Hedge trimmers are great at keeping your garden looking neat and tidy, but which ones are up to the job? Our experts put them to the test in real-life conditions to see which ones are up to scratch.
On this page:
- Our expert testers
- How we choose which hedge trimmers to test
- How we test hedge trimmers
- Test criteria explained
- Our test lab
Our expert testers
CHOICE maintains a highly professional NATA-accredited laboratory and the vast majority of our product testing is done in-house. Our testers are qualified and well-experienced in testing a wide range of products, and many sit on Standards committees and belong to other professional and expert bodies.
For some products there are Australian or international standards, which usually form the basis of our testing for those products. This isn't the case for hedge trimmers, so our expert testers, project managers and content producers work together to devise a test method that is based on what people are looking for when it comes to a good hedge trimmer.
How we choose which hedge trimmers to test
Hedge trimmers can run using a power cable, rechargeable battery or petrol (2- or 4-stroke engine). There are also far-reaching telescopic types. With so many to choose from, what makes us choose one line trimmer to test over another? Like with most of our product testing, our aim is to test the popular brands and models on the market and what you are most likely to see in the retailers.
Battery-powered hedge trimmers are a fast-growing market with plenty of choice out there, so in recent years we've shifted our focus to these types only.
At the moment, battery trimmers generally don't perform quite as well as other types we've tested over the years, but there are still decent models to suit typical hedges as long as you don't need to cut masses of thick, woody material over a mammoth hedge-trimming session.
We survey manufacturers to find out about their range of models, we check market sales information and we also check for any member requests to test specific models. From this information we put together a final list that goes to our buyers. They then head out to the retailers and purchase each product, just as a regular consumer would. We do this so we can be sure they are the same as any consumer would find them and not 'tweaked' in any way for better performance.
How we test hedge trimmers
Performance
We test the trimmers on a suburban property with adequate amounts of hedge. It's the same property (and hedges) we used in 2021, but previous locations are not directly comparable as the conditions were different.
Our garden expert tests how well the hedge trimmers perform when cutting woody branches. An excellent score means the hedge trimmer feels very powerful and doesn't struggle cutting thicker branches, while lower scores feel underpowered and can't handle the thicker branches (the result may look very jagged, for instance).
Ease of use
To calculate the ease of use score, we take the following factors into account.
Comfort
Comfort is crucial when using a hedge trimmer and we assess it in both horizontal and vertical modes.
Weight and balance
A lightweight, well-balanced hedge trimmer will make the job easier. If it's noticeably heavier on one end, it could get tiring to use.
Handles
Our expert rates how comfortable the handles are for both vertical and horizontal trimming.
Controls
We find out how easy it is to use the switches on the wrap-around front handle and the rear handle trigger, for horizontal and vertical trimming.
Visibility
We note how well you can see the cutting edge where it makes contact with the hedge.
Noise
We measure the hedge trimmer's noise both at the user's position and at a 7.5m distance.
Other general observations
We record features like anti-jam buttons, wall hooks, claimed battery running time and whether there is a trigger lock.
Test criteria explained
The CHOICE Expert Rating, our overall score that determines which products we recommend, for line trimmers is made up of:
- hedge trimming performance (50%)
- ease of use (50%).
Weightings are in brackets.
The ease of use score is weighted equally between the criteria mentioned above.
Our test lab
We maintain a climate-controlled lab that is up to date with the latest reference machines and calibrated measurement tools for our testers to bring you the right results. For tests of outdoor equipment such as hedge trimmers, most of the actual testing is done "in the field".
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
