Choosing a drill Choose your drill

Cordless drills are best for light tasks

Think realistically about what kind of work your new drill will do. Cordless drills are more convenient, but you'll need a mains one for serious jobs.

Cordless drills

Cordless drills are by far the best for light tasks, such as drilling interior walls or doors, and can whizz through screwdriving jobs painlessly. They're convenient too − there's no trailing flex, so you can take your drill wherever you please.

The tougher the task, the faster the battery drains. They're generally slower and vibrate a lot more than corded drills. 

You'll need a mains drill for serious tasks, as cordless drills can't generate enough turning speed to drill into the hardest substances.

Mains drills

Rotary drills

Cordless drills are more convenient, but you'll need a mains drill for serious tasks

Rotary drills are ideal for basic DIY tasks, such as drilling holes to hang pictures. They rely on fast rotation (around 3,000rpm) so are best for small holes or on softer materials such as wood, metal or plastic.

Percussion drills

Percussion drills rotate at around 3,000 revs per minute (rpm) but for more power their hammer action pounds the turning drill bit at around 40,000 blows a minute.

Simple DIY jobs, and softer stone such as limestone or light concrete, are no problem. Hard stone, such as granite, produces strong vibration and noise because you need to push harder to activate the hammer action.

Most percussion drills have one gear but two gears give better screwdriving control.

Hammer drills

Hammer drills are best for sustained or heavy-duty drilling in hard materials, such as granite or very hard concrete. They have a pneumatic action, giving around 5,000 blows a minute to the rotating bit. This provides most of the force, so high speed isn't necessary.

For light jobs, with no hammer function, they're slow and can be awkward to handle. Chisel attachments can be added for removing lumps of masonry.