil is what you want, not engine oil and not used oil.
The rest of the maintenance is simpler than petrol: keep the chain sharp and correctly tensioned, clean the sprocket area of sawdust, store the battery somewhere dry and not fully flat over winter, and that is most of it.
Choosing between the platforms
Among the brands here, Makita has the widest range and runs the same packs across LXT and the newer XGT, Greenworks covers the most price points in 24V, 40V, 48V and 60V, Ryobi ONE+ is the cheapest way in if you already own the batteries, DeWalt sits on XR and FlexVolt, and Einhell Power X-Change is the value option with a surprisingly large tool range. Stihl and Husqvarna sell the strongest battery saws here, but on their own packs and mostly through dealers.
Cordless chainsaw FAQs
Which battery chainsaw is best?
There is no single answer, because the battery platform usually decides it. If you already own cordless tools, the best saw is almost always the one that takes the packs in your garage. Starting from nothing, match the bar to the job: 25 cm on 18V for pruning, 30 cm on 18V or 36V for general garden work, 35 to 40 cm on 36V or 40V for firewood. Within each group, pick a brushless motor and buy the kit with two batteries.
Does a cordless chainsaw need oil?
Yes. It needs no fuel and no two-stroke oil, but it has a bar and chain oil tank that must be kept topped up, the same as a petrol saw. Use proper bar and chain oil. Running a chain dry will overheat the bar, stretch the chain and ruin both quickly. Most cordless saws empty the oil tank in roughly the time it takes to flatten two batteries, so check it every time you swap packs.
How long does a cordless chainsaw battery last?
Counted in trigger time rather than hours. An 18V saw with a 2.0Ah pack gives roughly fifteen to twenty minutes of cutting, a 4.0 or 5.0Ah pack on a 36V saw considerably more. Hardwood, a dull chain and a loose chain all shorten it sharply. As a rough guide, a 5.0Ah 36V saw will buck a wheelbarrow or two of logs on a charge. The battery itself should last several hundred charge cycles if it is not stored flat or left in a freezing shed.
Can a battery chainsaw cut down a tree?
Small ones, yes, within the limits of the bar. A 35 or 40 cm battery saw will fell a tree up to roughly the bar length in trunk diameter, and plenty of arborists now use battery saws for exactly this. What they will not do is a full day of felling without a pile of charged packs. For anything substantial, or for repeated felling work, a petrol saw is still the practical tool, and felling anything near a building or a road is a job for someone trained and insured.
Is a brushless cordless chainsaw worth the extra?
On a saw you will use more than a few times a year, yes. Brushless motors waste less energy as heat, so you get more cuts per charge, more torque when the chain is buried in a log, and a motor that does not wear brushes out. On a cheap saw for occasional pruning the premium is harder to justify, but most decent saws above 30 cm are brushless now anyway.
How do you tighten the chain on a cordless chainsaw?
Most cordless saws use a tool-free tensioner: remove the battery, loosen the side knob, turn the tensioning wheel until the chain sits against the underside of the bar, then retighten the knob while holding the bar nose up. Correct tension lets you pull the chain a few millimetres off the bar and still turn it by hand. Always take the battery out first, and check the tension again after the first few cuts with a new chain.
Cordless or petrol: which should I buy?
Buy cordless if your cutting is pruning, garden tidying and the occasional log, if noise matters, or if you already own batteries. Buy petrol if you cut firewood in quantity, fell trees, work away from power, or need a bar longer than 40 cm. Cost is closer than people expect once you include batteries and a charger, so decide on the work rather than the price.
What is the difference between cordless and electric?
Both are electric. Cordless means battery powered, corded means it plugs into the mains. On this site the electric archive covers both, while this page is battery only and corded covers mains saws. Corded saws are cheaper for the same cutting power and never run out, but you are tied to an extension lead.
