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Screwdriver bit set buying guide

Updated: October 2026

You have a new combi drill, a box of woodscrews, and a listing that shouts about 100 or 200 pieces. What you need is a 1/4 inch hex bit that matches the recess, a spare of the size you will wear out, and a case that still shuts. This screwdriver bit set buying guide is that checklist, from the twelve amazon.co.uk listings compared on 15 October 2026. Named picks sit on the [best screwdriver bit set](/hub/screws-and-accessories/bit-set/sub/bit-set-best) page, and the full table is the [bit set comparison](/hub/screws-and-accessories/bit-set). A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. This is not a laboratory test.

You have a new combi drill, a box of woodscrews, and a listing that shouts about 100 or 200 pieces.

Our top picks

Bosch Bosch 32-piece Extra Hard

Best overall

Bosch Bosch 32-piece Extra Hard
7.5/10about £8.36
View offer
Faithfull Faithfull 61-piece

Best value

Faithfull Faithfull 61-piece
5.1/10about £8.99
View offer
Amazon Basics Amazon Basics 42-piece

Rank 3

Amazon Basics Amazon Basics 42-piece
4.9/10about £10.08
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Start with the screws, not the piece count
  2. 2.The shank and the holder
  3. 3.Length and the case
  4. 4.What this shelf can and cannot do

Start with the screws, not the piece count

Most timber screws sold for UK joinery use a Pozidriv recess: a cross, plus four tick marks. Phillips is a plain cross. Drywall screws are often Phillips when the box says so. Deck screws are often Torx. BuildWiz treats PZ2 as the everyday bit for woodscrews of about 3.5–5.0 mm, and PZ3 for about 6 mm and up. That table is not a British Standard. Look for at least two PZ2 bits. A huge case with one PZ2 is a poor buy. How the crosses differ is on Pozidriv vs Phillips. Amazon Basics names Phillips, slotted, and Torx, and does not name Pozidriv. Milwaukee’s Shockwave text names Torx, Phillips, and hex. Both fail a box of PZ woodscrews.

The shank and the holder

On a combi drill the bit needs a 1/4 inch hex shank. Bahco cites ISO 1173 form C 6.3 on a 22-piece set that is not one of these twelve, and Bosch Professional GB uses the same drive note. Treat that as the usual chuck size, not a certificate for every listing here. A magnetic holder keeps a steel screw on the tip. A lock keeps the bit when the drill reverses. The Bosch 32-piece extra-hard set includes a magnetic holder that locks the bit. The Faithfull set lists a 60 mm magnetic adaptor. Stainless screws do not cling the way ordinary steel does. Impact geometry is a different purchase, on the impact driver bit set page.
Bosch Bosch 32-piece Extra Hard

Testsieger

Bosch Bosch 32-piece Extra Hard
7.5/10about £8.36
View offer

Length and the case

A 25 mm bit is the everyday length. It sits close to the chuck. The GEINXURN pack spells out 25, 50, 75, and 150 mm, including a 150 mm PZ2. Bahco reviewers put the long bits in the 54-piece set at about 150 mm, and they describe those shafts as snapping. If the case cracks or dumps bits, you lose the size you needed. Reviewers call the Bosch extra-hard case easy to break. SWANLAKE bits fall out of the moulding. GEINXURN arrived in a bag. Faithfull, Wera, Draper, and SWANLAKE reviews mention rust after damp. Leave the Bahco weight of 9 g, and a Bosch bullet of 130 × 67 × 45 cm, as listing errors.

What this shelf can and cannot do

Piece count does not buy a better match. The Bahco 100-piece title says 100 pieces while the Number of Pieces field says 1. The Faithfull drive-system field says Phillips only, which is narrower than a contents list with Pozidriv and tamper Torx. A fair first box names Pozidriv, includes more than one PZ2, states a holder, and has a case that stays shut.

Common questions

Is PZ2 enough, or do I need PZ1 and PZ3 as well?
PZ2 covers most 3.5–5.0 mm woodscrews on the BuildWiz table, which is a guide rather than a standard. PZ1 is the smaller end, including around a 3 mm Pozidriv screw on the Wonkee Donkee example, and PZ3 is for about 6 mm and up. If you only assemble flat-pack and hang shelves, two PZ2 bits matter more than a full run of sizes. Add PZ1 and PZ3 when the screw boxes in your cupboard already show those numbers.
What does 1/4 inch hex actually fit?
It is the shank that seats in a standard quick-change holder and in the chuck of a typical combi drill. Bahco and Bosch Professional describe that drive as ISO 1173 C 6.3 on their own bit pages. A bit with a different shank will not lock in that holder. The inch size is the one UK listings use for this shank. Check the chuck you own before you assume a security bit from a hand-tool set will fit.
Are 200 pieces better than 32?
Only if the extra pieces are sizes you will use, with duplicates of PZ2. A 32-piece box that names Pozidriv, Phillips, slotted, Torx, and a holder will drive more household screws than a 200-piece case that is mostly one profile and a cracked lid. Duplicates of the bit you use are useful. A second copy of a size you never meet is not.
Should the set include security Torx?
Include it when you already open appliances, consoles, or furniture with a pin in the middle of the star. For skirting, shelves, and ordinary woodscrews, tamper Torx sits unused. The money is better spent on a second PZ2 and a case that latches. The Faithfull set names tamper Torx, hex security, and spanner bits at £8.99. That is a reason to choose it only if those recesses are on your list this month.
What is a fair price on amazon.co.uk right now?
On 15 October 2026 the sets in this comparison ran from £8.36 to £28.97. A first Pozidriv set with a holder sits comfortably under £15. Paying towards £28 buys more pieces and more weight, not an automatic improvement in the bit you use most. Prices move, and a maker’s own site can show a different figure from amazon.co.uk. Open the listing before you treat these bands as today’s shelf.

Related pages

Screws and accessories

Bit set

Best screwdriver bit set for a first UK combi drill

How to use screwdriver bits without rounding the screw

Impact driver bit set if ordinary tips already snap

Pozidriv vs Phillips and how to tell the crosses apart

Sources

Public UK sources on drive ends, Pozidriv and Phillips, impact-bit wording, satisfactory quality and work equipment. Listing prices and star counts are from the amazon.co.uk extracts kept for this comparison on 15 October 2026. Prices move.

  1. ISO 1173:2001, assembly tools for screws and nuts (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  2. Bosch Professional GB, extra-hard screwdriver bits (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  3. Screwfix, types of screwdrivers (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  4. Bolts.co.uk, Phillips and Pozidriv (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  5. Milwaukee Tool UK, Shockwave impact duty bits (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  6. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  7. GOV.UK, accepting returns and giving refunds (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  8. HSE, PUWER overview (retrieved 16 October 2026)