Cordless metal shears buying guide

Updated: October 2026

You have a sheet on the bench, maybe a battery platform already, and eight cordless cutters on amazon.co.uk that do not speak the same units. Some are shears, some are nibblers, and several prices are for a bare body. This cordless metal shears buying guide puts the decisions in order: mechanism, millimetres with the metal named, then what is actually in the box. The cordless metal shears comparison ranks those eight listings. Here you learn how to read them before you sort by price. We did not run a lab cut. A qualifying purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Our top picks

Badge	Product	Mechanism	Stated steel	Battery in the box	Note	Price	Offer
Best overall	Bostar Bostar shear with 2× 4.0Ah	Shear	1.5 mm iron; 1.2 mm stainless (bullets)	Yes, 2× 4.0Ah claimed in title and bullets	5.8	about £75.99	View offer
	Bosch Professional Bosch Professional GSC 12V-13	Shear	Up to 1.3 mm in the bullets; no grade in the file	No	8.4	about £264.97	View offer
Best value	Deyitong Deyitong nibbler 2.0 mm, Makita	Nibbler	Size field 2.0 mm. Stainless bullet 0.048 inches	No (bullets). Attribute says batteries not required	7.1	about £106.99	View offer

Best overall

Bostar Bostar shear with 2× 4.0Ah

5.8/10about £75.99

View offer

Rank 2

Bosch Professional Bosch Professional GSC 12V-13

8.4/10about £264.97

View offer

Best value

Deyitong Deyitong nibbler 2.0 mm, Makita

7.1/10about £106.99

View offer

On this page

1.Shear, nibbler, or neither
2.Read the millimetre line, not the gauge title
3.Battery you already own
4.What the prices in this set assume

Shear, nibbler, or neither

Start with the edge you need to keep, not with the cheapest body. A single-cut shear works like powered scissors and leaves no waste strip, with some stretch along the edge. A nibbler punches out a slot of chips, and the sheet around the cut stays flatter. Corrugated or box-profile sheet is the job UK cladding guides give to a nibbler, because a shear does not follow peaks and troughs. A head that rotates through 360° only changes where you hold the tool. It does not turn a Roadtime or Bostar shear into a nibbler. The mechanism split sits on the nibbler versus metal shears page.

Read the millimetre line, not the gauge title

Ask which metal, which strength, and which unit the seller actually printed. Bosch Professional GB publishes a table for the GSC 12V-13: 1.3 mm in 400 N/mm² steel, 0.8 mm in 600 N/mm², 0.6 mm in 800 N/mm², and 2 mm aluminium at 200 N/mm². The amazon.co.uk bullets for the same bare tool only say metal up to 1.3 mm. The Deyitong 2125 title says 18 gauge, the size field says 1.6 mm, and the inch bullets convert to about 1.0–1.6 mm. Roadtime's shears say sheet up to 2 mm and name no grade. How you start the cut is on the how to cut with cordless metal shears page.

Testsieger

Bostar Bostar shear with 2× 4.0Ah

5.8/10about £75.99

View offer

Battery you already own

A bare price is not the basket. Bosch is a Professional 12 V tool, also labelled 10.8 V, and it is not a Makita, DeWalt, or Milwaukee foot. The about £264.97 body still needs a battery and charger. A UK shop listed a kit of the same model at £379.95 including VAT, which is not the amazon bare offer. DeWalt says 20V MAX is an unloaded maximum and the nominal voltage is 18 V. The UK catalogue is 18V XR. A DeWalt 20V title on a third-party body is a foot claim, not a DeWalt warranty. Only Bostar's bullets describe two 4.0Ah batteries and a UK-plug charger, at about £75.99, with three ratings and no review text. The attribute row says batteries are not required, so you check the carton.

What the prices in this set assume

The captured shelf prices fall into three bands. Entry is the three bare Roadtime shears at about £54.14 to about £56.99, with no star line. Mid runs from Bostar at about £75.99 and the 2125 nibblers at about £79.99 to the Deyitong nibbler at about £106.99 with 4.3 from 62 reviews. Premium is the Bosch bare tool at about £264.97 with 4.6 from 101 reviews. A 5.0 from three silent ratings does not outrank 4.6 from 101.

Common questions

Do I buy a shear or a nibbler first?

Buy the mechanism that matches the edge. Choose a shear when you want no waste strip and can accept some distortion, which suits flat duct ends. Choose a nibbler when the surround must stay flat or the sheet is corrugated, and accept a slot of chips. A rotating head does not change that choice.

Why do gauge, inches, and millimetres disagree on one listing?

Sellers stack a gauge title, a millimetre size field, and inch bullets without reconciling them. On the Deyitong 2125 pages that produces 18 gauge, 1.6 mm, and about 1.0 mm from a 0.04 inch sheet bullet. A rule of thumb near 1.2 mm for 18 gauge mild steel is not printed on the listing.

Is a bare tool cheaper once I add a battery?

Only if you already own the pack. Roadtime at about £54.14 still needs a pack the listing does not include. Bostar's kit bullets conflict with an attribute line, so the carton is the check. Add that pack before you call a bare price a saving.

Does DeWalt 20V mean a different pack from UK 18V XR?

DeWalt says 20V MAX is an unloaded maximum and nominal voltage is 18 V. The UK range is sold as 18V XR. A third-party title that says 20V is claiming a foot for packs such as DCB200 to DCB206. It does not mean the tool is made by DeWalt.

What does 400 N/mm² change about a 1.3 mm claim?

Strength is the load the steel can take, and a harder sheet stalls a shear that was happy in mild steel. Bosch's GB table allows 1.3 mm at 400 N/mm² and only 0.6 mm at 800 N/mm² for the GSC 12V-13. A bullet that says 1.3 mm with no strength is the easy case, not the stainless case.

Can I ignore steel grade if the bullet says 2 mm?

No. Roadtime's 2 mm line names no grade, so you do not know whether that is soft aluminium, mild steel, or a headline. Bostar at least splits iron, aluminium, and stainless. A reviewer's 2.5 mm mild-steel cut is not the size field, which says 2.0 mm.

Best cordless metal shears