There are so many miter blades are available in the market from so many brands like Freud, Forest, Dewalt, Makita, and Hitachi. After doing all the research we found that Freud makes the best miter saw blades. We have taken the most important factors into consideration while selecting the blades. These factors are the number of teeth, what size saw they fit on 10″ or 12″, durability (how much time they can cut for), & material means from which metal they are made from. Can these blades make cross-cuts, bevel cuts, or regular cuts to non-ferrous metals like aluminum? You may have 3rd class saw but your quality of the blade is going to determine how much finer cuts you can make.
We’ve carefully researched for 60 hours & kept every feature in mind and wrote miter saw blade reviews for our top 5 picks. Every single blade is designed to produce nice smooth cuts where you’re cutting straight across a grain or add a miter angle. The performance of any cutting tool is dependent on the blade being used. So make sure you choose the best one if you are going to do a lot of work and for a long time.
(Top Pick) | ||||
(Best Value for Money) | ||||
Freud has been making top-quality blades for many years and is considered by many to be the standard blade for cutting tools. If you are looking for a blade that cuts everything like butter then this is the one to buy. It Axial Shear Face Grind design can shear through materials for superior quality finishes on fine molding, hardwoods, softwoods and more. You don’t need to sharpen these blade more often. They can cut for a long time and still stays sharp. The higher the tooth count on the blade more precisely it cuts with accuracy & requires no special tinkering.
With its 100 teeth and fine cutting feature, this becomes our best 12-inch miter saw blade. Due to higher tooth count, saw pushes through the material smoothly and slower, in turn, vibration is minimized. It is considered as the best miter saw blade for trim and hardwood. For the price, the Freud D12100X Blade is a great deal. Its ultra-thin kerf design makes it fast and cuts effortlessly.
Due to all the amazing features, we think it as one of the best blades you that you can purchase in 2022.
Pros
Cons
Hitachi is a good choice for a miter saw blade with an extremely low price, it’s hard to beat this one for an overall blade for the price. This 10 inch blade comes from a reputable brand Hitachi. Hitachi 725206 Cuts accurately and provide smooth finishes on decorative moldings and veneer. It’s a major upgrade to the blade that comes with your saw. It’s great for moldings because of the great finish.
Sometimes while cutting, the wood can splinter around the irregular shapes. But the 72 teeth cut small pieces and give a smooth finish without splintering. It is made from Tungsten carbide especially made for miter saws. This blade has Arbor Finish which is ideal for cross-cutting ultra-fine and smooth finishes in laminates and soft and hardwood floors.
Hitachi is a well-known company, and they stand behind this blade with a 30-day warranty – and a lot can happen with a saw blade in 30 days. Although We don’t recommend this you can still opt this if looking for the cheapest option. It can be used for trim carpenters and many home users.
Pros
Cons
Again, the Makita cuts well and performed like a pro. The finish wasn’t as smooth as the more expensive blades, but leaps above the standard blades that come with your saw. Makita A-93681 is a great miter saw blade with a high tooth count of 80 and it performed well on cross cuts of various materials like Harwood, Softwood, and Plywood. This blade is made from fully hardened and expertly hand-tensioned steel to provide true cuts on rougher materials.
It doesn’t cut as fast as the blades with fewer teeth but gives a better finish. This blade is a good blend of the best performance and the best price. It has high efficiency due to its Japanese ultra-thin kerf carbide-tipped design which provides us smoother cuts with less friction on the motor.
We wouldn’t recommend it for a framing carpenter, but any homeowner or trim carpenter would be proud to have it on his / her saw. Note that this is an ultra-thin kerf blade .071” which reduced the drag, requires less horsepower and wastes less wood for the cut than standard blades.
You just have to remember it is not as stout and could bend easier if subjected to improper loads.
Pros
Cons
DEWALT DW3128P5 is ideal for only wood-cutting applications. Its ToughTrack™ tooth design delivers straight, accurate cuts. Dewalt uses a good quality Carbide, and these blades have proven over the years to last a long time. Note that these are two different blades one has 80 teeth and the other with 32 teeth. The 32-tooth blade is for rougher cuts but cuts faster. They are made to use on both corded and cordless saws.
It’s also good to note that the design of the 32 tooth blade adds a high spot after the tooth. This is a separator which holds the cut wood open to provide clearance for the cutting blade. Also, both blades are coated (in yellow of course) to make the cut easier on the saw. We loved that this pack provided versatility by providing two different blades. For a beginner, this is a huge advantage.
This Dewalt DW3128P5 is a great choice for a contractor or homeowner (with 12” saw) that wants to do a lot of rough cuts but would not be the first choice for a Cabinet Maker or Trim Carpenter. Although with the 2 pack of blades, they could be used for almost any task.
Pros
Cons
So, a little out of the norm, this INGTERCO blade provides good performance for the saws it is intended for. It can be used for a circular, table or miter saw when one is needed for ripping and crosscutting. INGTERCO is not a very popular manufacturer, user reviews are also mixed and can’t be trusted completely hence we kept this at the bottom of our list.
However, we did discover that it can work only max RPM up to 8,000. It only has four teeth (40 ATB Alternate-Top Bevel) which is the lowest in our list but remembers it’s an eight and a quarter blade diameter. Remember the number of teeth on a saw blade will determine how fast & smooth it can cut. On another side, it has a Non-Stick coating to reduce friction and protect against rust and resin build-up, which we found particularly useful.
The 8” size will limit this to a limited number of saws, however. We found this limited use quite disappointing. One note on this blade although it’s called a thin Kerf it doesn’t really fit that situation in our eyes .094” is a little wide to squeeze in the Thin Kerf description. Also, remember it’s an 8 and a quarter blade that fits a 5/8” arbor ONLY. Slightly limited uses, but fits on other saws as well perfectly.
Pros
Cons
There are a couple of features you need to keep an eye on when purchasing a miter saw blade.
The number of teeth you need matters greatly. The more the tooth count on a blade nicer the cuts you will get. Like if you are doing flooring and using framing blade of 10″ x 24 teeth then it will produce a rough cut. But if finishing blade ( 10″ x 80 teeth) you will get smoother cuts with minimal to no splinters. The lesser the number of teeth the more time it will take to cut plus more stress on the saw.
Based on the type of work you are going to do, choose a good miter saw blade with the best number of teeth for you.
Also, consider what size blade you need. Typically, the lengths available are 8 1/4”, 10”, or 12”. The most common are 10” and 12” blades. You don’t want to put the wrong size blade on the saw for any reason. It’s not safe, and it will not function properly.
The Kerf is how much material you will lose by making a cut. Blade with a thin kerf design gives you smooth & fast cutting. The wider the kerf more the material you will lose in making one cut in a piece of material. The standard kerf on a blade is usually 1/8″. If you are going to use the blade for ripping in line with the grain, you want to consider a thin kerf blade. A full kerf is 1/8″, whereas thin kerf is just 3/32.
Lower powered saws might bog down while using full kerf blade. So if you use think kerf blade it will ease the pressure on the motor and gives you smoother cuts. The downside of the thin kerf is less precision as compared to full kerf as it will deflect more when under load. So If you are using low power 110 V saw use thin kerf otherwise for 220V 3 HP power use full kerf blade.
Most saw blades are made from steel but a high quality saw blade made from an alloy known as “high-speed steel” also known as hardened steel. What material the blade is supposed to cut is also important for choosing the correct blade. Most miter saw blades will cut wood. However, if you’re looking for a miter saw blade for aluminum some of these blades will suffice. Still, be sure to always double-check the manufacturer’s recommendation before cutting anything harder than wood.
Coatings to used on these blades are made of substances such as titanium, carbide, and diamond. It makes the blade last longer and gives them a hard tooth edge which helps in cutting rougher materials. By using the coating blade becomes slicker and provides less resistance, gathers less dust and reduces friction. The blade which comes with the coating is a little costly than uncoated blades.
The durability of a miter saw blade is also vital and depends largely on the blade width. A thinner blade removes less wood, is quieter, and takes less horsepower to cut, but it is more fragile than a thicker blade. This is a huge factor on durability, so you should also take into account how often you’ll be using the blade when choosing a width.
No. You can only use the size blade that your miter saw is designed for. Attempting to use a different size blade will cause the machine to not work properly and can be downright dangerous.
The blade comes in 100, 80, 72, 32 or even 24 teeth. This depends from blade to blade. The more teeth a blade has, the smoother it will cut. However, it will also cut slower. A blade with fewer teeth will cut faster, but you might need to sand afterward.
This depends on the size of the miter saw you have. You should always use the size of the blade that your machine is designed to run with.
Yes and no. A blade with many teeth will cut smoother and slower. One with fewer teeth will cut faster, but the cuts will be rougher. It really just depends on what project you’re doing and your needs.
Freud makes great blades hence our top choice that you can purchase in 2022 is Freud D12100X 100 on which you can trust completely. And, the value for the money blade is the Makita A-93681. These are two fantastic miter saw blades, and we highly recommend them!
We hope you’ve liked our reviews of miter saw blades. If you liked this guide we’re sure you’ll also love our top 5 miter saw picks & our top 5 miter saw stand choices.
David has been a woodworker for most of his life — in his dad’s cabinet shop. After using the tools himself, he decided to share it his woodworking and power tools knowledge with DIYers. Read more about him