8 Best Backpack Leaf Blowers (Review) In 2021

The Husqvarna 965877502 350BT is one of the most popular leaf blowers around. It mixes fuel economy, pure power, and an ergonomic design to make it the perfect autumn tool. Powered by an X-torq engine with 2.1 horsepower, it has a maximum power speed of 7,500 RPM. That might not mean much to you, but when you read that it pushes out wind at 180mph, you get a picture of how powerful this thing is (you might find leaf blowers with higher wind speed, but the large tube of this blower gives it better dispersion). It’s not just leaves that will move around, you’ll be able to remove all sorts of stubborn waste. The X-torq engine is specifically designed for fuel efficiency – it offers 20% less fuel consumption and 60% less emission than a standard two-stroke engine.

An important feature of any backpack leaf blower is ergonomics and comfort. You need to be able to carry this thing around long enough to clear up your yard. Fortunately, it has a padded and ventilated harness and a hip-strap, which distributes the weight evenly around your back and shoulders – similar to the system you’d find on a large trekking backpack. It’s also got a large 42.27-ounce tank that can keep the leaf blower running for a couple of hours before the need to refill. The bottom line is that this essential tool for gardeners is one of the best-performing backpack leaf blowers available. 

Next up we’ve got the Poulan Pro PR48BT. It’s not as heavy-duty as the Husqvarna 965877502 350BT, but it still packs plenty of punch. It’s powered by a 48CC 2-stroke engine, which translates to wind speeds of 200mph. Yep, you read that right – 200 miles per hour. That’s equivalent to an F3 tornado. However, as we alluded to in the last review, wind speed isn’t everything. As you might have noticed from the product pictures, the tube is a lot thinner on this model, when compared to the Husqvarna blower. That means you get some real power, but it won’t cover as big an area.

The harness is pretty impressive on this backpack leaf blower – it looks like something out of a racing car. The straps are completely adjustable, which reduces the load on your shoulders. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have a hip strap, so it’s not as comfortable as other models. But, as long as you don’t have existing back problems, it should be fine. We also like the variable throttle control, which allows you to control the power output. This is a useful way of saving fuel if you don’t need all of the available power.

The Troy-Bilt TB4BP has a couple of features that make it stand out from other leaf blowers. Before we look at those features, we’ll mention a few of the headline statistics. It’s got a 32CC engine that can push out wind speeds of 150mph, with an impressive 500 CFM (cubic feet per minute) air volume. The backpack is padded and comes with a hip-strap, similar to the system on the Husqvarna leaf blower. So, in terms of the stats, it’s just as good as some of the best leaf blowers in the class.

The first innovative feature we love is the flex-tube. Instead of a solid tube, it has a rubber section at the start of the tube, which allows you to move around effortlessly, without turning your whole body. This makes it much easier to get into hard-to-reach areas in your yard. The other feature that stands out is the SpringAssist. This makes pulling the cord much easier, which saves you from pulling your shoulder every time you want to get it going. It’s features like these that make this one of the most user-friendly backpack leaf blowers on the market.

The Greenworks BPB80L00 is the first electric leaf blower on this list. It’s powered by an 80V lithium battery, which can produce wind speeds of 145mph and coverage of 580CFM. This is pretty impressive as far as electric leaf blowers go, but it has one major downfall – the battery life. On full whack, this leaf blower will work for about 20 minutes. It’s not the product you need if you have a big yard. However, if you don’t have a lot of leaf blowing to do or you prefer to do it in short bursts, it’s a fantastic option.

There are two major benefits to buying an electric leaf blower like this. First is the price – it’s less than $150, which puts it into a category of its own. If you’re looking for a budget option, you won’t find many products that are cheaper than this. The other benefit is reliability. Because there’s less to go wrong with a battery-powered leaf blower, they tend to last longer. You’ll notice that every petrol-powered leaf blower has its share of negative reviews on Amazon complaining about reliability- unfortunately, it’s an unavoidable part of petrol-powered motors.

If you want an electric backpack leaf blower that can compete with gas blowers, you’ve got to go for EGO Power+. It’s well-regarded as one of the most powerful and capable electric leaf blowers around. In terms of power, it can compete with some of the best gas blowers. It has a 56-volt motor that can achieve 145 mph wind speeds and, most impressively, coverage of 600 CFM. That means you can blow anything out of your path without too much problem.

Of course, as is the case with electric leaf blowers, you can’t expect the same run times. On full power, you should be able to get 30 minutes out of this machine before it needs charging. But, you can vary the power and make it last for a bit longer, if you don’t need it at full whack. It takes around 1.5 hours to fully recharge the batteries, which makes this product pretty much useless if you have a large estate. For small gardens, it’s perfect.

The Husqvarna 570BTS is the more powerful version of the 350BT we featured earlier. It has a lot of the same features that made the 350BT our favorite, this one is just more powerful. It’s actually an industrial-strength leaf blower, so it will be able to make quick work of any garden clearing. It’s powered by a 65.6cc X-torq engine that has the same impressive fuel economy of the 350BT – it reduces fuel consumption by 20% and reduces emissions by 60%. It’s actually pretty hard to find any stats about the wind speeds or coverage, but you can bet it’s a lot more powerful than the other leaf blowers on this list. This product is designed for professional gardeners and landscapers, so you need to consider if you need this sort of power. It would be overkill for most yards.

One of the most impressive features of the Husqvarna 570BTS is the air filtration system. It has a 2-stage air intake, which means you can use it for long periods in dusty conditions, without the engine conditions. It also has the same soft-grip and padded harness as the 350BT, so you can use it until the petrol runs out, without damaging your back.

The Makita BBXY600N has been discontinued by the manufacturer, but you can still pick them up on Amazon. If you can find one, they’re one of the best backpack leaf blowers money can buy. We’ve featured a lot of Makita tools like cordless drills or electric chainsaws on this blog and that’s because they’re always top quality – this one is no exception. It has a 76.5CC 4-stroke engine, which is the most powerful we’ve seen so far. That provides wind speeds of 195mph and coverage of 526CFM.

Instead of the 2-stage air intake that we saw in the Husqvarna 570BTS, this product makes do with an extra-large air intake. It won’t be quite as effective in dusty areas, but it will make the engine perform better and extend the life of the leaf blower. Again, this is an industrial-strength leaf blower, so it might be a bit too powerful for a small garden. However, if you have a lot of land and a lot of trees, buying a Makita BBXY600N is well worth it.

The most impressive electric leaf blower on this list has to be the Dewalt DCBL590B. Dewalt is another huge tool company that you can trust, so it’s great to see them bringing out an electric leaf blower. It’s powered by a 40V MAX Lithium-Ion battery. The huge benefit of buying a product like this from Dewalt is that their batteries are interchangeable. If you have another powerful tool in this range, you will already have a battery that fits, so you can save some serious cash. Of course, if you don’t have the battery already, they can be quite pricey.

There’s no information on how long a battery will last at full power, but you can imagine it will be less than an hour. That’s why we’d always recommend buying a gas-powered blower if you’ve got a big yard. It does have two battery wells, so you could buy two batteries and extend the battery life. The huge advantage of an electric blower like this is the lack of noise – it’s so much quieter than a petrol-powered motor at 63dB, which is just louder than a conversation. Plus, there’s less maintenance and they’ll last longer than your average gas backpack blower.