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    Which Toro Snow Blower Is Right for You?

    Whether you’re looking to prepare for heavy storms or just the occasional snowfall, here's how to find the right Toro model for you

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    (left to right): Power Max 824 OE, Power Max HD 928 OAE, and Power Clear 821 QZE.
    Picking the perfect Toro boils down to how heavy your snowfall is and what advanced features you desire.
    Photo: Consumer Reports

    If you’re shopping for a snow blower, chances are you’ve considered a Toro. And with good reason—the brand has been making snow blowers for decades and has cultivated a reputation as one of the market leaders. Toro makes nearly every type of snow blower, and you’ll find its products all over hardware stores and Home Depot locations. But with more than a dozen Toro models in our snow blower ratings, picking the perfect match can be a bit tricky.

    That’s why we’ve selected the best Toro models depending on the amount of snowfall in your area and the add-ons you’re looking for.

    More on Snow Removal

    In this roundup, we highlight the top-performing Toro snow blowers for common scenarios. To learn about how we test snow blowers, check out our snow blower buying guide. CR members can also see our top-rated snow blowers across all brands or sort through the almost 80 models we test according to price, speed, noise levels, and other criteria.

    Best Toro Snow Blower for Light Snowfall

    Best Toro Snow Blower for Moderate Snowfall

    Best Toro Snow Blower for Moderate Snowfall and the Occasional Big Storm

    Best Toro Snow Blower for Heavy Snowfall and Limited Storage Space

    Best Toro Snow Blower for Heavy Snowfall

    Who Should Buy a Toro Snow Blower

    With their premium prices, you can expect Toro snow blowers to offer top-tier performance and nice features, too. There’s at least one Toro near the top of our ratings for every type of snow blower. But that doesn’t mean good performance is exclusive to Toro, as you can find comparable snow blowers from brands like Honda and Husqvarna.

    With that in mind, if storms in your area routinely dump more than 16 inches of snow, a Toro may not be right for you. In this case, you’re likely better off looking at a brand like Cub Cadet or Troy-Bilt, which make the three-stage blowers you need to tackle big jobs.

    But if you don’t live in such arctic conditions, a Toro may be worth considering. While some brands might have only one or two models of each kind of snow blower, Toro has many, which means that chances are good you can find the snow blower you want, with the features important to you—along with great reliability and owner satisfaction, too.

    How to Pick the Best Toro for Your Winter Conditions

    To zero in on your best options, David Trezza, CR’s project leader who oversees our snow blower testing, suggests considering the average depth of snowfall for your area, both over a winter and in a typical storm, as well as the size of the area you’ll be tackling. “That approach ensures you can get a great machine that will handle your needs without being overkill,” he says. Follow this guide:

    • Light snowfall (up to 6 inches): The snow can be cleared with a single-stage electric snow blower.
    • Moderate snowfall (7 to 16 inches): A single-stage blower may be all you need. You might stick with gas for the occasional storm, but if they’re few and far between, you might prefer the ease of electric.
    • Heavy Snowfall (around 16 inches): A gas-powered two-stage snow blower can get the job done.

    Bear in mind that larger two-stage machines also tend to be wider, running 24 to 30 inches wide instead of 21 inches for most single-stage blowers. That can have an impact on how long it takes for you to clear out snow, especially if you have a big driveway, because a wider machine means fewer total passes. Still, typical snowfall should be your primary consideration, and it rarely makes sense to buy an oversized machine to save a few passes when clearing.


    Paul Hope

    Paul Hope is a Home & DIY Editor at Consumer Reports and a trained chef. He covers ranges, cooktops, and wall ovens, as well as grills, drills, outdoor power tools, decking, and wood stains. Before joining CR in 2016, he tested kitchen products at Good Housekeeping and covered tools and remodeling for This Old House magazine. You’ll typically find him in his old fixer-upper, engrossed in a DIY project or trying out a new recipe.