Best Cordless Circular Saw for Homeowners: 4 Compared

The best cordless circular saws at a glance

Four saws, four platforms, one job: a 7-1/4 in. blade that clears 2x lumber in one pass without a cord.

• Skil PWR CORE 20 CR5440B: best value starting from zero; 2-5/8 in. cut, 56-degree bevel, 7.05 lb, $139.99 with battery and charger on skil.com as of October 11, 2026; overall 4.3 on our rubric
• Ryobi ONE+ HP PBLCS302B: best for most homeowners; 2-9/16 in. cut, 56-degree bevel, $139.00 bare on Ryobi's site as of October 11, 2026; overall 4.2
• DeWalt DCS570B: best for 20V MAX owners; 2-9/16 in. cut, 57-degree bevel, 7.5 lb bare, price not published; overall 4.2
• Milwaukee M18 FUEL 2834-20: best for power and warranty; 2-5/8 in. cut, 6,000 RPM, 5-year tool warranty, retailers $249 to $279; overall 4.3

Spec table: the four saws side by side

Every figure is from the maker's page unless marked otherwise. Skil and Ryobi figures were checked October 11, 2026; DeWalt and Milwaukee figures October 10, 2026.

• No-load speed: Skil 5,300 RPM · Ryobi 5,000 RPM (spec table) · DeWalt 5,500 RPM · Milwaukee 6,000 RPM
• Cut at 0 or 90 degrees: Skil 2-5/8 in. · Ryobi 2-9/16 in. · DeWalt 2-9/16 in. · Milwaukee 2-5/8 in.
• Cut at 45 degrees: Skil 1-13/16 in. · Ryobi 1-27/32 in. · DeWalt 2 in. · Milwaukee 1-7/8 in. (retailer spec)
• Bevel capacity: Skil 56 degrees · Ryobi 56 degrees · DeWalt 57 degrees · Milwaukee 50 degrees
• Published weight: Skil 7.05 lb tool · Ryobi not listed, 8.3 lb measured by Pro Tool Reviews · DeWalt 7.5 lb bare · Milwaukee not listed, 7.9 to 8.2 lb per retailers
• Rafter hook: Skil yes · Ryobi yes · DeWalt conflicting sources · Milwaukee yes
• LED work light: Skil yes · Ryobi not listed · DeWalt not listed · Milwaukee yes
• Dust port: Skil yes, adaptor included · Ryobi yes, adapter included · DeWalt not listed · Milwaukee yes, adapter included
• Cuts per charge claim: Skil up to 350 on a 5.0Ah pack · Ryobi up to 370 · DeWalt not published · Milwaukee up to 750 on a 12.0Ah pack
• Tool warranty: Skil 3 years, 5 with registration inside 30 days · Ryobi 3 years · DeWalt 3 years plus 1 year free service and 90-day return · Milwaukee 5 years
• Battery in the box: Skil yes, 4.0Ah plus charger · Ryobi no · DeWalt no · Milwaukee no
• Maker's list price: Skil $139.99 as a kit · Ryobi $139.00 bare · DeWalt not published · Milwaukee not published, retailers $249 to $279 bare

How we picked

We did not run tests of our own; grades come from documentation, pricing pages and published reviews checked on October 10 and 11, 2026. Five criteria carried the weight.

Cut capacity first. A homeowner saw must clear nominal 2x lumber (1-1/2 in. actual) at 90 and at 45 degrees in one pass. All four do, per their spec sheets, so this criterion separated them by margin rather than by pass or fail.

Real cost, not bare price. Three of these four saws are sold without a battery. We weighed each price against the cost of the first pack large enough to run a saw on that platform, because a buyer with no batteries pays both. Only Skil publishes a price with the pack and charger already included, and that is why it leads.

Weight as published, flagged when not. Skil publishes 7.05 lb and DeWalt 7.5 lb. Milwaukee and Ryobi's US pages publish nothing, so we used retailer tables and a professional review's scale and said so.

Extras that change a weekend. An electric brake, a rafter hook, a dust port and an LED each save time or mess. We counted them only when the maker's page lists them.

Warranty read as a timeline, with the conditions. Years of coverage matter, but so do return windows, free service periods and registration deadlines. Skil's five-year headline needs paperwork inside 30 days; DeWalt's 90-day money-back needs nothing. We compared the terms rather than the headline numbers.

The same rubric runs through our first power tools for homeowners guide.

Best value starting from zero: Skil PWR CORE 20 CR5440B

The deepest published cut in this guide, with a battery and a charger already in the price.

Quick specs: 2-5/8 in. at 90 degrees, 1-13/16 in. at 45, bevel 0 to 56 degrees, up to 5,300 RPM, 7.05 lb tool weight, electric brake, LED, dust port, built-in rafter hook, $139.99 for the CR5440B-1C kit on skil.com as of October 11, 2026.

Strengths: the 2-5/8 in. cut at 90 degrees ties the Milwaukee and beats both the DeWalt and the Ryobi, so 3x material clears in one pass per Skil's page. The 7.05 lb figure is the lightest any of these makers publishes. The kit includes a 20V 4.0Ah pack and the Auto PWR JUMP charger, and the cast aluminum shoe takes Skil's CRT0702 track for long rips, sold separately.

Limits: the 45-degree cut of 1-13/16 in. is the shallowest here. The five-year warranty on the product page is conditional - Skil's warranty page states three years unless you register inside 30 days, and batteries and chargers get two years regardless. PWR CORE 20 is a much smaller catalogue than the other three. The 350-cut claim uses a 5.0Ah pack listed separately at $89.99, not the 4.0Ah pack in the box.

What we could not check: Skil's page shows no owner rating, and the professional reviews of this saw returned bot-verification pages to our reader on October 11, 2026. Its scores rest on documentation alone, more so than the other three.

Why it sits at #1: it is the only saw here whose maker publishes a price that already includes a pack and a charger. A zero-battery buyer pays $139.99 for the Skil against $268.00 for the Ryobi saw plus Ryobi's own PSK014 battery and charger kit, by our arithmetic from Ryobi's listed prices on October 11, 2026.

Read our full Skil PWR CORE 20 circular saw review.

Best for most homeowners: Ryobi ONE+ HP PBLCS302B

A full-size cut for $139.00, on the platform you will keep buying from.

Quick specs: 2-9/16 in. at 0 degrees, 1-27/32 in. at 45, bevel 0 to 56 degrees, 5,000 RPM per Ryobi's spec table, up to 370 cuts per charge, 3-year warranty, $139.00 bare on ryobitools.com as of October 10, 2026.

Strengths: the cut depth matches the DeWalt to the sixteenth. Ryobi's page lists six bevel detents, a rafter hook, a pommel handle, a die-cast upper guard and a vacuum port with the adapter in the box. Pro Tool Reviews found it cut pressure-treated 2x10 without stalling and praised the dust adapter.

Limits: 5,000 RPM is the slowest here. Weight is unpublished on the US page and measured at 8.3 lb bare by Pro Tool Reviews, heavier than the DeWalt. No electric brake or LED is stated on Ryobi's page. The 3-year warranty lacks DeWalt's return window and Milwaukee's extra two years.

Why it sits at #2: ONE+ is the widest platform in this guide, so a homeowner who will later want a drill, a trimmer and a blower is buying an entry ticket as well as a saw. It drops below the Skil only on real cost, because $139.00 buys the saw alone and Ryobi's PSK014 4AH battery and fast charger kit adds $129.00, marked down from $159.00, on Ryobi's site as of October 11, 2026.

Read our full Ryobi ONE+ HP circular saw review. Already on ONE+ from the Ryobi drill driver? This is nearly automatic, and the Skil's price advantage disappears.

Best for DeWalt 20V MAX owners: DeWalt DCS570B

The lightest saw here, with the widest bevel and the friendliest first year of warranty.

Quick specs: 5,500 RPM, 2-9/16 in. at 90 degrees, 2 in. at 45, bevel to 57 degrees, 7.5 lb bare, electric brake, 3-year limited warranty plus 1 year free service and 90-day money-back, per DeWalt's pages checked October 10, 2026. Price not published.

Strengths: the 7.5 lb body is the lightest manufacturer figure in the cluster, and 57 degrees is the widest bevel. DeWalt's 90-day money-back guarantee means a saw that feels wrong can go back without a defect claim. Pro Tool Reviews scored it 8.1 out of 10 and praised the brake and base.

Limits: sold bare, no published price, and DeWalt's own DCS574 is claimed to be up to 54 percent more powerful. The rafter hook is listed on DeWalt Canada's page but was flagged as absent by Pro Tool Reviews, so check the box. No LED or dust port is listed.

Why it sits at #3: on a yellow charger it beats both saws above it, because the battery cost is already paid and the body is light. For a buyer with no batteries, the unpublished price and bare packaging push it behind the Skil kit and the Ryobi. Against the Milwaukee it gives up speed and extras but wins on weight and bevel.

Read our full DeWalt DCS570 review. Deciding between the two pro brands? Read DeWalt DCS570 vs Milwaukee M18 FUEL.

Best for power and warranty: Milwaukee M18 FUEL 2834-20

The most capable spec sheet in the cluster, priced accordingly.

Quick specs: 6,000 RPM, 2-5/8 in. cut capacity, bevel to 50 degrees, electric brake, LED, rafter hook, dust port with adapter, up to 750 cuts per charge on the FORGE HD12.0 battery, 5-year tool warranty, per Milwaukee's page checked October 10, 2026. Weight and price not published; retailers list 7.9 to 8.2 lb and $249 to $279 bare.

Strengths: it leads on speed and cut depth, and it is the only saw here whose maker lists an LED, a dust port and a confirmed rafter hook together. Tool Box Buzz found the shoe square at 90 and 45 out of the box and the saw lighter than the previous generation. Five years is the longest tool warranty in the cluster.

Limits: 50 degrees is the narrowest bevel. The 750-cut claim depends on a 12.0Ah pack sold separately. It is the heaviest bare saw by retailer figures, and published reviews notice that overhead.

Why it sits at #4: for the homeowner this site writes for, the extra 1,000 RPM over the Ryobi and the extras cost roughly twice the Skil kit's published price, and the Skil already matches its 2-5/8 in. cut depth. For a weekly framer the order flips and this is #1.

Read our full Milwaukee M18 FUEL circular saw review. Already red from the M18 FUEL drill and impact combo? Buy this one.

Also compared (did not make the cut)

Six more saws were read and left off the list, each for a documented reason.

• Milwaukee 2732-20: the previous M18 FUEL generation, listed at 5,800 RPM and a 2-1/2 in. cut; Milwaukee's page marks it no longer available as of October 10, 2026
• Milwaukee 2830-20 rear handle: 5,800 RPM and up to 570 cuts on a 12.0Ah pack per Milwaukee's page, also marked no longer available
• DeWalt DCS573B FLEXVOLT Advantage: 5,500 RPM and a 2-9/16 in. cut per DeWalt's page, listed as discontinued; its successor DCS574 is claimed up to 54 percent more powerful than the DCS570 but we could read only a Canadian kit page with no price
• Ryobi PBLCS300B: the previous ONE+ HP generation at 4,300 RPM, 2-7/16 in. cut and 325 cuts per charge per Ryobi's support page; worth it only on deep clearance now that the 302 lists 2-9/16 in.
• Ryobi PBLCS300K1 kit: the previous-generation kit with a 4.0Ah pack and charger, listing 2-7/16 in. at 0 degrees and 1-3/4 in. at 45; Ryobi's page marks it discontinued with no price as of October 11, 2026, so it cannot be compared with the Skil kit
• Makita 18V X2 7-1/4 in. (XSH06Z): makitatools.com returned a certificate error to our reader on October 11, 2026, and a headless browser could not read it either, so we have no manufacturer figures for it and left it out rather than quote search snippets

Cuts per charge: how to read the three claims

The four runtime numbers in this guide are not comparable, and the makers' own footnotes explain why.

Milwaukee's up to 750 cuts is tied to the M18 FORGE HD12.0 battery, a 12.0Ah pack, with no material stated on the page. Ryobi's up to 370 cuts is tied, per the footnote surfaced in search, to crosscuts in 2x6 yellow pine with an 8Ah pack.

Skil's up to 350 cuts is stated as 2x4 pine on one charge with a 5.0Ah pack sold separately. DeWalt publishes no figure for the DCS570 at all; a retailer listing claims 330 crosscuts in 2x4 pine.

Different packs, different lumber, one manufacturer figure missing. The only fair statement is that an 18-volt-class 12.0Ah pack stores roughly 216 watt-hours, an 8Ah pack about 144, a 5.0Ah pack about 90 and the 4.0Ah pack in the Skil kit about 72, by our arithmetic. A saw's cut count follows stored energy more than brand.

Read the Skil claim with that in mind. The headline uses a 5.0Ah pack listed at $89.99 on skil.com as of October 11, 2026, while the kit ships the 4.0Ah pack, which holds roughly a fifth less energy on the same arithmetic.

Practical rule: buy the saw on cut depth, weight and platform, then buy the biggest pack you can justify. A second battery changes a day of decking more than 500 RPM does.

How to choose a cordless circular saw

Five questions settle most purchases.

Which batteries do you already own? Three of these four saws are sold bare. If your charger holds yellow, red or green packs of 4.0Ah or larger, buy the matching saw and stop reading. The drill vs impact driver explainer and the DeWalt 20V vs Ryobi ONE+ comparison cover the platform decision if you have not made it.

Is this your only cordless tool, or the first of many? If it is the only one, the Skil kit is the cheapest finished purchase. If a drill, a trimmer and a blower are coming, pick the platform first: ONE+ and M18 have far more tools listed, as our cordless yard tools guide shows.

How deep do you need to cut? Nominal 2x lumber is 1-1/2 in. thick. All four saws clear it at 90 and at 45 degrees per their spec sheets. Only 4x4 posts (3-1/2 in.) need two passes on any of them.

How often will you cut? A few weekends a year favours the Skil or the Ryobi. Weekly decking, sheds and renovations favour the Milwaukee's speed, dust port and warranty. The DeWalt sits between.

Will you cut overhead? If yes, weight matters more than speed. Skil's 7.05 lb and DeWalt's 7.5 lb are the lightest published figures; the other two sit near 8 lb by third-party figures. A 6-1/2 in. compact saw, which we have not reviewed, is lighter still.

Whatever you buy, add a 40-tooth blade for plywood and keep the included 24-tooth for framing. A dull blade drains any battery faster, as retailer reviewers of the DeWalt noted, and our battery label explainer shows why pack watt-hours, not volts, decide cut count.

Bottom line

Starting from zero and buying one saw, buy the Skil CR5440B-1C kit at $139.99 and register it inside 30 days; the pack and charger are in the box and the cut depth ties the dearest saw here. Starting from zero but building a kit, buy the Ryobi PBLCS302B and a 4.0Ah or larger pack, because ONE+ is the platform you will keep using.

Already on DeWalt 20V MAX, buy the DCS570B for the light body, the 57-degree bevel and the 90-day return. Already on Milwaukee M18, or cutting every weekend, buy the 2834-20 and use all of it.

All four clear 2x lumber in one pass per their makers' pages. The differences are speed, weight, extras, warranty conditions and what is in the box, and the battery you already own should outvote all of them.

Last checked October 11, 2026. What changed: the Skil CR5440B kit was added at #1 and the other three moved down one place, after Skil's page confirmed a published kit price that includes a battery and charger. We will revisit when a maker changes the motor, the cut capacity or the warranty.

Frequently asked questions