If you want the most clearing power possible from an electric snow shovel, Earthwise is your brand. This corded model can carve a 16-inch-wide path through snow up to 8 inches high, which is significantly more than what you can expect from other brands. It’s also significantly more powerful, moving up to 430 pounds of snow per minute.

For reference, most of our other picks move around 300 pounds per minute. As a result, it can handle deeper, slushier snow than most electric snow shovels. It also has a longer throwing distance than most corded or cordless electric snow shovels out there.

At 16 pounds, it’s pretty heavy, but like other heavy models, it has a pair of wheels so you can push it most of the time. In short, it offers the best snow removal capability of any machine this side of a snowblower.

If you don’t mind its hefty build, this electric shovel from Greenworks Pro runs longer on a single battery than any other cordless electric snow shovel out there.

With a large 80-volt 2.0-Ah battery powering a brushless motor, you’ll get about 45 minutes of run time on a single charge. Clearing a 12-inch path through up to 6 inches of snow, then blowing it 20 feet away, this snow shovel is ideal for uncovering a large area after a light snowfall.

Just remember that with great power and runtime comes great weight. With the battery loaded, this machine weighs more than 19 pounds, so moving it around for 45 minutes can turn into a real workout.

Most electric snow shovels max out with a fairly narrow clearing width and low clearing depth, potentially forcing you to do multiple passes to clear a proper path. This Earthwise model is an exception.

With a broad clearing width of 16 inches and depth of 8 inches, it’s capable of clearing paths through deeper snow. And since it launches snow up to 32 feet away, you can use this machine to clear small driveways along with your walkways, deck, and patio.

On the other hand, this electric snow shovel is quite heavy. It has wheels, though, which make it easier to push and maneuver. It’s a tradeoff, but one that pays off if you live in an area that routinely gets 6-8 inches of snow in a night.

Ryboi makes several types of cordless electric snow shovels, but this model is a head attachment for its Expand-It 40-Volt String Trimmer that you can swap in when the snow starts falling. The advantage here is that you aren’t limited to just one tool; you can swap in a variety of attachments to run on the same primary unit and battery. This makes a lot of sense if it only snows a couple of times where you live, and you only need a snow thrower infrequently.

During our testing, we were impressed with this tool’s performance. In mere minutes, we were able to clear a wide path through 8 inches of snow (more than the max height of 6 inches this model is rated for) on a patio outside our office. It was not fresh snow, either; it was densely packed after sitting for several days. There were times when the shovel head froze up while trying to push through too much at once, but this was quickly rectified by pulling back and pushing through again. The snow flies quite far, too, for such a small tool head, at least 10 to 15 feet by our estimation.

Being able to fling snow that far is a good thing because this thrower can only send the snow straight forward (some models have adjustable fins that allow you to send it to either side). You need to be strategic about the direction you push to avoid creating more work for yourself if you have a long path to clear.

We must admit, too, that while this electric snow shovel makes the job easier than a manual shovel, it does take a bit of strength to operate, especially since it doesn’t have wheels to help you stay balanced and moving. You can move it along the ground, but you may need to lift it slightly if the snow is packed or icy at the lower levels, and it doesn’t come with a shoulder strap to help you do that. If you aim to greatly reduce the physical strain of snow removal, models from our list that feature wheels and directional fins may be a better option.

Overall, if you already have the Ryobi 40-volt-compatible string trimmer, adding this attachment to your arsenal would be a good move if you only need to clear snow from a small driveway, walkway, deck, or patio. The 40-volt, 4-amp-hour battery will give you up to an hour of power, which is more than enough for a small job like that, and buying into this multi-tool system will keep it from being a tool that just sits in the tool shed or basement for most of the time.

The lightweight design of this cordless electric snow shovel makes it a great option if other electric snow shovels are too heavy for you to manage. Whereas most electric snow shovels weigh around 18 pounds, this one weighs just 13.5 pounds.

Along with being lighter, the Snow Joe electric snow shovel also has a dual handle design that allows you to operate it while standing up straight, taking pressure off your back. Despite its lighter weight, it can still clear a foot-wide path of snow up to 6 inches deep. The Snow Joe does have a shorter runtime than most, which limits it to lighter-duty snow removal, such as clearing walks, decks, and patios.

With its two 20-volt rechargeable batteries, the Worx electric snow shovel is both versatile and powerful. It can clear a path a foot wide and up to 6 inches deep and throw snow up to 25 feet, so it's suitable for clearing tighter spaces.

The two-battery design gives you the option to mix and match larger capacity 20-volt Worx batteries to increase this shovel’s run time for larger jobs, such as clearing small driveways. It also comes with a dual charger, so you can charge both batteries simultaneously for a shorter turnaround time.

Another plus is that this model's batteries are compatible with other 20-volt Worx yard machines, making it a great option if you’ve already bought into the Worx product line.

Limitations of an Electric Shovel

We’d be remiss if we didn’t point out that this whole category of yard machines has some limitations. Most electric snow shovels can only handle snow depths up to 6 inches—8 inches if you’re lucky—and lack the power to handle heavier slushy snows. They are ideally suited to powdery snow on walkways, patios, decks, and maybe a small driveway. If you see heavy snowfalls regularly or have a large number of driveways and parking spaces to clear, get a snowblower before you buy an electric snow shovel. For big jobs, go with a gas snowblower. An electric snowblower works for small to moderate-sized driveways.

Corded vs. Cordless

Corded electric snow shovels plug into a standard three-prong outlet, giving you unlimited runtime, so long as you stay within the range, which is about 100 feet at most without an extension cord. It’s also a pain to drag and orient the cable as you move around. They tend to be cheaper than cordless models, with many costing under $100.

Cordless electric snow shovels, like all cordless outdoor appliances, run on a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. This frees you from being tethered to an outlet, but limits the snow shovel’s runtime. Most cordless electric snow shovels only last around 30-40 minutes on a single charge. (In most cases, you can buy extra batteries to keep charged and extend your runtime.) Cordless models are also generally more expensive, costing over $100.

When push comes to shove, we recommend looking for a cordless electric snow shovel, rather than a corded one. Having the freedom to move without worrying about a cord makes the whole shoveling or snowblowing process much easier. That said, if you’re on a tight budget or only need to clear a short walk or a small patio or deck that’s near an outdoor outlet, you can get by with a corded model.

Clearing Widths and Depths

Much like a snowblower, electric snow shovels are rated by how much snow they can move. The wider the shovel, the fewer passes it takes to clear an area. Most electric snow shovels move a 10- to 16-inch-wide path of snow. A small, narrow shovel is lighter and more nimble, making it useful for creating pathways. Wider, larger models are better equipped for clearing a patio or driveway, but are also heavier and more difficult to maneuver in tighter spaces.

Electric snow shovels can handle snow banks around 4 to 8 inches high, depending on their clearing depth. Technically, you can remove deeper snowfall with these machines, but you’ll have to make more passes to do so.

Throw Distance

For an electric snow shovel to be useful, it should be able to propel the snow far enough that it’s off the deck, walkway, or driveway that you’re clearing. Most electric snow shovels launch their snow between 20 to 30 feet, which is on par with entry-level, corded electric snowblowers, but shorter than cordless and gas snowblowers that can throw snow a distance of 40 feet or more. With that in mind, consider the route you plan to take while clearing, and make sure you’re moving the snow somewhere out of the way so it can sit until spring arrives.

Weight

Electric snow shovels process and throw snow like a snowblower, so you won’t need to bend over and scoop up snow as you would with a shovel. However, you should still look for the lightest possible option. While you won’t have to lift and throw snow as you would with a conventional snow shovel, you have to hold it upright and apply some force to push it through the snow. At the very least, you should look for a shovel that you can lift easily whenever you need to clear steps or multiple levels of patio.

Electric snow shovels typically weigh between 10 and 20 pounds. As you might expect, more powerful shovels that can move more snow and feature large batteries tend to be heavier than smaller, narrower models. Some large electric snow shovels have a set of wheels mounted to the rear of the base for standing upright on their own, so you can maneuver the machine with minimal lifting.

Handle Options

Similar to standard snow shovels, electric models come in both straight and curved handle varieties. A curved handle allows for standing more upright while operating the machine, putting less strain on your lower back and decreasing the risk of injury. A straight handle gives you more leverage for lifting loads of snow, but since an electric snow shovel has an auger that lifts and blows the snow for you, it’s not an advantage for electric models.

How do electric snow shovels work?

Electric snow shovels operate similarly to single-stage snow blowers. The shovel end of the machine has an auger that’s powered by an electric motor. As you push the shovel through the snow, the rotating auger collects snow, mashes it up, and then propels it through a shoot that throws the snow off to the side

How much snow can an electric snow shovel move?

The average electric snow shovel can churn through about 300 pounds of snow per minute. That means a snow shovel with a 12-inch wide intake and a clearing depth of 6 inches can remove about 4 inches of powdery snow from a 1,000 square foot driveway in about 20 minutes.

Just keep in mind that a shovel’s snow-clearing ability varies depending on certain conditions, such as the heft of the snow itself.

Do I still need a snow shovel if I have an electric one?

It’s never a bad idea to have a standard snow shovel around. While the electric snow shovel can reach most spaces that a standard push-behind snowblower can’t, it may not always be able to clear hardened snow or wet slush.

Plus, a manual shovel ensures that you can always dig out in an emergency, like when you’ve lost power after a snowstorm.