Do expensive cordless lawn mowers have a longer battery run time?

Being able to take your lawn mower anywhere without worrying about petrol cans or a cable is just one of the reasons cordless models are so handy. But it means nothing if the battery runs out after just 10 minutes.

Unfortunately, most manufacturers don't state the run time for their cordless mowers. But, when we test them we monitor the battery so we can tell you how long it actually lasts. That way you won't end up waiting for it to recharge halfway through doing the garden.

Read on to find out how much money you need to spend to get the best battery, and how much run time you actually need for the size of your garden.

Alternatively, head straight to our best cordless lawn mowers.

The best and worst cordless lawn mowers for battery run time

Our rigorous testing has highlighted a significant difference between the best and worst cordless lawn mowers for battery life.

The worst we've tested runs for 15 minutes - just enough time to cut a small lawn. In contrast, the best keeps going for an impressive 45 minutes.

To put this into perspective, the average run time of all 34 cordless lawn mowers we've tested is 25 minutes.

Does money buy you more battery time?

No, a higher price tag doesn't mean a cordless battery will last longer.

In fact, we found the cost of the top 20% of cordless lawn mowers for battery run time ranges from just £200 to more than £700. There's also no guarantee that an expensive lawn mower will have a long-lasting battery.

There are two models in the top 20% that have a longer battery run time than another mower that's £400 more expensive.

The battery in one of the priciest models runs out quicker than nearly all of the mowers we've reviewed, and two others lose power after less than 25 minutes.

We also found five cordless mowers costing less than £300 that have a better-than-average battery run time - more than 25 minutes.

That's proof that not only can you bag a bargain if you do your research, but you can also be wasting lots of money on a dud if you don't.

Here are our top five cordless lawn mowers for 2019.

How much battery life do I really need?

The amount of battery life you'll need will all depend on the size of your lawn and how long the grass is. If you leave your grass to grow long between cuts, you will use more battery to cut the lawn compared to a quick whizz over short grass.

Bear in mind that the time you spend cutting is only around half the time it takes to complete the job. You will spend as long emptying the box and moving the mower as you will with your finger on the trigger. But to help you work out whether your battery will last long enough, look at our average cutting times for small, medium and large lawns:

Ready to buy your new mower? Jump straight to our cordless lawn mower reviews.