A cordless drill is the first power tool most people buy and the one they use the most. It drives screws, drills holes in wood, metal, plastic, and masonry, and with the right accessories, it sands, stirs paint, and strips wire. Picking the right one means understanding voltage, battery platforms, chuck types, and what separates a $50 drill from a $200 one.

Cordless Drill Buyer’s Guide

Voltage and Power

Cordless drills run on 12V, 18V (labeled 20V Max by DeWalt and some others), and 36V battery platforms. The voltage tells you roughly how much torque the tool can deliver.

12V compact drills are light (2.5 to 3 pounds), easy to handle in tight spaces, and adequate for driving screws and drilling in softwood. The Milwaukee M12 Fuel and Bosch PS32 are excellent 12V options. These drills are ideal for furniture assembly, electrical work, and cabinet installation where weight and size matter. They struggle with large hole saws, hardwood drilling, and sustained heavy driving.

18V / 20V Max drills are the standard for home workshops and professional use. This is the sweet spot. A good 18V drill handles every residential task — driving 3-inch deck screws, drilling with spade bits and Forstner bits, and boring into hardwood and mild steel. The DeWalt DCD791, Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2803-20, and Makita XFD131 are all proven performers in the $130 to $180 range (bare tool).

36V drills exist but are overkill for most workshop use. They are heavy and expensive. If you need that much torque, an impact driver at 18V does it better.

Brushed vs Brushless Motors

Brushless motors deliver 25 to 50 percent more runtime per charge, run cooler, produce more power, and last longer because there are no carbon brushes to wear out. Every major manufacturer now offers brushless drills in their mid-range and premium lines.

Pay the $20 to $40 premium for brushless. The efficiency difference is real and adds up over years of use. All the drills recommended in this guide are brushless.

Chuck Size and Type

Most cordless drills use a 1/2-inch keyless chuck. This accepts drill bits, driver bits, and accessories up to 1/2-inch shank diameter. The chuck should grip firmly without slipping under torque. Cheap drills use plastic-jawed chucks that lose grip over time. Metal single-sleeve chucks (like those on Milwaukee and DeWalt mid-range drills) hold tighter and last longer.

12V compact drills often use a 3/8-inch chuck. This limits the shank size of bits you can use but keeps the tool smaller. For most home use, 3/8-inch is sufficient.

Clutch Settings

The clutch ring behind the chuck controls how much torque the drill applies before slipping. Low settings (1 to 5) are for driving small screws into softwood without stripping. High settings (15 to 20) handle large screws in hardwood. The drill mode (marked with a drill bit icon) bypasses the clutch entirely for full-torque drilling.

Learning to use the clutch properly prevents stripped screws, split trim boards, and overdriven fasteners. Start low and increase until the screw seats where you want it. This is the feature that separates a drill from a screwgun — use it.

Speed Settings

Two-speed gearboxes are standard. Low gear (0-500 RPM) delivers high torque for driving large screws and drilling with large bits. High gear (0-2,000 RPM) provides speed for drilling small holes and driving small screws quickly.

Some premium drills add a third gear for optimized mid-range performance. Nice to have, not essential.

Battery Platform: The Real Decision

The drill itself is a $100 to $200 purchase. The battery platform is a $500 to $2,000+ commitment over time. Once you buy into DeWalt 20V Max, Milwaukee M18, or Makita 18V LXT, you will buy saws, sanders, impact drivers, lights, and blowers on the same platform to share batteries.

Choose a platform based on the full ecosystem, not just the drill:

DeWalt 20V Max: The widest range of tools. Excellent batteries. Strong in both woodworking and construction tools. The FlexVolt 60V tools share the same battery system. Great if you need a miter saw, circular saw, and nailer on one platform.

Milwaukee M18: Dominant in the trades. The M18 Fuel line has the most powerful tools in almost every category. Massive tool selection. Best choice if you want the most powerful tools available.

Makita 18V LXT: The most reliable and refined tools. Slightly less torque than Milwaukee in most categories but better ergonomics. The broadest range of 18V tools if you count specialty items. The XGT 40V line adds high-power options.

Ryobi 18V ONE+: Budget-friendly with the largest tool selection (over 300 tools). Performance is adequate for homeowner use. Batteries are cheap and widely available. Not professional-grade, but excellent value for occasional use.

What to Actually Buy

For occasional home use: Ryobi P252 or Hart 20V brushless kit. $80 to $120 with two batteries and a charger. Drills holes, drives screws, handles weekend projects. No shame in Ryobi — it works.

For a home workshop: DeWalt DCD791 or Makita XFD14 bare tool ($100 to $140), plus a battery and charger ($80 to $120). If buying your first tool on a platform, the kit pricing (drill plus batteries plus charger) usually saves $30 to $50 over buying separately.

For heavy use and trades: Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2903-20 or DeWalt DCD800. These are the torque leaders with the best chucks, highest RPMs, and longest-lasting brushless motors. $150 to $180 bare tool.

Drill vs Impact Driver

A cordless drill and an impact driver are different tools. The drill has a clutch, variable speed, and a chuck that accepts round and hex bits. The impact driver has a hex collet, no clutch, and delivers rotational impacts that drive long screws effortlessly.

Most builders end up owning both. The drill handles drilling and precision screw driving. The impact driver handles long screws, lag bolts, and heavy fastening. Combo kits with both tools plus two batteries run $180 to $250 and represent the best value for starting a battery platform.

Bottom Line

Buy an 18V brushless drill from a major brand whose battery ecosystem includes the other tools you will eventually need. The drill itself is the gateway — the real investment is the platform. Start with a combo kit (drill plus impact driver) and two batteries. That covers 90 percent of home workshop and home project tasks for years.