Consumer Reports Data Shows These Are The Most Reliable Snow Blower Brands Of 2025

When you're dealing with several inches of snow at your doorstep, you need a machine that clears it away — and quickly. Snow blowers are definitely the best way to remove snow from a driveway compared to shovels (even electric ones), especially if you live in an area that is affected by frequent and severe storms. Knowing which snow blower to buy, however, is not so easy. Consumer Reports (CR) surveyed its members to ascertain which brands are most reliable in 2025, which will hopefully inform your decision this snowy season. 

Among the top-rated snow blower brands to keep your walkways safe this winter were Craftsman, Honda, Toro, and Ego. Reliability, in this context, was established by tallying the number of issues or malfunctions exhibited in the product's first five years of use. The most reliable brands had the lowest problem rate. The results were also divided into categories. CR researched manufacturers of gas, battery, and corded electric models, focusing on the three-stage, two-stage, and single-stage snow blowers within those categories. Even if suitable for smaller tasks, corded electrical models offered the worst results overall, which is why they're not included in the round-up below.

Knowing which brands produce the most reliable products is only one of several aspects you should consider, especially if you're buying a commercial snow blower for your residential property. Deciding on a brand should depend on which power sources and features best fit your needs. Gas-powered machines, such as those produced by Craftsman, Honda, and Toro, are the most popular options and often the most powerful. 

Among those brands, CR's report highlighted Craftsman as the most reliable manufacturer of three-stage snow blowers. These are machines that only run on gas and are composed of three elements: the auger, the impeller, and the accelerator, making them especially powerful and fast. It also means they are more expensive and difficult to maneuver. The nearly centenary company beat competitors Cub Cadet and Troy-Bilt, which received less positive reviews from CR members. 

The Craftsman SB650 28-inch Three-Stage Self-Propelled Gas Snow Blower is available for purchase at Lowe's for $1,299 and comes with a three-year limited warranty. Despite the love it received from CR members, the ratings and reviews on the retailer's website, and even the brand's own, paint a different picture. There, customers give this three-stage snow blower less than three stars and complain about frequent clogging and insufficient snow throw distance. 

Honda, as well as Toro, was found to be one of the most reliable brands for both two-stage (auger and impeller) and single-stage (auger) gas models. Unlike the three-stage category, where only three brands were surveyed, CR looked at 11 different two-stage gas snow blower manufacturers. This is because, as the middle ground between the maneuverability of single-stagers and the horsepower of three-stagers, two-stage snowblowers are generally the preferred type for those who deal with regular blizzards. 

Honda is considered a high-end power tools brand, with a price tag to match. CR's results, however, suggest that the extra few dollars spent may actually buy you peace of mind, though. This is backed, for example, by reviews on the Home Depot website for currently and previously available models, which add up to an attractive 4.7-star rating after 137 reviews, with many buyers describing the brand's products as the best on the market. Honda snow blowers come with a three-year warranty and can be purchased through authorized online and local dealers, which can be located through the brand's website.

Toro snow blowers are a much more affordable alternative to Honda models, with a price difference that can surpass $1,000. According to CR members, Toro is equally as reliable for two-stage and single-stage machines, a sentiment echoed in the product reviews across retailers. At Home Depot, the brand's snow blowers boast an impressive 4.3-star rating from 1,722 reviews. At Lowe's, the opinions are similar, with every model receiving an aggregated score of over four stars. 

Toro's snow blowers, particularly its SnowMaster line, are beloved for being easy to use, fast, powerful, and offering excellent snow-throwing distance. Expert reviews also mention Toro's ingenious Personal Pace drive system, with which those who have used the brand's lawn mowers in the past may already be familiar. This technology makes the machine go faster the harder you grip it and the faster you walk. It slows down automatically when you apply less pressure. Toro also offers a 3-year warranty, with the added bonus of a lifetime warranty for the chute.

Battery-powered blowers, like those made by Ego, have been gaining ground as a smarter, quieter, and more environmentally conscious alternative to gas blowers, even if not as efficient at clearing deeper, wetter snow. Although Ego also makes two-stage battery options, it's worth noting that they were not included in CR's survey, since they're a relatively recent invention. Instead, the platform looked only at Snow Joe's two-stage battery models, which received mediocre reliability scores. 

Ego is a pioneering and respected manufacturer of cordless electric power tools and outdoor equipment, and its snow blowers are no exception. They're often featured in "best of" lists, whether based on their affordability or their performance. Most experts note that Ego's batteries are no match for the power of gas engines, but that they can be an excellent choice for customers who only have to deal with friendly levels of snow and smaller areas to clear.