10 Best Walk Behind Mowers in 2022
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Maintaining your yard is an important process when you want your home to look its best, and in order to make your life as easy as possible and reduce yard maintenance time and effort, you’re going to want the best walk behind mower possible. Walk behind lawn mowers are great for any yard that’s relatively sizable but not really big enough for a ride on lawn mower, or any living situation where you don’t have either the storage space or the money for a large, expensive ride on mower.
Walk behind mower models are often the best lawn mower for the money, making them a great way to balance between power and expense, for an affordable yet effective best lawn mower for medium lawns. Finding the best lawn mowers can be difficult, whether you’re looking for the best push lawn mower, the best mulching mower, or the best self-propelled lawn mower.
Add to that the fact that the best self-propelled lawn mower 2017 or best self-propelled lawn mower 2018 might be outdated in 2022, and the process of buying a new walk behind mower can be intimidating. Below, you can find our best push mower reviews, breaking down 10 of our best lawnmowers to help you understand the major features and advantages of each model of walk behind mower on the market in 2022.
View the Best Walk Behind Mower, Below.
- Greenworks 25022 Corded Lawn Mower
- Greenworks 25302 Cordless Lawn Mower
- American Lawn Mower Company 1204-14
- BLACK+DECKER BESTA512CM
- Sun Joe MJ401E Mow Joe
- Great States 204-14 Hand Reel Mower
- Greenworks MO40B410 Cordless Lawn Mower
- Sun Joe AJ801E
- Fiskars 362050-1001 Reel Mower
- Greenworks MO40B411 Cordless Lawn Mower
1. Greenworks 25022 Corded Lawn Mower
An exceptionally lightweight yet remarkably durable walk behind lawn mower, the Greenworks 25022 Corded Lawn Mower is a powerful and user-friendly model of mower that’s suitable for users of any confidence and experience level, as well as being appropriate for lawns of any size and style. Featuring a 7 position adjustable cutting height, this corded lawn mower can cut grass to any height from under 1 inch to a full 2 inches.
The body of the lawn mower features a 3 in 1 design, allowing for side discharge, rear bag collecting, or even functioning as a mulching mower. The simple push-button starting system makes this an exceptionally easy to use model of walk behind mower, requiring only a single button press in order to start mowing.
The Greenworks 25022 Corded Lawn Mower is a powerful yet compact walk behind mower designed for easy use. Its handy push-button start system keeps it easy to start up, avoiding the usual need for complex engine starting processes.
Check Price on Amazon ➞2. Greenworks 25302 Cordless Lawn Mower
The Greenworks 25302 Cordless Lawn Mower is a well-designed walk behind mower with a number of helpful technological advantages for a smoother and more customizable lawn mowing experience.
The innovative smart cut technology built into this walk behind mower automatically adjusts to favor runtime or cutting power depending on the thickness and ease of cutting of your grass.
In addition to this, the dual blades offer a better and smoother quality of cut, as well as increasing the bagging capabilities and ensuring that this is one of the best mulching mower models available.
Its cutting height can be easily adjusted to trim your grass to heights ranging from 1 inch to over 3 inches, allowing you to customize its cutting to fit any desired lawn aesthetic.
Efficient and powerful, the Greenworks 25302 Cordless Lawn Mower is a large and easy to use cordless walk behind mower, well designed to rapidly trim a wide area of lawn with minimal effort.
Check Price on Amazon ➞3. American Lawn Mower Company 1204-14
The American Lawn Mower Company 1204 14 walk behind mower is designed to offer all the power and cutting efficiency of a large gas-powered mower with the lightweight body, user-friendly starting system, and cleaner air of an electric lawn mower.
This is a versatile and powerful lawn mower that is easy to use and efficient, offering a highly customizable mowing experience that can be easily adjusted to fit any user size or desired height of grass, no matter your lawn mowing plans and preferences.
The handle can be adjusted to a wide range of different user heights, or even folded away for easy, compact storage, while the cutting height can be adjusted from 1 inch to over 2 inches.
Simple and lightweight, the American Lawn Mower Company 1204 14 is a beginner friendly walk behind mower for a cleaner, more efficient mowing experience with none of the mess, fumes, or effort of a gas powered lawn mower.
4. BLACK+DECKER BESTA512CM
The Black and Decker BESTA 512CM walk behind mower is a small and lightweight mower that offers a remarkably high level of versatility and functionality for such a compact mowing machine, allowing you to use it as a mower in its default configuration or replace the head to use it as a trimmer, an option which can be simply rotated to function as an edger in addition to the two main functions.
This versatility makes it an excellent choice for most users, filling the roles of 3 different major lawn maintenance tools in a compact package. The engine is surprisingly powerful, with a Power Drive transmission system enabling the Black and Decker BESTA512CM to chew through tough weeds and overgrowth with no issues, as well as simple lawn grass trimming.
Compact, lightweight, and versatile, the Black and Decker BESTA 512CM is a handy garden tool that’s suitable for even those with major storage space limitations, offering the functionality of 3 different mowing devices in a small package.
Check Price on Amazon ➞5. Sun Joe MJ401E Mow Joe
Built for raw trimming power and lightweight, easy to use design, the Sun Joe MJ401E Mow Joe is one of the best walk behind mower options out there for simplicity and efficiency.
Its powerful electric motor and 3500 RPM blade rotation allow it to cover a large lawn at relatively high speeds; this walk behind mower is well suited to lawns of up to ¼ acre in size.
The integrated grass catcher is detachable for easy disposal of clippings, while the main body of the mower is relatively compact, allowing for easier storage and a lighter, more comfortable mowing experience for those with relatively limited upper body strength.
The Sun Joe MJ401E Mow Joe is a walk behind mower designed for power and efficiency as well as ease of use. Lacking many of the additional features and optional extras of its competitors, this walk behind mower is focused more on power, making it one of the best lawnmower models available.
Check Price on Amazon ➞6. Great States 204-14 Hand Reel Mower
The Great States 204-14 Hand Reel Mower is a push mower, following a design system that relies on simple wheel mechanics to cut the grass, with blades turning automatically as you push the mower across your lawn rather than requiring any external power source.
This means that there is no risk of battery depletion or problems with insufficient cord length and that the mower is easy to maintain,, requiring no gas or oil, but only simple cleaning. This is an environmentally friendly option, producing no emissions, and the only limitation on its mowing power is your own pushing strength and stamina.
A simple push mower with premium construction features, the Great States 204 14 Hand Reel Mower is an intuitive, easy to use and maintain model of push mower for a more environmentally friendly mowing experience.
Check Price on Amazon ➞7. Greenworks MO40B410 Cordless Lawn Mower
The Greenworks MO40 B410 Cordless Lawn Mower is a lightweight yet powerful walk behind mower that offers a high level of functionality in a simple and user-friendly package.
Its durable body features a 2 in 1 design, allowing it to function as a mulching mower as well as bagging grass clippings at the back, adding to the versatility of this model of walk behind mower.
Its cutting height can be adjusted to allow trims ranging from 1 inch in length to over 3 inches, making this a great choice no matter your preferred length of grass. The battery of this model of walk behind mower holds a long charge, allowing many users to mow an entire lawn on a single charge with ease and no need to worry about efficiency along the way.
As with most Greenworks mowers, the Greenworks MO40B410 Cordless Lawn Mower is a lightweight and user-friendly model of walk behind mower ideal for smaller lawns and any level of user experience or confidence.
Check Price on Amazon ➞8. Sun Joe AJ801E
The Sun Joe AJ801E walk behind mower, dethatcher, and scarifier is a powerful, rugged mowing device for high-performance lawn maintenance on any terrain. Its large wheels are equipped with a rugged surface to allow easy travel over even rough terrain, helping you to trim and revitalize less even areas of your lawn easily and effectively.
The depth control knob allows everything from a close half inch trim to raking half an inch beneath the soil for root maintenance and soil aeration. The dethatching wheel is built with spring steel tines for added sharpness, helping your Sun Joe AJ801E walk behind mower to operate at peak efficiency for as long as possible, no matter how heavily you use your mower or how tough the soil and roots of your lawn may be.
The scarifier functionality of the Sun Joe AJ801E allows it to serve a valuable function, cutting grass roots and encouraging thicker and healthier grass growth to revitalize your lawn effectively if used regularly.
Check Price on Amazon ➞9. Fiskars 362050-1001 Reel Mower
An easy to use and environmentally friendly option, the Fiskars 362050-1001 reel Mower is a push mower, requiring no external power source. This means that it is driven entirely by wheel rotation as you manually push it across the lawn, eliminating the risk of running out of charge or fuel half way through mowing, or of insufficient cord length interrupting your mowing process and delaying matters.
It is easy to maintain and use, requiring only simple cleaning, and offers exceptionally high cutting power with StaySharp blade design and an Inertia Drive wheel for added power, making this one of the best push mower models in 2022.
Environmentally friendly, easy to use, and easy to maintain, the Fiskars 362050 1001 Reel Mower is an exceptionally high-performance push mower that offers an unusually smooth, powerful trim for such a simple design.
Check Price on Amazon ➞10. Greenworks MO40B411 Cordless Lawn Mower
The Greenworks MO40B411 Cordless Lawn Mower is another simple yet powerful model of mower from Greenworks, one of the best walk behind mower brands of 2022.
The lightweight and relatively compact body of this walk behind mower means that it is easy to use no matter your upper body strength or stamina, and its cordless functionality helps it to cover a large area of lawn with no need to worry about power cord length.
The battery holds enough charge to allow many users to mow their entire lawn on a single charge, while the cutting height can be adjusted from 1 inch to over 3 inches to allow customization to fit any preference of grass height and desired lawn aesthetic.
Lightweight and easy to use, the Greenworks MO40B411 Cordless Lawn Mower offers a high level of cutting power in a user-friendly package that does not require any special expertise to get the best out of it.
Check Price on Amazon ➞Walk Behind Mower Buyer’s Guide
How to Start a Lawn Mower?
There are many different types of walk behind mowers, from the self-propelled lawn mower to the push mower and beyond. All of these will require slightly different methods to start up, but there are a number of systems that can be used for the vast majority of mowers.
Firstly it’s worth mentioning push mowers as the major outlier. As these are powered by your own pushing, rotary push mowers don’t require any effort at all to start up, and can simply be pushed across the grass to begin trimming the grass.
Other lawn mowers follow some similar steps, however. First, make sure that the lawn is clear of rocks and children’s toys, or any other items that you might not wish to mow. Move your lawn mower to the grass and ensure that it’s fully on the grass rather than partially hanging over any paved areas.
If your mower requires fuel, make sure it’s been filled, and if it’s battery-powered ensure that either the battery is charged or the cord is plugged in before you start; running out of power while you mow the lawn can be frustrating and slow down your mowing significantly.
Next, find the priming button. This is a large, soft button mounted somewhere on the body of the mower, usually in a red or black color for easy visibility. Push it 3 or 4 times in order to prepare the motor to start.
Not all mowers have prime buttons, though, so don’t worry if you can’t find it! It may be worth checking the manual of your walk behind mower to find out whether your lawn mower has a prime button or not.
Then, open the throttle. Find the throttle lever, usually mounted on the handle of your walk behind mower, and pull it up to a medium or high position. This enables the engine to run continually once you’ve started it up.
Then you’re ready to start completely! If there’s a lever on your mower’s handle, squeeze that, and pull the starter handle upwards sharply and powerfully. If that doesn’t do anything, give it a couple more tries. It can take a couple of pulls to start a lawn mower motor properly, so don’t worry. Once you’ve done that, your mower should start, and you’ll be all ready to mow your lawn!
Don’t fancy walking? Try a riding lawn mower!
How to Change Oil in Lawn Mower?
Much like a car, a lawn mower requires regular oil changes to keep it running smoothly and prevent its lifespan from being dramatically reduced. Even the best walk behind mower requires this maintenance, so it’s worth knowing how to do it properly!
First, unplug the mower and disconnect the spark plug to ensure that your walk behind lawn mower oil change process is entirely safe and secure. Then, empty the fuel tank completely with a hand siphon in order to prevent accidental spillage or fires during the maintenance process.
Find the oil drain plug, which is usually a square, recessed plug on the underside of the mower, easy to remove with socket wrenches. Place a drain pan beneath the mower to catch the escaping oil, and carefully loosen the drain plug.
Once oil stops flowing out of the mower, tighten the drain plug again, being careful not to over tighten, and drain the used oil into an empty oil can with a funnel so that you can dispose of it safely later.
Find the oil filler hole, usually mounted on the top of your lawn mower body, and remove the dip stick. Using a funnel, carefully pour fresh oil into the hole until it is near, but not quite touching, the top of the cavity. Then carefully reattach the lid of the oil filler hole, replace the spark plug and cables, and you’re ready to start mowing again!
How to Clean Lawn Mower Carburetor?
If your lawnmower starts up but then chokes and stops, or dies when cutting grass, starts and then dies or the engine surges and chokes, then it’s time to clean your carburetor. A blocked carburetor is one of the most common causes of choking and stopping in walk behind mowers. Fortunately, they’re easy to clean if you know what you’re doing.
First, switch off the mower, unplug it, and remove the spark plug for safety. Cut off the fuel flow using the fuel tap or squeezable fuel line, and drain the fuel bowl, mounted behind the air filter in the carburetor. Clean all holes in the bowl thoroughly using a small wire brush, and make sure the seal is working properly. If it isn’t, replace the seal!
Then, using a carb cleaner spray can, spray carburetor cleaner up into the main fuel jet, remove the fuel bowl, and clean it thoroughly by hand. With this done, replace all parts and check everything is tightened up and ready to go, and you should be able to use your mower again! If problems persist, take your mower to a specialist for professional maintenance, as more serious problems can be hard to fix at home!
Expert Tip
When buying a lawn mower, consider the size of your yard before making a purchase. If you’ve got a particularly large yard, you might struggle to cover the whole area on a single charge of a cordless mower or need an extension cord in order to reach the far end with a cordless mower!
Did you know?
Some larger walk behind lawn mower models are used by professional landscaping contractors. Ride on mowers are not the only option for professional, large scale lawn mowing work!