The 8 Best Edge Trimmers of 2020

A great edge trimmer does one thing best: cleanly cuts the grass around the edges of the lawn. Whether it is handheld or wheeled around, if it can't do this, you are wasting time and money. For the best, all around edge trimmer that does things well without a major price tag, the BLACK+DECKER LST136W 40V MAX is your best option. It will give you a powerful electric motor, a 13” cutting area, and a lot of room for adjusting it to your liking.

Black+Decker has taken extra strides in recent years to make their electric tools play well with each other. The 40 volt battery is sharable with many other tools and sports a fast recharge time of one hour. This will give you around thirty minutes of use. The real magic happens with its adjustability. The handle tilts, swings, and slides so you can find the perfect ergonomic position. The head also easily rotates 180 degrees to switch from cutting and edging. This one is simply the best to get the job done right without breaking the bank.

Budget trimmers are great if you don’t want something that does twenty other things besides trimming and edging. The Ivation 20-volt 2.0AH Cordless comes with a great cordless design and interchangeable batteries. With multiple batteries, these features will keep you going longer on larger jobs without having to navigate around extension cords. For 3-5 hours of charge time, you will get a good hour on a single battery.

The shaft is highly adjustable. Its telescoping tube (12” extension range) can rotate and tilt the handle so you can find the perfect angle to hold the edge trimmer at any time. The 12” cutting head has four different angles ranging from complete vertical to complete horizontal, which is great for hard to reach spots and angles.

Electric edge trimmers have many distinct advantages over their gas counterparts. The energy is clean, so you don't have to mess with flammable gas or harmful fumes. They also run quietly. The GreenWorks 21302 G-MAX is a perfect electric choice for people looking for an edger that offers a little extra usefulness. It's lightweight, easy to move around, and gives you additional options for your yard.

The cutting head can pivot when you need to trim bushes or plants. As the cutting spool wears down, you can easily replace the wire without any snags. The 40 volt battery is compatible with other GreenWorks tools like their mowers, blowers, and chainsaws using their G-Max system. The final helpful addition is simple in design: a pair of wheels to run along the pavement while you edge or trim. These handy things will guide you, keeping your cut straight and true.

While electric edge trimmer have their advantages, they can lack the power and convenience to do larger jobs. Gas powered edgers will give you more juice and a larger cutting area to keep on cutting without having to do the tricky dance around a cord some electric edgers force you to do. The Troy-Bilt TB525 offers a massive 17” cutting area. The edger’s curved shaft will also give you a direct, well positioned view of the grass as you cut around the edges.

If gas edge trimmer scare you with fears of endlessly pulling a cord to start the motor, don't worry. The TB525’s 29cc engine comes with a SpringAssist feature to make pulling the cord easier. A separate engine starter is also available to eliminate the cord altogether. Finally, the edger can attach ten different TrimmerPlus tools, turning this edger into things like a blower, pole saw, and more.

To take your trimming game up to the next level, a high-end or commercial grade edge trimmer is necessary. For a steeper price, you will get more features and better reliability. Tanaka’s TBC-255PF comes with a commercial grade, two stroke gas engine that keeps the power coming for jobs large and small. The edger’s PureFire low-emission stroke technology will also reduce the fumes so you don’t have to worry about the smell or dangers to your health as you work.

The bulk of the TBC-255PF’s body is designed around comfort. An anti-vibration system reduces the shakes caused by the engine. The entire frame weighs only 8.8 pounds so your hands will remain comfortable throughout the job. The frame also hides small but useful features like a semi-automatic spool dispenser and Tanaka’s S-Start system that reduces the required starter pull amount by 50%.

You can make the job of maintaining your lawn easier by reducing the amount of tools you have to drag in and out of the garage or shed. Multipurpose tools are some of the most useful options around. The WORX 32-Volt GT2.0 applies this philosophy to edge trimmer by offering users a 3-in-1 ensemble of tools. One single tool can trim, edge, and even mow the lawn without the addition of extra accessories. The 12” cutting area of the 32-volt electric motor is perfect for small to medium lawns.

You will get some useful features that make switching between the three functions easy. Dual guide wheels will keep the cut straight while edging. To protect plants, flowers, and furniture around the garden, an adjustable space guard will keep the blade from slicing into the surrounding environment. With a tilt of the edger’s adjustable cutting head, you can also do some simple mowing around the lawn if you don’t want to bring out the heavier equipment.

Wheeled edge trimmers are somewhat rare and unique in the garden world. They aren’t as mobile or flexible as their handheld counterparts, but they make trimming an edge much easier. The Southland SWLE0799 is the most powerful wheeled option for the task. It has a heavy duty 79cc engine, durable metal frame and blade, and an adjustable cutting depth of 2”.

The standout feature of this option is the types of cuts you can produce with it. The triangular blade can shift plus or minus 15 degrees to create a beveled edge around your lawn. For tricky spots, the wheels also sport a curb hopping ability so the edger can travel on uneven surfaces.