If you’re looking for a great 12V-class cordless drill and impact driver combo kit for yourself, or to give as a gift, you have 3 strong options to choose from right now.
All of these kits are on sale this Black Friday weekend, for $99 each.
Milwaukee M12, 2494-22
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Why buy this kit? The tools are solid, and Milwaukee’s M12 lineup is phenomenally broad. This is the best 12V-class cordless platform to buy into right now.
This would be my pick.
Sorry, Acme Tools’ $20 off $100+ Milwaukee Tool combo does NOT work on this kit.
Buy Now(via Acme Tool)
Buy Now(via Home Depot)
Makita 12V Max, CT226
Why buy this kit? The new slide-style battery allows for a more compact and ergonomic grip. If I were looking for the best 12V-class compact drill and impact driver on a budget, this kit would be it.
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Buy Now(via Amazon)
Buy Now(via Acme Tool)
Bosch 12V Max, CLPK22-120
Why buy this kit? Both tools are pretty good, and despite being older models, Bosch upgraded the kit with 2.0Ah battery packs. In my experience, Bosch power tools have excellent reliability.
Buy Now(via Amazon)
Bryan
The Milwaukee M12 is a good deal, but at Home Depot for $199 they have the drill, impact driver, light, hackzall, multitool with 3 batteries and charger. Its a great deal to get into the M12 platform for that price.
David
Agree – this is a much better deal, imo. The non-Fuel M12 tools are limited. Try driving 3″ deck screws with the non-Fuel M12 driver. It will work, but slowly and a little frustratingly. Given that you get much better tools and a 3rd tool for another $100, it’s a no-brainer imo. You could even sell the Hackzall to recover some of the extra $100.
FYI, the M12 non-Fuel Hackzall is not very usable, imo. Limited travel and power. Not what most of us need in a sawzall-type tool.
Lance
The tools in that kit are non-fuel also.
I disagree about the fuel driver. 3 inch deck screws are best driven with an impact driver, not a standard driver or drill driver. An impact driver does not cam out nearly as easily as a standard driver and also has much higher torque.
The regular M12 driver (2401) is fantastic for the price, in my opinion. It has plenty of torque for driving small to medium size screws and costs WAY less than the fuel version, about half. Any screw too large to drive properly with the M12 driver should be driven with an impact driver.
David
The kit comes with a Drill/Driver and an impact driver. I was referring to the impact. The Fuel drill driver is also much better than the non-Fuel.
If you go back to Bryan’s comment to which I replied he’s talking about the M12 Fuel combo for $199. The 3rd tool you get for free with the combo is not a Fuel tool. There are several options for the free tool. I didn’t see it on HD’s web site just now, but the flyer in the store clearly shows the Hackzall as one of the free tool options.
And you get one of the larger batteries with the Fuel kit. Both are a bargain, actually. Those non-Fuel tools are excellent for the money.
David
Forgot to mention that the Fuel drill is also a hammer drill (2404-20). It has 3 modes – drill, driver, and hammer. The hammer drill is surprisingly functional. I’ve put hundreds of 1/4″ screws into concrete with it.
Adam
For another $100, you can get another ‘3’ tools and battery. Hackzall, multi-tool, light, and 1.5ah battery. sure it will sell out quick
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-M12-12-Volt-Lithium-Ion-Cordless-Combo-Kit-5-Tool-2499-25P/302036783
Adam
guess I dozed off before hitting the post button.
Adam
ordered yesterday, received today. hot dang!!
Toolfreak
I’ve handled all 3 and went with the Bosch, mostly due to compactness over the Makita and the grippier rubber covered keyless chuck and overall ‘feel’ over the Milwaukee, plus I am slightly biased to Bosch.
Milwaukee sure does have a lot more 12V tools and a broader lineup overall, not to mention their hand tools and other offerings. The Makita felt good but was just so much larger than the others, but if you just want something smaller/lighter than an 18V and like the slide-type batteries, it’s a good choice.
Really no bad options, just pick what you like, under $100 for drill, driver, batteries, charger and a carrying case! Not bad at all.
fred
I’ve handled all 3. Even with my big mitts – the Bosch fits/feels best, think the Makita is #2 and Milwaukee – a bit bulkier in the hand at #3. Overall because of the slide-style battery the Makita is bigger/less compact than the 2 others. If I were buying only the 2 tools with no thought of expansion – my choice would be Bosch. But Bosch seems to ignore the USA market when it comes to new releases and expanded tool line-ups. So if I planned to build this purchase into a platform with other tools – my choice would be Milwaukee.
Toolfreak
As a counterpoint, having a limited number of options sure has saved me some money. I would like the 12V grinder and there’s plenty of other cordless tools I would like to get if they existed, but a drill, driver, compact driver, impact driver, compact reciprocating saw, jigsaw, oscillating multi-tool, LED worklight, and now a 5-in-1 Flexiclick drill/driver is already quite a bit of kit.
If I had gone with Milwaukee I probably would have all their 12V tools plus the 12V Fuel tools and not use them half as much as I use my Bosch stuff – and some of those don’t even get used as much as others.
While I agree it does matter what other tools a brand has in it’s lineup (mainly so you can have a set where everything uses the same battery), it really matters that the base tools you’ll use most are ones you like. The Bosch drill and impact driver in the above kit were just so much better than the Milwaukee and even the Makita in the hand and in use I wouldn’t have been able to stand it had I bought anything else. The metal chuck on the Milwaukee was all metal and too smooth – the knurling only served to make it more slick and tough to grab. The Makita was heavier and bulkier and no smaller than my old Skil 14.4V NiCd stuff I was upgrading from.
fred
You make an interesting and sobering (as in don’t get “drunk” on buying tools you don’t need) point. When some new tool came out that looked like it might have use in one our businesses – I’d think about it. I’d ask the crews at one of our weekly briefings about their thoughts. If there was a positive reaction I might buy one for the applicable businesses to try them out. Some got consigned to the back of the tool rooms. Some were liked better – but not enough to buy more. A few were found to be so useful that I’d order more and we’d phase them into our regular work. We’d use a similar strategy when we needed to replace tools that started coming to the end of their useful life. This strategy worked for us, but a small percentage of what we bought still ended up gathering dust.
The problem with buying for yourself, rather than for a business, is that you probably only need one or two of each of most of the tools you buy. You could always use multiple drills – ready to go with different bits chucked – to speed up your work. But how many 7-1/4 inch saws do you really need?
When you are buying to ultimately deploy 20 to 30 tools – buying one to try out doesn’t “break the bank”. When you are buying for yourself, buying tools that prove to be duds or less useful than you thought – either ends up resulting in expensive clutter – or you need to become familiar with selling off stuff on Craigslist or eBay. Even if the new tool you purchase proves to be better than the old one you have, is laying the old one aside cost effective in terms of improved productivity, enhanced safety or better work?
AJ
Great point and couldn’t agree more
David
Agree there are no bad options here. Milwaukee seemed the best 12v choice when I moved away from bulky NiCad battery packs to newer. No regrets. If I were starting now I’d likely go with Bosch. Slightly better feel in the hand and more compact. Milwaukee Fuel seem to be getting smaller over time.
Neil H
I like the dewalt but committed in the shop to the Milwaukee. The guys love the Red so I’m stuck with it but not a bad choice. My original 12v hacksaw stopped working. I took it apart cleaned it and it works again. Go figure. It just be 7 years old.
Keith
I ended up getting the M12 Fuel hammer drill/impact combo from Acme, with free 3/8″ ratchet.
http://www.acmetools.com/shop/tools/milwaukee-2597-22-m12-fuel-drill-kit
With MILW2017, it was $180 tax-free.
I also picked up the Diablo hole saw set to get free shipping.
For others looking, International Tool has the same combo and price with free shipping over $99 instead of $199 for Acme. I’m not disappointed that I chose the hole saw kit, but might have passed it up had I known about International.
Hang Fire
Meanwhile, DeWALT seems determined to stay in last place by offering only 1.5Ah batteries at a higher price.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-12-Volt-MAX-Lithium-Ion-Cordless-Drill-Driver-and-Impact-Combo-Kit-2-Tool-with-2-Batteries-1-5Ah-Charger-and-Bag-DCK211S2/202482934
There is a better deal on Amazon for $119 but it lists 1.1Ah batteries. Maybe that’s old data and new tools, or maybe you’ll get the older 1.1Ah batteries, don’t know.
I have both the Bosch and the DeWALT 12V’s. I like them both, for different reasons. The DeWALT 1/4″ hex chuck can be loaded one-handed. The greater height and slide battery means a higher polar moment of inertia for less wrist shock doing heavier driving jobs. But usually the Bosch wins out for being smaller and getting into tighter spots.
Why on earth do I have two modern 12V systems? I got the DeWalt 3-tool set for $25 missing the charger on a Lowe’s display clearance, enough said about that. I got the Bosch 2-tool set for $99 (minus 5% for using a Lowe’s card) after I picked up the PS50 Multi-Tool w/ battery for $8 at a yard sale. I keep one set in the basement and the other in the garage. Life is good.
The yeti
Well i just bought my little brother the m12 kit. Got it for 99 cdn. 112 after tax.
Thats pretty good for up here.
Hes got a lot of m18 tools. However he wants the m12 heated jackets. So this is a good way to get him into the 12v system.
Thank you for the heads up
Pfire
Can someone provide a suggestion. I am torn between the Bosch 12V max and the Milwaukee Model# 2494-22. Which one is better and would be recommended. I don’t plan to expand but want a good decent set for small projects. Keeping the costs on the side, any opinions would be appreciated
Stuart
They’re both really good options. Which is your favorite color, blue or red?
Pfire
That’s funny but it’s blue. I heard the battery life and grip on Bosch is good. Not heard too much about Milwaukee line.
bwh
Bosch is a great set. But relatively limited in terms of the accessibility of other 12v tools. They have a big lineup, but not always carried at the big box.
Milwaukee seems to have more tool availability in the 12v range at HD.
I think the Bosch is the better set. I’ve used them in the furniture shop and taken weeks to drain a battery. On site, it’s taken days for the 2ah to drain of heavy use. Impact will drive deck screws for a long time before draining, and I like the small size and weight. For many jobs it is absolutely perfect.
The drill driver will wuss out with spade bits though.