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Which Impact Driver Brand Wins?
2020 test4 productsPower Tools

Which Impact Driver Brand Wins?

In our test we compared 4 impact driver options head to head. Milwaukee M18 Fuel came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video. Shoppers cross-shopping milwaukee fuel impact driver, m12 impact driver, milwaukee m12 fuel impact driver and milwaukee m12 impact driver land here for the head to head that settles it.

The verdict
Milwaukee M18 Fuel
Winner

Milwaukee M18 Fuel

Price shown in test: $115.83

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Makita XDT16Z
Runner-up

Makita XDT16Z

Price shown in test: $167.03

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The quick take

The short version of why each pick lands where it does, built straight from the measured results.

WinnerMilwaukee M18 Fuel$115.83

“So, which impact driver won this showdown? In my opinion, Milwaukee just ran away with this competition and did a terrific job.”

Best in 3 of 6 measurements, including Tightening Torque Test, Loosening Torque Test and Cross Threaded Test.

Runner-upMakita XDT16Z$167.03

Placed top three in 2 of 6 measurements.

The measured results

Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.

Weight

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20
    989 g

    without battery, 1,721 g with 5 amp hour battery

  • 2Makita XDT16Z
    881 g

    without battery, the lightest of all four; 1,501 g with battery

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    953 g

    without battery, 1,583 g with battery, lightest with battery included

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium
    1,151 g

    without battery, 1,789 g with 3 amp hour battery, heaviest of the four

Torque Rating

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20
    1,800 in lbs

    claimed

  • 2Makita XDT16Z
    1,600 in lbs

    claimed

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    1,825 in lbs

    claimed, the highest claimed rating of the four

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium
    150

    Newton meters or 1,300 in lbs claimed, lowest of the four

Tightening Torque Test

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20
    1st place

    blasted past 900 PSI and ran out of the 15 second test time at 1,600 PSI

  • 2Makita XDT16Z

    tied for 2nd place with the DeWalt at 1,450 PSI

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR

    tied for 2nd place with the Makita at 1,450 PSI despite the highest torque rating

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium

    last place at 900 PSI

Loosening Torque Test

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20
    1st place

    at 1,750 PSI

  • 2Makita XDT16Z
    3rd place

    at 1,600 PSI

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    2nd place

    at 1,675 PSI

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium

    last place at 1,375 PSI

Lag Bolt Test

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20

    did not compete directly in the timed head to head against DeWalt/Makita pairing but won head to head against the DeWalt after DeWalt beat Makita

  • 2Makita XDT16Z

    made faster work of the 7 in lag bolt than the DeWalt (about 4.75 rotations vs about 3 for the DeWalt in comparable time) but lost the head to head lag bolt pull test against the DeWalt

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR

    began smoking about 1 minute in with grease leaking from the chuck by 1.5 minutes, made contact with the washer at about 3.5 minutes (slower than the Makita's 2.5 minutes); lost the head to head pull test against the Makita and against the Milwaukee

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium

    made pretty good progress at first but began smoking badly at 1.5 minutes, reached about 300 F, and stopped functioning entirely, only one of three lights still working

Drop Test

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20

    survived the 10 ft drop onto concrete with no visible damage and continued to work fine, described as just a tank

  • 2Makita XDT16Z

    experienced more handle flexion than the Milwaukee and DeWalt but the handle did not break and the tool still works fine

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR

    small amount of handle flexion, no visible structural damage, still works fine

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium

    hit hard and lost the battery on impact; electric motor already damaged from previous test, no visible structural damage

No Load RPM

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20

    maximum 3,577 RPM in high impact mode forward, close to its 3,600 RPM rating; minimum 75 RPM forward and reverse

  • 2Makita XDT16Z

    maximum 3,413 RPM versus a 3,600 RPM rating; minimum 99 RPM forward, 109 RPM reverse

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR

    maximum 3,305 RPM, faster than its 3,250 RPM rating; minimum 150 RPM forward and reverse

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium

    maximum 2,795 RPM forward (105 RPM slower than advertised), 2,815 RPM reverse (85 RPM slower than advertised); minimum 130 RPM forward, 155 RPM reverse

Warranty

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20
    5 years
  • 2Makita XDT16Z
    3 years
  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    3 years
  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium
    90 days
All measurements (4 more)+

Cross Threaded Test

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20

    totally crushing this test, completed 5 rotations before beginning to power down at 16 seconds, finishing with 7 total rotations in the 30 second test, the best of all four

  • 2Makita XDT16Z
    4.75 rotations

    in 30 seconds

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    just over3 rotations

    in 30 seconds, overpowered the lawnmower engine brake and compression

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium
    not tested

Lug Nut Break Loose

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20

    won all three rounds against the Makita and DeWalt

  • 2Makita XDT16Z

    won all three rounds against the DeWalt, then lost to the Milwaukee

  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    not tested
  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium
    not tested

Trigger Lag

  • 2Makita XDT16Z

    fastest off the line of all three tools compared

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20
    not tested
  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    not tested
  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium
    not tested

Teardown

  • 4Bauer 20V Hypermax Lithium

    impact assembly weighs 261 g; the bracket holding the brushes in place failed, brushes moved and wiped out the fan blades on the armature, leaving it 'pretty much a brushless motor' by accident

  • 1Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2853-20
    not tested
  • 2Makita XDT16Z
    not tested
  • 3DeWalt DCF 888BR
    not tested

How it was tested

  • tightening clamp load torque on a hydraulic ram rig, 15 second test
  • loosening (reverse) clamp load torque on a left hand threaded bolt
  • driving a 7 in lag bolt into a railroad tie, head to head
  • trigger lag response time, head to head
  • breaking loose a lug nut torqued to 110 ft lbs, head to head
  • spinning over a lawnmower engine with the brake applied and spark plug in for compression resistance, 30 second test
  • 10 ft drop test onto concrete
  • internal teardown and impact assembly weight comparison

“So, which impact driver won this showdown? In my opinion, Milwaukee just ran away with this competition and did a terrific job.”

From the test video verdict.

Brand head-to-head scoreboards featuring this test

DeWalt vs Milwaukee67 testsMilwaukee vs Makita43 testsDeWalt vs Makita46 tests

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