The best garden hand trowels in 2024

The best trowels at a glance:

• Best trowel for versatility: Kent and Stowe Capability Trowel
• Best trowel for quality and value: DeWit Planting Trowel
• Best trowel for premium performance: Niwaki Moku Trowel
• Best trowel for all round-use: Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Hand Trowel

In every review we award the outstanding products our coveted Best Buy award. To see these and the others we recommend, browse our pick of the best trowels below:

The best garden hand trowels in 2024

Kent and Stowe Capability Trowel

RRP: £14.99

Our rating: 4.8 out of 5

Pros:

• Two blade edges for easy cutting through roots, soil, and compost bags
• Hammer end on handle for stakes
• Measuring gauge for seed and bulb depth
• Comfortable handle
• Very strong and sturdy

Cons:

• Relatively expensive

This exceptional trowel is built to last and offers great versatility alongside a stellar performance at ordinary trowelling tasks. A BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for versatility, it has sharpened and serrated edges for cutting through roots and compost bags, a depth gauge for accurate planting and even a hammer for stakes and small posts. Made from breathable ash, it sits well in the hand, and cuts through even compacted, dry soil. We found that after use there was little soil left on the blade. Despite its size, the hammer is effective at hammering in stakes.

In this in-depth video review, Alex David explains why the Kent and Stowe Capability hand trowel was awarded Best Buy status.

Read the full Kent and Stowe Capability hand trowel review.

DeWit Professional Planting Trowel

RRP: £20.99

Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

Pros:

• Comfortable
• Great for most jobs
• Strong and long lasting
• Excellent quality and value

Cons:

• Hanging hole rubs

This tempered carbon-steel head has been hand-crafted and has bevelled edges and a sharp, pointed tip. Ours testers loved the workmanship on this model and awarded it a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for quality and value. It's sturdy too and effectively cuts through all types of soil, plus it comes with a lifetime warranty.

Read the full Dewit Planting trowel review.

Niwaki Moku Trowel

RRP: £59.00

Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

Pros:

• Light, comfortable, strong and sturdy
• Digs, weeds and plants effortlessly
• Excellent quality

Cons:

• Best for light use
• Small
• Short guarantee

Another hand crafted, carbon-steel tool, our experts awarded the Niwaki model BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy status as the best premium performing trowel. All garden jobs, including digging, weeding and planting are virtually effortless for this Japanese tool and the beech handle is comfortable to hold when working. It comes with a two year guarantee.

Read the full Niwaki Moku trowel review.

Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Hand Trowel

RRP: £12.99

Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

Pros:

• Great for scooping, digging and weeding
• Comfortable
• Light and well balanced
• Well-made and long lasting

Cons:

• Best for lighter soil

Our expert testers judged the Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Trowel as the best garden hand trowel for all round use, awarding it BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy status. The narrow ash handle is comfortable to use and it's weatherproofed to keep it in good shape. The traditional head of the trowel is well scooped and sharp to help it cut efficiently through the soil but it's also useful for potting on and planting. It comes with a 10 year warranty.

Read the full Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Hand Trowel review.

The best of the rest

Although some trowels didn’t quite achieve a BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Best Buy award, they still have great features that make them worth recommending. Browse our pick of the best of the rest on test.

Gardena Ecoline Trowel

RRP: £13.99

Our rating: 4.25 out of 5

The Gardena Ecoline Trowel is a great sustainable trowel. The blade is made of 25% recycled coated steel, the handle uses 85% recycled plastic, and the wooden tip of the handle is FSC wood. What’s more, the warranty is a whopping 25 years, so this will be a trusted companion in the garden for a long time. It feels very sturdy, and we like the thumb grip, but there's a little ridge on the back of the handle that’s uncomfortable to hold. It digs very well, although the blade is a little dull, and it doesn’t have a depth gauge or other extra features like a serrated edge. The handle features a hole for hanging up, but it doesn't come with a strap.

Gardena Comfort Hand Trowel

RRP: £9.99

Our rating: 4.25 out of 5

• Buy now from Amazon (£23.28)

Pros:

• Light and comfortable
• Built to last
• Long warranty

Cons:

• Cumbersome for some jobs
• Not for small hands

This is a light and comfortable gardening trowel to use but one that still feels strong and works well for planting. The corrosion-resistant steel head is long and large and great for planting but it could be awkward to use during tasks like weeding, particularly for smaller hands. It's guaranteed for 25 years.

Buy the Gardena Comfort Hand Trowel from Dobbies

Spear and Jackson Kew Gardens Collection Never Bend Carbon Hand Trowel

RRP: £14.99

Our rating: 4.3 out of 5

Pros:

• Good leverage
• Simple but sturdy
• Long warranty

Cons:

• Stumpy handle, best for smaller hands
• Feels heavy

This gardening trowel by Spear and Jackson has good leverage and works well for both digging and planting. The carbon-steel head feels sturdy while the FSC certified ash handle is weatherproofed for enhanced durability, but it is quite short and therefore best for smaller hands. It's guaranteed for 15 years.

How to choose a hand trowel

There’s an array of different trowels on the market but which one is right for you? Consider the following points before you buy:

What do you need it for? The shape and size of the head of a trowel dictates the job that it's best for, so think about how you’re going to use it. Trowels with long, narrow heads are shaped for working among plants and in tight, congested spaces. They’re also useful for planting deep-rooted plants such as sweet peas, and digging out dandelions and other tap-rooting weeds. Wider, flatter trowels are best for digging and planting, while deep heads can scoop up the most compost and soil, useful when potting on or planting larger plants. Pointed and sharpened heads will slice into soil easily and are great for weeding or transplanting. If you have particularly tough ground, look for a trowel with a long tang (the neck that joins the head to the handle) for maximum leverage. Trowels with depth markings engraved on the head are useful for planting, particularly bulbs.

Is it comfortable? The length and size of the handle varies, so hold the trowel in your hand to see if it fits. Wooden handles are often shaped to sit snugly, but plastic ones can also be comfortable. They are usually moulded to suit the hand, with grips and non-slip features in all the right places. For compacted ground, a handle with a rounded end will be more comfortable in the palm. Longer handles are kinder to the back and make reaching into beds easier. Weight and balance can also affect comfort, putting strain on the wrist if you’re using a trowel for long periods of time. Try before you buy if you can, as this is about how the trowel feels in your hand.

Which materials do you prefer? The material of the head and handle will affect your comfort and also how long the trowel will last. Stainless steel is rust resistant, easy to clean and generally lighter, but not as strong as carbon, which will rust unless it’s oiled or has an epoxy or powder coating. Wooden handles are warmer in the hand and shock resistant, but will need oiling and looking after, while plastic is comfortable, but can jolt the wrist on tough ground and may snap after prolonged heavy use.

How much do you want to spend? Hand trowels can cost anything from a couple of pounds to £80. It is the one tool that you’ll use almost every time you garden and investing in one that lasts will save you money in the long term. It’s also worth choosing a few different trowels to suit the jobs you do often to spread the wear and help them last even longer.

How we tested garden hand trowels

We tested a range of trowels and each was used to plant, weed, dig, transplant and turn over soil to see how they fared. They were assessed according to the following criteria with equal marks attributed to each:

Handle and blade: Looked at the sharpness, shape, and depth of blade. We assessed the size and weight of the handle, the trowel's overall rust resistance and the quality of its materials.
Comfort: Focused on comfort and ease of use, and the balance of the blade and the handle.
Performance: Assessed strength and durability across digging, transplanting, and other common trowel tasks, as well as bonus features like hammers and depth gauges.
Value for money: Considered all of the above as well as quality, design, warranty and price.

For more information on our testing process, see How we Review

This review was last updated in September 2024. We apologise if anything has changed in price or availability.