The Best Lawn Mowers of 2023

• Power source: Electric/battery
• Self-propelled: No
• Cutting options: Bag, Mulch, Side discharge
• Drive: Rear-wheel
  
• Weight: 66 lbs

The Kobalt 80V 21-inch electric mower is a great choice for anyone who wants an affordable, flexible, compact mower that is easy to maneuver. It is a good option for someone looking to avoid extension cords or gas cans, too. The mower is strong enough to chop through thick grass and offers a highly adjustable cutting height.

At 66 pounds, it is easy to operate, with the ability to go bagged or bagless, and you can fold up the push handle for compact storage.

The main draw is the 80V battery system, which gives you an hour of runtime in our testing, enough to cut about 7,500 square feet on a full charge. It also works with other Kobalt tools, and spares cost around $150.

Charging the battery takes about 45 minutes when fully depleted. The battery pops into the designated slot, and the mower can turn on with a press button if the safety key is inserted—much easier than using a traditional pull start.

Overall if you need a nice, basic mower to get the job done and want to go cordless, this is an excellent choice. It cuts clean lines, is easy to use, and can easily handle most lawns. The light weight makes it easy to use on slopes and hills.

If investing in a range of electric tools, this is a good system to buy.

• Power source: Electric/battery
• Self-propelled: Yes
• Cutting options: Bag, Mulch, Side discharge
• Drive: All-wheel
  
• Weight: 89.5 lbs

This Hart lawnmower was a pleasant surprise.

After removing it from the box and charging the batteries, we fired it up and took it out to the thick, lush grass.

It performed beautifully; its powerful electric motor cut through the lawn with ease and even increased its revolutions when we cut thicker grass. This mower easily handles a larger lawn.

The Hart mower moved with power and confidence through the lawn, and the simple-to-use speed control was right there at your fingertips.

This excellent lawnmower has the power and convenience of mowers costing much more.

• Power source: Electric/battery
• Self-propelled: No
• Cutting options: Bag, Mulch, Rear discharge
• Drive: Rear-wheel
  
• Weight: 58 lbs

At just 58 pounds, this mower makes cutting small lawns fun. The rear discharge chute allows you to trim close to trees, beds, and shrubbery. We found ourselves zipping around obstacles using only one hand.

This is a simple machine with one quick-charge battery in the center.

This is not a lawn mower for the back 40. With a 20-inch cut and a small electric motor, it cannot handle larger lawns. But for most small-to-medium-sized yards, this mower cleans up the area quickly.

Light and easy to store, this is the perfect mower to keep a lawn looking great.

• Power source: Electric/battery
• Self-propelled: Yes
• Cutting options: Bag, Mulch, Side discharge
• Drive: Rear-wheel
  
• Weight: 78 lbs

The 21-inch Ryobi RY401150 40-volt brushless mower sets up quickly and easily right out of the box. It includes double blades and cuts clean and clear.

This mower comes with two batteries that install in the top of the machine. One notable drawback is that only one battery powers the mower at a time. Cut your grass for approximately 30 minutes, and when the first battery dies, you can stop and move a switch to engage the second battery. Ryobi says that the batteries will last for 70 minutes, but stopping to change batteries seems counterproductive.

Otherwise, the mower performed well and completed all of the tests. It has a one-lever height adjustment and is light enough to maneuver around obstacles. It has plenty of power and handled the hill with little strain.

While both the Ego Power+ and Ryobi were solid performers on the electric front, the Ryobi was let down by its self-propel controls. The controls are located under the bar, but the lever is vague and unresponsive. Because the lever is designed for thumbs only, you need to push the lever awkwardly to get the mower up to speed.

• Power source: Electric/corded
• Self-propelled: No
• Cutting options: Bag, Mulch, Side discharge
• Drive: Rear-wheel
  
• Weight: 65 lbs

For a corded mower, the Greenworks 25022 lawn mower performed quite well. The setup was easy, and once it was plugged in, it started right up.

Of course, before you use the mower there is the time-consuming task of unearthing your extension cord, unraveling it, and finding a suitable outdoor plug. Once plugged in, the mower embraces its purpose with ease.

It has a powerful 12-amp electric motor that may not conquer larger lawns but is perfect for smaller yards and trimming duties. Not to mention it offers clean and even mowing.

Not being self-propelled, it takes some effort to push the lawn mower and cord uphill and then navigate a path back to not cut your cord.

Its small size makes storage a breeze.

• Power source: Electric/corded
• Self-propelled: No
• Cutting options: Bag, Rear discharge
• Drive: Rear-wheel
  
• Weight: 29 lbs

The 14-inch Sun Joe MJ401E lawn mower is the easiest to store. Its diminutive size makes it the perfect lawn mower for small yards and trimming duties. It’s light enough to pick up and move, and it comes with an easy-to-use bagging system.

Still, this is not a lawn mower for cutting the typical suburban lawn, as its lightweight, short wheelbase and small wheels make it a little unstable over roots and ruts.

Of all of the lawnmowers tested, the Sun Joe provided the most difficulty when it came time to adjust the height of the blades. The mower utilizes solid axles, front and rear, and the axles are located in a three-notch system under the mower. To change the height of the cut, you need to pull the spring-loaded axles from their positions and move them up or down. It’s a challenging exercise.

The Sun Joe is corded, so cutting area is limited. To its credit, it’s powerful enough when running, but the limited scope means you will have a hard time tackling an entire yard.

• Power source: Gas
• Self-propelled: Yes
• Cutting options: Bag, Mulch, Side discharge
• Drive: Front-wheel
  
• Weight: 73 lbs

The Craftsman M220 is one of the more cumbersome mowers we’ve tested. The setup was more involved. To adjust it to the right height, we had to kneel on the floor to remove two fasteners from the bottom of the handle and pull the handle out of the body. Another two fasteners at the base of the handle allowed us to set the handle angle. The better mowers have release buttons and adjusting levers that allow the operator to make these adjustments quickly and safely while standing.

The mower started on the first pull and seemed to have enough power to tackle any lawn. However, the two levers on top of the handle—one to start and one for speed of self-propulsion—are difficult to operate. Both are difficult to grab if your hands are small to medium, and the levers are too far from the handle for comfortable operation. They’re also not intuitively placed; you have to look each time you make a pass.

The biggest disadvantage of this mower is that it is equipped with front-wheel drive. When self-propelled mowers first came out many years ago, a front-drive system was easy for manufacturers to design and implement and the homeowner didn’t have to push dead weight. The design worked for many years because there was nothing else. But over the years rear-drive systems were developed and it produced a more balanced, more comfortable cutting experience.

When cutting a lawn, the operator naturally has some weight on the handle. Add to this the weight of the grass in the bag off the back of the mower and you have a very light front end. Because the weight of the mower is not over the wheels, the front wheels tend to spin and grasp through each pass. This results in uneven lines, a hard-to-control mower (especially on a bumpy terrain), premature wearing out of the plastic front wheels, and difficulty trying to trim around obstacles. This antiquated front drive system lets this mower down.