Best Riding Mowers for 2024
Nobody Real enjoys gardening, but it does make your property look good. This is especially true if you have a large lawn. If you can’t afford to hire someone to do regular lawn maintenance and you’re tired of pushing a lawn mower around, a riding mower could be a smart investment. With so many different models and brands on the market, it can be hard to know which one is right for you. That’s why I’ve done the work for you to compare the specs of leading models and find the best riding mowers to suit different garden maintenance needs and budgets
There are a few things to consider when you first start thinking about purchasing a riding mower. The size of your lawn is one of the most important factors — it may be overkill to use a riding mower on a 0.5-acre lot, while a push mower can do the job in a matter of minutes. Additionally, there is a huge price difference between even the best push mowers and the most budget-conscious riding mowers. Additionally, not all lawns are created equal. You may need to take steep slopes or other rough terrain into account when making these types of decisions.
With recent advances in battery technology, you now have the choice of electric versus traditional gas engines. There’s a lot to think about here. First, if you run out of gas while mowing your lawn, you can take a few minutes to add more gas and keep going. The same scenario with an electric unit could mean waiting an hour or two to mow while you charge. So customizing your machine to your specific lawn can be even more important when looking at electric options.
On the other hand, some electric units are compatible with battery platforms, which means you can take the batteries out of the lawn mower and use them in other tools as well. That also means that if you have extra batteries for those other tools, you can just pop them into your lawn mower when they’re charged and you find yourself running out of power — bypassing the delay of refueling versus charging. There will still be a trade-off in price, though. There’s a hefty upfront investment in batteries that can be hard to recoup.
One important note: Unlike the vast majority of CNET’s best lists, this one is based on our research rather than hands-on testing — only because the size and cost of these units made acquiring product samples logistically challenging. I compared all the specs to find the best riding mowers on the market so you can make an informed decision about which one is right for you.
The Cub Cadet Ultima ZT1 50-inch Riding Mower is a great choice for homeowners with large lawns. It has a powerful 23-horsepower engine and a 50-inch mowing deck, allowing you to mow even the largest lawns quickly and efficiently. The mower also has a hydrostatic transmission, allowing you to easily maneuver through tight spaces. This also provides a speedy 7 mph forward and 3.5 mph reverse.
Additionally, the Ultima ZT1 comes with a variety of features (some at an additional cost) that make it a great choice for homeowners who want the best possible lawn care experience. These features include a mulching deck, bagger, side discharge, tow/transport capability, snowplow, and even a sunshade. The engineered mulching deck produces a signature cut with fewer clumps and debris, finer clippings, increased consistency, and improved soil health, while the bagger and side discharge make it easy to collect grass clippings. All in all, the Cub Cadet Ultima ZT1 50-inch Riding Mower is a great choice for homeowners who want a powerful, easy-to-use, and feature-packed riding mower.
Some people prefer the traditional steering experience of a round wheel mounted on a steering column, and my pick for the best gas riding mower is a John Deere lawn tractor that delivers just that. The S130 has a 42-inch mowing deck and a 22-hp engine that can travel up to 5.5 mph in forward motion or 3.2 mph in reverse. Like my pick for the best zero turn , the S130 offers a ton of extras, including a snow plow, snow blower, tire chains and even a full cab enclosure for added protection from the elements.
The S130 features John Deere’s “Easy Change” 30-second oil change system, a patented all-in-one oil and oil filter canister that lets you quickly change your tractor’s oil “with no hassle and no mess.” The list price of $2,899 is attractive for a name-brand product with these specs. Add in a seasonal discount that you can probably find somewhere, and the S130 becomes a great choice for almost anyone considering a riding mower.
My pick for the best value riding mower falls into a category of riding mowers designed for lawns of 2 acres or smaller. You still have access to plenty of power with a 19-horsepower Briggs & Stratton engine and a 42-inch mowing deck. The Bronco 42 is designed to be easy to get on and off with a “Step-Thru” frame design that makes it a great choice for people of all physical abilities. The automatic transmission and foot pedal controls are also designed to make the mower drive “like a car.”
You still have access to all the add-ons and carts, spreaders and sprayers with the attached rear hitch. When you look at these specs and performance options for a list price of $2,199, which is near the entry price point for name brand riding mowers (entry price is around $2,000), the Bronco 42 becomes an easy choice for the best value.
Choosing the title holder for best electric riding mower is a little trickier, given the wide variation in how these batteries and electrical systems perform. The Z6 42-inch operates on a removable battery platform that allows you to use the mower’s individual batteries (up to six) with the company’s line of other outdoor tools. The mower comes with four of the 10-Ah batteries (Ego currently offers batteries with amp-hour capacities of 2.5, 4, 5, 6, 7.5, 10 and 12) and two additional bays for adding extra batteries of your own. To start the mower, you’ll need at least 15-Ah batteries, with a full 60-Ah capacity, which Ego claims will allow you to mow up to 3 acres.
There are three driving modes: Control, Standard, and Sport, which give you varying degrees of aggressiveness and speed when maneuvering. Your speed while cutting ranges from 3-7 mph with an overall top speed of 8 mph in Travel mode. There’s a wall-mounted fast charger included that works similar to a standard EV charger, so you don’t have to charge each battery individually. This is also handy if you’re invested in the Ego ecosystem and prefer to charge multiple batteries at once.
You also get some handy extras like an LCD control panel and a USB port for charging or powering things on the go. The Z6 42-inch model is a great choice if you’ve already invested in this outdoor tool platform or are interested in one. It’s also great if you’re an electric/EV/battery power enthusiast in general. Overall, the performance you’ll see will rival that of comparable 22hp gasoline models. The price tag may be a little higher due to the battery purchase, but overall this is a great machine with exceptional performance.
Ryobi 48-Volt, 100-Ah Electric Zero-Turn Riding Mower: Ryobi has some nice options for electric riding mowers, including this 100-Ah version, which has the largest battery capacity of all the units we evaluated. If we look at the math that converts the Ryobi and Ego units to watt-hours by multiplying their battery voltage by battery amp-hours, the Ryobi has 4,800 Wh versus the Ego’s 3,360 Wh. At these listed capacities, both manufacturers claim their mowers will cover “up to” 3 acres, which seems to make the Ego system more efficient.
Greenworks 60-Volt, 42-Inch Crossover™ Electric Riding Mower: This mower is the least expensive of the electric options I evaluated. I do like the integrated storage bed on the back of the unit. It comes with six 8-Ah batteries and there is a comprehensive set of outdoor tools to work with those batteries, just like the Ego platform. For charging, you’ll need to use the three included dual battery chargers to get your six batteries back online. It can cover up to 2.5 acres per charge.
Craftsman T110 42-inch 17.5-hp Riding Mower: This gas lawn mower has similar specs to some of our other units, but with a slightly smaller 17.5hp engine. Overall a good choice, especially if you’re already a Craftsman fan, but a slightly higher price tag per spec keeps this one out of the winner’s circle.
How much does a riding mower cost?
How big should my lawn be before I buy a riding mower?
