Which cordless drill wins the Drillympics?

I set up a series of timed DIY workstations — the “Drillympics” — to test cordless drills for speed, power, endurance and precision. The gauntlet included screw-driving, drilling wood and hammer-drilling into concrete, with a bit change at every station to mirror real job switching.

The Makita DHP490Z emerged as the overall champion, with the Draper D20 and Ryobi 18V One+ also on the podiums. Testing showed which drills changed bits most easily and whether each machine could handle the tasks it claimed; I also learned, to my alarm, that running a wood bit the wrong way can quickly start a fire.

Some models were sturdier SDS+ types built for heavy-duty work, so they had a bespoke test of repeated drilling into breeze blocks rather than being used for screw-driving. Timing each run highlighted how machines coped with different demands.

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