Best Cordless Nailers 2023 - Reviews & Buyer's Guide (2023)

As a finisher, cordless nailers are game changers. No more lugging around a heavy, noisy air compressor. I'm also not limited by how far or how fast I can work while connected to the air hose.

Although all cordless nailers look the same at first glance, features and performance can vary greatly. Also, what I need in a tool for professional use is very different than what a typical do-it-yourselfer or homeowner would need.

With all of these factors in mind, we've selected five of the best 18-gauge cordless nailers available today and put them to the test.

Here are the results.

In short: Brad's best cordless nail gun

BEST OVERALL

DEWALT DCN680 18-Gauge Cordless Nail Gun

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THE BEST PRICE

PORTER-KABEL PCC790LA 18-Gauge Cordless Nail Gun

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What to look for in Brad cordless nailers

Vacancy

The main advantage of the cordless nail gun is that you are not restricted in movement by connecting an air compressor hose. However, this freedom of movement comes at a price due to the extra weight of the motor and batteries.

Pneumatic needle drivers typically weigh about 2 pounds. Battery nailers, on the other hand, start at 5 pounds, on the lighter end of the scale, and get heavier from there.

If you're installing overhead decorations, a few extra pounds can make the difference between sore shoulders and pain-free work.

Contact advice

Typically, needle nails are used to attach fine and delicate moldings, so the last thing you want is for your material to be damaged by the contact tip of the nail gun. Make sure the nail gun you buy has a non-marking contact tip.

The size of the contact point also plays an important role in how accurately you can shoot the clubs. Accuracynail guns compared to finishersis one of the reasons they are used for precision molds, so make sure you get one that has a smaller/thinner contact tip.

Shooting modes

All Brad nail guns have a sequential trigger mode that requires you to release the trigger and turn the nail gun back on. This is the most accurate way to use a pin driver.

Some Bradd nail guns will also have a contact/impact ignition mode. Here you can hold down the trigger and the nail fires every time the contact tip is pressed.

Additional options

Some of the additional features to look for in a good cordless nail gun include:

• Dry Fire Protection - Look for a cordless nail gun that somehow prevents damage to your materials when you run out of nails and still fish the nail gun.
• Adjustable pull depth - It should be very easy to adjust the depth of the nail into the material.
• Fastening capacity - the more nails it can hold, the less recharging is required.
• Maximum fastener length - What is the maximum length of nail that can be used? Most master nail guns can shoot nails up to 2 inches long, while some can shoot longer nails.
• LED Lighting – LED lighting is an advantage of battery operated nail guns over their pneumatic counterparts.
• Belt Clip - If you regularly use a cordless nail gun like I do on a daily basis, a belt clip will come in handy.

Guarantee

A good warranty can not only save you money in the long run, but is also a good indicator that the manufacturer stands behind the quality of their products.

Look for nail guns that offer a warranty of 3 years or more.

Top 5 Cordless Nail Guns for 18 Gauge Nails:

DEWALT DCN680 Battery 18 gauge nail gun

The Dewalt DCN680 is packed with features in a lightweight package.

It's the lightest cordless nail gun we've tested, weighing just 5.2 pounds without battery.

It is fairly well balanced, but can be a bit heavy when using smaller 2.0Ah batteries. This can easily be changed by switching to 5.0 Ah batteries. The larger battery makes it a bit heavier, but extremely well balanced.

Even with the added weight of a larger battery, it's still lighter than most other cordless nailers we've reviewed.

Uses the same 20V MAX lithium-ion batteries used by other Dewalt cordless tools. If you have other cordless tools in the 20V MAX line, you can save battery costs.

It has a large magazine that can hold up to 110 18g sticks. It can also shoot nails up to 2-1/8 inches long. All other cordless nailers except the Milwaukee model can only drive 2 inch nails.

The Dewalt DCN680 has become my carpenter's gun of choice.

A dry fire protection mechanism will prevent the nail gun from cracking when less than 11 barbs remain.

The LED lights are not as bright as the Makita and Hitabo models, but these lights are really useful. There are two of them, next to the tools on each side, that light up where the nail comes out.

The belt hook can be moved on both sides of the tool. It's big enough to make the belt easy to put on and take off, but not too loose that you don't feel secure.

20VBrushless motorhad no problems driving studs into hardwood at a consistent depth and no rise time. While not as powerful as the Makita, it should have no problem working with some of the harder woods used for high-end finishes.

The depth adjustment knob is recessed into the visual indicator arrow and has 7 clicks for full adjustment range. It is easy to adjust and set the desired deepening depth.

When driving, the seams are driven to a constant depth and the hole left is clean with minimal tearing.

The Dewalt DCN680 is perfect for daily professional use and is relatively "cheap" in price compared to other professional cordless nailers. Because of this, I consider this to be the best cordless nailer overall.

Properties:

See XNB01Z Cordless 18 gauge nail gun

The Makita XNB01Z has one of the best nose and contact tips I've seen on any nail gun, cordless or pneumatic.

The nose is narrow and has two visual indicators on the face and on the side that show where the nail comes out. This makes it extremely precise and can hit nails exactly where you want them.

While this is great for shooting nails with precision, the problem arises when the gun jams. It doesn't have the ability to release the jam without a tool, so you'll need an Allen key to remove the tip when it's stuck.

Makita has the best dry fire protection of any cordless nail gun we've reviewed. It will actually fire every nail in the magazine and then block the tool from firing when empty. This means that you don't have any little nail strips left over, and you don't have to worry about material damage from accidents.

The LED is extremely bright, but it lights up on the left side of the tool and completely bypasses the contact point.

The Makita XNB01Z is an extremely accurate and efficient cordless nail gun.

The belt buckle is similar to the tape measure. It keeps it securely attached to the belt, but takes longer to attach to the belt compared to other models we've tested.

This is a very powerful cordless nail gun that had no problem driving nails into hardwood.

The depth adjustment knob isn't the easiest to use, but once you hit it, the holes it created were very consistent and had a light punch.

Unlike pneumatic nail guns that fire instantly, it has a short build-up time before it actually fires. This is something you need to get used to, especially if you are familiar with pneumatic nail guns.

They're not going to win any beauty contests, and I don't usually consider how my tools look, but in this case it affects how they function. It is clumsy, unbalanced and quite heavy. I had a hard time nailing in corners and may have skipped going to the gym for arm and shoulder training while using it for overhead work.

I want to love the Makita XNB01Z because it has some really good features, but the flaws are too great for me to use this nail gun regularly in my finishing work.

Properties:

Metabo HPT NT 1850DE Battery nailer for driving nails from 18

Hitachi Power Tools has recently been renamed Metabo HPT. The quality of the tool is the same, just now under a different name.

I'm a big fan of Metabo's penumatic nail guns and use them a lot, but I think their size 18 cordless nail gun misses the mark.

It looks like a good nail gun on paper. Has tool-free paper jam and depth adjustment. It can be fired in sequential and burst mode. The container holds 100 buds up to 2 inches long and comes with an LED light and belt clip.

It uses a brushless motor for longer working hours. Like many newer cordless nailers, there is no start-up time. This means that the gun fires immediately after pulling the trigger.

The turning depth adjustment knob is easy to use and very sensitive, allowing you to quickly set the driving depth.

Metabo HPT offers a lifetime warranty on all cordless tools.

It seems to lack a bit of power as it seemed to struggle to drive nails into hardwood compared to other models we tested.

The nail gun contains several arrows that indicate where the nail is coming from. But the "background" is, to say the least, large, and the right side of the tool is a bit clunky. Both of these factors limit his field of vision.

It's more balanced and comfortable to use compared to the Makita, but it's the heaviest model we've tested.

Like the Makita, the LED lights up, but also only on one side of the tool and doesn't light up the contact point at all.

The belt hook on the Metab is hinged, but it is massive. 1-1/2 inches wide, it seems to hang better on a tree than a pole.

It also does not include any form of dry fire protection. It has a low seam indicator window, but it's hard to tell at first glance.

What I really like about Metabo cordless tools is that they all come with a lifetime warranty.

Properties:

Milwaukee 2746-20 Accumulate 18 guns

The Milwaukee 2746-20 is the second generation of their M18 Fuel 18 gauge cordless nailer and was a big improvement over their first foray into the cordless nailer market.

It is an extremely well-balanced and lightweight cordless nail gun. Only the Dewalt model weighs less without batteries.

Like the Dewalt DCN680, it can hold up to 110 beards up to 2-1/8 inches long.

Although it can shoot longer nails, I experienced more jamming when using nails 2 inches and longer.

The low stitch lock is activated when there are only 4 stitches left in the magazine. While not as good as the dry fire mechanism found in the Makita XNB01Z, it does allow you to fire more nails before you need to refill the magazine compared to other models reviewed.

With the Gen II Cordless Shank nail gun, Milwaukee listened to its customers and built a winner.

The LED light is bright and uses a cone-shaped pattern. The problem is that it illuminates the tip of the tool from behind, causing a shadow to cover where you are trying to drive the nail.

It has the best belt buckle of all the models we tested. The hook has a slightly curved outer side, which makes it easier to put on the harness.

Another feature that stands out is the release switch. It is designed to mimic a pneumatic nail gun. It is spring loaded, has greater resistance and smooth action. All other models tested use a slide switch similar to that found on drills.

The brushless 18V motor is more powerful than I expected. Only Makita could drive nails deeper into hardwood. It also had zero spin time and fired almost instantly at the pull of the trigger.

The groove depth is easily adjusted using the large adjustable knob. It has a number of adjustments spread over 26 clicks. With Milwaukee, it is incredibly easy to choose how far you want to drive the nails.

Milwaukee's newly redesigned M18 Fuel 18 G cordless nail gun is a winner. The only thing that prevents it from being called the best overall is the price. It is more expensive than Dewalt because of the same features and performance.

But if you already have other cordless tools from Milwaukee, these are definitely worth picking up.

Properties:

PORTER-KABEL PCC790LA Cordless 18 gauge nail gun

The PCC790LA from Porter-Cable is a good entry-level cordless nailer that works well for DIY projects and occasional jobs around the house.

It is much cheaper than its competitors and includes a 20V battery. For these reasons alone, it is the best cordless brad nailer for the money.

However, the lower price comes at the expense of performance and features.

Even though it comes with a tool-less jam release, you'll be using it a lot as it stuck a lot for me.

The depth adjustment knob is easy to use and allows you to select the depth to which the 18 gram countersunk nails should be driven effortlessly. One problem I've noticed is that when the battery starts to die, the stitches won't go as shallow as I'd like, no matter how much I adjust the depth knob.

The Porter-Cable Cordless Nailer is a great option for DIYers on a budget.

The weight and balance is surprisingly good, as it weighs a bit more than the Dewalt and Milwaukee models.

It lacks a firing mode, which is not so important with a nail gun, but all its competitors do.

The lack of a dry fire lock to prevent firing when there are no more nails is also disappointing. However, the tank has a low seam indicator window. This allows you to see when you are running low on nail sticks.

Properties:

Cordless nail guns with gas cartridges

You may have noticed that we haven't included gas cartridge rivets like the ones he makesPasłodain this review.

Battery operated nail guns have come a long way since their first appearance. The first generation of battery nailers had a long start-up time and were not as powerful as today. The current generation, like the ones we've reviewed here, has no such problems.

Due to the constant cost of replacing cartridges, we can no longer recommend them over battery operated nail guns.

Application

Cordless nailers are a great option when you decide to "cut the cord" and move away from pneumatic nailers. Although considerably more expensive than their pneumatic counterparts, battery operated nail guns have their advantages and can prove their worth in no time.

We hope our reviews of the best cordless nail guns will help you find the right device for you.

What 18 gauge cordless nail gun are you using? Let us know in the comments below.