Cordless vs corded jigsaw
Updated: 21 October 2026
A cordless vs corded jigsaw decision, for these Metabo listings, is mostly about whether you already pay for 18 V packs. The bare STB 18 L 90 is £58.97 and the corded STEB 65 Quick kit is £128.55. Those headlines are not the same kind of price. Peter F. compared the October 2026 amazon.co.uk rows for the kept Metabo saws, plus Metabo's published depths where the listing is noisy. There is no lab test. The [Metabo jigsaw comparison](/hub/power-saws/metabo-jigsaw) is the full table. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
A cordless vs corded jigsaw decision, for these Metabo listings, is mostly about whether you already pay for 18 V packs. The bare STB 18 L 90 is £58.97 and the corded STEB 65 Quick kit is £128.55.
A cordless vs corded jigsaw decision, for these Metabo listings, is mostly about whether you already pay for 18 V packs. The bare STB 18 L 90 is £58.97 and the corded STEB 65 Quick kit is £128.55. Those headlines are not the same kind of price. Peter F. compared the October 2026 amazon.co.uk rows for the kept Metabo saws, plus Metabo's published depths where the listing is noisy. There is no lab test. The Metabo jigsaw comparison is the full table. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Power | What runs it | In the box | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Metabo Metabo STEB 65 Quick corded set | 230 V, 400 W | UK socket | Blade assortment | 7.8 | about £128.55 | View offer |
| Best value |  Metabo Metabo STB 18 L 90 top-handle jigsaw | 18 V cordless | Pack and charger extra | 2 blades, cardboard | 8.0 | about £58.97 | View offer |
 Metabo Metabo STA 18 LTX 150 BL jigsaw | 18 V brushless | Pack and charger extra | metaBOX 145 L | 9.2 | about £149.99 | View offer |
On this page
A bare 18 V price is not the cost of cutting
Every cordless Metabo kept here ships without a battery or a charger, from the STB 18 L 90 at £58.97 to the STA 18 LTX 140 at £165.95. You need a Metabo 18 V Li-Power or LiHD pack, or a CAS pack, and a BS 1363 charger. There is no UK pack price in this set, so £58.97 is not a finished kit against the £128.55 corded saw. A CAS 18 V partner pack can fit a genuine cordless Metabo. A Makita-compatible ONEVAN, KIESBOHR, or unbranded kit at about £59 to £71 cannot. Once a pack exists, there is no lead on a stair or in a loft, and runtime is that pack. The 92 reviews on the STA 140 mention battery drain often enough that a small cell may stop a thick curve early. The buying guide sets out the order numbers if the brand row is still in doubt.
What the two STEB listings actually include
The STEB 65 Quick, order 690920000, is the realistic corded comparison. It is £128.55, listed as 230 V and 400 W, with a blade assortment, Metabo Quick, a variable pendulum, and a dust blower. Nine reviews at 4.8 are a small sample. Wood depth is absent, and a 10 × 10 × 10 mm cell is catalogue noise, so this is not a 150 mm claim. You plug into a UK socket and skip the platform. The STEB 140 Plus, order 601404700, is £377.29, 750 W, and 2.6 kg, with a MetaLoc, no reviews, and blank stroke, bevel, and pendulum rows. Ignore a hand-operated power line. Buy it only after a live datasheet, for long plugged-in sessions. You still change blades and keep pendulum off for metal. The gain is that a flat 4 Ah pack cannot stop the cut.
Runtime, the lead, and where you are standing
Choose cordless when the socket is the problem: a loft, a garden gate, or a first-floor job with no reel, using the pack you already own. The 90 mm class covers a lot of sheet. Move to the STA 150 BL for thicker timber: 150 mm, a 26 mm stroke, brushless, a metaBOX, 4.7 from 28 reviews that are mostly not British. Choose corded beside a socket for long sessions. The STEB 65 is the fair comparison with a bare saw plus a new battery. The STEB 140 Plus is only if 400 W is not enough and you accept £377.29 with no reviews. A lead is a PUWER 1998 trip hazard, and it is why the saw does not fade. The ST 18 L 90 datasheet still declares 90 dB(A), above the 80 and 85 dB(A) action values, and a blower only clears the line. The best Metabo jigsaw page is the single-row pick.
A conditional recommendation
If the packs are already in the van, buy cordless and then choose depth: STB 18 L 90 at £58.97 for a top handle inside 90 mm, ST 18 L 90 at £92.00 for the body grip, STA 150 BL at £149.99 when 90 mm is not enough. The unreviewed 130 mm saw at £168.29 and the older 140 at £165.95 are hard to justify against that 150 mm row. With no packs, the STEB 65 Quick at £128.55 is the recommendation for a 400 W saw beside a socket, even without a published depth. It beats a new 18 V platform for occasional notches. Call a professional for a fitted worktop, a structural cut, or work near services. Employees still need a noise, vibration, and dust assessment.
Common questions
Is the £58.97 Metabo cheaper than the corded kit?
Only as a bare tool. The STB 18 L 90 does not include a battery or a charger. The STEB 65 Quick at £128.55 runs from 230 V and includes a blade assortment. If you must buy a Metabo or CAS pack and a UK charger, the corded kit can be the smaller total for a first saw.
Do cordless Metabo jigsaws use any 18 V battery?
No. The kept cordless listings take Metabo 18 V packs or CAS partner packs. A Makita-compatible kit from another brand in the same search was excluded. Putting the wrong pack on the saw is not a workaround this comparison supports.
When is the STEB 140 Plus worth £377.29?
When you want a 750 W corded workshop saw, a MetaLoc is useful, and you have confirmed stroke and depth on a current datasheet. This capture has no reviews and several blank cutting rows. It is a weak buy if you only needed to avoid purchasing one battery.
Will a cordless saw run as long as a plugged-in one?
Not on one pack. Mains runtime is limited by the lead and the socket, not by cell capacity. Cordless runtime is the pack you fit. Reviews on the older STA 140 often mention battery drain, so a small pack can stop a thick cut early.
Does corded mean I can ignore dust and noise?
No. The blower still only clears the line. Hardwood and softwood dust limits from HSE still apply at work, and the ST 18 L 90 datasheet's 90 dB(A) shows how loud this class of saw is declared to be. The regulations do not switch off because the tool has a plug.
Which page helps if I already know I want cordless?
Use the main comparison, then the best-of page for depth against price. This page stops at the power source. Handle shape, if you are inside the 90 mm class, is a separate choice between the ST 18 L 90 and the STB 18 L 90.
Related pages
Sources
Public sources listed for this comparison, October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures in that set. We did not run a lab test.
- Metabo UK ST 18 L 90 (retrieved October 2026)
- Metabo datasheet ST 18 L 90 (retrieved October 2026)
- Metabo STA 18 LTX 150 BL (retrieved October 2026)
- CAS battery alliance (retrieved October 2026)
- HSE vibration assessment (retrieved October 2026)
- Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 (retrieved October 2026)
- HSE wood dust (retrieved October 2026)
- GOV.UK Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 (retrieved October 2026)