The best Broadcast spreaders, compared.
Top pick: Scotts EdgeGuard Mini Best value: Einhell GE-US 18 Li bare – About £37.99 with 4.4 from 4,343 ratings if you already own an Einhell 18 V pack. The cheaper four-rating listing is not the value pick. Updated 21.10.2026.
A broadcast spreader throws dry granules off a spinning disc or paddle, so an open lawn takes fewer passes than with a drop spreader. Judge throw width, a gate you can shut on turns, hopper size, and the bag’s grams per square metre. The RHS says to feed at the packet rate and to water solid feed in if rain does not come, because an overdose leaves brown stripes. “ to 800 m²” is not one fill. The questions beside this table are in the [broadcast spreader buying guide](/hub/garden-tools/broadcast-spreader/sub/broadcast-spreader-buying-guide). Grass puts a typical pedestrian throw at about 1.5–2.5 metres. That fan covers an open lawn in fewer passes than a drop spreader, which lays a strip between the wheels. A 45 cm roller and a lidded hand shaker are different tools and sit outside this table.
A broadcast spreader throws dry granules off a spinning disc or paddle, so an open lawn takes fewer passes than with a drop spreader.
22 products checked · 58 hrs invested · +21,400 readers
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Personal buying guide
Question 1 of 2
Where will you spread?
The Scotts EdgeGuard Mini is a push broadcast spreader whose bullets name EdgeGuard, say the unit is fully assembled, and claim it is calibrated for Scotts lawn food covering up to 5,000 sq ft of that product. The amazon.co.uk snapshot is £167.14 with 4.6 from 22,479 ratings, yet rank 148 in Lawn & Garden Spreaders. The saved listing holds eight United Kingdom review texts, not 22,479 UK write-ups. Those texts call it robust and adjustable, and one likes the edge guard, but they also report a spinner at or below wheel height so granules hit the wheels, an uneven pattern with trails and piles, wheels that jam, and no application amounts from the company. VitaminSport listed a Scotts EdgeGuard Mini at £44.99, so quote £167.14 only as that Amazon shelf. The saved listing prints 226.8 g on the dimensions line and 4.08 kg as the item display weight, and the manufacturer field says ScotchBlue while the title says Scotts. Check the live price and those conflicts before you pay the snapshot.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want a push broadcast with a named edge block and you have checked a current UK shop price rather than paying £167.14 on sight.
Less suitable: You need a clear weight, a UK review story without wheel strike, or a cordless fan for a battery you already own.
Specifications
Common questions
What is EdgeGuard on this listing?
The bullets name Scotts EdgeGuard Technology. They do not say which side it blocks. One UK review likes it. Others on the same listing report an uneven pattern and granules hitting the wheels.
Does the Scotts mini need assembly?
The bullets say it is fully assembled and calibrated for Scotts lawn food. They also claim coverage of up to 5,000 sq ft of that product. The listing does not give a hopper volume in litres.
Which weight should you trust?
The saved listing prints 226.8 g on the product-dimensions line and 4.08 kg as the item display weight. The manufacturer field says ScotchBlue while the title says Scotts. Check the live page before you rely on either line.
The Gardena Spreader XL is the push trolley in this set for an open lawn: an 18 litre hopper, a stated width of 1.5–6 metres with pace, a locking slide on the handle, and a cover plate that shortens the throw on one side. The amazon.co.uk snapshot is £105.49, with 4.5 from 6,628 ratings and rank 2 in Lawn & Garden Spreaders. That star line is the listing total. In a sample of the first 50 review texts, several describe a handheld M or a type L drop spreader rather than the XL, so a complaint may not belong to this trolley. Trolley-style comments praise an even cover of fertiliser and seed on a large garden, adjustable flow and solid plastic, and at least one praises a quarter-circle or edge setting. The same file mentions too much product in one place until the user learns the setting, occasional clogging, and instructions that are diagrams rather than a rate chart. It is the top pick here when you have room to store a 4.18 kg trolley and you will set the rate from the bag, not from those diagrams alone.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You have an open lawn, want an 18 litre push fan with an edge plate, and will treat the 6,628 ratings as a mixed Gardena listing.
Less suitable: Your garden is mostly beds and paving, you need a drop strip, or you will not store a trolley.
Specifications
Common questions
How big is the Gardena Spreader XL hopper?
The listing states an 18 litre capacity and a spreading width of 1.5–6 m, for about 800 m². It is a push trolley with a cover plate for edges. That area figure is the lawn Gardena aims at, not one fill.
Does the Gardena XL need a battery?
No. It is a push spreader with a locking slide on the handle, not an 18 V tool. You walk the rate, and the cover plate shortens the throw on one side.
Are all the reviews about the XL?
Reviewers on this amazon.co.uk listing say more than one Gardena spreader is grouped here, including a handheld and a drop spreader. The 4.5 from 6,628 ratings is the listing total, not an XL-only count.
The LengSuaa S8 lists a 3.3 litre hopper, six speeds, eight angle steps and a 180° fan at £39.99, with a paddle the bullets say limits throw off the lawn. The amazon.co.uk line is 4.5 from only two ratings, both United Kingdom texts in the saved listing, and rank 165 in Lawn & Garden Spreaders. Both reviews are warm: one calls it excellent and withholds a fifth star only because the settings were unexplained, and the other calls it a fantastic purchase for grass or fertiliser. Neither could turn a 60 m² seed rate into a gap and a speed, and no settings guide arrived. The title says the battery is not included and the bullets claim a Makita 18 V pack, while the technical line says the power source type is AC. The listing does not resolve that clash. At a price close to the Einhell, you are buying two reviews and a power-source contradiction. Skip it until the seller prints one power source and a note you can follow from the bag.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You will only consider it after you confirm whether it is battery or mains, and you already own a pack the listing actually accepts.
Less suitable: You want a reviewed 18 V fan, a dosage note, or any confidence from more than two ratings.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the LengSuaa include a battery?
The title says without battery. The bullets claim a Makita 18 V lithium-ion pack. The brand is LengSuaa, not Makita, so a pack you already own still has to match the codes on the live listing.
Why do the details say AC?
The technical line says power source type AC. The bullets describe a battery and a 180-degree fan. Both are on the listing, and they are not resolved there.
Is there a settings guide?
A reviewer says no user guide was included, and they could not match a 60 square metre seed box to a gap and speed. Use the bag’s grams per square metre, not a guessed dial number.
The Einhell GE-US 18 Li is the cordless fan with the largest review file here: 3.3 litres, a stated width up to 5 metres, six speeds and eight flow steps, sold without a battery at £37.99. The amazon.co.uk line is 4.4 from 4,343 ratings and rank 13 in Lawn & Garden Spreaders. In a sample of the first 50 United Kingdom reviews, owners call it quicker and more even than throwing feed or seed by hand, light to carry, and useful for dry salt on a path. One review says the battery still showed full after a large lawn. Damp rock salt clogs the mechanism, one unit cut out after about three minutes, and a review says it does not accept Makita batteries. Washing the body let water inside. “Up to 800 m²” is the lawn size Einhell aims at, not one fill of 3.3 litres. It is the best value pick if you already own an Einhell 18 V Power X-Change pack and you will wipe the housing rather than hose it.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You already own an Einhell 18 V Power X-Change battery and want a handheld fan for dry feed, seed or dry path grit.
Less suitable: You need a Makita pack to fit, you will spread damp salt, or you expected 800 m² from one 3.3 litre fill.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the Einhell spreader include a battery?
No. The listing is a spreader only and needs one Einhell 18 V Power X-Change battery. A review says it does not take Makita batteries. Price that pack before you treat £37.99 as the whole cost.
How wide is the Einhell throw?
The bullets say the width adjusts to a maximum of 5 metres, with six speed settings and eight volume settings. The container is 3.3 litres. “Up to 800 m²” is the lawn Einhell aims at, not one fill.
Can the Einhell spread salt?
Winter grit is in the bullets. A review says damp rock salt clogs it, and that dry product is the better fit. Do not hose the housing: one wash-down let water inside.
The YEX-BUR YX-PS05-MT is a bare cordless fan at £69.99 with a 3.7 litre hopper, a stated width up to 5 metres, an angle up to 140°, and a 30 W line on the listing. The amazon.co.uk file is 4.2 from 23 ratings, rank 97, and the saved listing holds 12 United Kingdom reviews. The brand is YEX-BUR, not Makita, even though the bullets claim Makita battery codes, including 14.4 V and 18 V numbers, and the battery is not included. Reviewers praise even lawn feed, adjustable width and flow, and one person with shoulder arthritis found it easier than a trolley. A genuine Makita battery and grass seed worked for one owner. Grass seed also bridges and needs constant shaking, a first attempt clogged, dusty product throws a cloud, copy batteries seemed not to work, and premium salt did not drop through on setting 5. One reviewer called it light and toy-like. Consider it only if you already have a genuine Makita pack and you will test flow before you trust the lawn.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You already own a genuine Makita 18 V pack and will test seed and salt flow on paving before a full lawn.
Less suitable: You do not own that battery, you need a thick review base, or you expected a spreader made by Makita.
Specifications
Common questions
Is the YEX-BUR a Makita tool?
No. The brand is YEX-BUR. The listing claims Makita battery codes, including 14.4 V and 18 V numbers, and the battery is not included. A reviewer made the same point.
Does it spread grass seed evenly?
One review says seed stops unless the hopper is shaken. Another says a genuine Makita battery and grass seed worked as a simple point-and-spread. Test a small patch on paving first.
Will it spread salt?
Salt is in the bullets. One review says premium salt did not drop through even on setting 5. Dry granules are the fit this listing can support.
The Roadtime DJ01277-MT is the cheapest bare fan in this set at £35.99, with a 3.3 litre ABS hopper, eight width steps, six flow levels and a stated maximum of about 5 metres. The amazon.co.uk line is 3.1 from four ratings, all United Kingdom texts in the saved listing, and rank 64 in Lawn & Garden Spreaders. One review describes an even result with width and flow both adjustable, easier than spreading seed by hand, and a connection to that reviewer’s Makita battery. Another called it sturdy on a large yard. The same four reviews include no instructions for grams per square metre, and one unit died the first time it was used and was returned. A single dead-on-arrival report is not a failure rate, but four reviews cannot carry a value claim. The stated area of up to 800 m² is a lawn claim, not one fill. It is not the best value pick beside the Einhell’s 4,343 ratings.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You already own a claimed Makita 18 V pack and you will weigh your own rate because the listing has no dosage chart.
Less suitable: You want evidence before you buy, you need a battery in the box, or you are choosing on the £35.99 price alone.
Specifications
Common questions
Is a battery included with the Roadtime?
No. The title says no battery. The bullets claim Makita 18 V packs, including BL1830B, BL1840B, BL1850B and BL1860B. The brand is Roadtime, not Makita.
What capacity does Roadtime state?
3.3 litres, with a stated maximum width of about 5 metres and a stated area of up to 800 m². The area line is a lawn claim, not one fill of the hopper.
Does it give a grams-per-square-metre rate?
Not in the reviews. One buyer wanted that figure to match fertiliser bags and did not find it. Weigh a test on paving against the bag, rather than copying a dial number.
Six amazon.co.uk listings, saved on 19 October 2026, were scored as the star rating times 20, rounded. That score is not a laboratory spread-pattern test. A count of two or four ratings is recorded, then treated as a thin sample in the written assessment. A large count can mix more than one model on the same ASIN. The top pick is the Gardena Spreader XL because of rank 2 in Lawn & Garden Spreaders and the size of the review file, even though the Scotts listing scores higher from 4.6 and LengSuaa ties 90 from 4.5 with two ratings. Best value is the Einhell GE-US 18 Li at about £37.99 with 4.4 from 4,343 ratings. Roadtime is cheaper at about £35.99 with 3.1 from four ratings, so it is not the best value pick.
Stars
70%The numeric score is the amazon.co.uk star rating times 20, rounded. It is the order before the top-pick decision. It is not a measured spread pattern.
Review sample
20%Two or four ratings stay on the page and are treated as a thin sample. A large count can mix more than one model on the same ASIN, which is stated for the Gardena listing.
Value in this set
10%Best value is the Einhell at about £37.99 with 4.4 from 4,343 ratings, not the cheaper Roadtime sticker of about £35.99 with 3.1 from four ratings. A missing battery is priced before a bare unit is called cheap.
Choose a broadcast spreader by the shape of the garden, the hopper against the bag rate, and whether a battery is already on the shelf. Open lawns suit a push fan. Beds and paving suit a drop spreader or a short throw with an edge plate. Cordless fans in this set are bare 18 V tools. A new pack can cost as much as the spreader. The table above is the model comparison.
A broadcast spreader throws dry granules off a spinning disc or paddle. Grass Seed Online puts a typical pedestrian throw at about 1.5–2.5 metres. That fan covers an open lawn in fewer passes than a drop spreader, which lays a strip between the wheels. A 45 cm roller and a lidded hand shaker are different tools and sit outside this table. Two shapes are in the set.
Granules dumped where you fill, and a fan left open on the turn, leave a pile and a stripe. Fill off the lawn. Shut the gate before you turn. The RHS says not to cure stripes with more feed. Water solid feed in if rain does not come.
“Setting 3” in a review is not your rate. Rolawn describes a weighed test on paving against the bag’s grams per square metre. “Up to 800 m²” is the lawn Einhell and Gardena aim at. Cordless hoppers here are 3.3 litres. The Gardena XL is 18 litres. Neither figure is one lawn in a single fill.
Damp rock salt clogged an Einhell review. A YEX-BUR reviewer could not get premium salt through the outlet. Roadtime, LengSuaa and YEX-BUR claim a Makita 18 V fit and are bare. They are not Makita tools. One Einhell review says Makita packs do not fit. LengSuaa’s technical line also says AC. Price a missing battery before you call about £38 cheap.
A broadcast machine throws a fan measured in metres. Grass Seed Online puts a typical pedestrian throw at about 1.5–2.5 metres. The Gardena XL states 1.5–6 metres with pace. Einhell, YEX-BUR and Roadtime state up to about 5 metres. LengSuaa states a 180° fan rather than a metre width. Open grass suits that fan. Beds, paving and a pond suit a drop spreader, or a fan with an edge plate and a short throw. Match the hopper to the bag, not to the area slogan.
The Einhell is an 18 V Power X-Change bare unit at about £37.99. Roadtime, LengSuaa and YEX-BUR claim a Makita 18 V fit and are also bare. A new pack can cost as much as the tool. One Einhell reviewer said Makita packs do not fit. LengSuaa’s bullets claim a Makita battery while the technical line says the power source type is AC, and the listing does not resolve that clash. The Gardena XL and the Scotts mini are push spreaders, so there is no pack to buy.
Three typical situations, each with a recommendation from this comparison.
You have room to store a push fan and you will set the rate from the bag. The Gardena Spreader XL at about £105.49 has an 18 litre hopper, a stated width of 1.5–6 metres and a cover plate. Treat the 4.5 from 6,628 ratings as a mixed Gardena listing.
You want a handheld fan for dry feed, seed or dry path grit and you already own an Einhell 18 V Power X-Change pack. The GE-US 18 Li at about £37.99 is the best value pick: 3.3 litres, up to 5 metres, and 4.4 from 4,343 ratings. The battery is not in the box.
Roadtime has four ratings, LengSuaa has two, and YEX-BUR has 23. None is a Makita tool, and none includes a battery. The YEX-BUR at about £69.99 is the one to test on paving if you already own a genuine Makita pack. Check the battery codes before you trust the title.
The top pick is the Gardena Spreader XL at about £105.49. The numeric score is the amazon.co.uk star rating times 20, so the Scotts EdgeGuard Mini scores higher from 4.6, and LengSuaa ties 90 from 4.5 with only two ratings. The XL leads because of rank 2 in Lawn & Garden Spreaders and 4.5 from 6,628 ratings, with the mixed-model caveat on that ASIN. It is the push trolley for an open lawn: 18 litres, a stated width of 1.5–6 metres, and a cover plate. The best value is the Einhell GE-US 18 Li at about £37.99, 4.4 from 4,343 ratings, sold without a battery. Roadtime is cheaper at about £35.99 with 3.1 from four ratings, so it is not the value pick. None of these scores is a laboratory spread-pattern test.
Einhell GE-US 18 Li bare
About £37.99 with 4.4 from 4,343 ratings if you already own an Einhell 18 V pack. The cheaper four-rating listing is not the value pick.
Editorial
Peter F. is the editor for DIY & tools at productscompared.co.uk. Comparisons in this category are checked against amazon.co.uk listings, review evidence and public UK sources.
Guides on what to look for, how to use a product, and common mistakes.
Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures saved for this set on 19 October 2026.
This page contains affiliate links to amazon.co.uk. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices, stars and review counts are the UK listing lines saved on 19 October 2026. We did not run a lab test.
