A good pair of garden shears is one of those tools you don’t think much about until you’re halfway through a hedge with a blunt, jamming pair that leaves the foliage looking chewed rather than cut. The right shears make light work of box balls, privet, conifers and long grass edges, and a decent pair will last you the best part of a decade if you look after them. The wrong pair will have your forearms aching after ten minutes and the hedge looking worse than when you started.
In this guide we’ve pulled together the garden shears we rate most highly for UK gardens in 2026, covering budget telescopic models for the occasional trim right through to premium Japanese blades for keen hedge-keepers. We’ve kept a mix of price points so there’s something whether you’re shaping a single box ball on the patio or keeping forty metres of privet in check. As ever, prices move around, so treat the figures here as a guide rather than gospel.
What to look for in a pair of garden shears
Blade type: straight vs wavy
Most hedge shears come with either a plain straight blade or a wavy (serrated) blade. Straight blades give the cleanest finish on soft new growth and are easier to sharpen at home, which is why traditionalists still swear by them for box and yew. Wavy blades have small notches that grip thicker, woodier stems and stop them sliding out to the tip, so they’re the better choice if you’re tackling tougher growth or letting your hedge get a bit shaggy between trims. For most gardeners a wavy blade is the more forgiving option.
Handle length and material
Longer handles give you more reach and more leverage, which matters on a tall hedge, but they also add weight and make precise topiary work harder. Wooden ash handles are lovely to hold and absorb shock well, though they need the occasional wipe of oil to stop them drying out. Tubular aluminium handles are lighter and need no maintenance, while many now have rubberised or TPR grips and built-in shock absorbers to spare your wrists and elbows.
Telescopic or fixed?
Telescopic shears extend, usually from around 60cm out to 90cm or more, letting you reach the top of a taller hedge without dragging out a ladder. They’re genuinely useful, but the trade-off is extra weight and a little flex when fully extended. If your hedges are below shoulder height, a lighter fixed pair will be more pleasant to use day to day.
Weight and shock absorption
Shears don’t sound heavy until you’ve been at it for half an hour. Anything under about 1kg counts as lightweight and is far kinder over a long session. Look for rubber bumpers or sprung shock absorbers between the handles, which take a surprising amount of jarring out of each cut.
Garden shears at a glance
| Shears | Best for | Blade | Guide price |
| Spear & Jackson Razorsharp Telescopic | Reaching tall hedges on a budget | Wavy, PTFE-coated | around £22 |
| Spear & Jackson Razorsharp Bypass | Cheapest all-rounder | Straight bypass | around £20 |
| Kent & Stowe Carbon Steel | Traditional feel, general trimming | Straight carbon steel | around £28 |
| Wilkinson Sword Ultralight | Long sessions, lighter hands | Wavy, non-stick | around £28 |
| Bulldog Premier Wavy Blade | Easy, comfortable cutting | Wavy | around £35 |
| Burgon & Ball RHS Topiary | Box balls and fine topiary | Straight precision | around £42 |
| ARS KR-1000 | Premium, sharpest cut | Straight high-carbon | around £55 |
The best garden shears for 2026
1. Spear & Jackson Razorsharp Telescopic Hedge Shears — best budget telescopic
If you want reach without spending much, these are the obvious starting point. The handles extend from roughly 43cm out to 66cm, giving you a useful bit of extra height for the top of a privet or conifer hedge, and the wavy blades carry a PTFE non-stick coating that helps them slice through sappy growth without gumming up. At around £22 they’re remarkable value, and Spear & Jackson back most of their Razorsharp range with a long guarantee.
They aren’t the lightest shears here and there’s a little flex when fully extended, so they’re best for occasional rather than all-day trimming. But for a typical small-to-medium garden with a hedge that’s just out of comfortable reach, they do the job for not much money.
Pros: excellent value; useful telescopic reach; non-stick wavy blades; strong guarantee. Cons: some flex when fully extended; a touch heavy for fine work.
2. Spear & Jackson Razorsharp Bypass Hedge Shears — cheapest all-rounder
The fixed-handle sibling of the telescopic pair, and about as affordable as a half-decent pair of shears gets at roughly £20. The bypass action gives a clean cut on softer growth, and the lighter fixed handles make them nimbler than the telescopic version for shaping and edging. For a first pair, or a spare to keep in the shed, they’re hard to argue with.
They won’t relish thick, woody stems and the comfort grips are fairly basic, but for routine summer trims on box, lavender and lighter hedging they punch well above their price.
Pros: very cheap; light and manoeuvrable; clean bypass cut. Cons: basic grips; not built for thick growth.
3. Kent & Stowe Carbon Steel Hedge Shears — traditional and dependable
Kent & Stowe make tools with a classic, no-nonsense feel, and these carbon steel shears are a good example. The straight blades take a keen edge and are easy to touch up with a file or sharpening stone, while the hardwood handles soak up vibration nicely. At around £28 they sit in that sensible mid-range where you get proper materials without paying a premium for a badge.
Carbon steel does need a wipe of oil after use to keep rust at bay, so they ask a little more care than a coated blade. Look after them, though, and they’ll outlast several cheaper pairs.
Pros: takes a fine edge; shock-absorbing wooden handles; easy to sharpen. Cons: carbon steel needs oiling; no telescopic option.
4. Wilkinson Sword Ultralight Hedge Shears — kindest on the arms
As the name suggests, the headline here is weight. These come in noticeably lighter than most rivals, which makes a real difference once you’re into the second hour of a long hedge. The wavy blades have a non-stick coating to keep sap from building up, and the shock-absorbing buffers between the handles take the sting out of each cut. At around £28 they’re keenly priced for what you get, and Wilkinson Sword’s lifetime guarantee on many tools adds peace of mind.
The light build means they’re not the tool for hacking through neglected, thumb-thick stems, but for regular maintenance trimming they’re among the most comfortable shears we’d recommend.
Pros: very light; non-stick wavy blades; effective shock absorbers; strong guarantee. Cons: not for heavy, woody growth.
5. Bulldog Premier Wavy Blade Shears — easiest to use
Bulldog have been making British garden tools for generations and the Premier shears reflect that experience. The wavy blades grip and shear thicker growth with very little effort, and the balance between blade and handle is judged so that they feel easy and natural in the hand. If you find some shears tiring or fiddly, these are the ones we’d point you towards. Expect to pay around £35.
They’re a fixed-handle design, so there’s no extending reach, and they’re a step up in price from the budget pairs. For the comfort and sheer ease of cutting, though, plenty of gardeners will think it money well spent.
Pros: effortless wavy-blade cut; well balanced; solid British build. Cons: no telescopic reach; mid-range price.
6. Burgon & Ball RHS-Endorsed Topiary Shears — best for fine shaping
When the job is a crisp box ball or a piece of topiary that needs to look sharp from every angle, you want precision over brute force, and this is where Burgon & Ball shine. Their RHS-endorsed shears use narrower, finely ground straight blades that let you snip accurately and follow a curve cleanly. Build quality is lovely, as you’d hope at around £42.
These are specialists rather than all-rounders, so they’re not the pair for ploughing through a long run of rough hedging. For anyone who takes their topiary seriously, though, they’re a joy.
Pros: superb precision; excellent build; ideal for topiary and box. Cons: pricey; too specialised for heavy hedging.
7. ARS KR-1000 Hedge Shears — premium pick
ARS are a Japanese maker with a serious reputation among professionals, and the KR-1000 shows why. Straight out of the box the high-carbon blades are astonishingly sharp, slicing through leaves and stems as if they aren’t there, and the whole tool is lightweight and beautifully balanced. Best of all, every part is maintainable and replaceable, so with a little care these are shears you buy once. They’re the most expensive here at around £55, but you’re paying for genuine quality.
The cutting edge needs respect and the price will put off casual users, but if you trim hedges regularly and want the best, this is the pair we’d save up for.
Pros: exceptionally sharp; light and balanced; fully serviceable; built to last. Cons: premium price; sharp edge demands care.
Which garden shears should you buy?
If you only trim a hedge a few times a year and want to spend as little as possible, the Spear & Jackson Razorsharp bypass shears will see you right, with the telescopic version worth the few extra pounds if your hedge sits just out of reach. For a sensible all-rounder that will handle most jobs in comfort, the Wilkinson Sword Ultralight or the Bulldog Premier are the ones we’d steer most gardeners towards, balancing comfort, cut and price nicely.
Keen topiarists shaping box and yew should look at the Burgon & Ball topiary shears for their precision, while anyone who spends real time on their hedges and wants a buy-it-for-life tool won’t regret the ARS KR-1000. The Kent & Stowe carbon steel pair sit happily in the middle for traditionalists who don’t mind a quick oil after use.
Looking after your shears
Whatever you buy, a few minutes of care goes a long way. Wipe the blades clean of sap and dry them after every use, and give carbon steel a light wipe of oil to keep rust off. Keep the blades sharp with a file or sharpening stone, working only on the bevelled edge, and put a drop of oil on the central pivot bolt now and then so the action stays smooth. Sharp, clean shears cut better, tire you less and leave healthier cuts that your hedge will thank you for.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between garden shears and secateurs?
Secateurs are one-handed pruners for individual stems up to roughly pencil thickness, while shears are two-handed tools with long blades for clipping lots of soft growth at once, such as hedges, box balls and long grass edges. Most gardens benefit from having both. If you’re after secateurs or loppers instead, we’ve covered those separately.
Are wavy blades better than straight blades?
It depends on the job. Wavy blades grip thicker stems and are more forgiving on tougher growth, while straight blades give the cleanest finish on soft new growth and fine topiary and are easier to sharpen at home. For general hedge maintenance, a wavy blade is the more forgiving choice.
Do I need telescopic shears?
Only if your hedges are taller than you can comfortably reach. Telescopic shears save you fetching a ladder, but they’re heavier and flex a little when extended, so if your hedges are below shoulder height a lighter fixed pair will be nicer to use.
How often should I sharpen garden shears?
For a typical garden, a quick touch-up once or twice a season is plenty, plus a more thorough sharpen at the start of the year. If the blades start to crush or tear rather than slice cleanly, that’s your cue to sharpen them.
Final verdict
There’s no single best pair of garden shears for everyone, but there’s a right pair for your garden and budget. Spend little and the Spear & Jackson Razorsharp range delivers genuine value; spend a bit more and the Wilkinson Sword Ultralight and Bulldog Premier reward you with all-day comfort. For specialist topiary the Burgon & Ball shears are hard to beat, and for the gardener who wants the best, the ARS KR-1000 is a tool to keep for life. Whichever you choose, keep the blades sharp and clean, and your hedges will look all the better for it.
