Milwaukee M18 FUEL or RYOBI 40V HP Whisper Series 21' Electric Lawn Mower? [2823-20 vs RY401021]

Which battery-powered electric mower works for you? We compare the Milwaukee M18 FUEL 21" Mower to the RYOBI 40V HP Whisper AWD 21" Mower. Performance is pretty good on both of these units and runtime is pretty equal too. The Milwaukee steel deck is a standout feature for sure, but can the 18-volt batteries supply the power needed to make the cut?

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[louiesamuel]

When young kids reach 13 they receive a magical letter and are invited to a magical place wherein they are divided into one of four “houses” for the rest of their lives. Those houses being Milwaukee, Ryobi, DeWalt, Makita, and Slytherin.
Gotta love Home Depot.

[torriewalker]

I'm a Milwaukee guy. Just got my mower Friday. Used it Saturday with my lights on🤷🏾. Loved it.

[paulyoung]

Finally, a reviewer who declares the exact part numbers...

[LukeHague]

We have the Ryobi Whisper 21" and are mowing a pretty standard New England lawn... The thing is an absolute champ.

[johnfaustus]

I used to work at TTI (the owners of Milwaukee and Ryobi brands). The amount of 'cross-pollination' between the engineering teams was HUGE.
Both brands benefit from each other, and I'm sure you'll be happy with either.
Different target audiences, but both mowers share a lot of, not just components, but design language.

[vg]

I used to hate the idea of a plastic deck on electric mowers. But it's not the crap plastic that's brittle and weak that you typically think of. The weight savings you get makes the mowers a lot easier to maneuver. It also will never rust. I have an older Ryobi 40v mower for about 5 years now and the thing still looks brand new. I don't baby it either, and I like that I can throw it around because it's so light.

[steffendetrick]

Huge selling point for someone like me is I can use those Milwaukee batteries on my power tools. And those batteries are great for table saws miter saws rear handle 7 1/4 etc. plus I have loads of Milwaukee batteries and in a pinch I could throw a couple 8.0Ho right?

[MrLewisTan]

I have a different ryobi model but still a 21" self propelled 40v. I also have the multi trimmer tool and the whisper leaf blower. I already invested in Milwaukee m12 tool line. If the m18 had come out earlier I would have gone the m18 route.

My ryobi has been pretty good. It's not as powerful as my old mower so I have to mow once a week instead of every 2 weeks. I can get 2 uses each charge on the 6mah battery.

It's been a great system this season and I highly recommend it. Every tool is lightweight and super easy just to grab and use. No maintenance and no cranking required. I just use the blower to clean the mower after each use.

[DallasBurgher]

Thank you for the excellent review. Only thing that I think was missing was using both mowers to cut slightly (for testing purposes) longer than normal grass to see how fine the mowers cut up the clippings. My present Ryobi (single blade) mower does a very mediocre job on mulching. Keep up the good work.

[MrSupernova]

I'm really amazed at these battery operated mowers by top brands. I remember vividly mowing my yard 20 years ago with a small gas operated noise maker. I hope battery operated mowers are the future but prices need to come down A LOT before mass adaptation. Thanks for another phenomenal review! Cheers!

[richardefriend]

Excellent review. Since the RY401021 is now $899, the 2823-20 is "only' $200 (22.25%) more. For that increase in cost, I'd expect the Milwaukee mower to be a whole lot better than just a few seconds quicker start, clutched FWD motor (but no AWD), a light switch and a metal (heavier, but not necessarily rust proof) deck, and a probably unnecessary front handle. And it doesn't have the cross-cut blade. BTW-the Ryobi warranty on the mower is 5 years. Since I was already VERY invested in the Ryobi ecosystem (including about 9 batteries, and multiple chargers, before getting the mower-including 2 6AH batteries), it was a very easy decision for me (as I just ordered the RY401021). And for power tools I went with Ridgid a long time ago, which might not always be as good as Milwaukee, but it has a lifetime warranty on everything including batteries (assuming you register them timely)--because my predecessor cordless tools had been Milwaukee, but after the 3rd set of replacement batteries at my expense, I saw the light. BTW--I'm curious about the Ryobi 8AH and 12AH batteries: how long does it take for them to cool down after a complete rundown before you can start recharging them? Plus if it takes 50% or 100% longer to recharge, the use one/charge one option might not work if there's a significant cool down time. BTW-you said that the Milwaukee did .5 acres of mowing vs. the Ryobi's "almost the same" 5/8th of an acre, but in fact 5/8ths of an acre is a whopping 25% increase over .5 acres.

[weldonpinder]

I'll keep my Ryobi mower just for the price of the Milwaukee. The Ryobi does the job for me. One thing I don't like is the weight but stuff like how fast or slow it takes for the blade to get to full speed doesn't matter. I'm already in the platform and I love it. Also I can switch one battery to the next I love that

[mrdpwr]

Not a fan of the discharge on the Milwaukee being on the back. There are times with my Toro personal pays, where I push with my right hand and stand on the left side as I walk it due to some obstructions. That wouldn't work out well with the Milwaukee. That being said, my Toro personal pace is over 20 years old and still working fine, so I don't see an electric one in my future. Not to mention, my father gave me a brand new Toro personal pace a few years ago that still goes unused. LoL

[sittingbackrelaxed]

Ryobi Mowers are built in Anderson, SC and their decks have a lifetime guarantee. I've had mine since the beginning of Spring last year and have had no issues.

[JuanGerardoHernandez]

Saw the Milwaukee at 990 in home Depot, it comes with 2×12amp batteries that are 250US each if bought separately.
Those batteries will also be handy for my M18 chain saw, leaf blower, vacuum cleaner, battery inverter, trimmer, etc, etc.

[LockeGS]

I liked this comparison review. A bit longer than I'd personally like, but this was good.

I got the Ryobi HP 21" Self-propelled non-cross-cut non-AWD about a year ago or so and I'm pretty happy with it. I don't use it much because I have a lawn service, but when I do need to touch up, like when expecting guests or something, it is great. I looked at Ryobi mower specifically because I heard fair things about them, and I am already invested in the Ryobi ecosystem. This was honestly the biggest thing for me. Works well, but also works with my existing pile of batteries. If I had Milwaukee tools already, I'd probably have gone for the Milwaukee mower.

[roman]

I'm a milwaukee fan and have plenty of their tools but not sure it's worth double the Ryobi in price. The Ryobi for $500 on sale is the way to go.

[Major-xmbh]

Thank you so much, got to go with the Ryobi for the quietness and, on and off all-wheel drive option, . Will be toggle switching thee led lights tho😊

[caber]

When we were kids we took the motor of the old lawnmower and made go carts, how soon will it be before kids take the motors off and make go carts? Ryobi 40v/Milwaukee 18V go cart.

[LCculater]

I love the ryobi as I bought self propelled and love the speed switch . I’m a Milwaukee guy 100 percent and have lots of tools but two batteries at once ? In the future I don’t think 18 volts are going to cut it ?