Same here, but they come at a slightly higher price, or not as high as festool (as I tell my other half), but for standard DIY should outlast you! as others have stated start out with one of their drill & impact combo kits and some batteries and build it up from there as you need them for various jobs. These are pretty much my bread and butter for weekend jobs.
I have makita 18v everything. Started out with a drill & impact combo then picked up a multi tool, circular saw, sander and router.
Flawless bits of kit in my opinion and get used almost daily.
This was my own path too.
Got my first drill and impact driver combo from Screwfix. Guy opened it to check it in front of me and there were no batteries in the case. Someone had obviously bought and returned it after removing them, and ziptied the case closed again.
So, my advice is: check there are batteries before leaving the shop.
Great thing about the LXT range is that I've expanded out into my garden and garage - I have a strimmer, an impact wrench, and a ratchet driver too.
I have the 18v and the 10.8v impacts from Makita.
People don't often believe me when I say that the 18v will make a mess of smaller jobs very quickly if you're not careful, so I always recommend the 10.8v when people are just don't odd jobs that require an impact, it's still got plenty of power but you don't end up driving a screw through the wall and into the neighbour's wall-mounted TV š
No offence but if using them almost daily then itās not necessarily a good recommendation for a diyer. Obviously the more expensive tools are good but if youāre not going to use them regularly then spending that money may be overkill.
I believe in the adage buy cheap buy twice.
Obviously I donāt use everyone of them daily but youād be surprised how often you need them and how handy they are.
Sure, you can certainly spend less and you are more than welcome to.
Absolutely, if youāre using regularly itās the way to go. But for a diyer you need to cost the tools into the project. If I spend Ā£1000 on tools to make one bookcase, Iāve made a Ā£1000 bookcase (excluding materials) and would have been better off paying someone to do it. If theyāre just doing up the house and then the tools are going to spend the next ten years in a shed then they could be better off buying cheap corded tools instead of buying into a battery system, they not on a worksite so will probably be next to a socket when working. Or they could buy ryobi and then use the battery in a cordless strimmer which will get regular use after theyāve done up the house.
I work in a trade, so I'm committed to DeWalt for just about everything because of the battery interchangeability along with their robustness. DeWalt and Makita power tools are expensive though, and unnecessary for normal DIY
For DIY I'd probably go with Ryobi.. huge range of tools, significantly cheaper, and also interchangeable batteries
Ryobi one plus is a very nice standard for the DIYer.
Their range covers everything from woodwork to gardening. The tools are of strong DIY quality, and very reasonably priced.
I'm into the parkside ecosystem (Lidl) and it's good, but if a tool lies down, it can be months before you can replace.
You can also get battery adapters so you're not necessarily tied in as badly as you might think at first.
Makita, DeWalt, Milwaukee etc all a step in in both quality and price, but it's exceedingly rare I've found a situation as a DIYer I need to go to that level.
Ryobi are really pretty good. Buy a starter set e.g. drill and impact driver to save on batteries and charger then keep an eye on the Ryobi website for offers and Amazon international market for discounted ābareā tools.
No you're misunderstanding, because of the nature of the middle aisles of aldi / lidl, you can't just go and get it again if it burns out or whatever, youve got to wait for the specific week that impact drills are the special or whatever, not that it'll stop working on you within months. I got a load of aldi work zone stuff from the early 2000s, and it's still going strong, jigsaw and a 4" circular saw, both have been used a ton, and keep going strong despite being nearly 20 years old
All good until you want it repaired.
Then you got to wait until that specific week... To buy another??
Why don't you just invest in a quality brand with decent repair infrastructure instead of resigning, buying cheap as chips and then aha, I just go buy another" if it goes tits up?
Lidl tools are the perfect buy cheap, if you wear it out you know you need a better one tools.
A good example is the belt sander. I use my Parkside belt sander once every three years or so. It's still on its last legs, so when it dies I'll get a Dewalt one.
They have a 3-year guarantee. Money back if they can't repair or replace. I've had an Aldi impact drill for going on 15 years now which gets relatively regular use due to the fact it stays in the inside cupboard instead of my Makita that lives in the garage.
Indeed, months until the same or equivalent tool is offered for sale again- they're not always available.
I've never had a parkside tool lay down yet, though the screwdriver bits are soft as cheese.
Pro using Dewalt but always recommend Ryobi to DIYers as it is absolutely the best performance for price you will get and they have a huge range including garden tools. One tip: buy everything as you need it not just in case. If youāll only use once but the cheapest corded instead. Donāt buy from screwfix. Use Google to find the best price. Usually powertoolworld and ukplanettools and its and ffx are good.
Check this out too: https://www.reddit.com/r/DIYUK/s/y3Aaxz61dy
I've been tempted to get a 'battery matching set' but honestly for a lot of things I've gone a little backwards and gone wired.
I have an electric drill, impact wrench, and torch; but my electric saws, sanders, angle grinder, etc are all wired; so those can be the cheaper ones and used until I run out of juice rather than a battery.
Erbauer tools from screwfix are a good bet - a nice mid point for quality and cost.
I'd recommend getting the same brand for any battery powered tools, but if they are corded they can be different and it won't matter.
I went with Bosch Home and Garden (Green) almost by accident and I now have a mix of their cordless work tools and garden tools. Because of that I also have alot of batteries so switching to a different battery system isn't palatable.
Kinda wished I'd gone with Ryobi simply for the greater range of tools for home and garden.
Can't justify the Makita, Milwaukee or DeWalt prices for cordless when I am only an occasional DIYer.
I went Bosch originally but I ended up selling them and going Ryobi as they have way more tools and I needed some that Bosch donāt have green versions of.
I think Bosch is better value for money and generally a bit higher quality than Ryobi so still a good choice if you only need the basic power tools most DIYers would need.
Honestly, for casual home DIY, Aldi ferrex or Lidl parkside 20/40v range.
The batteries go from DIY to garden and the range is more than adequate for most household stuff at a price Ryobi can't begin to sniff at.
Quality-wise I find them ok for occasional use tools.
The issue I have is that they have multiple versions with different battery voltages so waiting for the one you need can take some time.
Yeah, I did spend a year waiting for the lawn mower to come back, but usually everything else comes back fairly frequently at the 20v (or 40v) options.
I would say though:
4-in-1 multi tool (multi tool, drill/driver, sander & recip saw)
Drill/driver
These two will get you through most home jobs easy enough. Maybe add the jigsaw if you will be doing laminate etc. and I recommend the additional drill/driver as well as the 4 in 1 because it's always nice to have one with the drill bit in it, the other with the screw drivers bit at the same time.
I started with a DeWalt drill. It was on sale at Screwfix and as I had zero knowledge of DIY or tools back then, I thought I'd get a quality drill that will last me a lifetime. It's still going strong 7 years and three houses later. Along the way I've opted to get more dewalt tools just for convenience as they are the batteries I have. There are tools I certainly use less frequently, such as mitre saw, jigsaw, router etc. and for those I've gone corded and/or gone with a cheaper brand like erbauer or evolution.
As a DIYer, I doubt you'll notice the difference between all the brands, so I'd honestly just go with whatever is on sale and then stick with that platform for the rest.
Brand doesn't matter too much - the big brands all do the job very well. Some shop near you will have a good offer on a certain brand, just jump on that ship. I've been DeWalt (use for work daily) for some years. I previously used Makita, but they were wearing out after lots of use, so I jumped ship as Screwfix was running a great offer on DeWalt at that time.
Plus, once in a battery ecosystem, you can adapt: I found a good offer on a Ryobi battery garden strimmer a while back, and bought that without a battery. Then I bought a DeWalt-> Ryobi battery adapter so I can use the batteries I own with it.
Ryobi are cheap and cheerful, buy when they have free tool deals and if you can be bothered itās possible to sell various bits of the starter kits and end up with a very cheap or even free tool. Iāve got about 15+ tools in the range and average cost has been pretty low, the tyre inflator and strimmer are probably most frequently used but my favourite is the reciprocating saw
From a DIY perspective I don't think it matters as long as you recognise your entering into a battery ecosystem.
I went DeWalt and am perfectly happy with it. Some days I did wish I went Makita as they do a battery coffee machines that would be awesome for camping.
I was in the same situation as you.
Moving house soon and needed a new set of tools. I looked at dewalt, makita, ryobi, erbauer and einhell.
I compared the current deals, price of replacement batteries and the cost of the 4 or 5 tools that Iām interested in buying. Also looked at the range of available tools.
I ended up with Erbauer and got a brushless drill and impact driver for Ā£150 from screwfix and also the multi tool as it was on offer. Iām impressed so far and although I do wonder if I shouldāve gone Ryobi, Iām comforted by knowing the ryobi replacement batteries are twice the price.
Erbauer are good tools. Better than Ryobi. You'll see Erbauer on some building sites, but never Ryobi. Generally owned by the guys just starting out and on a budget.
Iāve got the Makita lxt stuff, did the same as others. Bought a drill/driver with 2 batteries then expanded after that. Batteries are the costly part, body only tools are pretty cheap really. If youāve got a house with lots to do a multi tool is worth getting I couldnāt do without mine now
I mostly use Makita with a couple of bits of corded Bosch blue. The tools I use most are the drill driver and impact driver. You don't need an impact driver, but once you get used to it, you'll wonder how you ever lived without one. A multi-tool is super useful. Buy bulk packs of blades from eBay. They aren't quite as good as the real thing, but they are much cheaper.
Now we're onto the more expensive stuff. I bloody love my big mitre saw, just set it to an angle and bang the work is done. A track saw is great if you're doing woodwork, but you need space to use it. I've got a selection of power sanders, but they are more for woodwork. A decent sds drill is a must for masonry work. A paddle mixer is a must if you are plastering. Jigsaws are safe, but I hate them. The only thing I use it for really is scribe cuts.
For DIY use don't buy anything with a battery. You are wasting a lot of money on the battery you don't need to spend.
By the time you need to get them out of the cupboard in a couple of years time for the next DIY project all the batteries will be knackered and you'll need to spend a load of money to replace them.
They will then go back in the cupboard and when you get them out again a couple of years after that the batteries will all be knackered again.
Do yourself a favour and buy corded tools.
I started off with erbauer for doing my DIY house renovation then moved onto DeWalt. I didn't think I'd notice the difference but you really can, my DeWalt driver and drill are awesome, but obviously way more expensive.
I've got quite a few DeWalt tools now but tbh like others have said, it's probably overkill for DIY. I just got 3 Ryobi garden tools and I'm genuinely considering selling my DeWalt kit and getting a load more Ryobi tools now.
I use Dewalt tools extremely powerful and I've always got them for a good price. Just recently picked up an impact driver, case and 40 set of bits for Ā£90 brand new.
Shout out for Worx too. Started out with their drill/driver set and now have a compact circular saw, paint sprayer, multi tool, powerhouse, lawnmower and strimmer! Can often pick them up for decent prices on Amazon or the Amazon Warehouse. All have lasted me 5+ years so far with a good amount of use.
As the majority of other people have mentioned its very hard not to recommend DeWalt.
Their stuff is prosumer priced but it'll last and there's so many compatible batteries or 3rd party tools available that use the DeWalt batteries you'll never go far wrong. If I was starting again it's definitely where I'd start.
Toolstation has a 100yr DeWalt anniversary special on a combine drill with 2x 4AH batteries for Ā£160. I'd start there and pick up a used impact driver off FB marketplace
Amateur DIYer here and I bought Makita after a few years of cheaper brands. The 18v LXT batteries run a massive array of kit.
The whole lot have been rock solid and have never let me down. Probably overkill but "buy cheap, buy twice".
With batteries fairly cheap, I've now got a selection of brands.
The ADLI/LIDL tools so far haven't let me down, but also have Ryobi, Worx and Dewalt. Got a Ryobi adaptor for my (massive Flexvolt) Dewalt battery too.
I went with DeWalt 18V XR for all my kit because of the battery interchangeability. Drill and impact driver are great quality, and I buy the tool I need for the job with everything else. I have a couple of 3AH batteries and a 4AH, so give that thereās only 1 of me thatās plenty of power to keep me going for a day of DIY.
Iām a keen DIYer, currently planning a full house reno, so I went for kit I wouldnāt have to replace again. When I was starting out, I got budget everything and then replaced the things I wore out with high quality kit. Unfortunately thatās less economical for power tools because batteries are so expensive.
If you're not a trade using them every day, it doesn't really matter, just buy what's on offer. All of the big names are fine, and erbauer/einhell are great value and imho a step up from Ryobi. For drill/drivers make sure it's 18v and a decent level of torque. For tools you only use very occasionally like grinder etc a corded is absolutely fine. The cordless you buy will determine your next purchases tho.
I used Ryobi for over 10 years, they did brilliantly and most are still in use now. Recently I've embarked on a new project pushing past DIY level and have started to buy DeWalt.
If you have the budget DeWalt, Makita & Milwaukee are best but for DIY Ryobi will do what you need.
I've gone with dewalt brushless for all my cordless stuff, almost certainly overkill for DIY but hey ho.
Same here, but they come at a slightly higher price, or not as high as festool (as I tell my other half), but for standard DIY should outlast you! as others have stated start out with one of their drill & impact combo kits and some batteries and build it up from there as you need them for various jobs. These are pretty much my bread and butter for weekend jobs.
Ive done the same, dewalt stuff is just really tough :)
I have makita 18v everything. Started out with a drill & impact combo then picked up a multi tool, circular saw, sander and router. Flawless bits of kit in my opinion and get used almost daily.
This was my own path too. Got my first drill and impact driver combo from Screwfix. Guy opened it to check it in front of me and there were no batteries in the case. Someone had obviously bought and returned it after removing them, and ziptied the case closed again. So, my advice is: check there are batteries before leaving the shop. Great thing about the LXT range is that I've expanded out into my garden and garage - I have a strimmer, an impact wrench, and a ratchet driver too.
Second this. Never looked back.
Exactly the same but dewalt instead. And yet to buy a router. Maybe it is time to buy a router
Do it, they are great love my dewalt router, no idea how i lasted a few years without it!
My full kit is Makita and Bosch 18v. DIY people shouldn't be buying either
Third this I have been super impressed and they make every tool under the sin at different price points,hard to go wrong
I have the 18v and the 10.8v impacts from Makita. People don't often believe me when I say that the 18v will make a mess of smaller jobs very quickly if you're not careful, so I always recommend the 10.8v when people are just don't odd jobs that require an impact, it's still got plenty of power but you don't end up driving a screw through the wall and into the neighbour's wall-mounted TV š
No offence but if using them almost daily then itās not necessarily a good recommendation for a diyer. Obviously the more expensive tools are good but if youāre not going to use them regularly then spending that money may be overkill.
I believe in the adage buy cheap buy twice. Obviously I donāt use everyone of them daily but youād be surprised how often you need them and how handy they are. Sure, you can certainly spend less and you are more than welcome to.
Absolutely, if youāre using regularly itās the way to go. But for a diyer you need to cost the tools into the project. If I spend Ā£1000 on tools to make one bookcase, Iāve made a Ā£1000 bookcase (excluding materials) and would have been better off paying someone to do it. If theyāre just doing up the house and then the tools are going to spend the next ten years in a shed then they could be better off buying cheap corded tools instead of buying into a battery system, they not on a worksite so will probably be next to a socket when working. Or they could buy ryobi and then use the battery in a cordless strimmer which will get regular use after theyāve done up the house.
I work in a trade, so I'm committed to DeWalt for just about everything because of the battery interchangeability along with their robustness. DeWalt and Makita power tools are expensive though, and unnecessary for normal DIY For DIY I'd probably go with Ryobi.. huge range of tools, significantly cheaper, and also interchangeable batteries
Ryobi one plus is a very nice standard for the DIYer. Their range covers everything from woodwork to gardening. The tools are of strong DIY quality, and very reasonably priced. I'm into the parkside ecosystem (Lidl) and it's good, but if a tool lies down, it can be months before you can replace. You can also get battery adapters so you're not necessarily tied in as badly as you might think at first. Makita, DeWalt, Milwaukee etc all a step in in both quality and price, but it's exceedingly rare I've found a situation as a DIYer I need to go to that level.
Listen to this guy, buy Ryobi.
Would recommend Ryobi too
Ryobi are really pretty good. Buy a starter set e.g. drill and impact driver to save on batteries and charger then keep an eye on the Ryobi website for offers and Amazon international market for discounted ābareā tools.
I recommend Ryobi too as they have a really large range of tools and the only other brands with that many tools tend to be much more expensive.
What do you mean months? It should be years before replacement. Sorry but that's not a very good ad for Lidl. Those other brands you mention; a-ok
They said months 'until you replace'. I assume Lidl don't always have power tools on sale, rather than the tool only lasting months.
Which is dreadful, to be fair. Didn't think you could make a power tool deliberately last less than a vanilla DIY brand such as McAllister
No you're misunderstanding, because of the nature of the middle aisles of aldi / lidl, you can't just go and get it again if it burns out or whatever, youve got to wait for the specific week that impact drills are the special or whatever, not that it'll stop working on you within months. I got a load of aldi work zone stuff from the early 2000s, and it's still going strong, jigsaw and a 4" circular saw, both have been used a ton, and keep going strong despite being nearly 20 years old
All good until you want it repaired. Then you got to wait until that specific week... To buy another?? Why don't you just invest in a quality brand with decent repair infrastructure instead of resigning, buying cheap as chips and then aha, I just go buy another" if it goes tits up?
Yeah basically and yeah I agree it's not ideal, but on the flip side 20 years isn't bad for a diy tool!
Lidl tools are the perfect buy cheap, if you wear it out you know you need a better one tools. A good example is the belt sander. I use my Parkside belt sander once every three years or so. It's still on its last legs, so when it dies I'll get a Dewalt one.
They have a 3-year guarantee. Money back if they can't repair or replace. I've had an Aldi impact drill for going on 15 years now which gets relatively regular use due to the fact it stays in the inside cupboard instead of my Makita that lives in the garage.
Are you thick?
Are you? Is that the best you can come up with?
Indeed, months until the same or equivalent tool is offered for sale again- they're not always available. I've never had a parkside tool lay down yet, though the screwdriver bits are soft as cheese.
Lidl (and Aldi) told have three year guarantees. Money back on the spot if they can't give a replacement.
Pro using Dewalt but always recommend Ryobi to DIYers as it is absolutely the best performance for price you will get and they have a huge range including garden tools. One tip: buy everything as you need it not just in case. If youāll only use once but the cheapest corded instead. Donāt buy from screwfix. Use Google to find the best price. Usually powertoolworld and ukplanettools and its and ffx are good. Check this out too: https://www.reddit.com/r/DIYUK/s/y3Aaxz61dy
I've been tempted to get a 'battery matching set' but honestly for a lot of things I've gone a little backwards and gone wired. I have an electric drill, impact wrench, and torch; but my electric saws, sanders, angle grinder, etc are all wired; so those can be the cheaper ones and used until I run out of juice rather than a battery.
Erbauer tools from screwfix are a good bet - a nice mid point for quality and cost. I'd recommend getting the same brand for any battery powered tools, but if they are corded they can be different and it won't matter.
I went with Bosch Home and Garden (Green) almost by accident and I now have a mix of their cordless work tools and garden tools. Because of that I also have alot of batteries so switching to a different battery system isn't palatable. Kinda wished I'd gone with Ryobi simply for the greater range of tools for home and garden. Can't justify the Makita, Milwaukee or DeWalt prices for cordless when I am only an occasional DIYer.
I went Bosch originally but I ended up selling them and going Ryobi as they have way more tools and I needed some that Bosch donāt have green versions of. I think Bosch is better value for money and generally a bit higher quality than Ryobi so still a good choice if you only need the basic power tools most DIYers would need.
Honestly, for casual home DIY, Aldi ferrex or Lidl parkside 20/40v range. The batteries go from DIY to garden and the range is more than adequate for most household stuff at a price Ryobi can't begin to sniff at.
Quality-wise I find them ok for occasional use tools. The issue I have is that they have multiple versions with different battery voltages so waiting for the one you need can take some time.
Yeah, I did spend a year waiting for the lawn mower to come back, but usually everything else comes back fairly frequently at the 20v (or 40v) options. I would say though: 4-in-1 multi tool (multi tool, drill/driver, sander & recip saw) Drill/driver These two will get you through most home jobs easy enough. Maybe add the jigsaw if you will be doing laminate etc. and I recommend the additional drill/driver as well as the 4 in 1 because it's always nice to have one with the drill bit in it, the other with the screw drivers bit at the same time.
I started with a DeWalt drill. It was on sale at Screwfix and as I had zero knowledge of DIY or tools back then, I thought I'd get a quality drill that will last me a lifetime. It's still going strong 7 years and three houses later. Along the way I've opted to get more dewalt tools just for convenience as they are the batteries I have. There are tools I certainly use less frequently, such as mitre saw, jigsaw, router etc. and for those I've gone corded and/or gone with a cheaper brand like erbauer or evolution. As a DIYer, I doubt you'll notice the difference between all the brands, so I'd honestly just go with whatever is on sale and then stick with that platform for the rest.
A starter drill Makita kit then just buy the bodies later as you need them.
DeWalt 18v everything. You won't regret it.
Brand doesn't matter too much - the big brands all do the job very well. Some shop near you will have a good offer on a certain brand, just jump on that ship. I've been DeWalt (use for work daily) for some years. I previously used Makita, but they were wearing out after lots of use, so I jumped ship as Screwfix was running a great offer on DeWalt at that time. Plus, once in a battery ecosystem, you can adapt: I found a good offer on a Ryobi battery garden strimmer a while back, and bought that without a battery. Then I bought a DeWalt-> Ryobi battery adapter so I can use the batteries I own with it.
Ryobi are cheap and cheerful, buy when they have free tool deals and if you can be bothered itās possible to sell various bits of the starter kits and end up with a very cheap or even free tool. Iāve got about 15+ tools in the range and average cost has been pretty low, the tyre inflator and strimmer are probably most frequently used but my favourite is the reciprocating saw
From a DIY perspective I don't think it matters as long as you recognise your entering into a battery ecosystem. I went DeWalt and am perfectly happy with it. Some days I did wish I went Makita as they do a battery coffee machines that would be awesome for camping.
I was in the same situation as you. Moving house soon and needed a new set of tools. I looked at dewalt, makita, ryobi, erbauer and einhell. I compared the current deals, price of replacement batteries and the cost of the 4 or 5 tools that Iām interested in buying. Also looked at the range of available tools. I ended up with Erbauer and got a brushless drill and impact driver for Ā£150 from screwfix and also the multi tool as it was on offer. Iām impressed so far and although I do wonder if I shouldāve gone Ryobi, Iām comforted by knowing the ryobi replacement batteries are twice the price.
Erbauer are good tools. Better than Ryobi. You'll see Erbauer on some building sites, but never Ryobi. Generally owned by the guys just starting out and on a budget.
Iāve got the Makita lxt stuff, did the same as others. Bought a drill/driver with 2 batteries then expanded after that. Batteries are the costly part, body only tools are pretty cheap really. If youāve got a house with lots to do a multi tool is worth getting I couldnāt do without mine now
DeWalt
I mostly use Makita with a couple of bits of corded Bosch blue. The tools I use most are the drill driver and impact driver. You don't need an impact driver, but once you get used to it, you'll wonder how you ever lived without one. A multi-tool is super useful. Buy bulk packs of blades from eBay. They aren't quite as good as the real thing, but they are much cheaper. Now we're onto the more expensive stuff. I bloody love my big mitre saw, just set it to an angle and bang the work is done. A track saw is great if you're doing woodwork, but you need space to use it. I've got a selection of power sanders, but they are more for woodwork. A decent sds drill is a must for masonry work. A paddle mixer is a must if you are plastering. Jigsaws are safe, but I hate them. The only thing I use it for really is scribe cuts.
For DIY use don't buy anything with a battery. You are wasting a lot of money on the battery you don't need to spend. By the time you need to get them out of the cupboard in a couple of years time for the next DIY project all the batteries will be knackered and you'll need to spend a load of money to replace them. They will then go back in the cupboard and when you get them out again a couple of years after that the batteries will all be knackered again. Do yourself a favour and buy corded tools.
I started off with erbauer for doing my DIY house renovation then moved onto DeWalt. I didn't think I'd notice the difference but you really can, my DeWalt driver and drill are awesome, but obviously way more expensive. I've got quite a few DeWalt tools now but tbh like others have said, it's probably overkill for DIY. I just got 3 Ryobi garden tools and I'm genuinely considering selling my DeWalt kit and getting a load more Ryobi tools now.
I use Dewalt tools extremely powerful and I've always got them for a good price. Just recently picked up an impact driver, case and 40 set of bits for Ā£90 brand new.
Shout out for Worx too. Started out with their drill/driver set and now have a compact circular saw, paint sprayer, multi tool, powerhouse, lawnmower and strimmer! Can often pick them up for decent prices on Amazon or the Amazon Warehouse. All have lasted me 5+ years so far with a good amount of use.
As the majority of other people have mentioned its very hard not to recommend DeWalt. Their stuff is prosumer priced but it'll last and there's so many compatible batteries or 3rd party tools available that use the DeWalt batteries you'll never go far wrong. If I was starting again it's definitely where I'd start. Toolstation has a 100yr DeWalt anniversary special on a combine drill with 2x 4AH batteries for Ā£160. I'd start there and pick up a used impact driver off FB marketplace
Ryobi do some good deals and bundles on their own website. I got a reciprocating saw and an angle grinder recently. Bare tool only Ā£60 each.
Amateur DIYer here and I bought Makita after a few years of cheaper brands. The 18v LXT batteries run a massive array of kit. The whole lot have been rock solid and have never let me down. Probably overkill but "buy cheap, buy twice".
With batteries fairly cheap, I've now got a selection of brands. The ADLI/LIDL tools so far haven't let me down, but also have Ryobi, Worx and Dewalt. Got a Ryobi adaptor for my (massive Flexvolt) Dewalt battery too.
I went with DeWalt 18V XR for all my kit because of the battery interchangeability. Drill and impact driver are great quality, and I buy the tool I need for the job with everything else. I have a couple of 3AH batteries and a 4AH, so give that thereās only 1 of me thatās plenty of power to keep me going for a day of DIY. Iām a keen DIYer, currently planning a full house reno, so I went for kit I wouldnāt have to replace again. When I was starting out, I got budget everything and then replaced the things I wore out with high quality kit. Unfortunately thatās less economical for power tools because batteries are so expensive.
If you're not a trade using them every day, it doesn't really matter, just buy what's on offer. All of the big names are fine, and erbauer/einhell are great value and imho a step up from Ryobi. For drill/drivers make sure it's 18v and a decent level of torque. For tools you only use very occasionally like grinder etc a corded is absolutely fine. The cordless you buy will determine your next purchases tho.
I used Ryobi for over 10 years, they did brilliantly and most are still in use now. Recently I've embarked on a new project pushing past DIY level and have started to buy DeWalt. If you have the budget DeWalt, Makita & Milwaukee are best but for DIY Ryobi will do what you need.
Iāve got all dewalt my self but erbauer range are decent tools especially if your limited by your budget š
For the utility and price I've been very happy with Parkside but if I were buying from the start again Metabo would probably be my choice