Is a hammer drill still worth it or should I get a cordless drill?

It really depends on what you need - for regular DIY work, a good cordless drill is totally enough, and impact drills come in cordless versions these days anyway if you really need to drill into concrete or masonry 🔧 batteries are just way more practical, no cables getting in the way and they last forever. you probably don't need a regular corded impact drill anymore if your cordless drill has decent power. just try out what you're actually planning to do first, then you'll quickly figure out if you really need the impact function or not 😊

It's not really a black-and-white question, because both tools do different jobs and don't really compete with each other 🔧. A good cordless drill is completely sufficient for most DIY scenarios - hanging shelves, assembling furniture, regular screwing jobs. But as soon as you need to drill into concrete, natural stone, or solid masonry, you'll quickly realize that a regular cordless drill just can't keep up, no matter how high-quality it is.

At my place I once needed holes in the basement wall for a bracket, and my cordless drill just smoked without making any progress 😅. If I'd been able to borrow a hammer drill, it would've been done in 10 minutes. So if you regularly need to drill into masonry, I'd recommend getting a cordless hammer drill - you can get decent ones for a reasonable price these days and you've got everything in one tool. For only occasional light work, a plain cordless drill is the more sensible purchase.

Modern cordless drills with high RPM and impact function (the so-called impact drill-drivers) handle most of what a corded impact drill used to do these days - with the advantage that you don't have to lug two devices around. A practical trick that a lot of people miss: when you're drilling into stone or concrete, it really helps to put a few drops of water on the spot before you start drilling - the machine won't slip and the bit lasts longer. If you really do have to drill into hard rock often, maybe a corded impact drill is still worth getting as a backup, but for normal work you don't need one.

If you need to drill into concrete, stone, or masonry regularly, you can't get around a proper impact drill - the striking power is just in a different league. The cordless drill versions are practical for occasional work, but with bigger projects you'll quickly hit their limits.

For your standard DIY stuff (holes in drywall, wood, tightening screws) a good cordless drill is absolutely enough for you. If that's all you need, I'd rather invest in a powerful cordless drill than in two devices 🔨. The decision really comes down to whether your projects tend to involve concrete & stone or not.

How often are you really drilling into concrete or stone? That's the key point I missed in the answers so far! A good cordless drill with hammer function is plenty for almost all standard jobs, but here's the catch: the cheap combo devices with hammer drill function are usually compromises and don't do either thing really properly - for actual holes in solid concrete you need a proper hammer drill! If you're mainly hanging shelves and doing small DIY stuff, save yourself the money and buy a solid cordless drill. But if you're regularly drilling into masonry, invest in a specialized tool instead of some mediocre combo thing!

To make your decision, you honestly just need to figure out: how often you tinker and what exactly. An impact driver with hammer function is really versatile enough for DIY work these days - that's true. But if you regularly have to work on hard materials like concrete or stone, you'll quickly notice that even good tools just hit their limits there and you'll get frustrated. For the occasional job, an impact driver is enough, but for more ambitious projects, a proper hammer drill is definitely worth it - they're not expensive these days either.

An impact drill with hammer function simply doesn't completely replace a proper impact drill - that's an important difference a lot of people miss. An impact drill has totally different mechanics: it hammers with real forward force, while an impact screwdriver hammers sideways. If you're drilling into concrete or stone more often, you'll notice the difference pretty quick - the classic impact drill is just more powerful and reliable for that. For occasional jobs the impact screwdriver is enough, but if you're doing these jobs regularly, you really need both.

But here's the thing: you don't necessarily have to buy both new. A used corded impact drill costs almost nothing anymore, and it lasts forever. Combined with a good modern impact screwdriver, you've got the best of both worlds - and you save yourself the investment in expensive cordless impact drills that don't deliver the power anyway.

For normal DIY projects, honestly you don't really need a separate impact drill anymore. A good cordless drill with impact function covers almost everything - screwing, small holes in wood and drywall, even holes in brick and light masonry work. The big advantage is flexibility: you've got one tool instead of two, you save space and money.

That said, there's one thing a lot of people overlook: battery power. A real impact drill draws constant full power from an outlet, but a cordless drill has to ration its cells. If you'll be working more often or for longer stretches - say, drilling holes in concrete for several hours straight - then the battery will noticeably lose power and you'll constantly need spare batteries. That gets expensive fast. If your projects are more sporadic and you're not using it daily, a solid cordless drill is plenty. At most, look at a model with two batteries so one charges while you're using the other.

Don't just blindly buy an expensive impact drill if you're barely going to drill holes in stone anyway - that's just throwing money away.

For normal DIY jobs, a decent cordless drill with impact function is totally enough for you. These things have gotten so good by now that they can do pretty much the same thing as the old corded impact drills in most situations. You don't have cables lying around, you can take them anywhere, and the thing is just way more practical. But if you regularly need to drill thick holes in concrete or masonry - like you really have to drill hard - then a proper impact drill can still be worth it. They just have more power and last longer when you're really working them hard.

You should just think about what you're actually going to do. Hanging up lamps, putting together IKEA stuff, drilling a few holes in the wall? Cordless drill, done. Constantly installing windows or drilling into facades? Then maybe go for the impact drill instead. And honestly, I wouldn't go for the cheapest discount-store tool either - I've had way too much trouble with those.

Get yourself an impact driver with hammer action, then you'll save yourself the separate impact drill. Most modern tools can do both these days, and you'll have less junk cluttering up your space. The only thing that matters is that when you buy it, you can tell if the thing really has some punch to it - grab it in the hardware store and don't just order blind online.

You'd only really need a dedicated impact drill if you're regularly drilling into reinforced concrete. But even then: check out what a good cordless impact driver can actually do. Those things have gotten genuinely solid by now, and you'll find that you can handle 90 percent of your work with it. Only if you're really constantly drilling through stone and your battery keeps dying would a corded version still make sense - but that's rarely necessary for normal DIY work.

Are you asking because you're trying to choose between buying new tools, or because you're not sure if either one is actually necessary? I think the others here are oversimplifying it a bit - a plain cordless drill with a hammer function isn't the same as a proper hammer drill, even if it's enough for a lot of jobs. The difference is in power and endurance: if you regularly have to drill into concrete or thick masonry, a cordless drill will eventually be too weak for you or the battery will die. For occasional work around the house though, a good cordless drill really is enough, and a specialized hammer drill would just be sitting there gathering dust.