Updated on Oct. 10, 2024
If you want power, the best gas lawn mower will give you what you need. Here's a collection of the best mowers, hand-picked and tested by our experts.
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We all need a lawn mower that we can trust to crank out power and get the job done no matter the size. Gas-powered mowers are the traditional, reliable lawn mower type that has manicured America’s lawns for decades. While electric lawn mowers are gaining popularity, gas mowers still offer the most power and certainly still have a place in this world. Whether you are a weekend warrior or a seasoned landscaper, gas-powered mowers are still one of the best options for tackling any lawn.
We have tested dozens of gas mowers to bring together our experience of the best gas-powered lawn mowers for any sized job. Not only are these mowers reliable and built to last, but they often come in at a great price point relative to electric mowers.
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The Toro TimeMaster 30 is a legendary 30-inch self-propelled lawn mower that is easily the best gas mower on the market. This wide-bodied beast of a mower comes with side-by-side blades that shred wide cutting lanes into your yard and make quick work of some of the biggest residential lawns.
For reference, many lawn tractors and other riding mowers start at 30 inches wide–and that is the same width you get with the Toro TimeMaster 30. I have long loved this mower and our team of experts here at Family Handyman got to test it out for a few weeks. Beyond the wide cutting deck, the TimeMaster 30 comes with some incredible features like Personal Pace, which adjusts the self-propelled function on the fly, so the mower always moves at your pace. Their blade-stop system allows you to briefly walk away from the mower to move sticks and debris without completely cutting off the engine.
Basically, the folks at Toro put together a thoughtfully designed mower for homeowners who want to quickly mow their large lawns, but aren’t ready to invest in a riding tractor or zero-turn mower.
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The Husqvarna TS 242XD lawn tractor is a high-quality gas lawn mower built for power and convenience. One of our experts, Tyler O’Rourke, personally tested this mower and mentioned that it “obliterated the typical mow” and took the time to cut his lawn from “two-to-three hours down to a mere 30 minutes.” This is the power and efficiency you can expect to see from a rugged beast of a mower like the Husqvarna TS 242XD.
At 42 inches wide, the Husqvarna TS242XD offers the same cutting width as most zero-turn mowers. It also comes with a 21.5 HP Kawasaki engine that rivals the power of some of the most serious commercial zero-turns. But this gas lawn tractor has the capability of fitting in your garage or shed, is easy and intuitive to operate, and is less expensive when compared to zero-turn mowers. This mower is so impressive, it topped our list of the best riding mowers.
Lastly, Husqvarna is a brand known for extremely durable, well-built tools that range from chainsaws to robotic mowers. You can trust that their infamous riding mowers will stand the test of time and be a worthwhile investment.
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PowerSmart is not a household name when it comes to lawn mower brands—yet. The brand offers quite an array of push and walk-behind lawn mowers in both gas and electric categories but has really cornered the market in the budget-friendly space.
When I bought my first home, I didn’t have two pennies to squeeze together for furniture or tools. I needed an inexpensive, durable, reliable push mower that would help keep my lawn looking good and my neighbors happy. That’s exactly where a nice gas push mower like the PowerSmart DB8621C comes in.
While this gas mower may not have bells and whistles that make it more “premium,” it has a reliable engine, a well-sized cutting deck and a good range of cutting heights that make it versatile for any new homeowner.
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The Toro TimeCutter SS4225 is my favorite zero-turn mower on the planet. I recently wrote about my experience testing the TimeCutter and was ecstatic about the new MyRide suspension system. MyRide includes the footplate and the seat attached to the same suspension system as a single unit, meaning any bumps at your feet or upper body are completely absorbed. Basically, this mower feels like floating on air.
We let Tyler Graham, owner of The Lawn Review, take this one for a spin on his ½-acre yard for a few weeks and he described it as “surprisingly fast, incredibly even cut and super comfortable”.
Not only is this mower supremely comfortable and easy to operate but it is built to shred through your lawn as well. The Toro TimeMaster has a 42-inch cutting deck and a 22.5 HP engine that makes grass, leaves and debris disintegrate into a fine mulch. The TimeCutter is a classic zero-turn mower that continues to assert itself as the leading residential zero-turn mower in affordability, usability and reliability.
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Riding lawn mowers are great tools and absolutely necessary for folks with large yards, but not everyone can afford premium riding mowers. For those of us who are budget-conscious but need to get a large yard cut, there are still options.
That’s where the Craftsman R110 gas riding lawn mower comes in as a great, inexpensive alternative to traditional riding mowers. With a 30-inch cutting deck and 10.5 HP engine, you still get reasonable power and performance for a significantly lower cost. One thing I love about the Craftsman R110 is that it comes with a Briggs & Stratton engine, a quality manufacturer of small engines that populate just about every mower on the planet. Craftsman is experienced with making high-quality electric tools.
High quality, lower cost–this is exactly what you’re looking for as an alternative to the pricey riding mowers that weigh heavily on your budget. Hoping for something even lighter on the wallet? Read our guide to the best inexpensive lawn mowers.
For all the advancements with electric lawn mowers in recent years, there’s still nothing quite like the power and range of a gas-powered lawn mower.
A typical gas mower provides as much power as high-end electric mowers, without being tethered to a power cord or needing a recharge halfway through the job. Gas mowers also last a long time. With proper maintenance, many gas-powered mowers can see 10 to 20 years of service.
Like all technologies, they do have downsides—primarily noise, maintenance and fuel storage. But their power range and durability allow gas mowers to remain perennial bestsellers.
If you’ve weighed the differences between electric vs. gas lawn mowers and decided on a gas-powered mower, here are some features to consider:
As someone who used to mow lawns professionally, I have mowed thousands of lawns in my life. Over the past few years, I have explored gas-powered, battery-powered and electric lawn tools and am nerdy enough to get excited about any type of lawn mower. As a DIY lawn enthusiast, I care about the performance of a lawn mower and having a high-quality experience while spending a few hours per week outdoors. This makes me, by definition, a lawn mower snob.
As a former landscaper, I’ve put my hands on dozens of gas mowers. I have used or owned just about every brand: Troy-Bilt, Craftsman, Husqvarna, Toro, John Deere, Cub Cadet, Ariens and many more. To put these to the test, it is all about evaluating the performance of the mower, ease of use and ensuring the price is appropriate. Testing mowers under a variety of environments such as cool-season grass, warm-season grass, leaves, thick brush and across all sizes of lawns is the best way we’ve gauged which gas mowers are the best to use.
Gas mowers tend to be better for larger yards because they can run for much longer without needing to recharge. Battery mowers are more convenient and require little to no maintenance. The choice depends on your unique needs.
One key point in the gas vs. electric mower debate has to do with run time. A tank of gas will usually give an operator more running time than a single charge for an electric mower. And while early electric mowers were often less durable than their gas-powered counterparts, the industry is making big improvements to the products. In early 2023, John Deere announced its first electric riding lawn mower, a zero-turn model no less.
Zero-turn mowers generally give the best cut because they are very wide and have many blades, so missing blades of grass are minimized.
Push or self-propelled gas mowers tend to be the quietest because they have the smallest motors.
Your mower requires clean, fresh unleaded gasoline with a minimum of 87 octane. Just take your approved gasoline storage can to the gas station with you can fill it up for your mower.
The easiest way to drain the gas from your lawn mower run the engine until the gas is gone. You can also siphon it out of the tank, or you can pour it out of the tank into a gas can (you’ll need a funnel and probably a second set of hands to help.
Any engine powered by gasoline emits carbon and other pollutants into the atmosphere. The Environmental Protection Agency found that gas-powered lawn mowers account for five percent of the total air pollution in the United States.
For now, there’s no shortage of gas-powered equipment available. However, that’s starting to change. The state of California passed legislation in 2021 that will ban the sale of new gas-powered lawn equipment by 2024 (to help ease this transition, California has set aside $30 million for a rebate program to offset the cost of new zero-emission equipment.) Some cities are starting to implement no-mow days to help control air pollution. Honda announced last year that it will stop making gas-powered lawn mowers.
Dan Stout, freelance writer, contributed to this piece.
