[Tried and True] 7 Best Impact Wrenches in 2023

You can expect a powerful 650 ft-lbs. of fastening torque from Milwaukee's cordless M18 FUEL impact wrench. By turning on its convenient auto-shutoff technology, you can limit the torque to 35 ft-lbs. when temporarily fastening bolts. During our tests, we found this impact wrench made quick work of nuts fastened with 200 ft-lbs. of torque. With this much power, you'll have no problem removing axle nuts or tightly secured lug nuts.

Thankfully, it doesn't sacrifice ease of use for power. At five pounds, two ounces with the included 5.0Ah battery, it's light enough to hold in one hand easily. It's also compact, with a head size six inches across and two and 3/4 inches in depth, which means you won't feel hindered when working in your car's engine bay or other narrow spaces.

On top of all that, it comes equipped with several convenient features. It has auto-stop for fastening and loosening, so you're less likely to drop your nuts and bolts when removing them. It also supports torque limiting at three different values. This helps to gently fasten bolts down, which is particularly helpful when putting up a house's frame. Compact and powerful with all the expected features, this impact wrench gets our top recommendation.

Makita's 18V LXT impact wrench offers a maximum fastening torque of 520 ft-lbs. It touts an energy-efficient brushless motor, allowing longer run time on a single charge. We had no trouble loosening nuts fastened with 200 ft-lbs. of torque. Along with changing the blade on your lawnmower or tires on your car, it should be enough power to remove the axle nuts for replacing your brake shaft.

At five pounds, 12 ounces with the 5.0Ah battery inserted, we felt it could be held in one hand without causing fatigue. The head size is six and 5/8 inches across and three and 5/32 inches in depth, which would make working in corners or around piping difficult, but the relatively smaller width means you should have no trouble in other narrow workspaces.

This model comes equipped with three auto-stop levels when fastening and loosening. This means you won't exceed the predetermined torque for temporarily fastening nuts and bolts and are less likely to have them slip away during removal. And the four levels of torque limiting will come in handy if you need to fasten anchor bolts for a construction project.

Next, we looked at Ryobi's One+ 3-Speed Impact Wrench, a cordless model with up to 300 ft-lbs. of fastening torque. It's got three built-in LED lights to brighten up any workspace. During our tests, we had no trouble loosening nuts fastened with 200 ft-lbs of torque. It has enough power to loosen axle nuts and lug nuts, as long as they haven't become worn down.

This impact wrench is on the light side at five pounds with the 4.0Ah battery inserted. It won't be a burden during use or while carrying it. However, while the head depth is compact enough at two and 11/16 inches, it's rather large in width at seven and 7/8 inches. Loosening nuts and bolts in your car's engine bay or inside the frame would be challenging.

It comes with three levels of torque limiting, which is helpful to prevent damage when you need to fasten bolts at a slower speed to secure two-by-fours on the frame of a building. It has no auto-stop feature, so you'll need to pay attention when loosening nuts to ensure they don't fly off and get lost.

The 20V MAX Cordless 3/8 in by Dewalt is an impact wrench with a maximum of 130 ft-lbs. of fastening torque. It claims the non-slip textured handle makes for efficient work. During our tests, we got nuts fastened with 1,560 in-lbs（130 ft-lbs）. of torque loosened with no problems. It also removed nuts fastened at 100 and even 200 ft-lbs., although that took around three seconds. It would put some wear and tear on the motor after continued use, but it does have enough torque to loosen lug nuts on a van or truck.

This was the lightest of all the impact wrenches we looked at, just three pounds six ounces with the 5.0Ah battery inserted. It was incredibly comfortable to use held single-handedly. The head is also a compact five-and-5/8 inches across and two and 7/16 inches in depth, so you won't feel hindered when working on your car's engine bay or doing maintenance on farm machinery.

The only added feature is the built-in LED light. There's no auto-stop or torque limiting, so you must carefully control the torque with the trigger. We recommend it for people who already feel comfortable using power tools.

As the name implies, Bosch's Freak Two-in-One has the functionality of both an impact driver and an impact wrench. It has a maximum fastening torque of 1,800 in-lbs（150 ft-lbs）., and with the optional Bluetooth module, you can add soft starter functionality and control the LED light.

We had no trouble removing nuts that had been fastened with 74 ft-lbs. of torque, but those at 100 ft-lbs. required around three seconds to loosen. It couldn't loosen nuts that had been fastened with 200 ft-lbs. of torque, so you should consider this model specifically for changing tires or a lawnmower blade. This impact wrench was relatively light at three pounds 13 ounces with the 4.0Ah battery inserted. You can easily hold it in one hand and carry it with you wherever you go.

The head size is also commendably compact at five and 3/4 inches across and two and 11/32 inches in depth, so it won't get in the way when you're working on your car's engine bay or plumbing in your home. One noteworthy feature is that this was the only product we looked at which can double as an impact driver without any external attachments. With three levels of torque limiting, you can fasten bolts and screws without damaging the material you're working on.

Craftsman's V20 has a maximum fastening torque of 350 ft-lbs. It employs a hog ring anvil for simple socket replacement. We could quickly remove nuts fastened with 200 ft-lbs. of torque using this impact wrench, so it's powerful enough to work on axle nuts and lug nuts.

Unfortunately, it's on the heavy side at six pounds with the 4.0Ah battery inserted, which was enough to make our arms tired after holding it. The head was also the biggest of all our tested products, a whopping nine and 11/16 inches across. The depth was more reasonable at three inches, but the size will limit you to using it in areas with sufficient space.

This impact wrench doesn't have either torque limiting or auto-stop. You'll need to adjust the torque manually on the trigger for both fastening and loosening, which could be a deterrent for people who don't usually use power tools.

Ingersoll Rand's 20V 1/2" Drive Cordless Impact Wrench has a maximum fastening torque of 1,000 ft-lbs. and a steel-enforced frame to prevent wear and tear. This impact wrench did a great job of quickly removing nuts fastened with 200 ft-lbs. of torque, so it has enough power to handle axle nuts and lug nuts.

But it weighs seven pounds nine ounces with the 5.6Ah battery inserted, which will wear your arm out after a while. On top of that, the head is quite large at eight inches in width and three and 5/16 inches in depth, so it's meant for jobs where you have plenty of space to maneuver.

In the added features department, it has four levels of torque limiting when fastening and two levels of auto-stop. You'll need to be careful when removing nuts and bolts as none of these features apply to loosening, but it has the features required for temporary fastening.