Best Dewalt Impact Drivers of 2023

Unlike several other brands that may have one or two products, DeWalt has more than one type of impact driver in its line. Realizing this, we thought it might be helpful to categorize them according to their respective strengths. The best DeWalt impact driver for your application may not be the most powerful. It also might not be the cheapest.

It could be somewhere in between.

DeWalt DCF845 3-speed (tool connection chip ready)

The much-loved DCF887 finally finds a replacement in the 2023 DeWalt DCF845 impact driver. The DCF845 has the same 1825 in-lbs of torque as the DCF887, but is 150 RPM faster. This also increases the shock rate to 600 IPM.

If DeWalt had only focused on going faster, we'd be impressed. They also made it more compact, reducing the overall length by 1/4 inch. That makes it only 5.1 inches long! Combined with the fact that it weighs only 2.2 pounds, this tool almost gives the compact DeWalt Atomic DCF850 a run for its money.

Pricing for the new tool is similar to the 887 at $149.99 bare metal. There are a variety of kit options to choose from, including one with a 1.7Ah PowerStack battery.

Best DeWalt impact driver value

DeWalt DCF887 3-Speed Precision Drive

If you want the most feature-rich DeWalt impact driver, you can choose the Dewalt DCF888 with Tool Connect. However, we call the DCF887 the best value DeWalt brushless impact driver in our opinion. Why? This is "last year's model" – which means a discount!

In our testing, the DeWalt DCF887 Impact Driver stayed in the top half for performance, design, and value. When we looked at the tool, nothing stood out as "fix this". It just works…reliably. DeWalt's product teams aren't necessarily chasing the numbers that other brands are chasing. Instead, they seem content to know they have a great impact driver. As a DeWalt user, the only decision you have to make is whether or not you want tool connection functionality in the DCF888.

On paper, it has a torque specification of 1825 in-lbs. In our tests, the brushless DeWalt DCF887 impact driver required 2,237 inch-pounds of force from our Gearwrench flex-tip torque wrench to loosen its tightening force and broke 3,000 inch-pounds on our pre-torque bolts.

3,000 in-lbs equals 250 ft-lbs—the same force we see in compact impact wrenches. Our best DeWalt impact drivers are available in bare tool and multiple kits. Prices range from $149 to $319.

best dewalt 12 volt impact driver

DeWalt DCF801

For compactness, you have two options. We'll start with the recently completed DeWalt 12 Volt impact driver review. DeWalt has a fairly shallow line of 12V tools. However, if you really want the lightest possible experience, the DeWalt DCF801 will do the trick. It also serves as a brushless upgrade for the company's outdated DeWalt DCF815 12V impact driver.

With the 60V FlexVolt tools supplementing their 20V Max cordless tools with higher wattage, the smaller DeWalt 12V tools are often overlooked. In our testing, however, the DeWalt DCF801 did an admirable job, completing 80 percent or more of what you'd expect from a full-size impact driver.

The head length of the brushless DCF801 is reduced by a full 1.2 inches compared to the previous model, shrinking it down to just over 5 inches of a hair. Top speed also jumps to 2850 RPM, and you get three electronic speed modes including high, low and precision drive assist. In terms of power – maximum torque soars to 1450 in-lbs with the 2.0Ah battery pack. This 12V impact driver is awesome and you can get this kit for only $119!

Best Dewalt Atomic 20V Impact Driver

DCF850 Compact Brushless

While the specs are the same as the DCF887, the DeWalt Atomic 20V Max Impact Driver has slightly slower performance on tougher driving tasks. Don't let that dissuade you, though. The DCF850 is a very compact impact driver that still packs enough speed and power to be the only impact driver you'll ever need in your toolkit.

It truly redefines "compact". This tool is only 3.97 inches long!

We love the great ergonomics and value. Priced bare-bones for $149, this compact impact driver almost defies the laws of physics! Get the kit for around $219.

• Honorable Mention: DeWalt DCF809 Impact Driver – $160 for kit

Best Dewalt 20V Impact Drivers Made in the USA

DeWalt DCF885

While both the DCF888 and some DCF887 kits are made in the USA, we like another model as our first choice. The DCF885 may be a bit less "flagship", but it offers similar ergonomics to the DCF887/888. You can pick up this American-made DeWalt impact driver kit for about $99 (we see it on sale quite often).

On sale, this is one of the best Dewalt 1/4 impact drivers you can find. For professionals looking to buy extra tools, or outfit their truck or shop, we find it hard to pass up. The tool has an excellent triple-LED chuck light that we love and supports 1-inch drill bits. This makes it super compact and easy to use in harsh environments.

Honestly, there's a lot we like about it and very little we don't.

Editor's note: Check out our DeWalt vs Milwaukee shock drivers head-to-head article.

How We Determine Which DeWalt Impact Driver Is Best

Speed test under load

Maintaining speed under load is more important than the no-load speed given on the back of the box. We threaded sorting screws into the glued back of the OSB and measured the maximum rotational speed of all threads when driven in the last inch. Better rigs have higher RPMs at this moderate load.

Torque Tested Best DeWalt Impact Driver

To measure torque, steel I-beams were tested twice using grade 8 hardened bolts, washers and nuts. After hand-threading each nut onto the weld stud, we gave it three 3-second and 5-second pulses with a DeWalt impact driver. We then measure the torque required to remove the nut and apply a formula to the result.

For the second test, we used a Gearwrench 64-832G torque multiplier to tighten the nuts to the predetermined setting. Then we look at the torque that the impact driver can successfully put back. We do this in 10 ft-lb (120 in-lb) increments until we reach the maximum "nut breaking" torque value.

Generally, this type of torque is about 50% higher than the tightening torque. However, the tightening torque isn't exactly the same for every tool, so we can't use a formula to tell you how much tightening torque each model actually has.

noise output

DeWalt (and other) impact drivers are loud tools! We use an SPL meter and record the A-weighted dB sound pressure level reading at a distance of 24 inches (approximately the distance from the tool to your ear). We do this in a consistent environment to ensure accurate results.

weight

Impact drivers are powerful, but the best tools also stay nice and compact. Overall weight is still an important factor. We measured the bare weight of each tool and used the most advanced compact batteries available at the time of testing.

footprint

The best impact drivers have a small footprint. We use digital calipers to measure the height and length of each impact driver. Length is arguably more important than height. Tools with more compact heads can squeeze into smaller spaces.

hold tightly

While we didn't come across many tools with a poor grip, some are better than others. We'll find out how the tool fits in your hand and the comfort and safety of the rubber overmolding. Since people with small hands tend to like a different style than those with larger hands, handle size doesn't affect our rating.

feature set

Sales 101 will tell you that every feature has to have a benefit. When we look at feature sets to help identify the best impact drivers, we're looking for features with tangible benefits. This includes having a brushless motor, number of speed settings, app-based controls, LED light design, bit insertion/ejection, and more.

value

Tools will provide different value to everyone, depending on what features, performance, and price are most important to you. Regardless, it's the sum of what you get compared to what you pay that determines your worth. This is how we provide a value rating for each impact driver.

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