Trimmers & Edgers
Best brush cutter
A brush cutter is two purchases: a power head that will take a blade, and the blade. Only one of those publishes real specifications.
Affiliate disclosure: we earn a commission if you buy through our links, at no extra cost to you. It never changes which product we rank first — here is how we're funded.
We have not tested these units. Every spec on this page comes from the manufacturer's own documentation and is linked to it. Every computed figure is arithmetic you can redo. Prices are checked daily — last verified January 1, 1970. Here is exactly how we pick.
Quick picks
Ranked on the published specs and the arithmetic below. Tap any row to jump to the full write-up. We have not tested these units -- here is exactly how we pick.
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No photo Greenworks 80V 16" Attachment-Capable String Trimmer (2123802) An 80V power head that takes Expand-It, TrimmerPlus and Poulan Pro attachments -- including brush blades. | Best power head for a blade | 8.5 | |
| 2 | No photo RYOBI EXPAND-IT 10" Brush Cutter Attachment (RYBRC) A 10 in reversible Tri-Arc blade that fits Expand-It power heads and the several rival systems that copy the coupler. | Best blade attachment | 7.6 |
#ad Buy links are affiliate links. Prices come from a live daily check; where we have no verified price we say "check price" rather than print a stale one.
"Brush cutter" describes a job, not a single product. In a cordless yard it is two purchases: a power head rated to take a blade, and a blade attachment to fit it. Ranking the category honestly means ranking both halves — and being blunt about which half publishes almost nothing.
The short answer
What a blade buys, and what it costs
String cuts by flexing at high speed. It is forgiving against a fence post and useless against a woody stem, which simply shreds it. A steel blade shears instead — and the geometry changes with it.
Then there is the energy side, which is worth doing because one of the two makers publishes enough to do it.
The two halves, on published figures
| Spec | Greenworks 80V power head | RYOBI EXPAND-IT 10" blade |
|---|---|---|
| Role | Power head | Blade attachment |
| Cutting width | 14-16 in adjustable (string) | 10 in swath |
| Blade | n/a | Reversible Tri-Arc |
| Motor | Brushless | n/a |
| Battery | 80V 2.5Ah (200Wh) | n/a |
| Runtime | Up to 50 min with string | Not published |
| Energy per minute | 4.0Wh/min (our arithmetic) | Not computable |
| Weight | 9.15 lb without battery | Not published |
| Compatibility | Poulan Pro, Ryobi Expand-It, TrimmerPlus | Expand-It system and others |
| Warranty | 4-yr tool and battery | Not stated on the product page |
Transcribed from the Greenworks 80V attachment-capable trimmer and RYOBI EXPAND-IT 10" brush cutter attachment pages, fetched 9 September 2026. Watt-hour and swath comparisons are our arithmetic.
1. Greenworks 80V attachment-capable trimmer — the half that matters
Two hundred watt-hours, a brushless motor, an adjustable 14 to 16 inch cutting path that lets you trade width for runtime, a LOAD N' GO bump feed and a four-year warranty on tool and battery.
The reason it leads is the published attachment list. Greenworks states compatibility with three separate attachment ecosystems — Poulan Pro, Ryobi Expand-It and TrimmerPlus — which means the blade is not a proprietary purchase and neither is a pole saw, a cultivator or an edger later. That is the argument for a multi-head system generally, set out in multi-head attachment systems.
The honest cons: 9.15 lb before you add a battery or a steel blade, no published runtime with a blade fitted, and 80V is a separate Greenworks platform from their own 40V and 60V lines.
#ad Check the Greenworks 80V 16" Attachment-Capable String Trimmer (2123802) price on Amazon — how we're funded.
2. RYOBI EXPAND-IT 10" brush cutter attachment — the blade
A 10 inch reversible Tri-Arc blade on the Expand-It coupler, which several brands share. Reversible matters: when one set of edges dulls, you flip the blade and carry on rather than sharpening in the field.
What RYOBI publishes about it is close to nothing. No weight, no guard detail, no compatible power head list beyond "EXPAND-IT Attachment System & Others," and no warranty term on the product page. The previous version of the same attachment is listed as discontinued. We rank it because it is a real, current, purchasable blade on a widely shared coupler — not because the specification sheet earned it.
Treat a steel blade as a different risk class from string. It throws debris further, it can kick back when a stem binds, and it keeps spinning after you release the trigger.
#ad Check the RYOBI EXPAND-IT 10" Brush Cutter Attachment (RYBRC) price on Amazon — how we're funded.
Before you fit a blade
- Check the power head is rated for a blade. If the manufacturer does not publish blade compatibility, the answer is no. Shaft type, guard and clutch all differ.
- Fit the blade guard that came with the attachment, not the string guard. They deflect debris in different directions.
- Use the harness if the power head has one. A blade that binds pulls the tool sideways, and your grip is not the thing you want stopping it.
- Cut with the left segment of the blade, moving right to left, so kickback pushes away from you rather than toward.
- Eye and leg protection, always. Steel through a woody stem sends fragments at speeds string never reaches.
Who should skip this setup
- Anyone cutting tall grass and soft weeds only. String does that job with a wider swath and less risk — see best trimmers for tall weeds.
- Anyone facing genuine saplings. Past about an inch of woody stem, a blade on a trimmer shaft is the wrong tool and a cordless chainsaw is the right one.
- Owners of fixed-head trimmers. A dedicated string trimmer with no published blade rating cannot be converted, whatever the coupler looks like.
What we cannot tell you
We have not cut brush with this combination. RYOBI publishes no weight, no guard specification, no warranty term and no explicit power head list for the blade. Greenworks publishes no runtime, no maximum stem diameter and no blade rating detail for its power head with an attachment fitted. Nobody publishes a maximum stem diameter for a Tri-Arc blade at all, which is the single number a buyer would most want.
The picks in full
Specs are the manufacturer's own and linked to the page they came from. Prices come from a live daily check; where we have no verified price we say so rather than print a stale one.
Greenworks 80V 16" Attachment-Capable String Trimmer (2123802)
Greenworks · Greenworks 80V · Our score 8.5/10
#ad No verified live price right now, so we show none rather than a stale one. How we're funded.
An 80V power head that takes Expand-It, TrimmerPlus and Poulan Pro attachments -- including brush blades.
Published specs
| Cutting path | 14-16 in, adjustable |
|---|---|
| Line | 0.080 in / 0.095 in |
| Motor | Brushless |
| Battery | 80V 2.5Ah (200Wh) |
| Runtime | Up to 50 min |
| Attachment fit | Poulan Pro, Ryobi Expand-It, TrimmerPlus |
| Head | LOAD N' GO bump feed |
| Weight | 9.15 lb without battery |
| Warranty | 4-yr tool and battery |
Source: 80V 16" Attachment-Capable String Trimmer (2123802), greenworkstools.com
80V x 2.5Ah = 200 watt-hours, and Greenworks publishes up to 50 minutes of runtime, so 200 / 50 = 4.0Wh per minute at the advertised voltage. That is the trimming figure. Greenworks publishes no runtime with a brush blade fitted, and cutting woody stems draws more than trimming grass, so expect the blade to spend that 200Wh faster.
What the numbers favor
- Takes three brands of attachment, so the blade is not a proprietary purchase
- Publishes both watt-hours and runtime, which makes Wh/min computable
- 4-year warranty on tool and battery
- Adjustable 14-16 in cutting path trades width for runtime
What they don't
- 9.15 lb before you add a battery or a steel blade
- No published runtime with a brush cutter attachment fitted
- 80V is a separate platform from Greenworks' own 40V and 60V lines
you only ever cut grass. The attachment capability is the reason to pay for this one, and a fixed-head trimmer weighs less.
How it scores
Scores are our editorial weighting of the published specs above, not a test result. They are deliberately kept out of this page's structured data.
RYOBI EXPAND-IT 10" Brush Cutter Attachment (RYBRC)
RYOBI · Attachment (Expand-It fit) · Our score 7.6/10
#ad No verified live price right now, so we show none rather than a stale one. How we're funded.
A 10 in reversible Tri-Arc blade that fits Expand-It power heads and the several rival systems that copy the coupler.
Published specs
| Blade | 10 in reversible Tri-Arc |
|---|---|
| Fit | RYOBI EXPAND-IT attachment system and others |
| Model | RYBRC |
| Weight | Not published |
| Guard | Not detailed on the product page |
| Warranty | Not stated on the product page |
Source: EXPAND-IT 10" Brush Cutter Attachment, ryobitools.com
The blade cuts a 10 in swath where the same power head swings 14 to 16 inches of line. You lose about a third of the width and gain the ability to cut woody stems that shred line on contact. That trade is the whole reason a blade exists, and it is why nobody uses one to cut a lawn edge.
What the numbers favor
- Reversible blade doubles the usable edges before sharpening
- Fits the Expand-It coupler, which several brands share
- Steel blade cuts saplings and woody stems that stop string dead
What they don't
- RYOBI publishes almost nothing: no weight, no guard detail, no warranty term on the page
- The previous version of this attachment is listed as discontinued
- A spinning steel blade throws debris and kicks back -- different risk class from string
your power head has no published blade rating. Fitting a steel blade to a trimmer that was not designed for one is how people get hurt.
How it scores
Scores are our editorial weighting of the published specs above, not a test result. They are deliberately kept out of this page's structured data.
Where to buy the tools on this page
Every link below is an Amazon affiliate link. We show no price we have not verified today, so where there is no live figure the link says "check price" and takes you to the listing to read it there.
Best power head for a blade
Greenworks 80V 16" Attachment-Capable String Trimmer (2123802)
Greenworks · Greenworks 80V
Best blade attachment
RYOBI EXPAND-IT 10" Brush Cutter Attachment (RYBRC)
RYOBI · Attachment (Expand-It fit)
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Common questions
What is the best brush cutter?
What is the difference between a brush cutter and a string trimmer?
Can I put a blade on any string trimmer?
How long does a battery brush cutter run?
Are Expand-It attachments universal?
Sources
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