Best Chainsaw
Firewood
Best chainsaw for processing firewood
The best chainsaw for firewood in the UK is usually a 35 to 45cc petrol saw with a 14 to 16in bar for regular use. A 40V-plus cordless saw suits smaller, quieter, occasional firewood jobs just as well with no fuel to mix and less noise. Match the saw to how much wood you actually process rather than to brand loyalty or the biggest job you might one day face.
Guide reviewed for accuracy: 10 July 2026
Match the bar to your logs, not the other way round
The rule of thumb is straightforward: pick a bar roughly 5cm (2in) longer than your typical log diameter. That length lets the tip clear the far side of the log without plunging the nose in. A longer bar than that does not cut wood you do not have, it only adds weight, tires your arms faster across a long session, and usually forces a bigger, heavier engine than the job needs.
| Typical round diameter | Sensible bar length | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 20cm (~8in) | 12 to 14in (30 to 35cm) | Bar clears the log in one pass with room to spare |
| 20 to 30cm (~8 to 12in) | 14 to 16in (35 to 40cm) | The common range for UK firewood, whether it is your own tree or delivered rounds |
| 30cm+ (~12in+) | 16 to 18in, or split first | Quarter oversized rounds with wedges before you reach for a longer, heavier saw |
Most UK firewood sits in that 15 to 30cm band. This covers garden tree off-cuts and delivered hardwood rounds alike. That is why 14 to 16in is the bar length that keeps coming up across this guide.
Petrol or cordless for firewood specifically
Petrol wins on volume and all-day use. A 35cc-plus saw has the sustained torque to keep cutting through rounds for a full session. A five-minute fuel top-up beats waiting for a battery to recharge when you are processing a trailer load in one go. Petrol is also the more practical choice working somewhere without easy access to spare charged batteries.
Cordless wins on quiet, occasional work. A 40V-plus battery saw needs no fuel mixing, no pull-start and no carburettor to gum up over an idle summer: pull the trigger and it cuts. It is also genuinely pleasant for an evening or a weekend working through a modest log store. It is the easier saw to keep inside reasonable daytime hours near neighbours too. Runtime is the tradeoff. Expect to swap or recharge a battery partway through a big pile. A petrol saw simply gets refuelled and carries on instead.
A petrol saw sat unused most of the year loses time to stale fuel and a fiddly restart. A cordless saw asked to process a full trailer load in an afternoon has you swapping batteries more than you would like. Match the saw to how often you actually process wood rather than to the biggest job you might occasionally face.
Five real UK models worth knowing
These are widely stocked UK models discussed from published manufacturer specifications and UK owner and forum feedback rather than our own hands-on testing.
| Model | Power | Engine/battery | Bar length | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stihl MS 181 | Petrol | 31.8cc, 1.5kW | 14 to 16in | Lighter, compact petrol for occasional rounds |
| Stihl MS 212 | Petrol | 35.2cc, 1.7kW | 14 to 16in | Regular firewood volume |
| Husqvarna 120 Mark II | Petrol | 38.2cc, 1.4kW | 14in | Lower-cost petrol entry point |
| Husqvarna 135 Mark II | Petrol | 38cc, 1.6kW | 14in, up to 16in | A step up in power from the 120 Mark II, same size class |
| EGO Power+ CS1410E | Cordless (56V) | 56V battery, 13.5m/s chain | 14in | Quiet, occasional, no fuel to mix |
Stihl MS 212
Stihl
The 35.2cc MS 212 is the classic step-up saw for anyone processing more than the odd trailer load: enough engine and bar to keep cutting through a session without babying it, without stepping up to a felling-class saw you don't need.
Pros
- + 35.2cc/1.7kW engine has the torque to keep moving through a full session, not just a few rounds
- + 16in (40cm) bar option copes with most UK hardwood diameters in one pass
- + ErgoStart reduces pull-cord effort, useful in cold weather
Cons
- − 4.3kg dry weight plus fuel and bar adds up over a long session
- − Needs two-stroke fuel mixed and stored correctly, plus a winter lay-up routine
- − More saw than you need if you only process a trailer load a year
Husqvarna 120 Mark II
Husqvarna
38.2cc and a 14in bar make the 120 Mark II an easy way into petrol power for someone processing firewood a few weekends a year rather than every weekend. The 135 Mark II sits just above it with a bit more power in the same size class, worth a look if the 120 feels underpowered for your rounds.
Pros
- + X-Torq engine keeps fuel use and emissions down for a saw this size
- + 35cm (14in) bar and 4.7kg weight are easy to control for less experienced users
- + Among the cheapest genuine-brand petrol saws sold in the UK
Cons
- − 1.4kW is on the light side for anything beyond mid-sized rounds
- − 14in bar caps the log diameter you can cut in one pass
- − A homeowner saw, not built for daily heavy use
EGO Power+ CS1410E
EGO
The CS1410E will not out-cut a 35cc-plus petrol saw all day, but for evenings and weekends working through a modest log store, no fuel, no exhaust and a near-silent idle are a genuine draw, and it shares batteries with the rest of EGO's outdoor power range if you already own one.
Pros
- + No fuel mixing, no choke, no pull-cord: pull the trigger and it cuts
- + 56V platform and a 13.5m/s chain speed is genuinely capable for a battery saw
- + Quiet enough to use in the evening without annoying neighbours
Cons
- − Runtime depends on the battery: expect to swap or recharge partway through a big pile
- − 14in (35cm) bar caps the log diameter you can comfortably cut in one pass
- − Kit price with battery and charger sits close to a budget petrol saw
More on the Stihl MS 212
The MS 212 is a 35.2cc, 1.7kW homeowner saw that Stihl sells with a 14 to 16in bar option. UK retailers and forums repeatedly point to this size as the sensible middle ground for firewood: enough engine to avoid bogging down in hardwood rounds, without the weight or price of a felling-class saw. This is the class of saw worth budgeting for once you process more than the odd trailer load a year. Like other Stihl petrol saws, it is sold through approved dealers rather than general online retailers.
More on the Husqvarna 120 Mark II
The Husqvarna 120 Mark II is a 38.2cc, 1.4kW entry petrol saw with a 35cm (14in) bar. Its X-Torq engine and LowVib dampening make it noticeably easier to run than a bigger saw for a less experienced user. It suits lighter, less frequent firewood sessions rather than a full day of continuous cutting. The 135 Mark II uses the same 14in bar and body size with a bit more power (1.6kW). It is a reasonable step up if the 120 struggles with your typical log diameter. Like other Husqvarna petrol saws, it is bought through an approved dealer rather than general online retail.
More on the EGO Power+ CS1410E
The CS1410E runs on EGO's 56V ARC Lithium platform with a 35cm (14in) bar and a 13.5m/s chain speed. It is sold as a bare tool, or as a kit with a 2.5Ah battery and charger, through Amazon UK and specialist dealers. It removes every hassle petrol brings for occasional firewood work: no fuel mix, no starting cord, no exhaust smell. The cost is needing a charged battery on hand for anything beyond a modest pile.
How often you will actually need to sharpen
Firewood is harder on a chain than most pruning work. Much of it is not clean timber cut fresh off a tree. Clean, split, off-the-ground rounds are gentle on a chain. Expect two or three tanks of fuel between touch-ups, or the cordless equivalent in battery charges. Dirty or knotty wood is a different story. Scrounged fence posts, storm-blown branches left lying on soil, and logs dragged across bare ground all pick up grit that acts like sandpaper on the cutters. Wood like that needs the chain touched up with a file every tank, not every few tanks.
The tell-tale sign is the waste: a sharp chain throws proper chips, a dull one throws fine dust and needs you to lean into the cut to keep it moving. Either is a cue to stop and file, rather than push on and risk the bar binding. A worn, bent or wrong-length bar is a separate job, covered in our guide to replacing a chainsaw bar.
Buying or servicing ahead of the season
UK demand for firewood and log burner use rises noticeably from autumn into winter. Wood burners and open fires come back into regular use after being idle over summer. That is a real, recurring seasonal pattern in how the saw and wood pile get used rather than a claim about search interest. The practical upshot is timing. Buy a saw, or book a service and a fresh chain, in late summer to avoid the pre-winter retailer rush and the wait for a service slot once everyone else has the same idea in October.
Processing rounds means repetitive cuts and pinching logs: keep the tip clear of buried nails, staples and the ground, check the chain brake before every cut, and wear EN381 rated PPE throughout.
Where to go next
- Cutting mostly firewood-sized rounds all season? See our full petrol chainsaws guide.
- Weighing up battery power more broadly? Our cordless chainsaws guide covers voltage classes and runtime beyond firewood.
- Not sure what you need for your actual logs? Run it through the free Fit Check tool on the homepage.
- Before you cut anything: read chainsaw safety: PPE, kickback and technique.
How we choose
We do not run a test lab and we do not stage saws cutting logs for a camera. Best Chainsaw is research led: recommendations are built from published manufacturer specifications, verified owner and community reviews (Arbtalk, forums, Amazon UK and retailer reviews), UK retail pricing, and HSE/EN381 safety standards, cross-checked so the numbers on this page match the numbers on the box. Where a figure is the maker's claim rather than an independently measured result, we say so.
Rankings weigh bar length and power for the task, safety features, build and value at UK prices. We update picks when models are discontinued or superseded. We earn affiliate commission on some links, but it never decides the order of a list. More on our method.