A lot of cordless power tool brands seem to be hurting right now, with most having raised prices in the USA due to the tariffs situation, but things seem worse for Dewalt.
Dewalt isn’t just raising prices, and that has me a bit worried.
A few days ago Stanley Black & Decker, Dewalt’s parent company, announced a dip in revenue – they pulled in $3.9 billion in revenue last quarter, down 2% from last year – which they attributed to “a slow outdoor buying season” and also “tariff-related shipment disruptions.”
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The company announced they expect to impose an “additional modest increase” in pricing in “early 4Q25.” In other words, they expect for price increases that could potentially impact the holiday shopping season.
Dewalt seemed to skip Memorial Day, Father’s Day, and July 4th tool deals and promo events at Home Depot stores this year, although they had some promos online. They finally rolled out some deals at Home Depot, and here’s what we got:
CORDED power tools.
There are some mixed Dewalt 20V Max cordless promos as well, including a bare single speed range oscillating multi-tool for $149.
Home Depot usually has a promo kit bundle with the same tool for $99, and many retailers have the 3-speed range XR tool kit for $99. But with this deal, you get the tool-only for $149. They say it “was $179”.
One of the other deals is a new Home Depot exclusive Atomic series hammer drill kit.
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The typical Atomic drill kit deal – and you can still find it outside of Home Depot – gives you a 20V Max brushless drill, compact battery, and charger for $99.
Here, Dewalt side-graded the drill to a hammer drill and bumped up the bundled battery to 5Ah. You get a compact charger, of the type we typically only see in Dewalt’s value-priced “special buy” power tool kits.
At $179, the price is nearly 81% higher than for Dewalt’s typical Atomic series cordless drill kit. They say you “save $40” with this price.
Objectively speaking, you get more, but you’re also spending a lot more.
We have also seen new Dewalt 20V Max cordless power tool combo kits that also give you a little more value in the form of higher capacity batteries, also at much higher prices.
Lowe’s stores rolled out some new Dewalt deals as well, such as this 3pc combo kit at $419. I analyzed the deal and feel that this is not a good value. Lowe’s says that it’s “now $419,” and that “you save $30.”
Home Depot just launched a new Dewalt XR cordless power tool combo kit, featuring the new DCD806 hammer drill and top of the line DCF860 impact driver. This kit, DCK251E1QQ1, is priced at $339, with claims that it “was $369.”
Lowe’s and other dealers have starter kit bundles with 2x 5Ah batteries, the DCD805 hammer drill, and same impact driver for $299 right now. The new XR kit is only $40 more that that, but the difference feels bigger.
Dewalt’s 20V cordless power tool deals at Amazon so far seem unimpacted by their price increases and bundle reconfigurations.
In their announcement to investors, Dewalt says they are exploring all options as they seek to minimize the impact of tariffs on end users while balancing the need to protect [their] business.
I have not yet seen the same level of pricing disruption with Dewalt’s top competitors, such as Milwaukee, Makita, or Bosch.
For example, Home Depot still has the Milwaukee M18 brushless drill kit at $99, and the same is true for the M18 impact driver kit, while Dewalt’s least expensive brushless 20V Max drill and impact driver kits at Home Depot are each $179. At Lowe’s, I’m seeing better values in some Bosch and Flex cordless power tool kits.
That we’re seeing price increases and bundle changes for Dewalt’s “gateway” non-XR brushless and Home Depot exclusive Atomic brushless offerings is a concern, as these types of tools help to bring more users into the 20V Max system.
How bad must things be for Dewalt to make such big changes to “entry point” cordless power tool offerings? They must know that this could deflect would-be buyers towards competing brands.
How might all of this impact Dewalt’s R&D roadmap?
Or are all brands equally as impacted and Dewalt is just the first to show signs beyond broad price increases?
It’s difficult for me to articulate exactly how this all worries me. Consider this. Instead of increasing the price of their Home Depot exclusive $99 cordless drill kit or impact driver kit to say $129, Dewalt replaced it with a hammer drill kit at $179. At Lowe’s, the price jumped up to $159, which I would typically treat as an off-season price so that they can claim “you save $60” when the price returns to $99.
Simple price increases would be easier to digest; all of these Dewalt kit and bundle reconfigurations seem longer-lasting.
Dewalt’s lower-priced non-XR brushless and brushed motor tools seem to sell very well at home centers and online. How much of their 20V Max cordless power business is bolstered by this sales volume, especially at stores such as Home Depot and Lowe’s? Will Dewalt’s response to the tariffs cause or involve ripple effects in ways we can’t see or envision?
Sometimes you have to look harder to find better Dewalt cordless power tool deals. Aside from the last remaining summer deals that are ending in a couple of days, I’d say there are no good values right now. From what their parent company Stanley Black & Decker has been saying, prices are going to get worse.
MM
Speaking of Dewalt prices on Amazon, I’ve noticed some unusual recent trends. I have a few Dewalt tools in my cart “saved for later” so I can keep an eye on deals. Some prices seem to have improved recently, others have gotten worse. The DCW220B belt sander had been hovering around $200 for a long time but the last two months it’s been about $250 most of the time, so that’s quite the increase. On the other hand, the DCM200B bandfile had been around $275 for ages but lately has been around $170. I wish the situation was reversed, as I could actually use that big belt sander for a couple projects I’m working on now, while I haven’t used a bandfile much in a few months.
It’s not just Dewalt that has been affected either. I also have been watching the Flex inline circular saw kit (FX231A-1A). For the longest time it was usually $250 with the occasional sale. The last month or so it’s been $280.
Stuart
Broadly speaking, prices are going up.
e.g. Lowe’s just hiked up the price of the circular saw and PowerStack kit from $349 to $379. They have a “free battery” offer, and retailers that don’t still have it at $299, but with an increase in the “was” price to $379.
That type of price jump is straightforward to me, and reversible. Side-stepping the Atomic deal to a hammer drill and bundling it with 5Ah battery muddies things because it’s not just a price increase.
My general advice to friends right now: know you prices, shop carefully, be prepared to wait, and maybe look at other brands.
Joe
Lowes pricing is always the highest unless there is a special, I looked this week and found a lot of Promos at Home Depot Amazon and Lowes, such as buy a pair of batteries get a free tool but I bought a 4 battery pack for 149 I saw. Drill battery and charger for $129 an 12v kit with Batteries charger , drill and Impact for $139. To be fair I was supposed by this but If you search you can find them.
Michael Webb
Too late in the game to switch brands . I’ve got too much invested in Dewalt to switch up now
Paul Wernette
I have a bunch of Dewalt tools also one thing I’m doing that is working good, is to buy off brand batteries from Amazon that are Dewalt compatible. They seem to be of equal quality at a much lower price
DONNA MANNING
Yep and be careful .I did the OFF BRAND thing..now None of my chargers work…yep that really saved..NOT
Mars
I tried the aftermarket batteries from Amazon. I bought 6 of them and after 3 months 5 don’t work. The last one stopped working and I opened it up and the wires came unhook. I soldered back together. Bottom line aftermarket are built cheap and won’t last if you actually use it every day. Dewalt batteries will last years even when used every day.
Rock
Stick with 1 brand unless you like digging for different batteries all day long!
Steve
This is the reason everything is outrageous. Corporate GREED. Make billions in PROFITT.
Kyle
That’s 3.9 billion in REVENUE, not profit. I’m sure they’re still making money, but don’t confuse the two: revenue vs. profit.
Bob
Definitely GREED And they are going to blame tarriffs no matter what, when its greed that is causing the price increases
Katie
Many companies will take advantage of things like the tariff increases. They did that with covid especially. I’m not saying that there were not increased costs to them, but I think they will always go beyond that if they can get away with it.
Ralph R.
Wrong. That’s not how this works. Prices are climbing because of this administration’s tin-foil tariff circus. DeWalt is paying the tarrif and they’re just passing costs down like any other business would. That’s Econ 101. Blaming DeWalt is like blaming the cash register for higher prices.
Stuart
You can argue a point without resorting to antagonistic political comments.
Ralph
Stuart , there is no antagonism on my part simply facts. My sole interest is to point out or correct fact from fiction. I have no interest in a politics, the exception is pointing out that is completely misguided to blame DeWalt for passing on the cost of consumers. If I did want to make it political then I would remind everyone that our current leaders have claimed the tariffs would not affect us at all or raise prices at all on consumer goods. But I digress and do apologize for any misunderstanding.
Stuart
“this administration’s tin-foil tariff circus”
It takes very few throwaway phrases like this to derail a discussion, and they can lead to a staggering number of retorts that I then have to deal with in moderation.
jcannon130
I agree. If the tariffs were removed tomorrow these would still keep the prices the same and not lower them. I don’t feel sorry for them. Milwaukee was selling a 10 inch miter saw with a charger and battery for $449. They raised the price to $559 for just the saw..no charger and no battery. The price increase was before the tariffs were ever mentioned and put into effect .
Tim
Something to consider with Milwaukee specifically. Their price points have traditionally been significantly higher than that of DeWalt and it appears thst DeWalt is increasing their price points to more match that of Milwaukee. Point being, Milwaukee maybe be hurting just as much as DeWalt – more even given their higher standard price point – but we won’t see price increases because there was greater margin in the pricing to absorb the economic impacts of the tariffs and lower buying trends.
I can’t speak to Bosch, Makita or Flex in this regard. But Milwaukee, there’s a credible case to be made this is what we’re seeing.
Ted
But to be devil’s advocate, I’d rationalize “okay I’m paying more money for this but I know I’m going to use it”. I don’t believe in win-win situations where what I could use is more expensive than I’d like it to be. I’ve paid plenty of money for things that I didn’t use — surely that’s worse than paying a lot for what you could use
Big Richard
HD started a new bogo on DeWalt today, buy a select bare tool get a 5Ah battery “free”. A lot of the same standard tools they always have for bogos, but also some that are not like the sealed head changeable anvil ratchet, DCF510 (which is also on sale for $199 from last promo period so you can stack deals).
https://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-20V-MAX-Premium-Lithium-Ion-5-0Ah-Battery-Pack-DCB205/205227130
Stuart
I’m not impressed with these deals. There could be exceptions, but I don’t see good values.
Amazon has the 5Ah battery 2-pack at $99 right now – https://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-DCB205-2-Lithium-Battery-2-Pack/dp/B00KQU1ENG/?tag=toolguyd-20 . Seems like Dewalt has overstock on the 5Ah battery.
Holiday 2024: https://toolguyd.com/home-depot-free-cordless-power-tool-deals-2024/ Buy a 6Ah and 4Ah starter kit with charger for $199 and get a free router (or other tool).
August 2025: Buy the router at $219 (or other tool), get a free 5Ah battery.
Lowe’s July 4th/summer deal is still ongoing. (https://toolguyd.com/hottest-cordless-power-tool-deals-at-lowes-072025/)
Buy the 20V Max 4Ah battery 2-pack for $199, get a free router or other select (mainly XR) cordless power tool.
Router + 2 batteries for 8Ah total charge capacity for $199 vs over $219 for the tool and 1x 5Ah battery.
Big Richard
Truth. The ratchet and the 7 1/4″ miter saw are the two exceptions I would say. Getting the ratchet for $125 prorated or miter saw for $260 prorated are both pretty good savings over the standard retail prices of $249 and $369, respectively.
The DCF900 impact + 2x 1.7Ah PS deal for $250 is also pretty decent, that can net you the impact for ~$170 – https://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-20V-MAX-Cordless-1-2-in-Impact-Wrench-Tool-Only-DCF900B/317991357
Definitely not a ton out there, but the few exceptions are actually pretty decent, if you happen to need those tools.
Champs
DeWalt is the one out of roughly a dozen brands ToolGuyd is worried about (Makita and ToughBuilt most notably) that I would not lose any sleep over.
This may or may not be the best play but it feels pretty safe. The world is weird right now and this feels like a reflection of that.
Stuart
Oh, Dewalt will be fine. But things being bad for the brand means things will be unfavorable for end users.
What I’m worried about is how things will play out for the people that need to buy tools.
“Where can I get Dewalt 40V batteries?” You can’t. https://toolguyd.com/dewalt-40v-max-cordless-outdoor-power-tools-discontinued/
“Where an I get Craftsman V60 batteries?” You can’t. https://toolguyd.com/craftsman-v60-cordless-discontinued/
“When can I buy Craftsman made in USA hand tools?” Nowhere. https://toolguyd.com/craftsman-hand-tools-factory-texas-closing-2023/
Now the question is “can I get a good value Dewalt cordless drill, impact, or combo kit?” and the answer is “sorry, but no, maybe look at the inexpensive AC-powered corded tools they have in the promo aisle at Home Depot.”
How much progress has ToughBuilt made in the USA with their StackTech roadmap from 2 years ago? https://toolguyd.com/toughbuilt-stacktech-tool-storage-system-launch/
I’m less worried about Makita in the USA today. They stopped trying to compete at the same level as Dewalt and Milwaukee, and I think they’re doing better for it. However, their entry point cordless kits, and most specialty tools, are priced out of reach for a lot of tool users.
Right now, Stanley Black & Decker was faced with a choice. Price increase are inevitable right now. But I’m worried some of their decisions are motivated by a desire to protect the stock price, and that’s going to make things worse for end users.
It remains to be seen what “balance” will look like after the NEXT price increases/actions that they recently announced.
I’m worried that Dewalt and SBD will be pushed towards making more decisions that are unfavorable for shoppers.
A company like that cares about their end users, but they also care a lot about investors and sentiments on the corporate/business side.
And with things seemingly this bad at Dewalt, you know they have to be bad with other brands too, it’s just a matter of how different companies balance the impact to themselves or end users.
I am increasingly pessimistic about how the holiday season is going to go.
Companies are changing course away from marketing and pricing strategies that they didn’t touch throughout the pandemic.
Dewalt backing away from gateway-type tool promos is a MAJOR red flag, and I am sure there will be more ripples.
Rog
The idea that a business must always go up in profit and appease the stock price and shareholders riles me to no end.
Hon Cho
Profits and growing a business are the point of virtually all businesses. For a publicly owned corporation in the USA, unless the business charter specifically spells out some purpose other than profit and growth, the board of directors has a duty to see that is what the corporation does.
Is it always best for consumers, communities or other stakeholders other than owners? No, but that’s how things have evolved.
Justin
As a DeWalt user, I became concerned when all of a sudden the traditionally made in USA (with Global Materials) cordless tools were suddenly made in China or Taiwan. Impulse drivers, impacts, and hammer drills, the USA made DeWalt tools I use most, are now being sold at a higher price than the old USA version, with a COO of China, Many of the tools in question share the same model number, like DCF891… this tool was regularly $179-199 when it was made in USA, and my local Lowes is asking $279 for the current version made in China. This is as a bare tool!!!!
It seemed like this started happening about a year before talk about tariffs even came up, but now I cannot walk into a HD or Lowes and even find a USA made DeWalt tool. Honestly, I am pretty disappointed, because the fact that at least some of their tools were made in USA was enough for me to invest in the brand over their competitors. I don’t necessarily regret my decision; I generally dislike all things TTI, and I have been thoroughly disappointed with customer service on the part of Milwaukee for quite some time. But with DeWalt USA out of the equation, I may have given Makita and Metabo another hard look before committing to DeWalt.
Bonnie
I just don’t have it in me to be “worried” about large corporate brands. Brands come and go, and if SBD does somehow go belly up and there’s a market someone else will be there to step in. Consolidation would suck, but at the same time we’re still seeing new entries/expansion into the market popping up regularly enough I just can’t bring myself to be concerned.
Stuart
What about the apprentice who’s looking for their first set of cordless power tools, only to find Dewalt 20V Max offerings don’t fit their budget anymore?
Don’t worry about large corporate brands, worry about the impact their challenges will pose for end users.
Oarman
The apprentice looking for their first set of tools should be looking at the used market these days, or Harbor Freight if they absolutely to buy new. Buying entry level DeWalt as a business expense is just silly.
Jim E
As a former auto dealer tech, I agree with this 100%. Too many times, I saw apprentices buried in debt.
Steven John
There are plenty of avenues to buy used or reconditioned tools, Dewalt included. There seems to be an excessive amount of fretting here.
fred
I’m not sure that there is anyone to consolidate with. SBD still looks to be the biggest player in the tool business. But being the biggest is not always the best and there are always wood be giant killers lurking – waiting to usurp your position. Venture capitalists might be willing to buy them out – in whole or in pieces. Sometimes that may reinvigorate – but other times it’s just a way to load them up with debt and pick the bones. Venture capital buyout happened to the Apex Group, Metabo-Hitachi-Tools and others – but rumors have circulated that some of those deals may not last in the longer term.
Producing consumer goods is a dog-eat-dog business where cutting corners and low price seems to be an ever-increasing trend. Although this may be a lament of old age, some of the junk sold on Amazon, Temu etc. amazes me – but gets me thinking that we may be in a race for the bottom. The rise of Harbor Freight and their recent advertising campaigns targeting good tools priced for less – seems to be resonating with buyers – at least if the number of HF stores is an indication.
While I have few Dewalt tools compared to other brands – I would like to see them remain a vibrant competitor to keep other professional brands on their toes. IMO SBD needs to work to reinvigorate Dewalt – and better think about options to get out from under their bad investment in buying Craftsman.
fred
Not sitting in the SBD Boardroom it’s hard to make of all of this. From recent reports SBD has experienced a drop in revenues year over year that exceeded Wall Street downward expectations. It seems that drops in North American revenues (-4% was reported) may have been the major contributor to the poor performance – as they reported gains of 5% for Europe and only 2% down for the rest of the world. The US construction market doesn’t appear to have slowed by a significant amount to suggest that’s the cause for the 4% drop. So, maybe competition or some internal missteps are at play. From my little knothole – It looks like Milwaukee may be eating into Dewalt sales in the professional market. But who knows how the DIY market and internet buying is impacting Dewalt sales. When I look on Amazon and search for “cordless drill – asking for best sellers” of the first 10 listings 2 are Dewalt, 1 is Craftsman and the other 7 are alphabet-soup brands.
KC
Based on some recent readings here that focus on what’s happening with Dewalt at Home Depot, I’m more inclined to believe that this may be a negotiation tactic playing out on the aisles of the HD stores. If the folks in Atlanta can slow sales of Dewalt products in stores by displaying less desirable promos like corded tools and cordless combos that are not so competitive, they could put themselves in a better position to negotiate future price increases and try to force SBD to pay for the tariffs. SBD has to be hurting some after the failed attempt to build the hand tool factory in Fort Worth, what seems to be a failure on the larger Tough System boxes. Another possibility is that Lowes is fixing to broaden their DeWalt offerings even more since Home Depot has a much heavier presence of Milwaukee tools than ever before. Think about what has happened with Klein Tools and Carhartt stuff at Home Depot recently. Not that they ever carried much Carhartt stuff, but when it started appearing at Lowe’s, it disappeared at Home Depot, at least in my area. Maybe Lowes is changing their strategy and looking to serve more contractors as they expand and plan to use Dewalt to help that. Only time will tell what is really happening.
Stuart
No. Often what you see in the main promo aisle are the results of mutual agreements.
Home Depot has around 2,000 stores. They’re not going to just decide to stock the main foot path with Dewalt corded tools, they’re going to buy all those tools.
The absence of Atomic tool deals online and in stores was unusual. Home Depot is not going to willingly allow Lowe’s to have better Dewalt tool deals.
But what does Lowe’s have to do with that?
The ToughSystem DXL tool box system wasn’t a failure, it just was not well suited for home center retail customers. Or maybe it is a failure, but that cannot be gleaned from lack of interest from Home Depot customers.
Home Depot and independent tool dealers aren’t going to ask Dewalt to swap $99 cordless drill kit deals for $179 hammer drill kits, or $99 entry point impact driver kit for a $179 deal.
Stores are going to sell a lot more $99 oscillating multi-tool kits with a battery and charger than the same or lower featured tool-only OMT for $149.
This isn’t a negotiation tactic by Home Depot. This is likely Dewalt trying to maintain market presence without hemorrhaging too much money.
Oarman
On the one hand DeWalt is practically the default power tool brand in the US.
On the other hand it’s hard to see what HD stands to gain by promoting an SBD brand, when they have all the TTI brands and Makita already, and SBD has more business ties to Lowes as well as maintaining sales through Amazon, Ace etc.
Marc
I don’t see any sense in being “worried”. Companies have to weather all sorts of uncertainties in deciding on pricing. Yes, tariffs are a new uncertainty. The President is using high tariffs as a threat to force countries to open their markets to American goods and to force those same countries to manufacture products here in the United States. Virtually everyone on this message board want to buy products made in the USA. That is a big part of the tariff strategy. Bring that manufacturing back here to create jobs and grow the economy. Sure, there is going to be some short term disruption in pricing. But over time, most countries will negotiate new trading agreements and those that have recently done so, end up with tariffs of about 10-15%. Not huge increases. Other countries have badly taken advantage of the US by charging exorbitant tariffs that prevent American companies from selling in those foreign markets. By allowing American companies to sell overseas, they make higher revenue which can help lower tool costs here in the US for us. People are getting all worked up over high tariffs not understanding it is primarily a negotiating tactic to get better trade agreements with other countries.
Jason
> Other countries have badly taken advantage of the US by charging exorbitant tariffs that prevent American companies from selling in those foreign markets.
How is it “taking advantage of the US” if they are… not buying our stuff? Is that really “taking advantage”, or is it just the same type of protectionism that we ourselves do at home (which is why you don’t see Chinese cars on the road here)?
Marc
Other countries have imposed significant tariffs on US exports or simply banned US products using regulatory controls. For example, many countries charge tariffs as high as 80-90 percent of the product value, thus preventing US goods from being competitive in that country. For most of recent US history, we have not charged tariffs on most imported products (obviously, there are exceptions). Current policy is to charge tariffs that equal about half what the country is charging on US products. They don’t buy our stuff because it is 50-100 percent more expensive, or in the case of the EU, does not meet their regulatory requirements. It is not a choice on the part of foreign consumers. It is a purposeful effort to keep American goods out of their country and to protect their own companies.
Some Chinese cars such as Volvo and Polestar ARE sold in America. Chinese cars are not seen in America because of a lack of established dealership networks and environmental requirements that Chinese cars have not wanted to meet. These things have also prevented Chinese automobile companies from expanding into most other countries in the world; although they are expanding in some countries slowly.
Stuart
The cost of buying a Dewalt brushless drill or impact driver kit with a battery and charger went from $99 to $179.
One of their popular 2-tool drill and impact combo kits was $149 a few months ago, and now it’s labeled a special buy at $249.
One of their 4-tool combo kits was $299, and now it’s a “tool savings” promo at $399.
SBD announced further “price actions” are on the way. We’ll know in a few short months what holiday season pricing will look like.
Marc
It would be helpful to compare price changes based on where the tool is manufactured. DeWalt manufactures a significant number of their tools in the USA. If THOSE tool prices are going up, it is not because of tariffs. Some of their tools are made in China, Brazil and Mexico where trade agreements have yet to be struck. DeWalt may have to move overseas manufacturing to other countries (including the USA!). Some companies have already started the process of moving to Viet Nam because that country has struck a trade deal that is favorable to us and them. Viet Nam was one of those countries imposing a 90% tariff on US products until the new trade agreement.
As I said, there is going to be some short term fluctuations in pricing until trade agreements are finalized. And if the reciprocal tariffs force some manufacturing back to the USA, I think that is a good thing for the country.
Stuart
Dewalt does NOT make much of anything in the USA. They’re also not bringing new production here.
I’m struggling to come up with even one example of anything Dewalt makes in the USA.
SBD failed to open a new hand tool factory and have already said they won’t reshore production in response to new tariffs.
We can talk about “what ifs,” but here let’s focus on what *is* happening regarding pricing, not what might or could.
I hope to post about a return to “normal” pricing if or whenever that happens.
There is value in tracking significant changes as they happen.
Marc
OK, I was relying on Google AI which says:
“DeWalt, an American brand, manufactures its tools in various locations around the world, including several facilities in the United States. Here’s a breakdown of their manufacturing footprint:
United States locations
Charlotte, NC: A large facility producing power tools, hand tools, and accessories.
New Britain, CT
Greenfield, IN
Hampstead, MD: Manufactures corded and cordless tools, as well as hand tools.
Shelbyville, KY
Cheraw, SC
Jackson, TN: Primarily produces lithium-ion batteries for power tools.
Syracuse, NY: Produces a range of cordless power tools.
International locations
Mexico
Brazil
United Kingdom
China
Italy
Czech Republic
It’s important to note that many DeWalt tools are labeled as “Made in the USA with global materials”. This signifies that while the tools are assembled in the United States, some of their components are sourced from international suppliers. This practice helps to optimize manufacturing costs and ensure the availability of necessary materials. DeWalt emphasizes that their quality control measures are stringent across all manufacturing facilities, regardless of location. ”
Now we all know not to trust AI a lot since the source of information comes from the internet. I trust your knowledge of tool manufacturing more than Google. Moreover, it is very hard to find any websites (at least after a short search) that state specific tools and their manufacturing location.
Robert
Agree. Recent tariffs are a negotiating tactic. Going into the history, at least back to the end of WWII when the USA was the only major non-devastated economy, will likely trigger the political comment deletion. But a lot of the discussion on recent tariffs are not thoughtful like yours.
Dc
Just because you agree doesn’t mean you’re not both wrong
Jason Stromberg
Exactly. History has proven tariffs are a losing proposition. As long as shareholders call the shots, and we continue to strip consumer protections, prices will simply keep going up.
Todd
Most companies are not going to spend millions of dollars to move manufacturing to the US. Then have to pay significantly higher employee rates, taxes, etc.
They’re just going to increase the cost of their products.
For imported goods I doubt many foreign companies are going to drop costs either since it’s the US importers that have to pay the tariffs. Importers are unlikely to eat from their profits either so the tariff costs will be worked into price increases for wholesalers then down to retailers and finally down to product price increases for us the consumers.
Yes tariffs can be a political tool but in reality due to how outdated the US manufacturing is and our high cost of living for employees we don’t even have the ability to produce products at a price most of our local consumers can afford.
Instead it’s likely we’ll see price increases across the board and even when we realize it was a failure or we have a political change it will be too late because like always companies never drop prices down to pre increase prices. They’ll figure we’re used to the new prices and use and price drops to instead increase their profits.
US consumers are going to be screwed either way.
AKJ
I do not see the tariffs as a failure. I see them more as a VAT. Now that companies and consumers are hooked on foreign manufacturing (like a drug dealer getting people hooked on cheap drugs), one can safely raise tariffs to pad the treasury. The result is either pay the tariff, or don’t buy a product. Since most have to buy the product, they will have to eat the cost. Everyone knows that tariffs will not return manufacturing to the US (despite announcements suggesting otherwise).
James shelby
If most people have to buy the product they’ll pay the higher price regardless. Which still means the consumer is paying more for the same product. I.e. a functional failure
Blocky
I’m worried about da wallet.
OldDominionDIYer
I’m of the opinion Dewalt has tried to muddy the waters on their price increases buy switching up the kit contents to prevent consumers from making an “apples to apples” comparison. From my view this is right in line with how they have been operating for years with their unique power rating measurements and their 20V max gimmick on all the 18V batteries. This is very typical and not at all surprising from SB&D as a whole. Their marketing has been very deceptive albeit legal it has been somewhat morally dishonest. Sadly, Dewalt makes excellent high performing tools that don’t need this type of advertising to compete and sell, yet SB&D marketing leadership clearly embraces these illusive tactics.
Stuart
The value proposition has changed.
Yes, it muddies things, but I disagree about it being a deceptive strategy.
OldDominionDIYer
If Kit “A” was $99.00 then they bring it back exactly in the same kit but for $149.00 that’s a simple one to one comparison. Now say the same kit “A’ is no longer available with the exact same individual components but instead it is substantially the same but indeed different and the price is now $179.00. Consumers can’t simply compare the two kits because now they aren’t the same exactly and it forces the consumer to have to put more thought, research etc… Dewalt’s marketing department intentionally changed the kits so the consumer would not easily ascertain the price changes to me and many others that is intentionally deceptive marketing to force and prevent apples to apples comparisons to ensure it does not reveal the true price increases. I’m willing to wager they increased prices substantially more than the percent of whatever tariffs were imposed. Many companies have been proactive to protect pricing buy using a number of methods to minimize the increase to consumers, but Dewalt saw an opportunity to put it all on the consumer, and it will not be good for them in the long run I’m sure.
Dennis Peters
Got a question from the beginning who the dewalt parent company? Because Stanely and black & decker are two different companies.
Stuart
Stanley Works and Black & Decker merged 15 years ago to become “Stanley Black & Decker.”
Dewalt was owned by Black & Decker and is now owned by Stanley Black & Decker.
S
I saw an article elsewhere that indicated that this is roughly about the time that the results of the initially imposed tariffs would be hitting consumer-facing outlets.
Keep in mind most reseller agreements are created many months in advance, so boring things like floor space layouts can be designed, and inventory allotments can be set up.
Note: entirely speculation. My mind is a deep dark place.
And from that perspective, it makes a little more sense to me at least. SBD could have been hitting up against a deadline to sign up for floor space arrangements with their resellers like home depot, right as the extreme initial tariffs were announced, and the stock market plummeted.
So they very well could have been faced with a choice to start activating an inventory backup plan to ensure they could maintain any presence in the tool aisle. Or they’d need to start scaling back inventory allocations, and risk becoming less visible to consumers. But no matter– they either need to sign up for delivering on current inventory needs, plan for more, or plan for less. And the reseller needs to know in 2 days.
In the same vein, we all know Milwaukee has almost always had a very strong floorspace agreement with home depot. Perhaps Milwaukee decided to not renew that agreement because of the then existing market climate at the time. And home depot reached out to next on the list for who wants to use that space.
By agreeing to take on the floor space(always strike when your enemy is at their weakest!), SBD saw an opportunity in the then-present and then very abysmal conditions, to one-up their main competitor. All they had to do was provide ‘inventory’.
And when all current signs point to typical manufacturing channels being cut off for indeterminate amounts of time, alternates arise. In this case, their far less popular, but just as shelf-filling, corded lineup.
What better way to be most visible to consumers when other brands are silently sitting back and waiting for more data?
That also makes some sense in terms of the currently oddly wacky pricing structure to me as well. If their only goal was to be most-visible in the early political climate of the initial shock-and-awe tariff announcement (china was being threatened with near 100% tariffs at one point), then the prices not being competitive is their least concern during that time. If everything threatened had come to fruition, they’d be the one of the few brands with product to even sell at all.
” Any water in a desert”…
Like I said. Lots of speculation, and we’ll likely never know for years, if ever. But it is fun to talk about.
Katie
I started to get battery operated DeWalt tools because of a trimmer and leaf blower they had on sale. Now I already had the underpowered kit of yard tools from Ryobi but wanted more oomph. As a woodworker, I didn’t consider DeWalt battery operated tools because of the “construction” vibe. I considered Makita or Bosch.
The Dewalt corded routers were considered great for woodworkers, and certainly their jobsite saw, the DW745, and planer. Most woodworkers would choose this over any other brand in that price range. I also have a corded Dewalt drill that is great when I need a corded drill. These are superior and long lasting machines. They are amazing for the price I paid on holiday specials. I am wondering now about another Dewalt battery operated router that isn’t a trim router but is more compact, since I already have batteries from the yard tools. I don’t need any more drills.
These are three different markets, homeowner, construction, and woodworker. The thing is, since the yellow brand, especially battery operated, seems more for a construction site, will these other folks think of it. It must be hard for them to appeal to all these groups. The Home Depot kits seem more for construction. It’s been a good image for them, but may not hit all potential customers.
Matt_T
Home depot are residential construction and homeowner focused. So that’s what you’ll find there.
Dewalt do cater to C&I construction, mechanical trades and mechanics. But you’re unlikely to find all those tools in box stores. Or the people who’d buy them.
Woodworkers are a different breed. They probably consider Bosch and Makita to be entry level discount brands Lol.
Hon Cho
This ToolGuyd reader would like to see more info about tools from all manufacturers instead of the discussion of the economics and business decisions of manufacturers and retailers. Yes, price and value are important things to consider but the reality is that consumers can only decide to buy or not buy based on their needs and individual economic circumstances at any given point in time. We can all want great tools at great prices, manufactured and sold by businesses with great customer service. However, for the most part, we have to take (or not) what’s available in the marketplace and hope our money steers companies in the direction(s) we personally approve of.
Further, it’s very hard to discuss the current pricing fluctuations without considering the very political topic of how tariffs are being applied. If political discussions and the unwanted passions associated with such discussions are to be avoided, how about more articles on actual products and their uses and less on the business of the how the tools are being marketed and sold to us?
Stuart
26″ wide x 18″ deep tool chests and roller cabinets used to be very popular. Countervailing tariffs were imposed a few years ago, and there was a loophole that allowed most brands to escape higher import fees by moving to larger dimensions and heavier weights. Few tool chest and cabinet models with narrow depths are still available in the USA today.
It’s important to track WHAT happens in the industry. The WHY is less important but always worth attempting to understand.
S
What you’re really saying then is you want the sex without the foreplay. The birthday gift without the birthday. The donuts without the backstory.
Great. Stuart makes posts catered just to that. It’s called “deals of the day”
https://toolguyd.com/home-depot-tool-deals-bosch-milwaukee-ryobi-073025/
There’s also a dozen other sites that only list tool sales. Most of them very using AI slop to only state the price off MSRP, not reflective of the overall market pricing.
But overall, the behind the scenes stuff matters because understanding the underlying costs reflect final price adjustments.
Let’s say it costs a tool manufacturer $100 for raw material processing and shipping to turn that raw material into a usable product, and get it to a place someone can purchase. but suddenly a new law is enacted that adds an import fee of $75 to that cost.
They were only selling it for $200. Now they need to sell at $275 to make the same amount of money.
At the consumer level, that means that the tool could originally have been discounted to $125, and it’d be a great deal.
Now the game has changed, and the minimum the company can discount is to $200. And it’s still a great deal.
The company isn’t greedy in this case. They’re still offering the same cost savings to the consumer to move product. But the market forces have changed, resulting in a perceived lesser deal.
Tojen1981
Tariffs aside, what has SBD really done in the last 2-3 years exactly? No big expansions in Tough system or tstak ( dxl was an expensive dumpster fire). Can’t even get a tough system radio anymore. They dropped their 40v line, no more development in the the 12v line, limited releases in the 20v line, nothing noteworthy in the Flexvolt line. Outside of battery releases, it’s been pretty quiet.
Stuart
They have launched some tools, including a hydraulic impact driver.
But no, you’re not the only person to notice what seems like a brand-wide slowdown.
Paul
Just another company blaming the price hike on tarrifs. Even though the product is already here in the stores. Never miss an opportunity to gouge the customer
Luke
Products aren’t priced at what it cost to get it there – they’re priced at what it will cost to get the next one there.
Jesse
It is all overpriced plastic anyway. Honestly curious how much it costs them to make a drill that has been in productive 5 years. Also wonder what SB&D’s ROCC is.
I was a Milwaukee guy at the start. Their prices are insane. Great tools. Don’t get me wrong. When I started purchasing it was not labeled Pro-sumer or otherwise. They were just cordless tools.
I wanted a framing nailer. Milwaukee’s offering was 300 dollars above sale price of Metabo/HPT. Switched my entire cordless tool lot to HPT.
Matt_T
I wonder if COO is driving the switching up of batteries in kits? It’s possible the tariffs are lower on the replacements. Or were expected to be lower when the changes were made.
Stuart
I doubt it. I see it as a way to change the value, as in “yes, it’s $179, but you get a 5Ah battery instead of 2Ah.”
They changed most of the entry priced kits from 2x 1.3Ah or 1.5Ah batteries to 1x 2Ah battery. I saw that as a cost-cutting measure. Going from 2Ah to 5Ah seems to be a mechanism by which to increase the price without it just being a higher price on the same exact product.
Matt_T
Consolidating on a 2ah compact made a lot of sense. The 1.x ah probably weren’t any cheaper and looked bad compared to the competition, which I think all have 2ah compact batteries.
I was just thinking a high tariff 2ah and a lower tariff 5ah could come out to about the same landed, in the US, cost. In that scenario it’s better to sweeten the price increase with the battery upgrade.
FWIW I don’t know what the COO mix on Dewalt cordless is like. Milwaukees seems to be all china from what I’ve seen and Bosch is a mix of Malaysia, china and Germany. So a Bosch kit could be German tool, Malaysian batteries and a chinese charger. I wonder how the tariffs are applied to a mixed COO package like that?
G Greene
Three more (small) pieces of the puzzle – 1) The market can slow down for many reasons, not just tariffs, among them, the bulk of users who want/need their tools already have them (that’s me) 2) I haven’t seen tremendous innovation in a lot of these tools or categories in a while. Yeah, batteries get better, bigger, etc., but mine still work and do what I need to do. and 3) The tool market doesn’t exist in a vacuum, i.e, lot sof other prices have risen as well, pinching consumers. Tariffs sow uncertainty and that’s ususally not good for markets. And the consumers that buy the ‘products’ that tradespeople require tools for (decks, remodels, new homes, etc.) are feeling the pinch and pulling back on spending. If someone holds off on that replacement deck, the builder doesn’t need to buy/replace the tools he uses to build it. Just my 2 cents.
fred
Absolutely. I would guess that both the tool manufacturers and their customers (Amazon, Home Depot, Lowes et. al.) have their own stats to help them see what the market is like right now and predict what it will be like in the near future. There are predictors like consumer confidence indices, number of housing starts, new household formation stats and mortgage rates. Throw in the mix uncertainties about how tariffs, interest rates and inflation will shape consumer spending on house remodeling and both retailers and manufacturers may be trimming their sails in anticipation of some rough weather ahead.
The same may be true for contractors and DIY’ers. I know that my ex-partners have been trying to increase the businesses cash reserves over the last year or two. This strategy had served us well when I was still invested – allowing us to avoid layoffs during downturns and even purchase a foundering business that fit in with our business objectives.
Matt_T
Fred,
It’s been an interesting few years in construction, at least locally. First construction costs doubled which should have killed demand. That’s when I and several friends started getting defensive. But the work never slacked up and was paying well.
Then mortgage rates more than doubled. The alarm bells are deafening at this point!!! But work still isn’t slacking up……
Back to spending money now without touching reserves or financing. We’re an older crowd who can remember a downturn or two, that we’ll admit to Lol. Some of the younger guys have been spending big on business and personal purchases all thru’ this.
fred
I started my working career (post college) in earnest during the recession of 1961. At least a half dozen more of them have followed. My observation is that when things are booming – folks put on their rose-colored glasses and seem to think it will go on forever. When a recession arrives – many get into the “woe is us” mode thinking there is no way out. The truth is that each period represents opportunities if you have been able to position yourself to take advantage. The sad reality for those who struggle even in good times is that they likely have even harder times when an economic downturn arrives. That portion of our society has my sympathy and support when I can give it. Folks I’ve known who have overextended themselves buying high-ticket items (cars, planes, vacation houses) based on boom time income (or worse yet – income growth projections) should have known better.
I was happy that my partners and I fought off (or bought out) the voices that sometimes called for us to go public with parts of our business. The infusion of capital was always alluring. But loss of control and the constant need to improve quarterly earnings, bolster stock price and perhaps pay dividends through thick and thin times – outweighed the allure for most of us. I’m also blessed that I have and understanding wife – who worked to put food on the table in some of those tough years when my partners and I took no salary in order to keep the business (and workers) going.
Mark
I just bought the battery powered orbital sander for $100 at Ace on promo which is the lowest price it’s ever been in real world value. 100 USD has never been worth less is history. That’s like paying $55 USD in year 2000 dollars. Battery tools are way cheaper and better than in year 2000 when factoring in inflation. I know this is sort of obvious but it’s a counter point to the doom and gloom point of view. I love my super compact brushless atomic tools and they were a really good value compared to my old heavy brushed dewalts. Of course technology gets better and I’m happy about that.
Stuart
A few years ago they had the cordless sander with a battery and charger for $99. So no, $100 for the tool-only is not the best value it’s been.
John E
The dollar is worth less than it was a few years ago so his point stands.
Stuart
Prices and values can be manipulated towards the goal of gaining market share. That’s why this situation is concerning; Dewalt was able to maintain promotional price points over the years, throughout many different circumstances and environments, until now.
This could be a short-term change or long-term, and competing brands could follow their lead, or not.
MMakita has already made similar changes.
The cost of entry into Dewalt 20V Max is much higher right now. It might not take a lot for the entire industry to move in the same direction.
Consider fast food prices – they went up and never came back down.
This should have happened with entry point cordless power tool kits, but didn’t. Tool shoppers had it good.
Mr. C
“I have not yet seen the same level of pricing disruption with Dewalt’s top competitors, such as Milwaukee, Makita, or Bosch.”
Dollars to donuts, I betcha my last dollar they ARE experiencing the same disruption. They’re just absorbing a lot of it at the moment — hoping it changes (either by a capricious leader changing his mind or by legal appeals or by the next admin).
As someone who handles industries heavily affected by the orange-scented tariff glitter, NO ONE wants to be first to admit defeat. Call it economic collusion, call it price fixing, call it whatever you want. The attitude in back rooms and private phone calls is “we do NOT want to be first unless we have no other choice.”
Just look at how Amazon and Walmart were treated by Orange Capone when they first announced they’d have to raise prices due to the tariffs. The BLOTUS threw them under the bus on national news. Sure, those giants could absorb those stock dips….but can smaller outfits? Unlikely.
DeWalt’s financials must be more….exposed? brittle? But I promise you, if this keeps up, everyone will be increasing prices, lowering quality, and shrinking sizes significantly. Once the floodgates open after a few sacrificial lambs do it, it’ll happen nearly overnight.
(for comparison, it’s pretty much already happened across the entire photography industry — one of many I’m involved with. Price increases of 20-50% have been applied, even to the used market. Why used? “because they can.” Tariffs are hurting even USA-production and affecting second-hand sales.)
Stuart
Oh, I very much doubt that Dewalt is the only brand affected, but these are among the biggest pricing changes that we’ve *seen* so far.
Several brands announced price increases. *Thus far* I haven’t seen changes to cordless tool kits or bundle inclusions aside from Dewalt’s.
As for some of your other points, every off-color political jab fills the comment moderation queue with off-topic rants, digressions, and unproductive retorts. It’s unnecessary and does nothing but distract from the conversation.
TZ
Lowe’s had some of the lowest prices I’ve seen in years for a handful of higher-end Dewalt tools just months ago. After some debate on what I should buy, I ended up with the DCG410 Grinder with 8Ah PowerPack and fast charger for $150 in June. The last time I’ve seen similarly slick deals on Dewalt was 8 years ago, when I bought my Flexvolt Circular saw bundle with 2 FlexVolt batteries and fast charger for $200 from Amazon.
Dewalt rarely discounts their top of the line batteries, but they did this year, just like they did back when FlexVolt was pretty new.
Rob
I have so little respect for these companies blaming “tariffs” for the reason they are struggling or deciding to increase prices. They could make things in the USA, but that cuts into the profits of their cheaply made junk. This among many other reasons I won’t by SBD products. However Makita is also blaming tariffs on raising prices, but honestly who buys Makita tools. I’d like to know what happened to quality and a company that stands behind their product.
Jordan
“They could make things in the USA”
For those who know little about supply chains and industrial manufacturing, it’s simply not a turnkey operation to shift production operations.
And before you blame the companies for “they shouldn’t have offshored in the first place!”, remember…it was essential for their survival. The could have kept things domestic to the USA.…..and then go out of business, joining the many hundreds of other companies did exactly the same.
To shift production operations . it’s a mixture of complexity + nuance + time + cost.
To simply get the permits to build a factory in the USA, you could be looking at timeframes of 3-10 years. “Environmental impact studies” and whatnot.
Then you need to build the factory — which may require specialized equipment to be imported. Every single load has fees and taxes and tariffs attached to it. Every single “wide load” truck on the highways needs to be permitted w/ lots of extra fees. This is also taking into account you already have running factories making product….it’ll cost a lot to shut down those ops to transition to new ops.
Then there’s labor. You need to hire & train skilled workers to run the factory — and in many places, pay the Unions. That cost right there can be prohibitively expensive.
Then there’s raw material supply chains. For the past 20-40 years, it’s been entrenched elsewhere. Now you have to either extend those chains to the USA….or create new ones. For some businesses, the only way they profit is because they have highly-optimized supply chains.
All this costs money. And right now, there’s no easy framework to get things done – so if you’re first, you’re trailblazing.
Sounds romantic, huh? Not really, when you have to learn all the hard lessons yourself. Instead, it’s better to be 2nd or 5th or 10th. Let others do all the hard work, spend the extra money figuring things out…..and you can swoop in later to follow their lead. Or better yet, to buy out their operations when they go bankrupt. Or even better yet, realize you don’t have to do anything since the next admin pivots 180 degrees….and all those bright-eyed early adopters sunk so much money into something the didn’t need to. You now can easily undersell them….or raise prices to match them, resulting in greater profits.
Todd+shaffer
tariffs. Who really pays. I have had difficulty finding a few things. Had to order off Alibaba 30 dollar tariff.
Eddie
I’m a licensed contractor with a small company and run mostly Dewalt tools .
What i have noticed is the decline in quality and the way the 5ah 20 volt batteries are made
On any givin day I will go through between 6 to 10 twenty volt charged batteries personally
I have some still working great with a 2014 date on them and a pile of batteries that have went bad with 2023 & 2024 dates on them
Not to mention the amount of counterfeit batteries that are everywhere .
To me the vast majority of investment of my tool budget goes towards batteries the price of the tool it self is pretty insignificant when compared the price of the batteries
I have been recently thinking of changing out all my Dewalt tools to another brand as it seems the game is rigged as of lately with crap batteries .
That are i will start rebuilding my existing batteries at home .
One last gripe
What happened to tool hard cases ?
If a tool can’t be put away properly how long do you think it will last going from job site to job site just thrown in a thin tool bag ?
STEVE
Oh no you lost 2% so up the price on us 30% SMH
Paul Young
The DCE512B jobsite fan I had sitting in my Amazon cart just increased yesterday by 30% from $99 to $129. I don’t care the reason. That an absurd price increase for a tool only. Can’t blame the cost of batteries either.
Partne Daugherty
DEWALT PRICES have Skyrocketed to unsustainable levels.
Profits will continue to drop as customers switch to Milwaukee and brands.
Those profits can not be increased with price hikes blamed on Tariffs because Dewalt is an American brand & staffering price increases occurred BEFORE the tariffs went into effect.
I know this because I was in the market to replace my (stolen) brushless reciprocal saw long before the tariffs were to go into effect. I watched the steeply climbing prices in real time.
After my delays thinking the prices would settle down a little, the prices continued to climb to the point that I could no longer justify purchasing the contractor grade, 7 1/4″ brushless model “for a little more” as it is now over twice the price of the entry model.
As I don’t use it often, I can not justify paying the difference in price.
Dewalt needs to do some real math….
A 10%+ price increase does not mean 10% more profit when the # of sales drop. If 5 sales are lost, there was ZERO PROFIT for NON-SALES .
PROFITS are not based upon the sale of an individual item. PROFITS are based upon the combined sales of many products.
Stuart
Companies of this size don’t lose market share and then raise prices to boost profits.
Bill
What no one talks about is the amazing deal on the metabo triple hammer bolt for $ 149 with charger two 2 amp hour batteries , Hard case etc ! A steal of a deal and no one mentioned it !! That’s a great Impact for sure !
JMAN
So even with a $3.9 billion profit they are losing money and need to raise prices?? Why has everyone lost base with the difference between “profit” and “loss”?
Sparky
Lowe’s had a dewalt deal where you buy 2 batteries and get 2 tools free. If people are not jumping on deals like that you are missing the boat completely.
Stuart
Those deals ended. I posted about them a bunch of times, such as https://toolguyd.com/hottest-cordless-power-tool-deals-at-lowes-072025/ .
That deal required a $299 expenditure. There’s a big leap between shopping for a $99 kit or $149 2-tool combo kit and a $299 bundle.