Snow Blower vs Shovel: Which One Fits Your Winter?

Heavy shoveling is hard on both your heart and your back. How a blower compares is less settled.

Your heart

In research cited by the American Heart Association (AHA), heart rate passed 85% of maximum after two minutes of shoveling, and in an analysis cited by Corewell Health, ten minutes of heavy shoveling averaged 97% of the maximum reached on a treadmill. Cold adds to that strain.

In a Canadian study, deeper snow went with more heart attack admissions among men. To Harvard Health, though, the study can't prove shoveling is the cause.

The AHA advises an automated snow blower over shoveling, citing heart rates around 120 versus around 170 and still urging caution, while Harvard Health says pushing a heavy snow blower can strain the heart the same way. That's a real split, so I won't pretend a blower settles it.

Your back

The back takes the most shoveling injuries. Sprains, strains and cuts are among the most common. Several health groups give the same advice: push snow instead of lifting and throwing it. When lifting can't be avoided, lift with your legs.

An ergonomic shovel, with a curved or bent handle, is designed to cut down on bending. If a shovel is your main tool, that's the kind I'd reach for.

Deeper snow favors a blower. Where a shovel stops being enough depends on who you ask.

How deep is too deep for a shovel

A GreenPal co-founder quoted by Tom's Guide says a snow blower is best once snow is deeper than 4 in, while Consumer Reports calls about 6 in a depth you'd easily tackle with a good shovel. If your storms usually land between those two figures, it's your call.

Sources differ on how deep single-stage electric and battery blowers clear: by Consumer Reports' count most single-stage battery models max out at about 6 in, though some reach 9, while Snow Joe's smaller single-stage electric and cordless models are listed for up to 8 in, and its larger ones for up to 12 in.

Then there are two-stage machines. Consumer Reports gives a compact two-stage up to about a foot, wet or dry, and Toro suits two-stage blowers to snowfalls of 12 in or more.

Check your own winters against those numbers.

Wet, heavy snow

With a shovel, clear wet, heavy snow early and often rather than leaving one big job.

Blowers are less settled. Toro calls its single-stage machines a great pick for wet, slushy snow, and EGO says the single-stage SNT2134 can clear even the heaviest, wettest snow, while Consumer Reports says single-stage models have more trouble the wetter the snow gets at depths near 9 in. The SJ627E is listed for light, fluffy snow. The Snow Joe 24V-X2-SB18's plowing capacity may vary with snow conditions.

A shovel suits a short driveway or a walkway. Larger areas are where a snow blower pays off. A blower also finishes the job in less time.

In one comparison on a 4-inch snowfall, posted on a Low Technology Institute wiki page, clearing about a ton of snow took 14:00 minutes with a gas snowblower, 18:27 with a snow scoop and 25:00 with a shovel. That's one storm and one test, so treat it as a rough guide.

Gravel driveways

Gravel advice depends on the machine. The SJ627E is listed for paved surfaces. Consumer Reports calls single-stage gas blowers a poor choice for gravel and says two-stage blowers are best there because the auger doesn't touch the ground, Greenworks does not recommend its single-stage throwers on gravel, and EGO says the SNT2134's skid shoes are adjustable for improved performance on gravel and irregular surfaces.

Path and throw on the four picks

The SJ627E cuts the widest path of the four at 22 in, followed by the SNT2134 at 21 in, the Snow Joe 24V-X2-SB18 at 18 in and the Greenworks at 16 in. The SNT2134 throws farthest, up to 45 ft. The SJ627E throws up to 25 ft, and the Greenworks has a maximum throwing distance of 25 ft. The Snow Joe 24V-X2-SB18 throws up to 20 ft.

None of the three battery picks gives a run time in minutes.

A shovel needs little to no maintenance. A snow blower needs maintenance.

Batteries and charging on the picks

The three battery picks come with chargers in their kits. The Greenworks runs on a 40V 5.0 Ah battery, and that removable battery powers over 100 Greenworks 40-Volt tools. Its charge time is listed as 150 minutes.

The Snow Joe 24V-X2-SB18 runs on two 24 V batteries for 48 V, and its kit holds two 4.0 Ah batteries.

The SNT2134 kit includes two 6.0 Ah batteries, and no charge time is given for it. The corded SJ627E has no battery to charge; its 15 A motor is rated 120 V.

Cold and storage

The Greenworks battery and charger should always be stored indoors at room temperature. The battery's voltage output may be reduced if its internal temperature drops below -17°C. On the Greenworks, the upper handle also folds for more compact storage.

Noise matters most at the hours you clear snow. Picture a 6 a.m. storm before work on a street that's still asleep.

A tradesman quoted by Tom's Guide calls shovels a great choice for early mornings when you don't want to make a lot of noise, and in a hearing-protection Q&A on gas-powered blowers, Consumer Reports says its testers have taken at-ear readings of more than 90 dBA while using snow blowers.

I've used all four, at my dad's, my brother's or friends' places. Here's what stood out.

• Greenworks 40V 16-Inch Cordless. It's small and light enough to carry, and the upper handle folds, so it's easy to put away. It's narrow, though: a bigger driveway takes more passes.
• Snow Joe 24V-X2-SB18. It's light to push, but its narrow path means more passes on a full driveway. The batteries charged in about 2 hours.
• Snow Joe SJ627E. It starts on a button and handles light snow on pavement well; the cord is the catch, since you have to keep track of it.
• EGO Power+ SNT2134. It threw snow far, easily past the edge of the driveway, and it was much quieter than a gas blower.