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Rankings re-checked weekly · Last re-checked 19 September 2026
·Prices re-verified on refresh·AI-assisted, run by Jaco Olwagen
2 quick taps — we'll match you to a pick using the same scores we rank with.
The picks, in order
7 picks
Number one at the top, number 7 at the bottom. The tier label on each card says which price bracket it sits in.
★Editor's Choice
1
Bosch Professional
Bosch Professional GSB 18V-110 C Brushless Combi Drill (Body Only)
18V Brushless110Nm Torque13mm Metal Chuck
Premium
Rank #1
Bosch Professional GSB 18V-110 C Brushless Combi Drill (Body Only)
Our Verdict
The most torque on this list by a wide margin - 110Nm, a full-metal chuck and KickBack Control - from Bosch's blue Professional line, sold body only with no battery or charger.
Why it's number one: It leads the dimension worth 45 per cent of the score outright: 110Nm of published torque against 65Nm for the next drill down, with a full-metal chuck, KickBack Control and 82mm of wood capacity, on 4.7 stars from 793 Amazon UK ratings.
8.4Top7 Score
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✓Checked yesterday
★ 4.7(793 reviews)
✓ Ships from the UK✓ Free delivery with Prime
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This is the blue line, not the green one: GSB is Bosch Professional, it runs GBA 18V and ProCORE18V packs, and a Power for All battery from a green EasyImpact will not fit it. What it buys you is headroom. Bosch publishes 110Nm maximum torque, quoted as 47/85/110Nm across its settings, against 65Nm for the DeWalt below it, and pairs it with 0-480 and 0-2,100rpm gears, a 31,500bpm hammer rate and a 1.5 to 13mm full-metal chuck. The published drilling capacities are 82mm in wood, 16mm in masonry and 13mm in steel, which is auger and hole-saw territory rather than shelf-bracket territory. KickBack Control cuts the motor when the body starts to rotate instead of the bit, which is the thing that breaks wrists on a 100mm hole saw, and Electronic Motor Protection and Autolock sit behind it. There are 25+2 torque settings and an optional Bluetooth connectivity module. The costs are real: at 1.9kg without a battery it is the heaviest body here, Bosch publishes no sealing rating for it, and the scope of delivery for the bare tool is the drill and an auxiliary handle - you supply the pack and the charger. Worth knowing that the GSB 18V-55, the blue combi most UK trades reach for first, currently shows no Amazon offer in either of its listings, which is why this larger model is the blue-line pick.
Power
8.5
Build
8.5
Battery
8
Owners
8.5
Owners is the 4.7★ Amazon UK rating from 793 reviews, weighted toward the category average when there are few. Fewer than two published reviews of this exact model, so the owner rating carries that weight too. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Power 8.5: Bosch publishes 110Nm peak hard-joint torque, inside the card's 100 to 119Nm band, with a hammer function rated at 31,500bpm.
Build 8.5: Full-metal 13mm chuck and a two-gear box clear the card's 8 anchor, and KickBack Control plus Electronic Motor Protection push above it; no published sealing and 1.9kg without a battery keep it off 10.
Battery 8: A brushless body-only tool on Bosch Professional 18V, one of the card's named professional platforms with large packs sold in the UK: the card's 8 band exactly, with no kit packs to add.
Pros
+ 110Nm published maximum torque, the highest here and the only pick rated for 82mm in wood
+ KickBack Control cuts the motor when the tool twists rather than the bit - the safety feature that matters on hole saws
+ Full-metal 1.5 to 13mm chuck and a 31,500bpm hammer rate for 16mm in masonry
+ Blue Professional platform: ProCORE18V packs, Electronic Motor Protection and an optional Bluetooth module
Cons
− Body only - no battery and no charger, just the drill and an auxiliary handle
− 1.9kg without a battery, the heaviest body on this list
− Bosch publishes no dust or water sealing rating for this model
− Blue Professional batteries are a separate system from Bosch's green Home and Garden range and do not interchange
18V Brushless110Nm Torque13mm Metal ChuckKickBack ControlBosch Professional BlueBody Only
DeWalt DCD778D2T-QW 18V XR Brushless Combi Drill Kit with 2 x 2.0Ah Batteries
18V Brushless65Nm Torque2 x 2.0Ah Kit
Premium
Rank #2
DeWalt DCD778D2T-QW 18V XR Brushless Combi Drill Kit with 2 x 2.0Ah Batteries
Our Verdict
The most-owned cordless drill on Amazon UK by a distance, and the most complete box on this list: brushless XR body, two 2.0Ah packs, charger and a TSTAK kitbox.
8.3Top7 Score
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★ 4.8(12,334 reviews)
✓ Ships from the UK✓ Free delivery with Prime
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Nothing else in this category comes close on evidence: 12,332 Amazon UK ratings at 4.8 stars, and Amazon records 100-plus bought in a month. The reason is the box rather than the spec sheet. Where the Bosch above and the Milwaukee and Makita below are bare tools, this one is a complete purchase - two 2.0Ah XR packs, a charger and a TSTAK case - so a first-time buyer gets a working drill rather than a working drill plus a shopping list. The tool itself is DeWalt's compact brushless combi: 65Nm of torque, a two-speed gearbox running 0-500 and 0-1,750rpm, a 13mm chuck, a 15-position clutch, and published capacities of 30mm in wood, 13mm in steel and 13mm in masonry. That masonry figure is the honest limit - it will put a 13mm Rawlplug hole through brick all day and it is not the tool for a 100mm core. Two 2.0Ah packs is the other compromise: they keep the drill light and the charger busy, and anyone drilling all day will want a 4.0Ah or 5.0Ah pack from the same XR range, which is a big one - DeWalt's UK site puts it at over 250 products. Register the tool with DeWalt UK within four weeks of purchase and the one-year warranty extends to three.
Power
7
Build
8
Battery
10
Owners
9
Owners is the 4.8★ Amazon UK rating from 12,334 reviews, weighted toward the category average when there are few. Fewer than two published reviews of this exact model, so the owner rating carries that weight too. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Power 7: 65Nm of published torque sits at the bottom of the card's 65 to 84Nm band, with a hammer mode and 13mm of masonry capacity.
Build 8: 13mm chuck on a compact brushless body with a two-speed gearbox and a 15-position clutch - the card's 8 anchor; no kickback cutoff and no published sealing keep it there.
Battery 10: Brushless on DeWalt 18V XR scores 8, plus 1 for a 2.0Ah kit pack, 0.5 for the second pack and 0.5 for a platform DeWalt's UK site puts at over 250 products - capped at 10.
Pros
+ 12,332 Amazon UK ratings at 4.8 stars - the deepest owner evidence in this category by a wide margin
+ Complete kit: two 2.0Ah XR batteries, charger and TSTAK kitbox, so nothing else is needed
+ Brushless motor, two-speed gearbox and a 15-position clutch at 0-500 and 0-1,750rpm
+ Sits on DeWalt's 18V XR platform, which the UK site puts at over 250 products; register within four weeks for three years of cover
Cons
− 65Nm is well short of the Bosch above it and the Milwaukee below it
− 13mm masonry capacity - fine for Rawlplugs, not for core bits
− Two 2.0Ah packs are small for continuous work; a 4.0Ah or larger XR pack is a separate purchase
− No anti-kickback cutoff and no published sealing rating
18V Brushless65Nm Torque2 x 2.0Ah Kit13mm ChuckDeWalt XRTSTAK Kitbox
82Nm in a 180mm body with a heavy-duty metal chuck - the one Milwaukee combi on Amazon UK with both a live offer and a deep owner base, sold body only and only through marketplace sellers.
7.9Top7 Score
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★ 4.7(520 reviews)
✓ Ships from the UK✓ Free delivery with Prime
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Milwaukee publishes 82Nm for this one, more than the DeWalt above it, and packs it into a 180mm body that still goes between joists and into the back of a kitchen carcass. The gearing runs 0-550 and 0-1,800rpm, the chuck is a 13mm heavy-duty metal unit, and Milwaukee's REDLINK electronics tie the brushless motor to the pack. There is an on-board fuel gauge, an LED and an all-metal reversible belt clip, which sounds like trim until you have spent a day up a ladder. Two things need saying plainly. It is body only, so there is no pack and no charger, and M18 packs are not cheap. And Milwaukee is not sold by Amazon in the UK - every offer on the listing comes from a marketplace seller, which sets its own returns terms, and Milwaukee's extended warranty cannot be registered against a marketplace purchase, so what you get is the standard cover rather than the longer registered term you would get from a Milwaukee stockist. If you are already on M18, none of that matters much and this is a lot of drill. If you are choosing a platform from scratch, note that Milwaukee's UK site lists over 135 M18 tools, against DeWalt's 250-plus and Makita's 325-plus.
Power
7
Build
8.5
Battery
8
Owners
8.5
Owners is the 4.7★ Amazon UK rating from 520 reviews, weighted toward the category average when there are few. Fewer than two published reviews of this exact model, so the owner rating carries that weight too. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Power 7: Milwaukee publishes up to 82Nm, inside the card's 65 to 84Nm band, with a percussion mode and 0-550 and 0-1,800rpm gearing.
Build 8.5: 13mm heavy-duty metal chuck, two-speed gearing, 180mm long with REDLINK electronics, fuel gauge and metal belt clip - above the card's 8 anchor, short of 10 with no kickback cutoff or published sealing.
Battery 8: Brushless body-only tool on Milwaukee M18, one of the card's named professional platforms: the 8 band, with no platform-size bonus because Milwaukee's UK site lists over 135 M18 tools rather than 200.
Pros
+ 82Nm published torque in a 180mm body - more power than the DeWalt above it in a shorter tool
+ 13mm heavy-duty metal chuck, REDLINK electronics and a brushless motor
+ On-board fuel gauge, LED and an all-metal reversible belt clip
+ The one Milwaukee combi on Amazon UK carrying both a live offer and a deep owner base: 4.7 stars from 520 ratings
Cons
− Body only - no battery, no charger
− Milwaukee is third-party only on Amazon UK: every offer is from a marketplace seller with its own returns terms
− Milwaukee's extended warranty cannot be registered against a marketplace purchase, so cover is the standard term
− Milwaukee's UK site lists over 135 M18 tools, a smaller platform than DeWalt XR or Makita LXT
18V Brushless82Nm Torque180mm Long13mm Metal ChuckMilwaukee M18Body Only
This is the one you buy for access rather than for grunt. Makita publishes 164 x 81 x 248mm and a net weight of 1.0kg, which makes it the shortest and lightest tool on this list and a genuinely different proposition from the 180mm Milwaukee and the 1.9kg Bosch: loft hatches, under sinks, inside carcasses, overhead all day without your shoulder going. The spec is honest about the trade. Maximum fastening torque is 40Nm hard and 25Nm soft, the gears run 0-500 and 0-1,700rpm with 0-7,500 and 0-25,500 impacts per minute, the chuck takes 1.5 to 13mm, and the published capacities are 13mm in masonry, 13mm in steel and 36mm in wood with an auger. There are 20 torque settings, a built-in job light and an electronic brake. If it is Makita torque you are after rather than Makita size, the DHP458Z is the sibling to look at - 91Nm hard, 50mm in wood, 16mm in masonry, 225mm long and 1.7kg, brushed rather than brushless, and it carries an Amazon offer where the more famous DHP482Z and DHP484Z currently do not. Like the Milwaukee above it, this is sold body only, on LXT, which Makita UK describes as over 325 tools on one battery.
Power
5
Build
7.5
Battery
8.5
Owners
8.5
Owners is the 4.7★ Amazon UK rating from 878 reviews, weighted toward the category average when there are few. Fewer than two published reviews of this exact model, so the owner rating carries that weight too. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Power 5: Makita publishes 40Nm hard-joint and 25Nm soft-joint torque, the bottom of the card's 40 to 49Nm band; the hammer mode means no half-point deduction.
Build 7.5: 1.5 to 13mm chuck, two-speed gearbox, 20 torque settings, electronic brake and job light at 164mm and 1.0kg - compact and balanced, but Makita publishes neither an all-metal chuck nor a sealing rating, so it sits just under the card's 8 anchor.
Battery 8.5: Brushless body-only tool on Makita 18V LXT scores 8 in the card's professional band, plus 0.5 for a platform Makita UK states is over 325 tools.
Pros
+ 164mm long and 1.0kg bare - the smallest and lightest combi here, for loft, carcass and overhead work
+ Brushless motor with 20 torque settings, an electronic brake and a built-in job light
+ Published figures for everything: 40/25Nm, 0-500 and 0-1,700rpm, 0-25,500ipm, 13mm chuck, 36mm auger capacity
+ Runs on LXT, which Makita UK puts at over 325 tools on the one battery
Cons
− 40Nm hard-joint torque is the joint lowest here - it is not a hole-saw or auger drill
− Body only - no battery, no charger
− 13mm masonry capacity, the same as the DeWalt but with far less torque behind it
− Makita publishes no dust or water sealing rating for this model
18V Brushless40Nm Torque164mm Long1.0kg BareMakita LXTBody Only
Ryobi's argument in Britain is availability. ONE+ is stocked at B&Q, Homebase, Screwfix, Argos and Amazon, Ryobi's UK site puts the system at over 200 cordless tools, and every one of them takes the same pack - so the battery you buy with this drill is the battery that runs the hedge trimmer, the pressure washer and the inflator later. That matters more for a household than 20Nm either way. The drill itself publishes 50Nm of torque, a 13mm ratcheting chuck and a 24-position clutch, which is a finer clutch than anything else at this end of the list and the thing that stops you stripping the head off a screw into plasterboard. The kit brings two 1.5Ah packs and a charger, so there is always one on the bench. What you give up against the brushless tools above is motor efficiency and, on a long run of masonry, sheer pace - Ryobi does not market the R18PD3 as brushless, and the 1.5Ah packs are small. The honest position is that this is the best first drill on the list for someone with no tools at all who expects to buy more, and the drill to skip if you already own DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee or Bosch Professional packs.
Power
6
Build
6.5
Battery
7
Owners
8.5
Owners is the 4.7★ Amazon UK rating from 7,193 reviews, weighted toward the category average when there are few. Fewer than two published reviews of this exact model, so the owner rating carries that weight too. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Power 6: Ryobi publishes 50Nm maximum torque, the bottom of the card's 50 to 64Nm band, with a hammer mode for masonry.
Build 6.5: 13mm ratcheting chuck, two-speed gearbox and a 24-position clutch lift it half a point above the card's 6 anchor, but the body is a DIY-grade brushed unit with no sealing rating published.
Battery 7: A brushed kit scores 5 on the card, plus 1 for a 1.5Ah pack, 0.5 for the second pack and 0.5 for a platform Ryobi's UK site states is over 200 cordless tools.
Pros
+ Two 1.5Ah ONE+ batteries and a charger in the box, so one is always charged
+ 24-position clutch and a 13mm ratcheting chuck - unusually fine control for this end of the market
+ ONE+ is stocked across B&Q, Homebase, Screwfix, Argos and Amazon, and Ryobi's UK site puts the system at over 200 tools
+ 4.7 stars from 7,100 Amazon UK ratings, the third deepest owner base here
Cons
− Ryobi does not market the R18PD3 as brushless, so it is less efficient on the same pack than the four picks above
− 50Nm puts a ceiling on hole saws and augers
− 1.5Ah packs are small - plan on a 4.0Ah ONE+ pack for anything sustained
− A DIY platform rather than a trade one; the packs are not interchangeable with anything else here
18V ONE+50Nm Torque2 x 1.5Ah Kit13mm Ratcheting Chuck24 Clutch SettingsSold Everywhere in the UK
Read the colour before anything else. This is Bosch Home and Garden, the green range, and it runs the 18V Power for All Alliance battery that Bosch shares with Gardena and others. It is not the blue Professional system at the top of this list, the packs do not swap between the two, and Amazon lists both ranges together without flagging it. Taken on its own terms it is a tidy DIY kit: Bosch publishes 40Nm maximum torque, quoted as 20Nm soft and 38Nm hard, two gears at 430 and 1,630rpm, a 24,450bpm hammer rate, a 13mm keyless chuck and capacities of 13mm in masonry, 13mm in steel and 30mm in wood, at 1.40kg with a battery fitted. This Amazon listing is the two-battery version, with a charger and a carry case, which is what makes it worth ranking over the single-pack listing of the same drill. Against the Ryobi above it, it gives away the finer clutch and the far larger tool platform and gains 2.0Ah packs instead of 1.5Ah ones, plus a carry case. Against anything above that, it gives away torque, a brushless motor and a metal chuck. For putting up shelves, building flat pack and drilling the occasional Rawlplug, none of that is a problem.
Power
5
Build
6
Battery
6.5
Owners
8.5
Owners is the 4.7★ Amazon UK rating from 508 reviews, weighted toward the category average when there are few. Fewer than two published reviews of this exact model, so the owner rating carries that weight too. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Power 5: Bosch publishes 40Nm maximum torque, quoted as 20Nm soft and 38Nm hard - the card's 40 to 49Nm band, with a 24,450bpm hammer mode.
Build 6: 13mm keyless chuck on a brushed two-speed body with a torque clutch at 1.40kg with battery: the card's 6 anchor, with no metal chuck and no sealing published.
Battery 6.5: A brushed kit scores 5 on the card, plus 1 for a 2.0Ah pack and 0.5 for the second; no platform bonus, as Bosch publishes no tool count for the green Power for All range.
Pros
+ Two 2.0Ah Power for All packs, a charger and a carry case in the box
+ 1.40kg with a battery fitted - the lightest complete kit here
+ Published figures throughout: 40Nm maximum, 430 and 1,630rpm, 24,450bpm, 13mm chuck, 30mm in wood
+ The Power for All battery is shared across Bosch's green range and the wider alliance, including Gardena
Cons
− Green Home and Garden line: the batteries do not fit blue Bosch Professional tools, and vice versa
− 40Nm and a 1,630rpm top gear put it behind every pick above it
− 13mm keyless chuck rather than a metal one, on a brushed motor
− 506 Amazon UK ratings - a thinner owner base than the Ryobi or the BLACK+DECKER
18V Power for All40Nm Torque2 x 2.0Ah Kit13mm ChuckBosch Home & Garden GreenCarry Case
8,900 Amazon UK ratings at 4.5 stars is a lot of households, and it is worth being clear about what they bought. BLACK+DECKER publishes 40Nm maximum torque, two gears at 0-360 and 0-1,400rpm, a 21,000bpm hammer action and an 11-position clutch, in a 2.22kg tool with one 18V 1.5Ah pack, a 400mA charger and a kitbox, under a two-year warranty. The number that decides whether this is the right drill is the chuck: 10mm, two-sleeve, where everything else on this list is 13mm. A 10mm chuck will not take a 13mm masonry bit or the shank of a large auger or hole saw, and no amount of torque changes that - it is a hard ceiling rather than a soft one. The 400mA charger is the other honest limitation, at a published 180 minutes for a full charge, so there is no working through a flat battery. What you get in exchange is a genuinely complete kit with a case at the lowest price on this list, from a brand with a UK service network, and for hanging pictures, assembling furniture and the occasional shelf that is an entirely reasonable trade. Anyone who expects to drill 13mm holes should move up to the Ryobi or the Bosch green kit above.
Power
5
Build
5
Battery
6
Owners
7.5
Owners is the 4.5★ Amazon UK rating from 8,985 reviews, weighted toward the category average when there are few. Fewer than two published reviews of this exact model, so the owner rating carries that weight too. Tick marks show the category average.
How we scored it
Power 5: BLACK+DECKER publishes 40Nm maximum torque, the card's 40 to 49Nm band, with a 21,000bpm hammer action so no half-point deduction applies.
Build 5: A 10mm two-sleeve chuck is the card's 4 anchor, lifted a point by a two-gear box and an 11-position clutch; at 2.22kg it is heavier than tools here that do more.
Battery 6: A brushed kit scores 5 on the card, plus 1 for a single 1.5Ah pack; no second pack and no platform bonus, and the 400mA charger takes a published 180 minutes.
Pros
+ 8,900 Amazon UK ratings at 4.5 stars - the second largest owner base on this list
+ Complete kit with a 1.5Ah battery, charger and kitbox, at the lowest price here
+ Two gears, an 11-position clutch and a 21,000bpm hammer action for light masonry
+ Two-year BLACK+DECKER warranty with a UK service network behind it
Cons
− 10mm two-sleeve chuck - it will not take a 13mm masonry bit, large auger or hole saw shank
− 0-1,400rpm top gear, the slowest here, on a brushed motor
− 400mA charger takes a published 180 minutes, and there is only one battery in the box
− 2.22kg, heavier than the Bosch green kit above it despite doing less
18V40Nm Torque10mm Chuck21,000bpm1 x 1.5Ah Kit2-Year Warranty
Nothing on this site is bought, tested or handled. Each drill is scored against a published rubric - Power and torque 45%, Build and ergonomics 30%, Battery and runtime 25% - using specifications taken from the manufacturer's own site (makitauk.com, dewalt.co.uk, bosch-professional.com, bosch-diy.com, uk.ryobitools.eu, milwaukeetool.eu, blackanddecker.co.uk) or from the Amazon UK listing itself, plus owner ratings at scale. Torque is read as the maker's peak hard-joint figure, because that is the number every brand here publishes; soft-joint figures are quoted alongside where the maker gives both. Where a figure is not published for a specific model it is left out rather than borrowed from a sibling: Makita's DHP487 and DHP458 sit in the same LXT range and are 51Nm apart, and the difference is the whole point of owning one rather than the other. Owner ratings are shrunk towards the category mean, so a drill with 506 ratings cannot leapfrog one with 12,332 on a rounding difference. Prices move daily and are not quoted in this text - tap through for the current figure on Amazon.
Scored on Power and torque 45%, Build and ergonomics 30%, Battery and runtime 25%, plus owner ratings and critic reviews
A combi drill has three modes: rotation for drilling, rotation with a clutch for screwdriving, and rotation with hammering for masonry. A drill driver drops the hammer mode, which makes it shorter and lighter but leaves it struggling on brick and block - the reason a combi is the default first tool in this country and a plain drill driver is a second one. An impact driver is a different tool again: it hammers rotationally rather than forward, drives long screws and coach bolts far faster than any drill, and cannot hold a round drill bit. If you are buying one tool, buy the combi. Every one of the seven picks below is a combi, which is why the Bosch Professional GSR drill drivers that sit next to them on Amazon are not here.
Body only means no battery and no charger
A great many of the listings in this category are bare tools, and the UK term for them is body only. There is no pack and no charger in the box, and on an 18V platform the pack is usually the larger part of the cost, which is why a body-only pro drill can look cheaper than a DIY kit and then cost twice as much by the time it runs. Three of the seven picks below are body only - the Bosch Professional, the Milwaukee and the Makita - and they only make sense if you already own packs of that make or are deliberately buying into the platform. If this is your first cordless tool, buy a kit.
Read the torque figure the way the maker meant it
Every brand here publishes a maximum torque in newton metres measured on a hard joint, and some also publish a soft-joint figure, which is always lower - Makita quotes the DHP487 at 40Nm hard and 25Nm soft, Bosch quotes the GSB 18V-110 C at 110Nm. What the number means in practice: 40 to 50Nm drives screws, assembles flat pack and takes a 13mm masonry bit; 65 to 90Nm handles decking screws, joist hangers and 50mm hole saws; 110Nm and above is for augers, 100mm-plus hole saws and mixing paddles. Above that you are into the numbers unbranded sellers invent, which is a good signal to stop reading the listing.
Bosch sells two 18V systems and they do not mix
This catches people out more than anything else in the category. Bosch Professional is the blue line - model codes beginning GSB for combi drills and GSR for drill drivers - and it runs GBA 18V and ProCORE18V packs. Bosch Home and Garden is the green line - EasyImpact, EasyDrill, UniversalImpact - and it runs the 18V Power for All Alliance battery shared with Gardena and others. The voltages match, the batteries do not fit each other, and Amazon lists the two ranges side by side without saying so. Both lines appear below: the GSB 18V-110 C at the top is blue Professional, the EasyImpact 18V-40 lower down is green Home and Garden. Pick a colour and stay on it.
Check that there is actually an Amazon offer
A listing that shows only See All Buying Options has no Amazon offer behind it, and buying from it means a third-party seller with their own returns terms and, on some brands, a warranty you cannot register. Milwaukee is the clearest case: the brand is sold on Amazon UK through marketplace sellers rather than by Amazon, and Milwaukee's extended warranty cannot be registered against a marketplace purchase, so the M18 pick below carries the standard cover only. It is also why several of the drills a UK tradesperson would name first do not appear in this ranking at all: Makita's DHP482Z and DHP484Z, Bosch Professional's GSB 18V-55 and Milwaukee's M18 FPD3 are all in that state on Amazon UK as of 19 September 2026. Buying options come and go, so it is worth re-checking the listing before you write a model off.
Ask for a cordless drill in a UK merchant and what you will be handed is a combi drill: a drill, a screwdriver and a hammer drill in one body. The hammer mode is the reason. British housing stock is brick, block and lath rather than timber stud, so the everyday job - a shelf bracket, a TV plate, a curtain pole, a fence post bracket - means a Rawlplug in masonry, and a drill driver with no hammer will polish a hole in engineering brick rather than cut one. Amazon shelves this category under Combi Drills for exactly that reason, even though the phrase most people actually search for is cordless drill.
The Amazon UK shelf is not the trade counter, and two things about it are worth knowing before you scroll. First, several of the combi drills a UK tradesperson would name first are effectively not on sale there: Makita's DHP482Z and DHP484Z, the two most-reviewed Makita combis on the site, along with the DHP489Z, Bosch Professional's GSB 18V-55 in both of its listings, and Milwaukee's M18 FPD3 all show buying options from other sellers with no Amazon offer behind them. They are real tools and good ones - they simply cannot be ranked as something you can click and buy. Where a range has a sibling that does carry an offer, that sibling is what appears below. Second, roughly half the top of the category is unbranded 21V kit from names that change every few months, with torque figures nobody stands behind and no warranty network in this country. None of them is ranked here.
Battery platform matters more than the drill. A bare tool costs a fraction of a kit because the pack and charger are most of the price, so the sensible question is not which drill is best but which battery system you want to be on in five years. Bosch makes this trap easy to fall into: it sells two completely separate 18V ranges - blue Professional, coded GSB and GSR, running GBA and ProCORE18V packs, and green Home and Garden, the EasyImpact and Universal tools on Power for All - and the batteries do not swap between them. Both appear below, and both are labelled. Makita's LXT, DeWalt's XR, Milwaukee's M18 and Ryobi's ONE+ are the other four systems here. Erbauer EXT and Titan TXP, which plenty of UK buyers own, are Screwfix lines and are not sold on Amazon at all.
Three questions settle the rest. Do you need a kit or a body only? Body only means exactly that - no battery, no charger - and it is the right buy only if you already own packs of that make. How much torque do you actually need? The published figure is a hard-joint number, and anything from 50Nm up will drive a 100mm screw into softwood; 100Nm and above is for hole saws, augers and spade bits. And how much does a 13mm all-metal chuck matter to you? It is the difference between a drill that grips a 13mm auger shank and one that slips.
Compare Top Picks
Can't decide between our top two? See how they stack up head‑to‑head.
What is the difference between a combi drill and a drill driver?+
A combi drill has three modes - drilling, screwdriving through a clutch, and hammer drilling - while a drill driver has the first two only. The hammer mode adds a rapid forward tapping action behind the bit, measured in blows per minute, and it is what lets a drill cut brick, block and concrete instead of glazing over them. Because UK housing stock is masonry rather than timber frame, a combi is the default first cordless tool here and Amazon files the whole category under Combi Drills. A drill driver is shorter, lighter and quieter, and makes sense as a second tool or for someone working only in wood and metal. Every pick on this list is a combi.
How much torque do I actually need?+
More than the listings suggest, and less than the biggest number on the shelf. The published figure is the maximum on a hard joint, and as a rule of thumb: 40 to 50Nm, which covers the Makita DHP487Z, the Bosch EasyImpact and the BLACK+DECKER here, drives screws, builds flat pack and takes a 13mm masonry bit; 65 to 90Nm, the DeWalt and the Milwaukee, handles decking screws, joist hangers and 50mm hole saws without stalling; 110Nm, which only the Bosch Professional reaches on this list, is what you want for augers, large hole saws and mixing paddles. Torque figures on unbranded 21V listings are not comparable to any of these and should be ignored.
Should I buy body only or a kit?+
Body only means the bare tool: no battery and no charger in the box. It is the cheaper sticker price and the more expensive purchase unless you already own packs of that brand, because on an 18V platform the battery and charger are usually most of the cost. Three picks below are body only: the Bosch Professional GSB 18V-110 C, the Milwaukee M18 BLPD2 and the Makita DHP487Z. If this is your first cordless tool, buy one of the four kits instead and pick the platform you want to stay on, because the second and third tool you buy will be chosen by the battery in your drawer rather than the other way round.
Will a Bosch green battery fit a Bosch blue drill?+
No, and it is the most common mistake in this category. Bosch runs two separate 18V systems. Blue is Bosch Professional - combi drills coded GSB, drill drivers coded GSR - and it takes GBA 18V and ProCORE18V packs. Green is Bosch Home and Garden - EasyImpact, EasyDrill, UniversalImpact - and it takes the 18V Power for All Alliance pack that Bosch shares with Gardena and other brands. The voltage is the same and the batteries physically do not interchange. Two Bosch drills appear below and they are on opposite systems: the GSB 18V-110 C at number one is blue Professional, the EasyImpact 18V-40 further down is green Home and Garden. Decide which line you are on before you buy a second Bosch tool.
Why is the Makita DHP484 or DHP482 not on this list?+
Because you cannot currently buy them from Amazon. Makita's DHP482Z and DHP484Z carry the largest Makita review bases on Amazon UK, and both - along with the DHP489Z, Bosch Professional's GSB 18V-55 and Milwaukee's M18 FPD3 - show only See All Buying Options, with no Amazon offer behind the listing. This site only ranks tools you can actually click and buy, so where a range has a sibling that does carry an offer, the sibling is what appears: the Makita DHP487Z and the Bosch Professional GSB 18V-110 C below, with the Makita DHP458Z as the higher-torque Makita alternative at 91Nm. Makita's DHP486 does not appear on Amazon UK at all. Buying options come and go, so this is a snapshot of 19 September 2026, not a permanent state of affairs.
Are the unbranded 21V drills on Amazon worth it?+
Roughly half the top of Amazon UK's Combi Drills chart is unbranded 20V and 21V kit from seller names that rotate every few months. The pattern is consistent: the same tool appears under several brands, the voltage is quoted at the no-load cell peak rather than the 18V nominal figure every established brand uses, the torque claim is not measured to any standard you can check, and there is no UK service network, no spares and no battery platform to grow into. A 21V drill and an 18V drill are, in the overwhelming majority of cases, the same 18V tool. None of them is ranked here. If your budget is genuinely at that level, the BLACK+DECKER kit at number seven is a real brand with a two-year warranty for about the same outlay.
Do I need a 110V drill for site work?+
Not for a cordless one. UK building sites run corded tools at 110V through a yellow centre-tapped transformer because it is far safer on a wet site than 240V, but that rule is about mains tools - a battery drill has no mains lead and is allowed on site as it is. Where the distinction bites is if you buy a corded percussion drill alongside it: the same model is sold in both voltages under different codes, so Bosch's GSB 13 RE exists as a 240V domestic version and a separate 110V site version, Makita marks corded tools /1 for 110V and /2 for 240V, and DeWalt appends -LX for 110V. Check the suffix, because a 110V tool will not run off a domestic socket without a transformer.
When is the best time to buy a cordless drill in the UK?+
Black Friday falls on 27 November 2026 and is the deepest discounting of the year on power tools, particularly on kits, which are where brands bundle an extra battery rather than cut the headline price. Boxing Day and the January sales follow. The next real window is the run-up to Easter on 28 March 2027, when the DIY and garden season opens, then the May bank holidays on 3 and 31 May, and Father's Day on 20 June 2027, which moves a lot of mid-range kits. If you are buying through a business, the date that matters more is the tax year ending 5 April and what the Annual Investment Allowance lets you write off against it.
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