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Corded or cordless hedge trimmer

Updated: October 2026

Corded or cordless is the distance from an outdoor socket, plus what you buy besides the tool. In this set the corded case is the BEHT201-GB at about £44.94. The cordless cases are a 36 V bare tool at about £83.49 and an 18 V listing at about £125. Choose corded when the hedge is close and you will manage the lead. Choose cordless when the socket cannot reach and the right pack is already yours. The [Black+Decker hedge trimmer comparison](/hub/lawn-and-garden-equipment/black-and-decker-hedge-trimmer) holds the specifications. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Peter F. updated this on 22 October 2026 and ran no lab test.

Corded or cordless is the distance from an outdoor socket, plus what you buy besides the tool. In this set the corded case is the BEHT201-GB at about £44.94.

Our top picks

Black+Decker Black+Decker GTC1845L20-QW

Best overall

Black+Decker Black+Decker GTC1845L20-QW
9.4/10about £125
View offer
Black+Decker Black+Decker BEHT201-GB

Rank 2

Black+Decker Black+Decker BEHT201-GB
9.3/10about £44.94
View offer
Black+Decker Black+Decker BCHTS36B-XJ

Rank 3

Black+Decker Black+Decker BCHTS36B-XJ
8.1/10about £83.49
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.When the cable is the right tool
  2. 2.When the pack is the right tool
  3. 3.What neither side is
  4. 4.Safety that stays on the cord

When the cable is the right tool

The cable is the right tool for a small hedge beside an outdoor socket. The BEHT201-GB is that tool: corded, 420 W, a 45 cm blade, a 16 mm cut, about £44.94, and 4.5 from 1,331 reviews, all 50 saved bodies labelled United Kingdom. You do not buy a battery. The same UK reviews are the warning. A lead or plug that falls out, and cables cut by the blade, come up often. Electrical Safety First treats a cut cable as a leading garden electrical accident. The mitigation is an RCD, a UK 3-pin plug, the cable behind you, and no cutting in the rain. Refuse a corded tool where the extension would cross a path or a wet lawn.

When the pack is the right tool

The pack is the right tool when the hedge is too far for a lead you can supervise. In a 2019 Which? article, battery failure accounted for 52% of reported faults on cordless hedge trimmers as a class, not as a BLACK+DECKER rate. The listing you can specify is the BCHTS36B-XJ at about £83.49, 55 cm, a 22 mm gap, a saw tip claimed to 35 mm, and no battery included. Buy it for the far hedge only if a BLACK+DECKER 36 V pack and charger are already yours. If they are not, BL20362-XJ was about £67.10 without a charger. That sum is on the 36 V battery page. The 90-minute kit claim belongs to BCHTS3620L1-GB, not to this bare file. The GTC1845L20-QW at about £125 does not become the cordless answer by default. One of 50 saved review bodies is labelled United Kingdom. A far hedge is not a reason to trust a star line that is not a UK sample.
Black+Decker Black+Decker GTC1845L20-QW

Testsieger

Black+Decker Black+Decker GTC1845L20-QW
9.4/10about £125
View offer

What neither side is

Corded versus cordless does not pick a blade length. The BEHT201 is 45 cm and 16 mm. The 36 V tool is 55 cm and 22 mm. The 18 V listing is 45 cm and an 18 mm pitch. If your stems are past 16 mm, the about £125 listing does not solve it. Those trade-offs are the buying guide. Neither side is a pole trimmer. The only sound-power figure here is 100 dB(A) on the BEHT201 manual, so this page will not call the battery tools quieter. For a small hedge near a socket, buy the corded BEHT201 and plan the lead. For a hedge the socket cannot reach, buy the 36 V bare tool only when that pack is already yours.

Safety that stays on the cord

The RCD, the dry day and the lead over the shoulder stay with the corded tool after you have chosen it. If the BEHT201 plug will not stay seated, stop rather than taping it. That fault is already in the UK reviews. Cordless is not a free pass. Do not trim in the rain, and you still want gloves, goggles and a look for nests. A 36 V tool at 3.2 kg or 3.5 kg is heavier than the 1.92 kg corded tool. There is no published minute count for the bare ASIN. The cut itself is on how to use a hedge trimmer safely.

Common questions

Is corded always cheaper?
In this folder the BEHT201 at about £44.94 is the lowest price that cuts on the day you unbox it. The 36 V tool is about £83.49 without a battery or a charger. A 2.0 Ah pack was about £67.10 in one check, still without a charger. Corded is the cheap route when you do not already own a 36 V pack.
Will I cut the cable?
You might. UK reviews of the BEHT201 include cables cut by the blade, and a lead or plug that comes out. An RCD, and keeping the cable behind you, is the control Electrical Safety First recommends. It is not inevitable on a short pass, and it is not optional.
How long does a cordless BLACK+DECKER run?
This folder does not contain a runtime for the bare BCHTS36B-XJ or for the GTC1845L20-QW. Which? offers about 20 to 90 minutes as a class comment, not a test of these ASINs. The 90-minute claim belongs to kit BCHTS3620L1-GB. Do not move it onto the bare tool.
Is the 36 V tool lighter?
No. The corded BEHT201 is 1.92 kg on Amazon and 1.91 kg in the manual. The 36 V listing is 3.5 kg on Amazon and 3.2 kg on the UK tool-only page. The 18 V listing is 2.6 kg. Cordless removes the drag of a lead and adds the weight of the tool.
What if the plug keeps falling out?
Stop using that lead. UK reviews of the BEHT201 already describe a lead or plug that comes out. A taped plug beside a hedge trimmer is how a pull becomes a cut cable. Replace the lead, or stop choosing this corded model.
Which one for a hedge at the far end of the garden?
A cordless tool, and only if the battery is real. In this set that means the BCHTS36B-XJ with a BLACK+DECKER 36 V pack you have checked, not an 18 V pack. A long extension to the BEHT201 adds more lead to cut. The about £125 listing is not the automatic substitute.

Related pages

Black+Decker hedge trimmer

BCHTS36B battery not included, pack sold separately

Best Black+Decker hedge trimmer for a small UK hedge

Which Black+Decker hedge trimmer to buy for the UK

How to use a hedge trimmer safely in your UK garden

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest. amazon.co.uk prices, stars and review counts on these three listings were scored on 22 October 2026.

  1. Black+Decker BEHT201-GB 45 cm hedge trimmer (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. BEHT201-GB manual (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. Black+Decker BCHTS36B-XJ tool-only hedge trimmer (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. HSE INDG480 hand-arm vibration (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. GOV.UK wild birds: protection, surveys and licences (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. GOV.UK hedgerow management rules (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. Electrical Safety First: hedge trimmers (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. RSPB birds' nests and nest boxes (retrieved 22 October 2026)