Best cordless string trimmers of 2026

A string trimmer is a simple tool with two specifications people ignore and later regret: the line gauge, and how you get new line onto the spool. Swath width and runtime get the headlines; those two decide whether you enjoy owning it.

Every published spec

Trimmers are the efficient tool in the shed

Two useful conclusions. First, the Ryobi and Greenworks are equally efficient despite one being 40V and the other 80V, which is another demonstration that voltage is not the runtime variable. Second, because trimmers sip energy, fitting a mower-sized pack transforms them: a 7.5Ah EGO pack (420Wh) on the ST1521S would run roughly 90 minutes rather than 30.

Line gauge is the spec people skip

EGO and Ryobi both ship 0.095 inch. Greenworks ships 0.080 inch spiral-twist dual line on the ST80L210. That is not a small difference in practice: line strength scales with cross-sectional area, so 0.095 has roughly 40% more material resisting a bramble stem than 0.080.

You can usually fit heavier line to a trimmer rated for lighter line, but it costs runtime (more mass to spin) and can strain a head not designed for it. Check the manual before you do it rather than assuming.

The head design you will think about weekly

EGO's POWERLOAD winds the spool for you: feed the line through and press a button. Ryobi and Greenworks both use bump feed, which advances line while you work but still needs hand-winding when the spool empties.

Rewinding a trimmer spool by hand, on the ground, with a length of nylon that wants to spring off, is the job everyone puts off. If you trim weekly through the season, an automatic head is worth more than fifteen minutes of runtime.

Notes on the picks

EGO first, on the two specs that last

POWERLOAD plus a lifetime warranty on the carbon fiber shaft is the strongest ownership package here. A lifetime warranty on the one structural component is a company backing its own material choice, and it is the only lifetime term anywhere on this site.

The kit's 2.5Ah pack and 30-minute claim are its weakness, and the fix is cheap if you are already on EGO. The split shaft also takes the 8-inch edger attachment and a pole saw, which makes the power head do three jobs.

Ryobi wins on runtime and flexibility

67 published minutes is more than double the EGO kit's claim, and the 15-to-17-inch adjustable swath is a genuinely useful mechanism — wide for open verge, narrow for beds and around trees.

The cost is weight, and Ryobi is the only brand here honest enough to publish both figures: 8.8 lb bare and 12.9 lb with the 6.0Ah pack fitted. On a 72-inch shaft held out in front of you, 12.9 lb is a lot of leverage. If you have wrist or shoulder trouble, buy a smaller pack for this tool and accept the shorter runtime.

Greenworks is the lightest and the fastest to recharge

7.1 lb bare and a 30-minute recharge, both the best figures here, with a published 6200 RPM motor speed that neither competitor states. The 0.080-inch line is the reason it ranks third: it is a lawn-edge gauge on a tool that otherwise looks capable of more.

What we cannot tell you

We have not used any of these. Balance point, vibration through the shaft, whether the bump feed advances reliably or double-feeds, how the harness sits — all real, all things a spec sheet is silent on, and all better answered by someone who bought one.

Where we can help is the arithmetic and the specifications, which for this category means: check the line gauge, check how you reload it, and check the weight with a pack fitted rather than bare. Those three things are knowable before you buy, and most listings bury all three.