A lovely, Leafy green lawn is the dream for most gardeners. For that, you need the best lawnmower.
The fact is, the lawn is quite often the largest area of your garden. So having the best lawnmower that suits your lawn and lawn size is crucial. Most gardeners will tell you it’s there most important tool they own.
Shopping for a lawnmower at times can feel overwhelming with all the different choices on offer and it’s not helped with all the jargon, which may leave you confused.
Often as lawnmowers get more expensive, it’s hard to see why at times.
With that in mind, I have put together this lawnmower buying guide on how to choose the best lawnmower.
This guide will take you through all the features of a lawnmower and hopefully make purchasing one much easier once you know what mower will suit you and your garden.
IN A HURRY? HERE’S OUR TOP PICKS…
Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Lawnmower Types
There are three different types of lawnmowers that you are more than likely to come across when you come to purchase yours and we will explain each below.
Cylinder Lawnmower
The Cylinder Lawnmower is as the name suggests cylindrical blades that rotate vertically in most cases at the front of your mower, the best type is one that has three or more blades this gives a crisp clean cut.
Cylinder mowers are the perfect fit for flat lawns that you want to keep short and well-manicured; they are used on golf greens so this is the type of look you can achieve. They can come in a variety of power outputs push, electric and even gas.
Generally speaking, when talking about cylinder lawnmowers they tend to be a heavy machine and if you want to achieve striped lawns this type of mower will be a perfect match.
Rotary Lawnmower
The Rotary style lawnmower is one you may be more inclined to recognize it has a single blade that rotates horizontally under your mower, like the blades on a helicopter.
Rotary Lawnmower is fine with most lawn types and is the most versatile type of mower, They are good lawn mowers for people who don’t cut their lawn regularly and let their lawn get long it will cope with longer and rougher grass.
This type of mower will cope well with uneven ground.
They come in many different types of power options Electric, Battery, Gas and now they even come Robotic.
Hover Lawnmower
Maybe not something that is super popular the Hover Lawnmower but they have their place if your lawn situation suits; how they work is that they hover over the ground making them easy to push just like a hovercraft, they have a single blade that rotates horizontally under your hover lawnmower.
With the hover ability, this makes them easy to use on uneven surfaces, unusual shaped lawns or lawns with obstacles it is a very easy lawnmower to maneuver around.
Hover lawnmowers are not suitable for large lawns as they are in most cases corded electric and they just don’t have the reach for a lot of yards.
Lawnmower Power OptionIn the power output category, we have 5 different options, below we will cut through the jargon and explain how each one suits different gardens to help make that purchasing choice easier.
Lawnmower Power outputs
There are 5 different power outputs when it comes to lawnmowers.
Depending on what power output you choose each power output possesses many advantages and disadvantages we go over each to see which power output will best suit your lawn.
Electric Lawn Mower
The Electric Lawn Mower is the most popular power option that is out there, they are simply powered by the mains electricity. Garden size is important to keep in mind we have found they are a perfect fit for small to medium-sized lawn gardens.
They tend to be small and easy to store and in most cases cheaper than most Gas lawn mowers, you need to keep in mind as they are mains electricity-powered you need to check the cable length to make sure that you can get to the furthest part of your lawn.
Gas Lawn Mower
Gas-powered Lawn Mower is the most popular power option for people who have a large lawn as there is no mains cable to tether you. In most cases, they are more expensive but they come with much more powerful and faster at cutting your lawn.
Gas Lawn Mowers tend to be much heavier and bigger so if this could cause you a problem look for a gas-powered lawnmower that has a self-propelled feature.
You need to also bear in mind that Gas-powered Lawn Mower will need servicing just like a car to keep it in top condition once a year and the task is not too big we wouldn’t let this put you off a gas-powered lawnmower.
Battery Lawn Mower
The new kid on the block is the Battery Powered Lawn Mower trying to fill the gap between the Electric and Gas mower, not as heavy as gas mowers and no cable to tether you to give you a bigger reach like an Electric Lawn Mower so for some people the perfect go-to.
With this in mind, they are ideal for medium to large lawn gardens; in a lot of cases, they are just as powerful as Gas-powered Lawn Mower.
It’s also worth bearing in mind that they do have their limitations; the most obvious is the battery run time. Some will last for 1hour others will last for as little as 20 minutes so this is a really important thing to check out.
Push Lawn Mower
The most basic of lawn mowers but the Push Powered Lawn Mower has its place and can be a perfect fit if your lawn garden fits. Push mowers in most cases come with a cylinder style cutting blades that you simply push along with your power.
Push mowers are best suited for people with small lawns; they also don’t produce any noise so great if you want to cut your grass at unsociable hours.
Robotic Lawn Mower
Another new kid on the block is the Robotic Lawn Mower and they are becoming more commonplace, Technology is getting better and that normally means price starts to come down and that is what is happening.
Robotic Lawn Mower is the perfect fit for people who just don’t want to cut there lawn. There is some setup like most types of technology you will have to set up perimeter wire in most cases.
Technology in these mowers is getting much better like avoiding obstacles on your lawn even self-parking to charge itself when it needs a charge.
Lawnmower for Different Garden Sizes
Over the years of helping people pick the best mower, this is where I have seen most people fail to get it right, your lawn size is a crucial part of the jigsaw so this guide should help you on what size category your lawn falls in.
Small Lawn – Less than 538 sq ft – Push, electric and cordless lawnmowers.
Medium Law – Between 538-1614 sq ft – Electric, Battery and Gas lawnmowers.
Large Lawn – Bigger than 1614 sq ft – Gas lawn mowers
It’s very easy to get your gardens Square foot measurement you simply get the length of your lawn (in ft) multiplied by the width of your lawn (in ft) this will give you your square foot.
Armed with this information you can much better pick your cutting width witch we explain below.
Lawnmower cutting width
This is a follow on from above, now we know what size category your lawn falls into you will be in a much better place picking you cutting width and we believe this to be a crucial part of the buying process.
What is a Lawnmower cutting width? Well, it’s just the size of the mowers blade. The larger the blade, the bigger the piece of grass you will cut with each run.
It’s important to line your Lawnmower Garden Sizes with the correct cutting width. Get a mower with too big of a cutting width on a small lawn you will find it hard to maneuver any corners, but too small of a cutting width on a large garden and it will take you much longer to get the job done.
The below guide should help you on what size cutting width will be right for your garden.
Small Lawn – Between 12Inch and 13.5Inch
Medium Law – Between 13.5Inch and 16Inch
Large Lawn – Bigger than 16Inch
Extra Lawnmower Features
Lawnmower Handle adjustment
something a lot of people overlook, adjusting the handle is a key point. Some
mowers will come with a fixed handle and you must make sure that it is a
correct fit for you this is more important if you’re a smaller person even a
tall individual as bending over to push your mower this can give you a bad
back.
Some models that have Handle adjustment on them not only have the benefit to get your perfect fit but they fold to allow for better storage.
Lawnmower Cutting Height Adjustment
Cutting height on the mower is more important than most people think, as during the early cutting season its best to have a longer cutting height so that you don’t stress the lawn, in the main cutting season you will be able to lower the height and get a closer neater cut.
An easy adjustment handle will make this job very easy to do.
Most mowers now let you adjust the height and let you change between different heights. It’s important to see if your choice of the mower can change it’s also worth considering how easy it is to change the height. Some are difficult and need you to remove spacers under the cutting blade, the easier the most convenient type is where you pull a lever to change the height some require you change the height of each wheel this a little more messing but not as bad as changing the blade spaces.
Lawnmower Grass Box
Generally, the advice is to collect grass clipping from your lawn rather than leaving them once cut. Most lawn mowers are now coming with a grass box that collects your clippings at the back of your mower, it’s much better than leaving them on your lawn then having to rake them up afterward.
If you have a medium to large lawn then look for a lawnmower that comes with a grass box with a high capacity. This will cut down on the number of times you need to stop cutting the grass to empty the grass box.
Lawnmower Mulch Mowers
Contradicts the above a little but it has its place lawn lowers that say mulch mower will chop the grass very finely and push them back onto your lawn as mulch giving nutrients to your lawn; they at times have different names like recycling mowers but there pretty much the same thing.
The reason Mulch Mowers are different from leaving your clippings from a traditional mower is that it cuts your clipping finely and they break down much faster so they don’t smother the grass. Mulch Mowers are normally more expensive but are ideal for people who have nowhere to deposit their cuttings.
Rear Roller
What is the point of the Rear Roller on your mower? Well if you want a stripped lawn as you see on football pitch you will need a rear roller. The heavier your mower and roller is the longer your stripes will last.
Getting a striped finish on my lawn is achieved when the roller on your mower flattens your grass as you mow and then mow the opposite way coming back, the sun shining on will give a striped effect.
Lawnmower Mowing Edges
Some mowers will be hard to get right to the edge of your lawn, Features like a grass comb will make this much easier. This is not a must-have extra but is a nice feature that will reduce the time you will spend going back over the edges with a String Trimmer with the grass you have missed.
Self-Propelled Lawnmower
We touched upon this in the gas mower section, but just a brief rundown mower can be heavy and this can make the task of cutting your lawn a hard job, with a Self-Propelled Lawnmower you don’t have to use your strength you just point it in the direction you want and off you go.
It makes mowing your lawn a much easier job especially with large lawns; Self-Propelled Lawnmower can come with some electric mowers and is more commonplace with gas mowers.
Our Recommendations
Having covered all the above we hope this gives you a very good idea of what you need when it comes to buying a new lawnmower and below we will give our best Recommendation for each power option.
Best Corded Lawn Mower
- Your purchase includes One GreenWorks 14-Inch Corded Lawn Mower | 9 Amp motor to cut all types of grasses
- Product dimensions – 28.25” L x 18.25” W x 14.75” H | Weight – 36 lbs. | 7-Inch rear wheel and 6-inch front wheels
- Easy assembly required | Deck Material – Plastic | Handle height is not adjustable | Cutting blade type – Single, metal
- position height adjustment offers a range of cutting Height from 5/8-inch to 2-5/8-Inch for the perfect cut on all types of grass
- 2-in-1 feature offers rear bagging and mulching capability for multiple use | 14'' deck is versatile and light weight | Up to 34% of U.S homes...
Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Greenworks Corded Electric Lawn Mower
This is one of the best mowers in the corded category is comes packed full of features and the reviews on Amazon speak for themselves.
- Comes in 14inch and 20inch cutting width
- Powerful 9A Motor – Will tackle longer grass
- Has a mulching feature
- Has a Grass box
- Easy grass height adjustment handle – 5 different Positions
- Foldable handle for easy storage (NO height adjustment)
Best Gas Lawn Mower
Craftsman M105
- 140cc OHV gas powered engine: Engine comes equipped with recoil and auto choke. No more fussing with a primer or choke - just pull to...
- 3-In-1 capabilities: unit has side discharge, rear discharge, and mulching capabilities.
- 21-INCH CUTTING DECK: Efficient cutting deck helps trim grass in one quick pass for an easier yard job.
- Dual-lever adjustable cutting Height: Choose from 6 different height settings to suit user’s needs.
- Attached bagger included: bagger included with purchase to catch grass clippings you’re your convenience.
Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
We find it hard to beat the Craftsman M105 for gas-powered lawnmowers at this price point; Craftsman is a brand that you can trust to give extra buying confidence.
- 21inch cutting width (Ideal for large gardens)
- Powerful 140cc engine for tackling very long grass
- 3-1 Grass discharge – Side discharge/Rear discharge/Mulching discharge
- Rear grass bag for less weight
- Easy grass height adjustment handle – 6 different Positions
- Durable wheels
Best Battery Lawn Mower
Greenworks LMF402 Cordless Brushless Lawn Mower
- Greenworks 40V brushless mower provides up to 60 minutes run-time with fully charged 5Ah battery. Run-time varies based on grass condition and...
- Durable 21" steel deck allows you to handle large areas of grass quickly and easily. Brushless motor provides more torque, quiet operation, and...
- Dual battery port design enables one battery to be stored while the other fuels the mower, saving you a trip to the garage
- 3-In-1 design allows you to mulch, rear bag, or side discharge your grass clippings. Use up to 70% less space in your garage with the vertical...
- 7 position single lever height adjustment for quick and easy adjustments
Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
On our search for the best battery lawnmower, we found it hard to get the mix of price and runtime right and after a study, we chose the Greenworks as it’s the best fit in terms of price and runtime with the added benefit from coming from a company that excels in battery tools.
- 5AH battery that gives up to 60 minutes cutting time
- 21inch cutting width (Ideal for large gardens)
- Easy start button
- Easy grass height adjustment handle – 7 different Positions
- 3-1 Grass discharge – Side discharge/Rear discharge/Mulching discharge
- Rear grass bag included
- Battery storage on mower
Best Push Lawn Mower
American Lawn Mower Company 5-Blade Push Reel Lawn Mower
- 4-blade reel mower with a cutting width of 14” and durable 8.5” polymer wheels for maximum maneuverability. Lightweight at only 19 pounds....
- This push lawn mower has an adjustable blade height of 0.5”-1.75”. Capable of cutting grass up to 4 inches tall and is less effective on...
- Manual grass cutter is environment-friendly alternative to other lawn mowers. This push mower is pollution-free, noise-free, low maintenance,...
- A reel mower uses a cutting action that does not bruise or damage the blades of grass. For best results using a reel push mower, mow no more than...
- Increase the amount of overlap while using your push mower if your lawn reaches a height of 4 inches or more. It’s better to mow smaller...
Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
What better than an American built lawnmower on our search for best components and the right price we went with the American Lawn Mower Company Push Lawn Mower 5 blades witch will give you are sharp cut.
- Variety of cutting width to choose from 14inch to 18inch
- Variety of cutting blades to choose from 4 or 5
- Sharp cutting blades
- Comfort handle
Best Robotic Lawn Mower
WORX WR140 Landroid M 20V Robotic Lawn Mower
- [FULLY AUTOMATED] The Landroid M cuts lawns up to ¼ acre all by itself. Just set the charging base, lay down the boundary wire, measure your...
- [WI-FI & APP CONTROLLED] There are many things you can do from the Landroid app: measure your lawn, check mowing progress, keep software up to...
- [SAME BATTERY, EXPANDABLE POWER] The same battery powers over 75+ 20V, 40V, and 80V lifestyle, garden, and power tools in the Power Share family
- [NAVIGATES NARROW PATHS] Patented AIA technology allows Landroid to navigate narrow passageways too difficult for ordinary robotic mowers
- [CUSTOMIZED MOWING SCHDULES] Have Landroid mow every day, every other day, it can even recommend an auto schedule based on your yard’s size and...
Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Having seen a robotic lawnmower in action the discussion led to if you’re a lazy gardener or a smart one I kept out of the conversation, the one I saw was the one we recommend the WORX WR140 Landroid it takes a little setting up but once it’s done its completely hands-free well sort of you run it from an APP.
- Automatically recharges
- Cuts edges of the lawn
- Weather-resistant so can be left out
- Cutting height adjustable
- Run from an app
Conclusion
So there you have it our extensive guide to help you choose the best lawn mower for your lawn if you think we have missed anything drop up a line below or use the contact us page and we will add it as we want this to be the best guide for people.
Buying a lawnmower is not easy and we hope that our buying guide has helped along with our recommended lawnmowers.
To recap on the steps on getting you the best mower these are the steps we recommend.
- Measure the length and width of your lawn
- Covert to square footage (L x W = A)
- Identify the size of your lawn with our lawn guide above
- Use the guide to see what type of mower you need for the garden size
- Decide on what are the most important features to you
- Buy your new Lawn Mower
We hope our lawn mower buying guide helps you make the choice of lawnmower you’re purchasing much easier and that it is the perfect fit for your lawn we have put this guide together so you get it right the first time and the lawnmower should last you for years to come.
Happy mowing