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18V or 20V cordless drill

Updated: 2026-10-23

You are comparing an 18 V Bosch with a title that says 20 V or 21 V. On a five-cell lithium pack, 18 V is usually the nominal label and 20 V is often the voltage fresh off the charger. A 21 V title is not a bigger Bosch, and it is not a measured torque. This page is about that label and whether the packs share a latch. Products Compared used the listings in the [cordless drill set comparison](/hub/drilling-and-accessories/cordless-drill-set), with prices from 19 October 2026. We did not meter the packs. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are comparing an 18 V Bosch with a title that says 20 V or 21 V. On a five-cell lithium pack, 18 V is usually the nominal label and 20 V is often the voltage fresh off the charger.

Our top picks

Bosch Bosch EasyImpact 18V-40 combi, two 1.5Ah batteries, case

Best overall

Bosch Bosch EasyImpact 18V-40 combi, two 1.5Ah batteries, case
8.6/10about £83.64
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FADAKWALT FADAKWALT 20V drill driver kit, two 1.5Ah batteries, green

Best value

FADAKWALT FADAKWALT 20V drill driver kit, two 1.5Ah batteries, green
8.6/10about £41.99
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STANLEY FATMAX Stanley FATMAX V20 hammer drill and impact driver kit

Alternative

STANLEY FATMAX Stanley FATMAX V20 hammer drill and impact driver kit
4.9/10about £140
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On this page
  1. 1.What 18 V and 20 V mean on a lithium pack
  2. 2.What the kits in this set actually print
  3. 3.Same number, different platform
  4. 4.What to compare instead

What 18 V and 20 V mean on a lithium pack

UK writers explaining DeWalt say the same cells are sold as 18 V XR at home and as 20 V MAX in the United States. 18 V is nominal and 20 V is the maximum just off the charger: five cells at about 3.6 V. That arithmetic is DeWalt’s labelling, not a test of Huini or FADAKWALT. A fresh pack sags once you pull the trigger, which is why the nominal figure describes the tool in work. Paying extra because a title prints 20 instead of 18 does not buy a second class of motor. Stanley is the example inside this comparison. The FATMAX kit uses the V20 name, and the voltage cell says 18 V. V20 here is not a higher motor than the Bosch.

What the kits in this set actually print

Bosch EasyImpact 18V-40, EasyImpact 18V-38, UniversalImpact 18 and the BLACK+DECKER BCD700S1K-GB are 18 V listings. The 18V-40 states 40 Nm, two 1.5 Ah packs and about £83.64. Stanley’s hammer drill sits in the V20 kit and the cell still says 18 V, with two 2.0 Ah packs at about £140. The 165 Nm figure is the impact driver, not proof that V20 outruns 18 V. FADAKWALT and DEKO print 20 V. FADAKWALT is the kit at about £41.99 with two 1.5 Ah packs. Its title says 30 Nm while other cells say 35 Nm and 21 Nm, so you still cannot set one torque beside the Bosch 40 Nm. VOERJIA, Maxesla, Huini and BETENST use 21 V in the title. VOERJIA states 65 Nm and a wood capacity of 10 mm in the same file, which is an odd pair, not a lab result. None of those titles shows more power than the 18 V Bosch.
Bosch Bosch EasyImpact 18V-40 combi, two 1.5Ah batteries, case

Testsieger

Bosch Bosch EasyImpact 18V-40 combi, two 1.5Ah batteries, case
8.6/10about £83.64
View offer

Same number, different platform

Even when two packs say 18 V, the latch is often brand-specific. Bosch states Power for All, which is Bosch’s family, not a universal socket. A reviewer on the 18V-38 says older Bosch packs still fit. That is Bosch to Bosch. Stanley V20 packs fit V20 tools. A 21 V no-name pack does not join either. Forcing a pack onto the wrong shoe risks the contacts. Use the charger that came with the pack. A USB-C lead on the DEKO kit is a different path from Bosch’s AL 18V-20. UK mains are 230 V and the plug is BS 1363. OPSS report 2511-0084 rejected a drill charger for poor isolation and a non-compliant plug. That charger is not one of these ASINs.

What to compare instead

Compare a torque you can read once, the chuck, and whether a second battery is in the box. The 18V-40 gives you 40 Nm, 13 mm and two 1.5 Ah packs. The FADAKWALT kit gives you two batteries at about £41.99 and a torque file that contradicts itself. Those differences change the job. A jump from 18 V to 21 V on the title does not. The cordless drill set buying guide keeps that order. This page only stops the voltage shortcut. If the next hole is brick, voltage will not decide it.

Common questions

Is 20 V more powerful than 18 V?
Not as a rule. On DeWalt’s labels, writers describe the same cells as 18 V nominal and 20 V maximum off the charger. That is about that platform, not a measurement of the 21 V kits here. The EasyImpact 18V-40 states 40 Nm at 18 V. A 20 V or 21 V title with no single torque is not more powerful than that 40 Nm. Compare newton-metres you can read.
Why does Stanley say V20 and list 18 V?
The FATMAX kit uses the V20 name and a voltage cell of 18 V, with two 2.0 Ah packs. Stanley’s UK page for a V20 pack specifies 18 V. The name is the range. The cell is the voltage they print. The 165 Nm figure is the impact driver, not a reason to treat V20 as a higher-voltage drill than the Bosch.
Are 21 V packs the same as Bosch 18 V packs?
No. Power for All is Bosch’s latch. A pack from VOERJIA, Maxesla, Huini or BETENST is a different product. Do not force it onto an EasyImpact. A reviewer who refitted older Bosch batteries was still inside Bosch. The same chemistry is not the same shoe, charger or warranty.
Can I use a US 20 V charger in a UK socket?
Not as a straight swap. UK mains are 230 V with a BS 1363 plug. A US 20 V charger is built around 110 V, and DeWalt explainers warn those chargers are not interchangeable. Use the original UK charger. OPSS report 2511-0084 shows a rejected drill charger with a bad plug. It is a failure mode, not a fault found in these twelve listings.
Does brushless matter more than the voltage number?
A brushless claim can matter to heat and runtime, and it still has to be true of the tool in the box. One Stanley review says a brushless advertisement arrived brushed. A 21 V brushless title is not automatically ahead of an 18 V Bosch with 40 Nm and 650 reviews.

Related pages

Best cordless drill set

Cordless drill set for masonry

Cordless drill set

Cordless drill set buying guide: torque, chuck, packs

How to use a cordless drill: clutch, screw and hole

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, last checked on 19 October 2026. Shelf prices and star lines are the amazon.co.uk figures in the display file.

  1. Electrical Safety First: drills (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. HSE: PUWER (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. HSE: hand-arm vibration (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. BSI: BS EN 62841-2-1:2018+A1:2022 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. GOV.UK: Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. OPSS product safety report 2511-0084 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. NFCC: lithium-ion batteries (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Stanley Tools UK: FATMAX V20 18 V battery pack (retrieved 19 October 2026)